I’ve been back home from my whirlwind trip to New York for less than a week and I’m already counting down the days until I can go back. The trip was honestly packed so full of awesome I didn’t want it to end! (Not that I ever do!) From beginning to end, it was pretty much the perfect weekend, so please indulge me while I share the highlights.
Even though I vowed to spend as little time at the airport(s) as possible, I ended up getting to LAX super early because I am always paranoid about missing my flights (not that that has ever happened to me even once). But it turned out to not be such a bad thing because I was flying in business class, which meant I had access to the fancy lounge while I waited. I am so not fancy enough for the fancy lounge (or business class for that matter), but it was heaven. I had some wine and a cookie and I read my book and relaxed in a much smaller crowd than what was at the terminal, which these days, is always a good thing. And then there was the plane itself. Guys, I had a bed! Like I fully reclined! I actually slept on the plane! It was amazing and I will never take a redeye flight not business class again (my bank account begs to differ).
I somehow managed to nail my timing and I arrived in the city around 1:00, which meant my room was actually available. I stayed at the Park Central, which is on the outskirts of the theater district and close to Central Park (hence the name). As with most hotels I’ve stayed in in New York, the room was fine, the location was great (though I have to say, this was a good sized room, all things considered).
By the time I checked in, disinfected my room, and scrubbed the plane/airport off me, I was starving and feeling sleepy, so I headed next door to this adorable cafe called Tisserie where I had a delicious sandwich, and despite telling myself I wasn’t going to, I dove into my Pitch Wars submissions (which we got access to on the first day of my trip, because of course). I will say, I was having so much fun reading through submissions, it didn’t even feel like work and also I was in New York so who cared?!?!?!?
One of the first things I did when I arrived in the city was secure my ticket to Six. It was the one show I really wanted to see (and basically the only thing on Broadway I hadn’t already seen–never thought I would say that!). There are not enough words to express how AMAZING it felt to be back in a Broadway theater. I teared up multiple times just due to the sheer joy of seeing a live show again. It was a magical experience and the show was phenomenal.
Saturday was my only full day in the city, and I spent it in Brooklyn. Lease on Love is mostly set in Brooklyn and so I wanted to hit up as many of the spots my characters visit as I could. I also did a lot of shopping (shocker), and even though this is not one of the places visited in the book, I had to go to Books Are Magic, because books ARE magic and also check out this fabulous mural! (I’ll be sharing more of the pics I took when it gets closer to release date!)
Coming as zero surprise to anyone who knows me, I automatically fell in love with Park Slope, and Brooklyn in general, and when I finally convince Matt to move to New York, this is where we will live. Brooklyn is the LA of New York and it was most definitely my vibe. Also, look at my pretty fake book!
Saturday night I saw my first ever off Broadway show! I wanted to check out Little Shop of Horrors mostly because Jeremy Jordan was the lead and I love him so much. It was fun and campy and I loved being ten feet away from one of my favorite performers.
On Sunday, I got to meet my fabulous editor Gaby in person, which was amazing. We had a delicious brunch, after which I walked around the park for a while before heading back to my hotel to pack up and head home. My flight home was not business class (boo), but still was probably one of the better flights I’ve been on. It was basically a perfect weekend, and though I always love coming home, I could have easily spent another week in New York (aka my home away from home). Literally counting down the days until I can go back!
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