Concerts | Fa(shion).Fi(lm).Fo(od).tography

Times Square billboards

Why, crowdsource some ideas from the writers and readers of the blogosphere, of course!

New York City is one of my absolute favourite places to visit. The first time I went there was as a child on a bus tour with my parents. Since then I’ve been four more times – all have been memorable, but the best might just have been the week I spent there after freshman year of university with my friend Ashley. I’d never been on a trip without my family prior to that and the two of us had an absolute blast. We walked 60 blocks a day weaving our way all over the city and we never ran out of things to do. That’s the best thing about NYC. It literally never sleeps and there’s always something going on.

Midtown Manhattan at 5:00am in the morning. Fog is still lifting!

This coming winter will mark my sixth venture to New York and this time around I’ll be joined by one of my girlfriends. It’s going to make it a half dozen visits for me, but a first for my friend Kendra. I want her to love it as much as I do, which really isn’t difficult.

We already have quite the ‘To Do’ list:

1) See P!nk in concert (this spurred the whole trip when we couldn’t get tickets to her show at home)

2) Go to an NBA game

3) Pretty much all the tourist attractions (Statue of Liberty – hopefully the statue is reopened by then, Empire State Building, Times Square, etc.)

4) See a Broadway (or Off-Broadway) show – we’re not picky

5) Play Accomplice (NYC mystery play/scavenger hunt)

5) Eat!!

A visit to Norma’s for the Waz-za Waffle is a must in my book!

6) Shop – outlets here we come! SoHo, too!

7) See the lighting of the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center – Dec. 4th!

8) Museums – I can literally spend a full day at MoMA

Does the naked cowboy still come out in winter?

So what am I hoping to learn from my fellow bloggers and readers? I’m sure many of you either live in NYC or have visited before. Everyone has a different and unique experience of the cities they go to.

What are your favourite memories of NYC? What’s something that someone who’s been there several times and someone who’s never been will both love? Anything that you think is overhyped and not worth the money to see? Neighbourhoods that are a must to go to? Restaurants that will satisfy our foodie palates without costing an arm and a leg?

One of the downfalls of the city is that, yes, you can do a ton in just a weekend, but, no, you won’t manage everything. No matter how hard you try you will need to make a trip back in the future and that’s A-OK.

Your suggestions are appreciated and we will make every effort to do as many of them as possible.

As always, thanks!

Well, it’s been awhile since I’ve done a photostream post. My last was after my trip to Toronto in June/July 2012. This time I’m sharing pictures of my travels to London (in the UK, not Ontario).

I tried to do it all and for the most part I think I succeeded in seeing as many of the sites, eating the food, visiting the galleries and museums, tube and double decker bus riding, walking, shopping and show watching as I possibly could have in just 8 days.

I stayed in the Hammersmith district at the Best Western Plus Seraphine Hammersmith, which was excellent. Their staff was quite friendly and helpful (contrary to reviews we read prior to leaving on our trip). And, though the room was small for three people, it wasn’t actually any worse than others I’ve stayed at. The bathroom, thank goodness, was normal sized and the double bed more than accommodated two people. If you’re thinking of European standards, this exceeds it byfar.

Other than that, we mostly stayed within zones 1 & 2, making good use of our unlimited weekly transit pass. We took in Trafalgar Square, went to the Victoria and Albert Museum, saw a performance of The Woman in Black, now in its 24th year at the Fortune theatre in the West End, had high tea at Fortnum and Mason, shopped at Primark (fabulous clothes for affordable prices – their limited edition collection is amazing) and ate at the pubs as well as the ever-popular Pret A Manger, among many more things.

However, the best part of the trip for me was seeing singing group, Girls Aloud, at the O2 arena on their 10 year anniversary tour (please stay together!). I actually cried a little. It was like seeing the Spice Girls in Las Vegas in 2007 on their reunion tour or seeing Kylie Minogue live. Like the previous concerts, I never expected to see them in front of my very eyes. Yet, I decided to take this trip just for them. I’m so glad I did. Not only was the show amazing, but the whole experience was much better than what I recall of my last trip to London.

While this is not my whole collection of photos (I won’t bore you with the over 1000 I took during my time there), these are my favourite ones. I took the time to Instagram them when I got home. I find them a little more pleasing this way. At least until I have a chance to edit the other 900+.

I hope you enjoy perusing the images. Maybe they’ll spark a memory of your own trip to that vibrant, historical city. Or perhaps they’ll inspire you to visit one day. And, if you like, please take a moment to share with me your recollections of London or what you wish to see when you’re there in the future.

Follow me on Instagram @crystalcarwin

Victoria and Albert Museum

Victoria and Albert Museum courtyard

Display at the Victoria and Albert Museum

Glass sculpture and clock in the atrium of the Victoria and Albert Museum

Tube entrance by the Natural History Museum

The Natural History Museum

People taking a photo of their toy cat in front of the Natural History Museum

Jamie Oliver’s Recipease in Notting Hill

Display in front of store in Notting Hill

Crosswalk in Notting Hill

Portobello Road

Antique shop display along Portobello Road

Alice’s, an antique shop along Portobello Road

Yellow bicycle resting against a store front on Portobello Road

Display outside a store along Portobello Road

Cash machine and bicycle in Notting Hill

Piccadilly Market

Bicycle parking inside the courtyard of the Royal Academy of Arts

My tube map and oyster card

Telephone booth

The entrance to a shopping arcade along Piccadilly

Perfume jars inside Fortnum and Mason

The central staircase in Fortnum and Mason

High Tea at Fortnum and Mason’s Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon

High tea at Fortnum and Mason

Scones with clotted cream, lemon curd and raspberry jam at Fortnum and Mason

National Gallery

Inside Trafalgar Square

Double decker buses around Trafalgar Square

Somerset House

View of the Waterloo Bridge and London Eye from Somerset House

Girl riding her bike along the Waterloo Bridge

London sightseeing bus going along the Waterloo Bridge

View from the Waterloo Bridge

Entrance to the courtyard of Somerset House

Coming off from the Waterloo Bridge

Fleet Street

Film lights at the London Film Museum

Covent Garden market

St. Paul’s Cathedral

Police standing by during a protest in front of St. Paul’s Cathedral

View of St. Paul’s Cathedral from One New Change mall

View across the street from the gherkin building

View of Tower Bridge while standing on the London Bridge

View of St. Paul’s from the grounds of the Tate Modern

The Millennium Bridge leading from Tate Modern to St. Paul’s Cathedral

The London Eye

Bubble maker near the London Eye

Instant photographs and popcorn nearby the London Eye

A carousel along the banks of the River Thames

View of the Westminster Bridge from the banks of the River Thames

View of the London Eye from Westminster Bridge

Statue in Trafalgar Square

Statue in the centre of the grounds at Buckingham Palace

Changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace

Overlooking the lake in Green Park

Pelicans in the lake at Green Park

View of Victoria Palace through the construction fence at Victoria Station

Westminster Cathedral

Big Ben and the London Eye

Big Ben as seen through the fence surrounding the Houses of Parliment

Street art along Whitehall

This little girl screamed when her dad took her up to the horses for a picture in front of the Horse Guards building

Girls Aloud concert on March 3rd – their last night out of three performing at the O2 arena

Girls Aloud channeling their inner Victoria’s Secret angels for their show

The British Museum

Brasserie Blanc, a restaurant in Covent Garden

Blood orange posset from Brasserie Blanc sitting over a map of central London

Cool Britannia, a souvenir shop

Street style – studded t-shirt, fur scarf, Prada bag, tights, Doc Martens, minimal makeup except for the red lips, which were also paired with a leather jacket and skirt