New York City, NY USA: ChichiChic Top 10 Highlights

New York, nick named the City that never sleeps, concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there’s nothing you can’t do… . New York City is the most populous city in the United States. In 2016, according to Wikipedia, it hosted a record 61 million tourists. According to Travel and Leisure magazine, New York is home to three of the top 10 most visited tourist attractions in the world (#3 Time Square, #4 Central Park, and #10 Grand Central Terminal).

I have made countless journeys to New York City in my 22 years in the United States. For this trip, my husband and I came to New York for a mini-getaway (sans kids) and to attend the wedding of a family friend (my best friend’s sister’s wedding).

So here they are the top 10 highlights of my trip to New York City, New York.

Rest and Relaxation: Times can get so hectic—especially for a woman like me who is a wife, mother, physician, sister, daughter, friend, blogger…blah blah blah! I always have so many balls that I am juggling in the air at any given time but I don’t like life to feel like a circus (loud, raucous, and over-stimulating). So, I make it a point to just stop—once in a while just create time in my schedule to be unscheduled. Looking forward to such times motivates me while I work prior to the trip and having enjoyed my R&R rejuvenates me for the work ahead. On this trip, I lounged in my Kate Spade, NY pajamas quite a bit—Kate Spade makes such beautiful pajamas and night robes that make you feel like a Park Avenue Princess. They are comfortable yet stylish, affordable yet luxurious. Click here to check out Kate Spade, NY Sleep Wear.
Kate Spade NY Pajamas
The Oculus and World Trade Center Shopping Mall: The Oculus is a 4 billion dollar structure that serves as a connection between New Jersey PATH trains and the New York City Subway. Santiago Calatrava’s bird-in-flight design is magnificent to behold—it is just so awe inspiring. The inside of the Oculus is reminiscent of the Grand Central Terminal balconies. The center of the Oculus is the Westfield Mall at the World Trade Center which has roughly 365000 square feet of retail space. When it opened in August 2016, there were 60 stores—there are even more now. It is quite a sight to behold.
The Oculus

Inside the Oculus: Westfield Mall World Trade Center
Zara NY: Zara is no doubt one of the most successful retail giants out there now. Zara’s magic lies in its ability to deliver (in rapid-cycle manner) on-trend affordable fashion that keeps its (mainly) millennial fan base satiated from one fashion season to the next. Zara offers up quality high street dupes that keep fashionistas of every ilk coming back for more and more. It was a fun experience for me. Click here to check out Zara’s US website.
Trying stuff on in Zara’s Fitting Room
Laduree So Ho NYC: The New York location combines retail bakery, tea room, and full-service restaurant overseen by Chef Johann Giraud. The display of pastries is magical, the décor whimsical—it is as if you have been transported into a quaint Parisian parlour and when you step out of its doors, you are back in the heart of NYC. The service was fantastic—our food, beverages and pastries lived up to the high expectations. This was such a fabulous date night for me and hubs. Click here for their website. 398 West Broadway 10012, NY 646-392-7868.
“Vol au Vent” de Volaille aux Champignons Sauvages: Organic Chicken Breast with wild Mushrooms (before and after)

Saint Honoré Rose Framboise Puff pastry, choux pastry, light rose petal cream, raspberry compote, fresh raspberries and rose water whipped cream

Warm French Toast dessert
Four Seasons New York Downtown: This hotel is perched at the crossroads of Tribeca and the Financial District—a mere one block from the One World Trade Center. A luxury hotel that has NYC’s vitality and glamour etched in all of its surfaces. In 24 floors and 189 guest rooms, we somehow felt at home in there—this is what makes Four Seasons’ service so exceptional.
Breakfast the Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown

Our view from the 23rd Floor

Me @ the Four Seasons NY Downtown Grand Staircase
St Malachy’s Roman Catholic Church—The Actor’s Chapel: This is a parish church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Manhattan on West 49th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. The parish has served the theatre community in a special way since 1920 when the Theater District started to move uptown into this area, and actors, dancers, and musicians became prominent worshipers at the church, replacing the traditional, and working class congregants. To answer their needs, the pastor, Monsignor Edward F. Leonard, had the Chapel of St. Genesius, the patron saint of actors – commonly called the “Actors’ Chapel” – constructed below the main church in 1920. St. Malachy soon became a primary place of worship for the entertainment community. It gained worldwide attention when the church was the setting for the funeral of Rudolph Valentino, as well as of the wedding of Douglas Fairbanks Jr. to Joan Crawford. Parishioners included Bob Hope and Gregory Peck and many other celebrities. The Church’s Chimes would pay “There’s no business like show business.”
St Malachy’s Church–The Actor’s Chapel
Fun with close friends: My friend Kelechi is one of the best human beings on earth and I got to meet up with her and her family to celebrate the marriage of her sister. It was such a wonderful NY-style affair.
The Wedding Band played the most amazing rendition of Obvious Child (Paul Simon)
Morgenstern’s Ice Cream: My husband is a lover of Ice Cream—it is pretty much his only guilty pleasure. So, we had to check out Morgenstern’s. Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream is a new American ice cream parlor focused on serving texture-driven small-batch ice creams with a renewed attention to flavor and palate. Owner and founder Nicholas Morgenstern develops each recipe specifically for each individual flavor—no additives or processed stabilizing. This is no ordinary ice cream. I had the smooth and delicious strawberry and the black coconut ash. Click here for more details and the menu.2 Rivington Street 10002, NY (212) 209-7684.
Two Scoops: Smooth Strawberry and Black Coconut Ash
Clinton Street Baking Company & Restaurant: Dubbed New York’s #1 Breakfast Spot (Lonely Planet) and Best Pancakes (New York Magazine). These people do American Classics and epic comfort foods made with the best ingredients. Our meals were worth the 1 hour wait (they take no reservations). There was a terrible rain storm the day of our Sunday Brunch and the wait was still a solid 1 hour—impressive! If you use the no-wait app you can get in line from home and arrive just as your table is ready, VIP style. Click here to check out the menu. 4 Clinton Street, 10022, NY (646) 602-6263
Rainy day did not stop us (or other customers)

The Num-Nums: Chicken and Waffle, Buttermilk Biscuit with raspberry preserve, Fries
9/11 Memorial and the Survivor Tree: Occupying 8 of the 16 acres at the World Trade Center, the 9/11 Memorial and Museum pays tributes to the past and presents hope for the future. This is an awe-inspiring site that will move you. Set in each footprint of the original twin towers are 1 acre size pools that bear the names of each person that perished in the terror attacks of February 26, 1993 and September 11, 2001. The Survivor Tree is a Pear tree that was rescued by some recovery workers and taken to a nursery in the Bronx where it was tended to. It was replanted in December 2010 at the 9/11 Memorial. Two days after we left NYC, a man drove a flatbed truck onto a busy bike path in Manhattan, killing 8 and injuring nearly a dozen people near the World Trade Center (just where my husband and I had been). The 9/11 Memorial and the Survivor Tree remind me of New York’s consistent ability to absorb all the ugliness terrorism and hate seem to like to throw at it and then offer the world, instead, sophistication, glamour, sanctuary, innovation, renaissance, as well as several reasons to stay awake and to keep coming back.
9/11 Memorial/Museaum

North Tower Remembrance Pool

The Survivor Tree

So what do you think about my New York trip highlights? I would love to hear your thoughts and any recommendations you have for my future NY trips, so please leave your comments in the section below.