10 things I learned in NYC

I'm back!! and alive! with sore feet, less money, and tons of amazing memories. here's what we learned:

"our" station

1. NYC is not as dangerous as people make you believe. granted, we stayed in midtown Manhattan, but by the way people talked, i was 100% convinced one of us was getting mugged/pickpocketed. really though, we rode the subway and walked around at night and i never felt unsafe. 

2. the food is delicious. i'm probably gonna do a post solely about this later.

3. the people aren't rude. assertive? yes. if you had to cross the street 24 times to get to work, you would be too. but rude? no.

4. the # of Starbucks in the city is simply outrageous. especially considering you can get great coffee and a bagel for 2.25 from a street vendor.

5. speaking of which, bagel carts are the best thing ever. especially when they remember your order by the 3rd day, making you feel like a real new yorker.

breakfast!!!

6. this part was really sad, but riding the A train through  Brooklyn/dowtown to Manhattan you see every racial and economic stereotype on the spectrum.  I could tell when we had reached our district, simply by looking at the other people on the train.

7. don't let the deceiving signs at The Met deceive you! admission IS by donation, and a 25 dollar suggested donation is absurd.

the met

8.  rent on the Upper East Side is around $3500 a month!!! How do Chuck & Blair afford it?!?! (XOXO. gossip girl)       

9. stores are outlandishly huge. finding a bathroom in a 5 story Bloomingdale's is dang near impossible.

10.  i didn't hate it! I mean, obviously, I knew it was going to be fun, but I was surprised how fond I got of the big apple, considering that I previously thought of Raleigh as a "big city".