nyc, day 0.5 (june 17, 2012)

[note: I didn't originally include this day but have since realized it provides another restaurant req as well as an opportunity to introduce the trip. So I am back-posting it to appear before the day one post]

[ Travel Info, Hotel Info ]

We flew into Newark airport (from Edmonton) on June 17th and landed mid-afternoon after a full day of travel (including a layover in the Twin Cities). We used the GoLink Airport Shuttle and we drove in a van through New Jersey for about two hours before we arrived at our hotel in Manhattan. It was a long drive, but I've heard that taking the subways from Newark takes about the same length of time. This way, we didn't have to lug our luggage and we were dropped off right in front of the hotel. Plus, because it was booked in advance we didn't have to worry about tickets or anything, and the counter was pretty easy to find from the departures gate. So, I would recommend it.

Our hotel/hostel (I know I use it interchangeably, and yes, I do know the difference. The place we stayed was both) was the Chelsea Highline. I feel like we got what we paid for. It was the cheapest we could find and was a bit of a walk from the closest subway station, but the location itself was pretty nice (not sketchy at all) and while it got quite hot in the rooms (no air conditioning) they were clean and the windows opened. The bathroom was down the hall and while it was sometimes a wait to use it, it never got to be a huge deal and was always some level of clean (one time it was flooded but that was the fault of the guy before me who took a 45 minute shower). Breakfast was included and varied between bagels and muffins. Nothing awe-inspiring, but free. Also, free wifi.

Anyways, after dropping off our bags we set out to wander a little and eat. We saw the flatiron building and tried to visit a cocktail bar in the area. We did find the bar, and while it was nice, we opted to leave and find somewhere with more of a food menu.

After A LOT of wandering, we re-found (I saw it on the way to the flatiron but obviously didn't really pay attention to streets or anything yet) New York Burger Co. Oh my gosh was that a good burger. Comparable only maybe to Shake Shack (but they were good in such different ways...). I highly recommend it. You got to pick what you wanted your burger cooked to (medium to medium-well is apparently standard) and there were a bunch of different delicious toppings. But the real treat was the sauces for the fries. Not only ketchup, no! There was mayo sauce, pesto sauce, different spicy sauces, everything. Soooo good. Oh and it was HUGE.

After eating, it was pretty dark and we walked back to our hostel. On the way we saw our first NYC sunset and it was magic. Pure magic.