Concrete Jungle

I'm off to New York tomorrow for a day before going to the Hamptons for the long weekend. I'm pretty excited because the Hamptons have been a dream of mine for some time- for at least a decade or since whenever I began reading c-lit. 9 times out of 10 in a good NYC chick-lit book the protagonist finds her filthy rich husband there. Although I am staying with about 20 male bankers I don't think I will find my husband this weekend, but I will try to enjoy myself anyways.

However I'm going to be spending the afternoon by myself in NYC tomorrow and I am super stoked because I haven't gotten to do that in a long time. Although I have mixed feelings about actually living there, I love NYC, and there are so many neighborhoods, restaurants and stores that I want to explore that I am a bit overwhelmed. These are the options I'm currently contemplating:

Soho: classic Alex, it was my dream at 14 to move to NYC, work at a fashion magazine and have a loft in Soho. Not much has changed, except I now realize you can't afford a loft in Soho on a fashion assistant's salary. And that lofts aren't that practical BECAUSE THERE ARE NO WALLS. Minor details. In Soho I can shop a lot, and hit my absolute favorites like Top Shop, Satya Jewelry, LF, and eat in Nolita at Cafe Gitane or at Spring Street Natural. Plus then I can stock up on awesome school supplies at Muji. However, I'm moving to London soon enough and I should probably keep the shopping on the DL, and seeing all the models run around and combating the summer tourists is a little depressing.


Brooklyn: I have never properly explored Brooklyn and this is tragic. Where would I go? Probably Williamsburg to look at hipsters so hipster-y I'm kind of scared of them. Maybe I could eat pizza at that place people love. I'm sure I could find a vintage store.

Lower East Side: This is my favorite neighborhood because it has everything I love about New York: good food, good shopping, Jews, immigrants, and hipsters. Especially hipsters. I can go to Moby's vegan cafe Teany! Although actually the food tastes kind of....vegan. I can go to my favorite sugar free vegan bakery, Babycakes, which is actually the most delicious place ever. I've also really wanted to try Momofuku's Milk Bar and Lula's Sweet Apothecary, both of which are more East Village and combined might give me a sugar heart attack, but close enough. I am positive I could find some awesome hipster oxfords and knee socks which I have been looking for, and soak up everything I've been missing. I will most likely end up here unless I get really creative.


Dear four followers- anything I'm missing? Recs?