Tag: New York

Cape May Lighthouse: Day Trip to New Jersey

The Cape May Lighthouse is the third documented lighthouse at the southern tip of New Jersey. It has been an aid-to-navigation for mariners and attraction for visitors since it was built in 1859! More than 2.5 million visitors have climbed the lighthouse since it opened to the public in 1988. For those who choose not…

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Beyond Sushi: Vegan in New York City

Sushi was the one thing preventing me from going fully vegan when I first decided to change my eating habits. Like many people, I was just obsessed with raw fish. I would literally dream of eating salmon nigiri. One of the best culinary moments of my life involved eating raw fish in Ginza, Japan. Does…

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Broadway Roulette: Review

I discovered Broadway Roulette just over a month ago. Even though I lived in New York City for almost a year, I didn’t get to see a show because of the price. I wish I had known about it when I didn’t live a four hour drive away. Broadway Roulette allowed me to see Chicago…

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Dogs in a Hotel: Our Experience with Smiblo

Last weekend our rescue pit-mixes Smiley and Pablo (Smiblo) had their first experience staying at a hotel. I love our boys but I hate how much they limit us from traveling, so I wanted to give it a go. I am not going to lie, having dogs in a hotel was stressful but worth it…

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LuminoCity Festival: Is It Worth It for Adults?

LuminoCity was a light festival that opened it’s doors on November 23rd. It was open for just 29 days during this holiday season. I saw the ads on Facebook and bought tickets for the last day of the event on January 5th. Now that I live in Rhode Island, this also meant 7 hours driving…

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Veselka – Best Ukrainian Restaurant in NYC

Moving to Rhode Island was a great choice for my family. However, one of the things that I really miss about New York City is Veselka. It probably sounds familiar to you because it is quite famous and is mentioned in the TV show Gossip Girl. ‘Veselka’ means rainbow in Ukrainian. At the prices they…

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Smiley the Beach Dog: Rockaway Beach NYC (YouTube)

Rockaway Beach is a great place to take your family, including your fur babies! You can only bring dogs here during the off season but it’s so worth it! Check out this happy boy on the beach for the very first time.

Second Hand Shopping & Dumpster (Curb) Diving in NYC

Second hand shopping has been a passion of mine for a while now for two reasons. First, there’s the positive environmental impact of reusing an item that would have ended up in the landfill and negating the negative impact of production costs for a new item – especially if it’s clothing or furniture. Secondly, there…

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$2.75 Ferry in New York City

There are many fancy cruises you can take in NYC! You can also just take a one hour ferry ride for just $2.75. Check it out:

The New York Mycological Society

There are strict rules about foraging anything in state parks and city parks. The laws aren’t clear at all, so it’s always best to ask someone more experienced. Whenever we go picking mushrooms, we bring a towel/picnic blanket to drape over the basket just in case.

Free Coffee in NYC: Pret A Manger

In case you were wondering, yes, they do have pumpkin spice lattes that can be vegan or not! There’s nothing basic about enjoying some pumpkin spice in the fall time! *glares at haters*

Chinese New Year Parade in Manhattan, NYC

The highlight of the day for me was two dogs, a husky and a golden retriever dressed in traditional golden Chinese lion uniforms. Just like the ones that are worn for the lion dance!

Drizly Review: Alcohol Deliveries within the Hour

We placed the order and then we waited… but not for long. Within a minute the order was processed, boxed and out for delivery! Only half an hour later we got a phone call that the wine was here. We just had to show some ID proving we were over 21 (which we unfortunately are) and the wine was ours! 

PetBuddy Services in Bushwick, Brooklyn

Starting November 12th, they finally completed their move from Wilson Avenue to 54 Noll Street, Brooklyn. Their new location offers a rooftop playground, pet grooming (through their new partner Pet Wash N’Go and they will be selling organic dog products. Their prices are going up a little with the new facilities, so now cage-less boarding will be $59.99 for 24 hours and $40 for daycare including transportation.

Brooklyn Bow Wow – Doggy Services

– $16 for a 30 minute social walk
– $25 for day care under 6 hours
– $35 for day care over 6 hours
– $45-60 for boarding depending on the length

Bridge and Tunnel Brewery: Dog-Friendly Queens Bar

The Bridge and Tunnel Brewery is an amazing dog-friendly bar right on the border of Ridgewood, Queens and Bushwick, Brooklyn. The delicious draft beers cost $5, dogs are welcome and the staff is incredible!

Buying Carnivorous Plants in NYC

Amazon was an obvious option but the plants there were expensive and didn’t always have the best reviews. Plus ordering a plant online is risky in case it’s not handled correctly. Does any package deliverer look at “fragile” or “this way up signs”? Not in my experience…

Nowadays: Pet-Friendly Bar

Their already great beer prices are even more exciting during their 2-for-1 happy hour which runs from 5pm to 8pm on Thursdays and Fridays. It only works for select beers, but where else in NYC can you get a draft beer for $3? 

Happy Halloween: Smiley’s Dog Costumes!

Our first event came up unexpectedly, the Bridge and Tunnel Brewery was just a five minute walk from our apartment but we had no costume! I quickly cut out an avocado out of Dollar Tree cardboard paper and it was a success! Smiley won some toys and we got a growler for our fun last-minute costume. 

We’re Fostering a Dog Saved from the Kill Shelter!

Smiley was pulled from the NYACC by Pound Hounds Res-Q. We are considering adopting him ourselves because he’s such a good boy. The Dodo wrote about him a week ago with the hopes that his story will inspire others to adopt, foster and rescue dogs in need!

Giant Puffball: Easy to Identify Mushroom in NYC

Puffballs of all sizes grow in the forest, alongside roads, in the middle of a green grassy lawn, they can really grow anywhere! You can stir fry them, cook them in the oven and my absolute favorite, is pretending they are pancakes!

Hen of the Woods (Maitake): Easy to Identify Mushroom in NYC

I find these mushrooms the most rewarding to pick, because even a small one is enough as a side dish to any meal and the bigger ones can feed an entire family! Every time I’ve looked for hens, I found at least one and usually had 2-4 kilos (4-9 pounds) in just 30 minutes of searching. Of course, you can also find a single mushroom that weighs 13+ kilos (30+ pounds).

Mushroom Picking in New York City

So many people are curious about picking and cooking mushrooms but fear holds them back. It is never risk-free to eat wild mushrooms, but there are certain kinds that are extremely easy to identify. There are also books, Facebook groups and other recourses that can help you. Never eat anything that you’re not sure about or something that has a poisonous look-a-like.

New York Subway vs. Shanghai Metro

In the last few years I have travelled to some of the busiest countries in the world and visited the most used metros. Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai and New York are amongst the most heavily trafficked in the world. It was fascinating experiencing all of them and comparing how efficient they were.

Go Green in NYC with Green Mountain Energy

According to Green Mountain Energy, their customers have avoided using over 69 billion pounds of CO2 which is the equivalent of planting over 8 million trees. You can see the climbing numbers on their website. By the time you check it out for yourself, it’ll be over 70 billion and we can only hope that it keeps climbing!

Best Vegan Food in China Town, NYC: Bodhi Kosher

On our way in I saw sashimi in the display window and I was disappointed that we weren’t in an all-vegan restaurant. It turned out that the sashimi was vegan too! Another customer who had lived in New York her whole life told us that it was her favorite place in the city.

Cheap Ferries with Great Views of New York

Depending on the time and day of the week, it can be faster to take the ferry than the subway to get from lower Manhattan to Brooklyn. After a day of exploring New York a few weeks ago, we did just that. We managed to get on the last boat of the day and made it to Dumbo in less than five minutes. From there, we got to enjoy a beautiful view of the city…

Visiting the 9/11 Memorial: New York, 2018

Despite feeling a pang of sadness every year when the anniversary comes around, the magnitude of the catastrophe never really resonated with me… until I visited the 9/11 Memorial and Museum on September 1st as part of my New York Sightseeing Pass. I did not expect to be as moved as I was by the display of videos, artifacts and photographs of all of the victims and the towers.

The Best View of New York City: One World Trade Center

One World Trade offers a unique view of New York’s spectacular waterfront. While you can see both the Hudson and East rivers in the distance from Top of the Rock, One World is right on the water. You can both rivers clearly merging into the Upper Bay and watch the sunset over New Jersey…

Rainbow Bagels: They Look like a Unicorn, Taste Like 💩

The bagel was sugary yet flavorless, the beautiful twirls of colors wasted on what tasted far from the rainbow I expected. I had to scrape the cream cheese onto a regular piece of bread to get the grossly bland flavor out of my mouth…

New to New York: First Impressions

So our first impressions are: New York is awesome! It’s overwhelmingly huge and the atmosphere, in Manhattan especially, is boisterous and pregnant with possibilities that make you want to follow your dreams and shoot for the moon! The people have been friendly, chatty and very welcoming. It’s so diverse and international that no one bats an eyelash about a Ukrainian-born Czech moving here from China…

When to Visit the Top of the Rock Observatory

I have been to the Top of the Rock Observatory three times now. The first time I went was in February 2014. I don’t remember the day of the week but I know it was about an hour before it closed at 11 PM and it wasn’t too crowded. It was my first time in New York and I thoroughly enjoyed the view of endless lights made only more magical by a sprinkle of snow on the freezing night that I was grossly underdressed for…

5-Day New York City Guide 2018 (Guest Post)

If this is your first time in NYC, you know why you’re here: you want to see Times Square. Sure, go see it. Everyone should see it once in their lifetime (and only once). Do some touristy stuff on Day 1. Day 2: West Side, Day 3: Central Park, Day 4: East Side and Day 5: Downtown.

New York City Explorer Pass vs. Sightseeing Pass

Quick facts about both passes:
– They both offer free entry to over 80 attractions (though some are already free anyway)
– They both offer to pay by the day or pay by attraction packages
– The included attractions are quite similar for both passes
– They both exaggerate how much each attraction costs when bought separately

The New York Explorer Pass Saved Me $100 – 2018

The New York Explorer Pass did, in fact, save me $100, this isn’t just click bait. But it could have saved me even more! Or nothing at all… The New York Explorer Pass is the way to go if you want to use it to do some expensive tours and sightseeing, however, it can also lose you money if you only use it for the cheaper options.

10 Signs That You Travel Too Much

This year I’ve been lucky enough to travel. A lot. I spent New Year’s Eve in Seoul during a long layover after visiting the USA already anticipating my trip to the Philippines and Indonesia for Chinese New Year. Between working full time and working on my blog and YouTube channel, I was excited to have…

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