What I Do with 24 Hours in NYC

New York City is one of my favorite places in the world (that I've been) to visit! The energy and people there make it so unique, and there is always something to do. Recently, I had the chance to visit NYC again for another 24 hours with two of my best friends who both had never been! We had the best adventure!!

Here is how the schedule worked for me and my friends:

4:30AM - Arrive at the airport (sleep-deprived and delirious!)

6:30AM - Flight to Newark, New Jersey

We chose to fly into Newark because of the price, simple as that. I've never actually flown into NYC directly. It just seems like a hassle and a mess to me, so Newark, it is!

9:00AM - Arrive in Newark and work our way to our next form of transportation--trains!

Newark Liberty International Airport has an in-airport train that can shuttle you from terminal to terminal and ends up at the station where you can get into the city. We purchased tickets right in the airport for Penn Station. I certainly recommend it since it was easy and pretty quick! Better than an Uber, at least.

10:30AM - Check-in to our hotel

This took a little longer than necessary because I got turned around walking (my bad!). It was a great way to see the city. Tessa and Sydney were in awe of the huge buildings, Times Square, the people, and everything! It was so fun seeing them experience this insane place.

11:00AM - Lunch and time with another friend!

My good friend from middle/high school now lives in NYC. She found out I was coming to the city for the day and asked to meet up. I cannot tell you how much it meant to me to see her and grab pizza (we're in NYC, how can we not?!). It was so fun and a wonderful way to start the fun!

12:30PM - Take the subway downtown to the 9/11 Memorial

I really thought I had been to the 9/11 Memorial before, but I realized I hadn't! After lunch, we traveled by subway down to the site, and wow, was it humbling. I didn't expect to cry, but it's just so wild to think about how different all our lives became after the events that happened there. The victims' names are carved into the large structure of turns into a really interesting fountain. Every year on their birthdays, a white flower is placed on their name. I am so glad we got to experience the memorial.

After we took some time at the memorial, we wandered around the area, checking out the World Trade Center and some murals next door. The fun part about a city like New York is that you can truly just wander and find new and interesting things to do.

For instance, just down the block from the World Trade Center is St. Paul's Chapel. It is the oldest public building in continuous use in the city! It was opened in 1766.

When we entered the chapel, we were shocked to learn that during the attacks on 9/11, only one glass window was shattered here. As close as it was to the site, that is crazy! Plus, the chapel was used by first responders during 9/11 seeking rest during the long areas that followed the attacks. They have a specific area in the church dedicated to that day and everything that happened. If you happen to be in the area, I recommend visiting. It's free and super interesting!

2:30PM - Travel by subway back up to Central Park

As Sydney and Tessa had never been, they needed to experience Central Park during their first visit. We walked through a large chunk of the park on our way to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, seeing dogs, statues, and lots of pretty views.

3:30PM - Arrive at the Met

We had to take some stereotypical pictures on the Met steps because Gossip Girl. xoxo.

Also, it was around this time that I purchased a hot dog from a street stand and WOW, did it live up to the hype. Yes, please!

4:00PM - Get lost on the subway

Around this time, we needed to get back to the hotel to get ready for the show we were seeing that night. Since we were pretty far from Time Square, I decided it would be good for us to take the subway... My tourist really showed because we got completely lost and went 20 minutes in the wrong direction, ending up in some random suburban part of the city. Thankfully, we were able to figure it out and get back on track, haha. Hey, it's part of the experience, right?!

6:00PM - Time for dinner!

Sydney found this amazing Asian restaurant to try and boy, are we glad we did. It was Kung Fu Little Steamed Buns Ramen on 8th Avenue and it was worth the wait. We enjoyed ramen with housemade noodles (we could see them making them!), soup dumplings, and bao buns. So good!

7:30PM - Head to the theater for show time

The theater? The Music Box. The show? Dear Evan Hansen. The star? Jordan Fisher. He was the reason we traveled to NYC, and it was finally time to see him! This being my third time seeing this show, I was nervous to see someone so bubbly and fun playing Evan. But Jordan absolutely killed it, and if you have the chance, please, please go see him. I loved it so much, and I especially enjoyed experiencing my friends' first Broadway show with them!

11:30PM - Walking around and time for bed

After the show, we spent some time waiting to see if any of the actors would come out of the stage door. After a few, we walked around Times Square before heading back to the hotel. We were dead tired, but so grateful for a fun day.

6:00AM - The journey starts again

We woke up extra early to catch a train back to the airport to fly home to Orlando. Our flight was overbooked, but luckily we were all able to get a seat on the plane.

All in all, this trip was so fun! We did all the things I love about NYC--history, food, and shows. What is your favorite NYC memory?