It’s hard to believe, but this year marks our fourth family trip to New York City to celebrate the May Long Weekend. In case anyone is wondering, this is a guest blog. I say ‘guest’ because it’s the first time I’m writing; I’m the h in projectmandh.
It may seem strange to some people to keep going back to the same place, four years in a row. But NYC is just the city to do it. There are always new places to visit, different restaurants to try, and some things we just can’t get enough of. A good example is riding the subway. You can’t beat this system for getting around the city. Our kids love the trains, from swiping the metro pass, to watching the train approach the station, and finding the ‘best’ window seat. They never tire of what most New Yorkers probably don’t give a second thought about. It’s well worth it to get the 7-day pass, which allows you to ride all trains, buses and even a cable car to Roosevelt Island. That was something new for us, and a very interesting view of the city.
The kids enjoyed the regular visit to the MoMA, particularly the Kids Tours and the Art Lab. We were also lucky enough to receive a free family pass for participating in the Tours, so we returned and found a great musical exhibit by Bjork (yes, the same Bjork who wore the swan dress to the Oscars one year). We seem to score free art museum passes wherever we go lately! We also returned to the High Line bridge, a wonderful place to eat, walk and people-watch. This time, we were able to see the Whitney Museum, which has re-opened in a new and very impressive building at the base of the High Line. The kids really enjoyed their first Mets game too – the weather was perfect, and they got to experience the ‘Mr. Met Dash’. This seems to be a fairly common thing in ball parks on weekends, where kids get to run the bases after the game. The line was incredibly long, but in true New York fashion, it was all very quick and orderly.
We tried a couple of new restaurants, which we all enjoyed, even our picky 4-yr. old! A couple of highlights were SweetChick for brunch in Williamsburg, and Los Tacos No. 1 at Chelsea Market. We do have our favourites though, so as is the tradition, we ordered from Best Pizza when we first arrived at our apartment in Brooklyn, and we also indulged in the Meatball Shop, and our all-time favourite, Shake Shack.
As I walked to one of my favourite shops on our last evening, I saw in the space of one block: a woman stop to ask a homeless man outside a restaurant if he wanted something to eat; a man in a tuxedo trying to hail a cab; and a washer and dryer being rolled down the street. We can’t seem to get enough of this city.
m&h 
You make it sound like fun! I agree that the subway is always kind of exciting, and so is “people watching” and I’m sure NYC is great for that. Ella looks like a teenager in some of those photos! Glad you had a good time!
Congratulations Heidi good travel writing debut. Sound all so interesting Probably need
to revisit one day. Ella and Noah are having the time of their lives.
There is something immensely satisfying about revisiting old favourites and discovering new ones. How wonderful that you’ve found a place where you can do both.
Oh, I would do the same — visit NYC annually! I just LOVE that city and there is never enough time to do everything we want. We took the family for the first time for New Year’s Eve two years ago. The kids really loved the experience.