Still no camera cord...but....

I had an amazing weekend. I wish I could post my photos to show you how fun it was!

FRIDAY:
Celebrated my co-worker and friend NDL's art exhibit opening at a shop/gallery hybrid on the Lower East Side. Though it may not be my personal aesthetic I can, as an art history major, appreciate N's fine work. Check it out here: Skull and Tree. Cheers to NDL!

My Princeton gals joined me for the exhibit and then we walked a few block over to the excellent LES resto, A Casa Fox. We had such fun. The food was delightful, particularly the empanadas which are the restaurant's speciality. The place is truly adorable and highly recommended. I should note that they take great care with their floral arrangements which add such a pleasant touch to an otherwise rustic-themed (Mexican Shabby Chic? It's quite cute) venue and I really find that attention to the small details wins me over every time. Wish I had the photos to prove it!

SATURDAY:
MVG and I had brunch in NoLIta at the adorable and delicious French-Moroccan resto Cafe Gitane. The waitresses wear matching green jumpers that are too cute for words. The food is fantastic; I had a mozzarella, tapenade and tomato sandwich on focaccia bread. The warm weather, bright sunlight and pleasant summer breeze coming in through the open door were magnificient. It was the PERFECT summer day.

Following brunch, MVG and I meandered through the shops of SoHo, the West Village (where we passed former Imitation of Christ designer Tara Subkoff), and the Meatpacking District (where I tried on literally every pair of sale shoes at Jeffrey), and finally worked our way to our final destination: The NY Kayak Company! Located at Pier 40 on the Hudson River, the NY Kayak Co. offers free kayaking to any and all who visit and sign a waiver. Typically there is a 20 minute kayaking maximum, but because the weekend was fairly quiet we were allowed to be on the water as long as we liked. It's incredibly pleasant to be in NYC but feel as if you're in the middle of a country lake (a country lake that happens to have a view of New Jersey...). We enjoyed an hour on the water and caught up on our girl talk. I highly recommend this wonderful and unique experience!

As we wound our way back through the West Village to get to the East Village, we noticed that Westville was offering Sloppy Joes; this is my favorite dish at my favorite restaurant and it is served only once in a blue moon. (Note: Westville and Westville East are my favorite restaurants in the entire City. To say that I've eaten there at least 100 times in the past 2 years would NOT be an exaggeration; if anything, it's an underestimate.) MVG and I split the sloppy joe and a piece of blueberry pie and took our full bellies back to the East Village where we lounged in my apartment and chatted until late into the night hours.

SUNDAY:
CMM and I met up at the Lilly store, then walked down to the French Institute's Bastille Day celebration on 60th Street between Park and Fifth Avenues. I had a waffle from Augustin's Waffles and CMM and I sat in Central Park while I delighted in the Nutella topping. We then worked off the waffle by walking down to Westville East (I wasn't kidding when I said I eat here a lot) at 11th Street and Avenue A (we walked at least 68 blocks and a few avenues) and were both famished (again) by the time we arrived. My friend MM from Princeton happened to pass by on the sidewalk and came in and joined us for a few minutes of conversation. Turns out she's in a new play that opens this week--go see it if you can! "I Stand for Nothing."

All in all, a great weekend. (Photos coming soon...)

Looking forward to this four-day week (Summer Friday this week!) and then...
PARIS COUNTDOWN: 11 days!

Happy Monday,
Cxx.