Week Three

A beautiful start to February

Me and Serena's frozen yogurt date!

After recovering from my cold, I was ready to get back to the normal pace of life! 

On Tuesday night, me and a girl from the House of Barton (King's has a housing system which divides everyone into different houses) went to Brooklyn to teach this community of men and women from Senegal, Africa how to read and write in English. Every house chooses something different for their "Urban Impact" and so this semester our house chose to partner with an organization in reaching and serving this particular community in New York. I got to work with a woman named Lati who was so anxious to learn and had already made a lot of progress since starting the program a few months ago. I'm really excited to be a part of something like this while I'm here and will definitely look forward to Tuesday nights! 

On Wednesday night, I went out to dinner with a guy who goes to MIT but is interning at a hedge fund in the city. We met for dinner before he caught the boat back to his home in Rumsom, NJ. It was a nice time and talking to him really made me want to visit Boston! It sounds like a neat place. Later that night I met up with Mary Katherine Vigness (Tridelt who just graduated from Texas and is now working in NY) and we went to get coffee at Le Bilboquet just down the street. The music was loud and there were tons of people packed into a small room, but it was fun and really nice to see a familiar face! 

On Thursday night, me and Chris Bright (Bill Bright's grandson!) went to dinner and a show. I really wanted to see In the Heights, so we put our names in the lottery, but didn't get picked, so we headed over to the theatre where Billy Elliot was showing and did the "student rush", where we got $40 tickets that would normally cost $125. Chris is a broadway expert, so it was great to have him there to show me how to take advantage of finding cheap broadway tickets for students! I absolutely loved Billy Elliot and will highly recommend it to anyone I talk to. It had lots of ballet and tap dancing and the boy who played the main character was absolutely amazing! 

On Friday night, me and Serena had a date and went to an Italian restaurant for dinner and then I took her to get frozen yogurt at Bloomingdale's, since she had never had it before. Although it was delicious, we were both pretty full from dinner and neither of us could eat all of ours. I have made it one of my goals while being here to find the best cupcake, banana pudding, coffee, and frozen yogurt. So far, I have found that the best cupcake is at Sugar Sweet Sunshine, the best banana pudding is at Magnolia Bakery, the best frozen yogurt is at Bloomingdale's 40 carrots cafe, and the best coffee I've had was my latte at Le Pain Quotidien. All of these could easily change as I continue my quest, but for now these would be my current favorites. 

Yesterday was a lot of fun. First, I went to the Colony Club with Rachel to work out. Then, she took me to get my first facial and to get my hair done. She asked me if I wouldn't mind doing this favor for her, as she needed to get video footage for her art show. Are you kidding me? Getting pampered is NOT a favor. :) The facial felt amazing and getting my hair washed and styled was also a treat. We met up with the rest of the family for lunch at a delicious Italian restaurant and then the rest of the afternoon we did some errands and hung out at the apartment. Last night I met a girl named Tiffany at a coffee shop in Greenwich Village called Esperanto Cafe and we talked and did some reading for our Old Testament class. By the time we got there it was almost 10, and so I ended up not getting back to the apartment until close to 1. I didn't even realize how late it was since the place was packed with people and we were having such a good time! 

This morning I went to a Unitarian church with a girl from King's. We have to attend a church service different from what we are used to for our Foundations class and then write a paper on our experience as well as their basic theology. It was an interesting experience, but I'm glad we have an assignment that gets us out of our comfort zones and allows us to interact with other expressions. Afterwards we went to the Le Pain Quotidien on 77th street for brunch. It was exciting to experience the communal tables with someone this time! Kristin and I had a great time talking and she is definitely someone I see myself getting to know better. After brunch we stopped at this thrift store close by and I found this vintage button down, long sleeve dress for $14! It was a must. Walking back to the apartment was wonderful as the weather is absolutely gorgeous today. It is 50 degrees and sunny! I wish it would stay this way the rest of the week, but I'm afraid it will be back to normal tomorrow....

I'm meeting Mary Katherine at the 6 p.m. Redeemer service tonight and then I think we may go somewhere to watch the super bowl afterwards! I can't believe I've already been here for over 3 weeks! Looking forward to another cold, but exciting week! 

Week Two

Times Square after I saw Spring Awakening

Me and Amy at EJ's for brunch

My delicious Huevos Rancheros!

So this past week was a little more of a reality check, as I got sick on Wednesday and am just now feeling better, but that's life, right? 

Rachel left for Italy on Tuesday and so her mother has been here with me and Serena all week. She lives in Houston and teaches cooking classes at Central Market, so I have been learning so much from her in the kitchen and of course getting to enjoy her wonderful and delicious meals. Tuesday was one of my favorite days because the 4 girls, including Rachel, went to a fantastic restaurant called Allegretti for lunch and then afterwards we went to a fun cake and baking supply shop. They had everything you could imagine in the world of baking and cake-decorating! Since Serena's birthday is in March and mine is in April, we decided we were going to wait to make our elaborate cakes, but we definitely got some good ideas. :)

Wednesday during Logic class I started getting that sick feeling- when you know something is coming down the pike, you just don't know what. I made it to the end of class and was contemplating which way I'd get home (subway vs. bus- there are pros and cons to both which I will explain later..) when I remembered I had told some girls I'd go to coffee afterwards with them. I needed to be social and tried to ignore my sick feeling, hoping it was stemming from thinking too hard in Logic and not something else such as the freezing weather. We went to the Starbucks on 33rd and about 20 minutes into our time I excused myself and told the girls I was really not feeling well and also needed to get back to the apartment for dinner with the family. When I got back, Serena's grandmother was cooking Moroccan food and so I ate dinner with them and then went to sleep. I didn't wake up until noon the next day, feeling extremely weak and groggy. I did not have class on Thursday, which was great considering I spent most of the day in bed. On Friday I made it to class, even though I still had a temperature of 101, but then returned to bed right when I got back from class...sleeping for another 12 hours. Serena and her grandmother were sweet and brought me chicken noodle soup, medicine, orange juice, etc., but the bad sinus headaches persisted along with the runny nose and congestion in my throat. This continued through most of Saturday as well, only relieving a bit later in the afternoon. I desperately needed an outing and all that sounded good to me was some tart frozen yogurt (naturally), so I walked to the Bloomingdales at 59th and Lex and got their delicious tart "frogurt". Then I walked to Border's and tried to read for my Old Testament class, hoping to be somewhat productive, but the headache returned and so I walked back to the apartment. Cinderella Story was on t.v., which is such a cute movie, so me and Serena watched it together. I took a nice, hot shower with steam (the coolest function I've ever seen in a shower) and then went to bed early, hoping to wake up without a fever/headache. 

This morning I woke up without a temperature and feeling much better, so I met a girl named Amy at Trinity Grace Church on the Upper West Side for their 10:30 service. I was not only so glad to have an outing, but I was so ready to be around people and meet Amy, since one of the women on staff with Crusade at UT had given me her contact information and told me she was wonderful and that we would be "fast friends". I took a cab, since the subways on Sunday are not very reliable and I didn't want to risk being late. Amy was greeting everyone at the front door and immediately recognized me and gave me a big hug. She then introduced me to a woman on staff with Crusade in NY named Vikki, who had actually met and hung out with my parents at the Boston Winter Conference this year! What a small world! The service was great. The sermon was on Grace and how Christ's death on the cross was such an uncanny display of Grace that it could be described as "scandalous". I loved that. I absolutely love worshipping God in new settings because it makes me realize how consistent He is and how present and at work He is everywhere in the world. 

After church me and Amy went to brunch at this really good 50's diner called EJ's Luncheonette. I had read reviews saying they had scrumptious all-day breakfast dishes and since I could eat breakfast food 24/7, it sounded like a perfect place for a brunch date. We both ordered the Huevos Rancheros and they were delicious (see picture). Our time together was so refreshing and I look forward to getting to know her more as the semester goes by. 

Despite getting sick and some other adjustments I'm still getting used to, I continue to reflect on how glad I am to be here and how much I love this city! 

Week One

Mom sending me off! 

Look who welcomed me on my first night

in New York....

Taking a break from exploring the city

at Union Square Park

Loving the snow and cold weather!

Ah, I can't believe I've already been here for a week. The days seem so much longer here, but of course the time still flies by!

I have had a wonderful first week. I got here last Thursday and basically spent the weekend with Mrs. H and Serena. I absolutely love Serena- she is the most mature, caring, fun, and sweet 13-year-old I've ever met. Everyone here has made me feel so welcome and at home, which has made adjusting so much easier!

Since I didn't start school at King's until Monday, I basically had no schedule but to explore the city and spend time with the family. On Friday night, we all went out to dinner at a really good Italian restaurant just down the street and then came back to the apartment and played Pictionary for like 3 hours. There were six of us, including Alexander and his girlfriend, so we broke up into 3 teams. It was so funny to see everyone get really competitive and once again reminded me how great game nights can be. On Saturday it snowed basically all day, which I loved. I slept in and then we all went to lunch and to see an art show of one of Rachel's friends in Brooklyn. Mrs. H took me to their grocery store and we bought stuff to make dinner at home. She is the best cook! Sunday was my first day on my own to explore and started with brunch at this delicious French bakery called Le Pain Quotidien. I was looking for a good brunch place, but also a place where I could read/journal with a coffee-shop feel. This was not quite that, as I was sat in the middle of a large banquet/community table with strangers all around me- obviously forcing me out of my comfort zone. On one side of me was an elderly German woman and her daughter and on the other a big Italian family. Once I got over feeling awkward and the fact that this was probably not the most ideal time to journal or read, it was fascinating just sitting and listening to everyone's conversations. After lunch I bought my subway card and headed downtown. The rest of the day I explored the West Village/NYU/Soho area, of course stopping at Magnolia Bakery and getting a cupcake and some banana pudding. I took the subway back to 68th and went to the 6 p.m. Redeemer church service. The first person I saw when I walked in was Mr. Terell, the husband of Missy- my mom's college roommate and one of her best friends. It was so nice to see some familiar faces and have a family to sit with. Tim Keller spoke and the sermon was amazing...I plan on checking out different churches but I still want to try and make it to Redeemer every Sunday night to hear him preach. 

My first few days at King's have been good. I have a pretty unique schedule and since I'm commuting it is a little harder to connect with the other students, but the ones who have taken the initiative to introduce themselves have all been really nice. I'm excited about my classes- they are so different from anything I could take at Texas and of course it doesn't hurt that I'm in the Empire State Building while I'm taking them. :)

I am so thankful for how smoothly my first week has gone and thank God for all He has blessed me with coming into this semester!