Nelli is Moving

After 5 long years on the East Coast, I will be embarking on a 2 week journey to move out west. I'd like to imagine myself as a pioneer only my trip will be filled with more friends, fun, technology, and less death.
New York has been my home for so long that I cannot imagine living anywhere else, which is precisely why I need to get a move on. Its time for a new adventure, to learn a new city, to experience a new place, and to make new friends.
I will miss so many things NYC has to offer: food, culture, sites, walking along Elizabeth Street, the lights, but most of all I will miss the people I have encountered here. I'm not good at goodbyes (who is?), so I'll take a phrase from my childhood and leave you with the quote:

'TTFN: Ta Ta For Now."

- Tigger

In honor of my departure I figured I would compile a list of a few of my favorite NYC things, so here goes:

Coffee: Laughing Man, 9th Street Espresso - EV
Brunch: Freeman's, Queens Comfort
Lunch: Wichcraft, Fresh + Co, Mile's End - Noho
Dinner: Terrior East Village, Northern Spy Co, Saxon + Parole, Giano, Il Buco, Nai Tapas Bar
Setting: Gallo Green
Show: Sleep No More
Sites: Queens - World's Fair Site, Any Rooftop
Museum: MET
Street: Elizabeth Street, 72nd Street, Bleeker Street
Beer Joint: Burp Castle
Burger: BareBurger
Wine Bar: The Immigrant
Pastries: Coffeed, Ovenly
Pizza: South Brooklyn Pizza, Artichoke, MilkFlower
Bagel: Brooklyn Bagel
Mexican: Taqueria LES, De Mole
Pie: Four + Twenty Blackbirds
Happy Hour: V-Bar
Ride: Staten Island Ferry

Please enjoy some of my favorite NYC photos, I'll see you on the other side!

Cheers!

-Nelli

Staten Island Commute

One of my favorite parts about working on Staten Island is my morning ferry ride and coffee!

Cheers

- Nelli

Pour Some Sugar on Me

The Domino sugar factory in Brooklyn held one last exhibit before it closed for good (well before it will be converted into luxury housing like every inch of open space in cities these days.... But I digress). This show was Creative Time by Kara Walker in which a woman created sculptures out of sugar. Not only was this exhibit clever, but it was intense. The sculptures were mostly of young children who worked in the sugar fields, they carried large baskets on their backs or held tools to aid with the daily work. These sculptures were made of brown sugar and were beginning to melt in the humid environment that is NYC, which added both dimension and scent to the show. It was emotional to see these children melting into the concrete, their bodies dripping limb by limb until they were nothing more than a caramelized metal heap sitting in a pool of brown sludge; sticking to the feet of any and all viewers.

The smell was bad, if you can imagine "bad sugar packets" that is what I would call the stench. The first few minutes were fine but after 10, 20, 30 minutes it became unbearable.

Any-who, here are a few shots I took today. 

Enjoy!

-Nelli

West Side Waterway

This was my first trip to the Frying Pan in Chelsea, I have to say the crowd leaves much to be desired, but the views are beautiful and you feel like you're floating around the city without a care in te world.

Definite must if you're in or visiting NYC!

Enjoy!

-Nelli

Secret Garden

Coffee pop up shop at Lockwood in Astoria with Native Roasters Coffee weekends this June.

Here are a few shots from my visit the past 2 weekends.

Blue Skies on Bond

I was measuring buildings at work today and caught a glimpse of the beautiful blue sky after the long rainy morning we had.

Enjoy the sunshine!

- Nelli

Between the Avenues

The Other Side of Steinway

As I believe I have mentioned before, I live in Astoria Queens which just so happens to be a 'happening' neighborhood. That fact allows me to rarely leave the comfort of 30th Avenue with its hip restaurants, health food stores, bars, bakeries, you name it.
But just as curiosity killed the cat, I have a knack for wandering around that corner.

On this particular day I went on an adventure to a health food store (pictured below) to a part of Astoria that I rarely frequent. While this area doesn't have bougie restaurants and bars, it does have a mid-century charm and character that I have yet to find elsewhere.

Below are a few photos from my journey.