New York City -- Day 1

Two days after we got back from St. Louis, my sister took me to the airport where I had to fly alone because my sister did not have enough days of annual leave...  However, I wanted to go to NYC so badly that I decided to go on my own.  I met up with a friend from college who lives there and stayed with her for a couple of days.

I didn't know what to expect and I honestly did not know what I was thinking about wanting to go on my own, especially in the US.  My friend is a student there so she was unable to accompany everywhere which I totally understood.

When I landed, I looked for the stall or booth where I could rent a van to bring me to my friend's apartment, just as she told me there would be.  It was easy to spot it because it was inside the airport and they had signs pretty much everywhere.  I had to share with a bunch of people where I got to converse with some hispanic tourists on vacation in NYC as well (lovely people, I must say).  The ride costed 20 dollars so it was alright.  

The traffic was so bad there that for a second, I had lost hope in arriving early and being able to do a bunch of stuff.  However, we were told by the driver that if there was no traffic, that meant something was wrong.  Anyway, it was all good when my friend told me that she would be done with class at around five, so I waited for her at the Starbucks near her apartment because it's not like I could go and explore the city dragging my luggage around.  

After we've dropped everything at her apartment, she brought me to Times Square and again everything felt so surreal.  It was just like one of those moments I had in Paris... I couldn't believe that I was there, but I was grateful at the same time.  

The lights were so pretty, but there were oh-so-many people that we had to say excuse me all the time or wait for them to pass and so on.  I think I know why it's called the city that never sleeps because even if we did go back to her place at 11-ish, there were still a lot of people and most of the shops were still open!  It definitely was an awesome first day.  I got to ride the subway, eat street food, buy souvenirs and walk around the heart of New York.  :)

I hope you like my photos and Merry Christmas to everyone! <3