New York City & Orlando

In an effort to organize my blog, I have two trips to tell you about that I went on at the end of 2018 into the beginning of 2019.

New York City, New York 
November 24 - 25, 2018

 

Right after Thanksgiving my sister and two cousins drove to New York City for a night.  We left at about 5:30am on Saturday morning and were about 20 minutes away from home when we got a tire in the middle of the highway and got a flat.  AAA came and changed it for us, and my cousin's parents came so we could switch cars.  We like to start our adventures early.

Although that put us back a little bit, we did make it to New York City without any other issues.  Once we got there, we grabbed breakfast at Tanner Smiths which was really good, and they had live music playing that was amazing.  We spent the day walking around the city - past Radio City, into Times Square, Rockefeller Center, and we popped into the M&M Store.  We also stopped in a few different bars along the way.  That night we went to a comedy show, and I loved every second of it. 

The next morning my sister and I went to The Doughnut Project because my brother wanted us to bring some home and then we went to Milk because of a recommendation our bartender gave us the day before.  Then we all got some food and milkshakes at Black Tap before driving back home. 

Orlando, Florida

December 30, 2018 - January 3, 2019

My roommates and I decided to go to Florida way back in October to visit one of my roommate's grandparents.  However, that roommate ended up having to get her tonsil removed at the last minute and wasn't able to go on the trip.  The other four of us couldn't afford to not go on the trip, so we decided to still go, but shorten it and stay in Orlando instead.

After a day of traveling, we made it to our hotel at about 5:00pm and grabbed some dinner in the hotel.  We sat at the pool for a little bit before going back to our room and watching TV.

Our first full day was New Year's Eve.  We sat at the pool until about 4:00pm and then went to Disney Springs for food and to walk around.  We ended up being in a hot air balloon when the clock struck midnight which was wicked cool because we were able to see all of the Disney parks setting off their fireworks. 

On New Year's Day, two of my roommates went to some of the Disney parks, while myself and my other roommate hung out at Disney Springs.  We ate a lot of good food before heading back to the hotel and going in the pool.  Then we ordered salads from room service to try and balance out all the unhealthy stuff we at in Disney Springs.

On January 2, two of my roommates woke up early to go to Animal Kingdom while my other roommate and I went to Magic Kingdom.  Eventually, we all met up and rode some rides together.  Since it was school vacation, the park was absolutely packed, but we still had a lovely time, and I met Ariel, which was definitely a highlight for me.  

We didn't get back to our hotel until about midnight, and we had to be up at 2:00am to get to the airport.  It was a quick trip with a lot of activities thrown into it, but it was so fun.  Plus, it was nice to visit some warm weather instead of being in Massachusetts for a couple of days.

Nothing More by Anna Todd | Book Review

Nothing More by Anna Todd

Reading Group: Anyone who read the After Series

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Living, Loving, And Growing Up In The Big City
New York's skyscrapers and hectic pace are a far cry from where Landon Gibson grew up, and the transition to New York University has been jarring.  But he's getting the hang of things, found a job that pays (some of) the bills, enjoys school, and only occasionally runs into his ex, Dakota.  You know, the one he chose NYU for . . . before she dumped him.

Luckily, his best friend, Tessa, shares a (terribly small) Brooklyn apartment with him.  And given the ups and downs she's had with her own ex, she's a good listener* when he finds himself in something of a love triangle -- a love knot?  Whatever it is, it's a mess.  An exciting mess.  Maybe even an addicting mess, because beautiful girls.

Being young and finding your way in the world is hard.  Landon's always been a positive person.  But in such a loud, demanding city so far away from home means you only get by with a little help from your friends.  And a good pair of headphones.

Landon's going to be okay . . . but the journey sure will be fun to watch.    

*This is weird to me because Landon doesn't talk to her about it much at all.  He actually chooses to keep her out of it because he knows she's in a weird place with Hardin.

Cover: This cover doesn't really have anything to do with the actual book, but it is very pretty.  And it looks like when someone takes a picture of a light, with the out of focus circles that form, which could maybe represent the lights of New York City.

My Review:  Oh sweet, beautiful Landon, what did you get yourself into?  This new book by Anna Todd follows Landon as he tries to navigate old and new flames . . . who hate each other . . . and are roommates.  Small world we live in.  First off, Nora is definitely who Landon ends up with and Dakota is definitely bagging Aiden.  I think this way because at Landon's wedding in After Ever Happy there's something about the bride's sister, but Dakota doesn't have a sister, so it can't be her and Nora does have a sister.  Also the Dakota and Aiden thing is something I have a hunch about because they know each other and she spun for him at the beginning of the book and there's a moment when Landon notices his hickeys and why would Todd bother putting that in the book if it was nothing.  Landon is so sweet, but he's holding onto the past whenever he's with Dakota.  It's all he thinks about.  How they used to do something and memories from Michigan, but the memories are from five years ago and they're different people and it's time to move on.  Which is something I think is really hard for Landon because he is one who loves someone forever, but I think he needs to realize that the love he has for Dakota is no longer romantic love, but more familial love.  Although it hasn't gotten into a lot of detail yet, it is clear that he and Dakota have been through things that will make them permanently linked, it doesn't mean they need to end up married.  It will be interesting to see how it plays out in Nothing Less.  Plus, how perfect would it be for Landon t end up with a pastry chef when he's mom was also a great baker and Landon is the first to admit that's she's one of his best friends.  I think Nora is exactly who Landon needs to get out of his own head and move past Michigan and Washington.   
Although this is the beginning of a new series and you don't necessarily need to read the After Series to read this book I definitely think that you should.  It just helps to know more about Tessa's situation and how she and Landon got to New York.  This book is definitely a slower pace than those books as well, but Landon is not Hessa in any way so that makes sense, but it kind of a shock to move from those books to this one.    

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