The Concrete Jungle

After growing up throughout highschool, spending my weeknights watching Gossip Girl, How I Met Your Mother and of course FRIENDS, words couldn’t describe just how excited I was to finally be in their territory! New York, the concrete jungle, the big apple and the city that never sleeps - you could call it what you like but for me, I’d say ‘my future home’.

We stayed at the Hilton New York in Manhattan, along the Avenue of Americas meaning that it was literally just a block to the famous 5th Avenue! And you know, hello shopping! So, here’s a run down and I’m really excited considering I’ve been so lazy with posting up my trip lately.

(Just a note, it may look like I'm outfit repeating, which I am. I only packed one coat with me and I had no intention of buying another!)

Day 1.

After an uncomfortably long domestic flight from Las Vegas airport to JFK my family and I finally made it to the wintery cold New York. Our taxi driver, Aladdin (yes, that really is his name) decided to give us a rundown of the geographic location of everything; even Brooklyn and Bronx. Once we arrived at the hotel we briefly stopped to check in our luggage and grab a bite to eat; trying to satisfy our cravings for Vietnamese food. Unfortunately, the restaurant we tried out wasn’t that great at all, and rather overpriced. I didn’t care much for it at all I can’t even remember what it was called! The remainder of the day was spent in bed; the jetlag and our lack of overall comfortable sleep had caught up to us and we decided we couldn’t fight it anymore.

oh hello there Times Square!

Day 2.

We started off early in order to compensate for the day before by booking tickets on line and make our way to downtown New York and visit the 9/11 memorial. Whilst we had no family relations to the event, it just felt like something we had to do; pay our respects to all those involved in such a heart breaking event. It was so solemn there I couldn’t help but cry a little. You see over a thousand names engraved along the fountains and spot “and unborn child” next to it or “ladder 21” - they were just trying to do their job and go about their day, it was horrible. But with the sound of the fountains and the site of snow beginning to fall, my family and I began to feel a little relaxed. 

After lunch at a local diner we spontaneously decided to make use of the fact that we were downtown and walk to Battery Park, take a ferry from the pier and visit good old Lady Liberty. Unfortunately once we got to the ticket booth the woman said we couldn’t actually step onto the island since the statue was destroyed from the hurricane but we could take extremely close by pictures from the boat. Fair enough. I only hoped I had worn more clothes considering 3 degree celsius plus being on the Hudson River meant I was frozen.

The statue was pretty cool, I felt pretty cool too. Literally. Like stone.

Just chillin..

Day 3.

We visited our relatives in New Jersey, which is actually such a nice location. It wasn’t what I had thought which was unfortunately because of Jersey Shore. Not a guido in site, but their view of the city at night (omg that rhymed) was incredible!

At the 9/11 Memorial

Day 4.

My sisters and I ventured off down the road to 5th ave and spoilt ourselves in Zara - the stock in Zara was much better than that in Sydney I must say. Even the layout of the store is much more appealing, and the fitting rooms! 

We then met up with my uncle and aunty again who then took us to this outlet they highly recommended in New Jersey; I think it was called Rosebury or something like that. I was upset how they didn’t have Victoria’s Secret but I did buy an American Apparel skirt for $10 which I did wish I had tried on before purchasing it, as well as a stunning bright pink Kate Spade wallet. I now felt pretty when I took out my wallet haha.

I see this sign everywhere, so I had to take a photo as per.

Day 5.

We finally decided to stroll through Central Park; since it was winter the trees weren’t as green but it was in fact snowy! I felt like I’d soon see Blair Waldorf and Dorota feeding the ducks or something like that. The crisp breeze and the smell of nature was a nice change to the smell of kebabs in Times Square. Taking the wrong turn we then found ourselves in the upper west side, not complaining, Chuck Bass lives there and I did in fact take a corny photograph near Hotel Empire. Trust.

Upper East Side view from Central Park

Feeding the duckies at Central Park

It seems as though our whole diet here in New York consisted of: kebabs, pizza, pasta, seafood and Starbucks - all of which I strangely craved all day, every day.

Day 6.

On our second last day my little sister and I ventured off to the upper east side and fulfill our leisurely habit of going to the art museum. We walked through 5th avenue, alongside Central Park to the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the MET. OR, The museum where Blair Waldorf and her minions sit and have yoghurt. I love art; as a high school art student I really found much excitement going here; to finally be able to see some original Claude Monet works, Picasso, Van Gogh and even Warhol! It was a dream! 

I didn’t want to leave but we had to in order to make it in time for lunch at Shake Shack, a seemingly popular burger joint in New York which meant that I had to call for a cab (just like in the movies hehe) and tell him to take us down to the Theatre district.

I’d have to say, the burgers were quite nice - could it compete with In-n-Out? I guess I’d have to have both to really make up my mind.

This was pretty, and I'm so tiny

Later that day, I finally pestered my parents to come with us to Soho. It was a must that we’d go there and I’d be devastated if I didn’t considering I didn’t get to go up to the Empire State building! I pretty much abused Topshop with my money, and H&M - the two stores I knew Sydney wouldn’t stock as great in. It was already late and the other stores I wanted to visit, like Mango had already closed early. It could only mean one thing, I’d have to return.

Oh hey Chuck..

Our last day

Was completely busy and my older sister and I had a mission; the rest of my family would have to pack ALL of our belongings while the two of us trek back to Soho and exchange some of the goods we bought last night. We didn’t try it, and well, this is what happens right? New York was set for a blizzard later that day so we were quite worried about our flight, as it began to snow whilst we stomped from the massive Macy’s in Times Square (where I abused MAC with my money again) to the subway to Soho. I got distracted by the Victoria’s Secret - telling my sister I’d meet her at Topshop whilst I used up the remaining dollars I had. I pretty much stocked up fairly well, got fitted with my demi bra, paid this, paid that the rest is history.

We then rushed our way back to the Hilton only to find our family sitting in the lobby saying they’ve already checked out and we’re ready to leave.

New York was an amazing experience. It is an amazing city. You can see all the culture, all the talent, everything. The art, the fashion, the food. It’s pretty much everything that I’ve ever been passionate about. Definitely one of my favourite places during this trip.

California, here we commeeeeee!

Hey guys, remember me! I know I haven't posted anything in what for me feels like a decade, but I've just been swamped with so much work since I've arrived back from the US. I have so much I need to write about and show you all, and it irks me because I feel like I need to do so in chronological order! NOOO! But, here it is, I have to do what feels right for me... The last post I made before I went on an unexpected hiatus was my trip in Hawaii! So, here it is, the rest of my trip!

Next stop: Los Angeles, California!

After what felt like forever on a plane my family and I were finally exposed to the change in weather. Hawaii was warm, summery and practically everything you'd expect it to be. I didn't have much expectations for LA, considering most of my friends have said it's quite similar to Sydney. It was chilly and it pretty much had an average of 18 degrees everyday, something which I'm only familiar with when I set the air conditioning.

My uncle and cousin picked up up from LAX and we spared no minute at all! After dropping off our belongings at their house for the mean time, we visited a local cafe of theirs which specialised in brunch. I DID NOT ANTICIPATE HOW LARGE THEIR SERVINGS WERE. Had I known that their waffles were the size of my face I wouldn't have ordered two! Anyway, after brunch we spared no time and ventured off for an hour's drive to Hollywood!

A double from In-n-Out! Ohhhh, mouth watering

Unfortunately, I did fall asleep at some point during the ride only to wake up just 10 minutes away from Hollywood; but omg the houses are amazing - gated, large with luxury cars? Can I please have your house, thank you!

So yeah, Hollywood needless to say is quite crazy - especially Hollywood Bvl which is just jam packed with street actors dressed up as celebrities along the Hollywood walk of fame. We arrived in LA a week before the Grammy's or, was it the Oscars? Either one and my sisters and I thought, perhaps if we stalked Rodeo Drive we could find someone?

lol me doing an absolutely horrid attempt at a Vanessa Hudgens impersonation

We then visited Disneyland in Anaheim, it turns out that we were only 15 minutes away from it. We stayed in Orange County which is surprisingly quite big and I won't lie, I was on the look out for a Seth Cohen! But anyway, Disneyland and California Adventure was amazing, it was as magical and as nostalgic as I would have thought and to put it simply I wished I could go back again!

tourist photo lol.

LA, was primarily just a giant family reunion so what we did the most I'd say was eat and shop. And I won't lie, I did get a little tired of shopping. But, I did manage to buy myself a Michael Kors handbag which I have been in love with throughout the whole trip! I also abused H&M whilst at Citadel which, I'll have you know is a giant shopping centre with THE fanciest toilets; it's one of those toilets where there's an attendant, and even a lounge area! It was ridiculous.

crappy photo but I am in love with my H&M leather leopard printed jacket & my Michael Kors handbag!

We went for a drive through Long Beach, Huntington Beach and Newport Beach; my mother instantly fell in love with the place it just felt so fresh in comparison to the suburbs. Venice Beach on the other hand was quite scary considering my little sister and I were approached by a completely suspicious woman offering us 'Candy', it was hilarious.

Towards the end of our trip my older sister and I decided to leave Los Angeles for a day and fly up to San Francisco and check out the hype. It was much colder than LA, especially because it's so close to the water. We definitely were on the look out for the best clam chowder but I don't think I found it :( We did however stop by the Twitter headquarters thanks to one of our connections and have lunch with one of the directors there! It was SO exciting, the environment there is so chilled you can really feel all the ideas flowing within the mere cafeteria! I wanna work there!

On our second last day in California my family and I went on a three hour road trip to Victorville where my other cousins live. Now, LA is on the edge of the westcoast of Cali, Victorville is literally so far out the east coast of Cali, it's only four hours away from Vegas. IT WAS DESERT. So that was pretty cool, I did however, get sick with asthma. Damn asthma! But, we were looking forward to our next leg of the trip, our road trip to Vegas! WOOOO!

Aloha!

Hello everyone I hope all is well! As you may know I’m currently on a family vacation in the United States and I thought it would be cool if I wrote a little update on my trip so far :) At the moment we’re finally in Los Angeles but there is no way I could miss our trip to Hawaii!

After an unfortunately uncomfortable plane ride from Sydney to Honolulu airport - I had an annoying passenger sit in front of me who booked an extra seat beside him so he can truly make himself comfortable as he also reclined both seats! We made our way to our first hotel along Waikiki. The Courtyard by Marriott was our home for the first four days; they had amazing customer service with quick and easy room service, an incredibly inviting pool and hot tub and quick and easy access to food and the main strip of designer stores! 

Locals constantly informed us that the best place to shop was at Waikele and Ala Moana - the two have great outlets and impressive, affordable prices considering most things in Hawaii are relatively pricey. For instance at Waikele I bought my first designer backpack at Coach which was at an impressive discount of 50% and then a further 30%! Imagine that! And, I was able to score a couple of pairs of Converse chucks - two for only $60 seems pretty attractive to me!

After exploring the main strip of Waikiki and visit the main outlets surrounding Honolulu we hired our own Jeep for the rest of our stay here so we were able to travel without having to rely on all of the trolleys. With that being said we visited Pearl Harbour. Being a modern history in high school only made me extremely excited to visit the site - I always find tours interesting and not to sound so corny, but seeing the conditions all of the soldiers faced really makes you admire what happened.

Later that day we also visited the North Shore of the island of O’ahu. It was a tourist ‘must-do’ thing to do and it was a shame we didn’t go earlier during the day because it was truly an amazing site to see. Especially for a view of the sunset. In addition to that I was also quite surprised it only takes an hour to drive from the north to the south point of the island.

The next stop we made was to the Hilton Hawaiian Resort in Waikiki. It was absolutely beautiful and like a mini city in its own as you can see in the photo above. With multiple towers located within the premises and their own pool and restaurant we were free to roam around and fall in love with the gigantic pool and own private lagoon. It was so relaxing staying in our suite - check out our view! ... it was just a shame I fell ill, I think it was because I swallowed a tad too much in the fresh, light, saltwater beach. Sad face!

I really began to miss eating food: Denny’s, iHop, McDonalds - they were pretty much the basic places I would spend my days at for a quick and easy feed and I couldn’t eat any of it! I had to survive on a diet of Sprite and toasted bread, as well as anti-biotics. It broke my heart seeing as all I could do was sit on the sidelines and watch my family enjoy. Wah!

After a change in plans (we were meant to go to Maui but discovered it would have been $150 for a plane ticket and even more for accomodation) we decided to relocate to a new hotel to spend the remaining three days. This was when we met the Ihilani JW Marriott Resort and Spa which is located on the west coast of O’ahu. Every room seemed to have a view; secluded from the hustle and bustle it was a perfect way to relax - even with a view like this! 

Waking up and going to sleep at a view like that was a dream come true, I’m glad my parents were able to experience it too. Later during the second evening, and unfortunately towards the end of our trip we were finally able to visit a Luau. Whilst most people would typically visit a Luau hours within their first arrival, we pretty much left it last minute. It really makes you appreciate the Polynesian culture; how they’re so traditional and welcoming. I absolutely loved it. And it made me want to learn how to hula! The dancers are so graceful and omg, it was soo cool. Hehehe.

So, there you go guys! I hope everything is going well with you. Let me know if you’ve been to Hawaii before! It was seriously the perfect way to begin a holiday, I wish I didn’t have to leave though.

That should be enough, for now....

So, as you may know I leave for the USA tomorrow! I actually can't wait considering it's the first time my family and I are going there! (Unbelievable right?!) Well, I managed to get all of my packing done so then tomorrow I can really focus on running errands.

It's really hard picking out what to bring and what to leave at home - especially when you're going to experience two completely different weather forecasts! Hawaii at the moment is experiencing fairly similar weather forecasts than Australia so I'm pretty much set with the whole, summer vibe. BUT, when we arrive in New York towards the end of the trip it's pretty much predicted to be around one digit figures! Which is crazy seeing as I've never experienced anything lower than 16 degrees celsius.

I've packed

• a few dresses; they seem like a space saving choice; unfortunately my One Teaspoon dress photographed above takes a lot more space than anticipated WAH.
• five tops; sleeved and long sleeved, cropped and well, normal length - seeing as I didn't do a run through with my bottoms I am seriously hoping they're pretty versatile.
• two pairs of shorts that I've picked up from Sportsgirl and Forever New a while ago and seem to have become an instant favourite
• along with two skirts; a black Forever New piece and an ASOS bargain!
• a bejewelled lolly pink sweater I picked up from Forever New as per my staff discount
• some leggings considering I can't stand wearing jeans
• two heeled/wedged boots, sandals and sneakers
• and some seasonal essentials like my beanie and favourite pashmina/scarf and Seafolly bikini.

All in all, it's not much. My luggage is half its potential weight and I honestly can't wait to shop for more overseas. Eeeep!

The Worst Blogger in the History of the Universe

Hey guys, so you're probably wondering, Niki.. What's happening?
I apologise for not blogging as much as I initially intended when I began this blog; I'm starting to think maybe I chose the wrong time to start this considering I'm so busy with work and my trip overseas.
I truly intend on starting proper posts perhaps whilst I'm on my trip and so on which, I leave for on Friday! I'm so excited, my family and I haven't been on a vacation together in a while and we'll be going to the USA! Hawaii, Los Angeles, Vegas and New York. Could I be any more excited!?

I'm really trying to think about how I could start a youtube channel - how do people start one? Do they have to make an introduction video or do they just do whatever?
By the way, totally irrelevant to this paragraph but more so relevant to the first. What places do you recommend I check out whilst I'm in the States? Do you have any favourite locations? (I'll definitely be checking in at In-N-Out Burger that's for sure!)

Here's just a few photos I've found on my laptop that's kind of got me a tad bit more excited :) Hope you enjoy! And... bear with me!

How amazing was Beyonce at the Super Bowl Half Time Show - and don't tell me you didn't get excited when Destiny's Child came together and when she did her Crazy In Love strut!