To be read while listening to Empire State of Mind to set the mood

New York – Concrete Jungle, Big Apple, The City That Never Sleeps… Or perhaps just A Really Great Place To Meet Up With A Boyfriend Who Has Been Away A Long Time.

In early January it was decided that, if at all possible, I should fly over and meet Bill for a couple of ‘date nights’ to break up the length of separation during his six months overseas adventure. As we checked schedules and timing, it looked increasingly likely that our date destination was to be one of the most exciting cities in the world – New York. For those who have been, these two words may conjure up memories of bright lights, towering skyscrapers, funky neighborhoods and great restaurants and shopping. For those yet to experience this magic, just hearing the name New York may be enough to make you want to start planning a trip. Tomorrow. Yes, it’s that good.

For me, I loved this city, having been there many years ago for a quick stopover. How exciting that I was to meet Bill in one of my all time favorite destinations! And to be honest, I was more than a little thankful that fate had thrown me the NY card rather than landing me on the Inca Trail!

By mid January, the ticket was booked and the planning and the countdown had begun. Where to stay? What to do? Where to eat? And of course, the bigger question – how will things be after not seeing each other for so long? Communication today provides us with a sense of connection, but for a relationship to function well, Skype, Facebook and emails can only get you so far. So after some extensive research, collecting travel tips from friends (thanks Joe for the valuable info!), we had put together a rough itinerary.

For me the only musts while there were a trip to the top of the Empire State Building and a run in Central Park. Apart from that, I was happy just to wander, do a bit of shopping – oh, and catch up on our last three and half months worth of dates. Which I’m proud to say, we ended up doing well. Especially the dinner and wine bar part! For Bill, shopping was high on the list of things to do. Yes, he may have been living off $1 hamburgers up until then, but this apparently enabled him to put a little away for the great bargains NY has to offer.

My time in New York was not long – eight days to re-discover this incredible city and to experience several things I had not previously done or seen – Brooklyn Bridge, DUMBO, a trip on the Staten Island Ferry, Century 21 to name a few of these gems. Eight days however was long enough for the two of us to do pretty much everything we wanted, to go on some incredible dates, and perhaps most importantly to answer the question we had been asking ourselves for a while (see above). The answer? Amazing!

Arriving back Sunday, I am now in withdrawal mode. What seemed like so long away when it was arranged, has now passed. Fortunately though, with a lot of romantic dinners, great memories – and some pretty swanky shoes – to see us through until July.

Rx

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