Mini-Escape

Sometimes I forget that there is a whole island surrounding me- I often catch myself thinking of New York as just Hofstra and then NYC, with nothing in between. In reality, there are tons of things around me just waiting to be explored!

Lydia and I have been trying to get out more and see what Long Island has to offer. To celebrate being done with classes (!!!!) on Wednesday we popped over to the next town, Garden City, to walk up and down 7th street and explore. 7th is sort of like a mini-main street for Garden City with adorable little shops and restaurants.

For lunch we chose The Burger Spot. When we first stopped by 7th Street on Friday night, where we had dinner at the cutest little Italian place called 7th Street Cafe, we saw that The Burger Spot was packed. Wanting a more sit-down meal we ended up at the cafe, but decided we would come back for burgers!

We ended up loving it! It was really inexpensive (just over $10 which is rare in New York, I've found) and unique. I had the Athenian, a Greek-style burger, while Lydia chose the Mexican- Californians will do anything to get their guacamole fix. There were so many different burger options we had trouble choosing. The fries were thick and crispy, and a great substitute now that Shake Shack has disappointed us by changing their fries! I especially loved the garlicy-herb ranch-type dressing that came with our meal. 

7th Street. We also stopped at New Leaf, a delicious little tea shop with every kind of tea imaginable. 

My grandma sent me flowers from this florist and they were beautiful! 

There are pineapples on everything in Garden City- all of the street signs are emblazoned with them and several shops had pineapple wares in the front or pineapple door mats. I'm not sure why, I tried searching! 

7th Street is also home to The Island, aka preppy heaven. The store is mostly Lilly Pulitzer but also offers Vineyard Vines, Kiel James Patrick, and other prep brands. I scored this hat and this tote!

I've been dying to score a Vineyard Vines hat forever- they're so classic and will be perfect for summer, especially with this Lilly tote. 

Garden City is such a beautiful little area, we could have walked and driven around all day! We will definitely be back to try all the restaurants come fall semester! 

College Tourist Writer's Roundup

I'm back! Sorry for the lack of posting, this is an absolute crazy time for me right now. However, school will be out in less than two weeks and then I'm free! 

For now, I am excited to announce that this summer I have an editorial position with The College Tourist! If you have been reading the blog for a while, I had a virtual internship with TCT last fall, and this semester I have worked for them as freelancer; you can see some of my work here. 

As part of my position this summer, I am responsible for gathering the Global Writer's Roundup each week. Every writer in the College Tourist network gets a badge for their site, and are part of a network of writers and bloggers. Each week, I will be assembling posts from some of the writers in our network, and making a list of the must-read posts for the week. You can check out my first roundup here. 

I will be updating every Friday with a new roundup all summer, so stay tuned! While you're at it, you can check out other posts on The College Tourist.

Links I Love

If you're looking for a little weekend reading/entertainment, you're in luck! I've put together a few things that are on my radar this week and what I can't stop obsessing over.

1. Prince George's Royal Tour: I cannot get enough of Prince George!! I've been obsessed with Will and Kate since before their engagement (I held a royal tea party to watch their wedding- hats required), and their royal tour of New Zealand and Australia this month is a dream come true for royal watchers. As soon as they stepped off the plane I haven't been able to get enough pictures, gifs, and videos of the little prince in his adorable outfits, as well as his gorgeous mom. We should all aspire to be as classy as Kate!

2. Don Draper is Constipated: I am a huge Mad Men fan, and this Tumblr is devoted to pictures of Don, completely out of context, where he looks constipated!! I spent a solid ten minutes laughing to myself while scrolling through. Sometimes Jon Hamm really does look...well...uncomfortable!

3. Summer in Lilly: As summer approaches, Lilly's got a few rules for summer parties, especially if you plan on crashing! Number 1? Always wear your brightest printed dress! The full list of party rules can be found here. I am also super excited about the new Lilly summer collection! I'll take one of everything, please.

4. Kurt Vonnegut's Letter: I stumbled across this a couple weeks ago and have been meaning to put it up on the blog! A few years ago, some NYC high school students asked author Kurt Vonnegut to speak at their school. Instead, he sent this incredibly inspiring letter, read aloud and acted out by the students. I'm new to the Vonnegut fan club- I read Slaughterhouse Five last summer (it's a great little book for commuting on the train every day), and found it intriguing. What Vonnegut book should I read next?

5. Life Graphs: Confession, I stole this from The College Prepster but it was too good to resist. These 33 graphs represent various aspects of life (such as your knowledge of driving after your test or 'The McDonald's Curve'), in a hilarious and painfully accurate way. 

Head East

As much as I may complain about Long Island- the traffic, the crowds, the slow speed limits, the awful weather- sometimes I realize how beautiful parts of it really are. This weekend I ventured east with my mom to drive around the Hamptons. In my opinion, the Hamptons are even more beautiful in the off-season; there are practically no people except for locals, and the A-list celebs and billionaires haven't invaded just yet. It is still a peaceful, country New England-type town.

I usually only head way out east in the fall for apple picking (which you can read all about on Lydia's blog). But we decided, with little planning, to get in the car and just drive until we hit the end.

Once we reached the Hamptons we drove around all the beautiful neighborhoods, practically empty as the summer set hasn't arrived.



I'm not sure what these M&M-looking sculptures are supposed to be or what these crazy houses are for, but we had to pull over for a picture!

I certainly wouldn't mind a little country house like this; I'd live here year-round!

This picture is dripping with Americana- Norman Rockwell would love to paint all of Sag Harbor. 

Once we had driven around the Hamptons, we headed further east to the very end of the island, Montauk. After stopping at a few overlooks along the road to take in the breathtaking view, we reached a little parking area on a cliff. 

To reach the lighthouse, we hiked through a heavily overgrown area on a tiny, barely beaten path that dropped us out at the beach. 

From there, we trekked across these rocks (which was not an easy task) for about ten minutes until we reached the lighthouse!

Our view for most of our hike. A little scary but exciting! 

This place is old. We were surprised to see that George Washington had commissioned this as a historical site, A. the country was so new, and B. didn't he have a fledgling country to run, instead of running out to Montauk to see a lighthouse?

This sign was hilarious yet very serious. I wonder what kind of place this is...

Dinner was at the Clam Bar, a little shack on the side of the road offering fresh chowder and sea food. We knew it had to be good when we saw cars lined up and down the highway at different times during the day. Apparently this place has been featured on Sex and the City and is quite the pit stop for people on their way out east. 

Heading out east and just driving around was perfect and exactly what I needed before the home stretch as the school year comes to a close. I'm super busy with papers, finals, and projects, but I'm almost done and then it's back home for an entire summer!

On the Steps of The Met

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of my favorite places in New York. I have always loved art and going to museums, and living in a city full of celebrated art houses is a dream! This is my second trip to the Met this year, just because I love it so much! My next goal is to make trips to other museums in the city, including the Guggenheim, the MoMA, and the Neue Gallerie.

My mom came to visit this week, and I was so excited to be able to explore with her and spend time together! Friday we headed into the city with Lauren for the museum, Central Park, and great food with great people.

So happy my mom got to visit for an entire week!

I am obsessed with Impressionist painters- it's my favorite style of painting and seeing several rooms full of nothing but my favorite artists was almost overwhelming! Just look at the colors in this Manet!

This Renoir girl and I have very similar poses.

Van Gogh is one of my favorite painters, I freaked out a little over the rooms dedicated to his works and seeing his self-portrait!

Maybe it's my history with dancing, but I have always admired Degas. His sculptures, paintings, and drawings dedicated to the art of ballet and the ballerinas of the Paris Opera are breathtaking. 

One of my other favorite galleries is the recently renovated Near Eastern gallery, full of ancient Islamic art. Everything is ornate and elaborately decorated, like this prayer niche (above). 

This guy laying down drove me crazy- you're amongst amazing works of art get up and get off your phone!

The Great Hall of the Met. I think what I really love about the museum is that it is a beautiful old building with so much history. People go to museums to see art, but the fact that the place housing the art is a work of art in itself makes me love spending a day at the Met. 

Outfit details: Hat, vintage. Vest, Ross. Sweater, Kensie. Skirt, H&M. Boots, Target. Purse, Kate Spade. 

I had to take the stereotypical Gossip Girl picture with Lauren on the steps!

We had to make a trip back to El Centro- I can't get enough! It's hard to find good Mexican food in New York, so if you're like me and are looking for something authentic and delicious, hit up this adorable little spot, previously seen here.