At the end of the last week, my cousin and I took a semi-spontaneous trip to New York City.  We visited (so many) friends, took in some incredible contemporary art, and tested out our fair share of rooftops and rosé.  A bit of a photo diary below, if you’d like to see…

We laid our heads down in Columbus Circle at night, but spent most of our days in Brooklyn.

The first rooftop stop was perhaps the most charming, a little French-style bruncherie (just go with it) in Williamsburg called Juliette.  The service, omelettes, and infamous cobb salad were so refreshing after a 4 hour bus ride.  Highly recommend.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a trip to Williamsburg without a stop at Catbird, The Bedford Cheese Shop, Awoke Vintage, Beacon’s Closet* (which provided my wardrobe for the entire weekend- no exaggeration), and the rest of the charming boutiques scattered from Grand Street to Division Ave.

I was really itching to see the Please Touch The Art exhibition since reading about it on Joanna’s blog.  Created by Danish artist Jeppe Hien and dotted throughout the Brooklyn Bridge Park, the collection consists of modified social benches in bright fluorescents, “appearing rooms” of skyward shooting water, and a “mirror labyrinth” reflecting Manhattan’s scape from across the river.  We also got to check out Tom Fruin’s gorgeous stained glass house, which I couldn’t seem to stop photographing, as evidenced above.

I’m convinced it’s truly impossible to visit DUMBO without stopping into at least one hip coffee shop (we chose Brooklyn Roasting Company) and a quirky art gallery for good measure (Smack Mellon was a treat of a little exhibit set in a restored mill building whose gorgeous windows alone are worth the wander in).  Another fun discovery- when the line at Brooklyn Ice Cream Company seems daunting, opt instead for the basil-infused lemonade from Lizzmonade.  Holy delicious.

Neither M nor I had ever walked the Brooklyn Bridge, so naturally it was high time to cross that off the bucket list.  As we traversed the iconic structure drawing together Brooklyn and her big sister, Manhattan, I couldn’t help but reflect on the connectivity beneath and around us.  We spent that walk marveling at our luck to be gifted with the presence of a cousin who feels more like a sister.

Which brings me to the topic of family, and friends that feel like it.  Reveling in the blissful moments that spawn, seeing old friends you’ve met and immediately loved in so many mediums- through your best friend, as wild 19-year-olds at a RISD Halloween party, 7 years ago in a 2-week summer program at Jacob’s Pillow- friends who reside in cities from NY to Copenhagen, whom you catch up with on occasion and very seldom see- these moments are what make any trip worth taking.

Annnnnd cheesy mushy gush session, concluded.

*If you haven’t seen the Beacon’s Closet episode of Broad City, you’re missing out.