I saw a ton of interesting and silly things during my trip to New York, so it would be a shame not to share it. So here are some of the highlights, with lots of photos!
The hotel I stayed in the first night was super fancy. At least, super fancy to a poor college student. But I liked it because it had a particular geeky bent to it, since it was in an old “Chemists’ Club” building. Beakers for glasses! Petri dish for the soap holder! Wooo!
It also was a wonderful location – just a couple blocks from Grand Central Terminal, The New York Public Library, and Times Square. I figured I would go check out Times Square since it was a Wednesday night, rather than an insane weekend visit. My sister-in-law pleaded that I check out the new Pop-Tart Store that everyone has been talking about, and try the disgusting-yet-intriguing sounding Pop-Tart Sushi.
The idea of Pop-Tart having it’s own store is kind of odd. I mean, I’ll eat Pop-Tarts occasionally…but they’re just Pop-Tarts. They’re not even all that good. To have a whole store decorated like a Pop-Tart LSD rave was just weird.
But I did order one piece of the “Pop-Tart Sushi,” which was Raspberry, Blueberry, and Wildberry Pop-Tarts mushed up together and held together with a fruit roll-up. If you think that sounds weird, just see how it looks:
It was hard to put that thing in my mouth, it was so disgusting looking. It looked like a piece of fruity salami that had been pooped out by a unicorn. The flavor was okay – vaguely fruity – but the consistancy was gross. It was this gritty yet soft texture, like someone had chewed up a Pop-Tart, spit it out, and formed it into a nice little wedge. Thankfully it was only 75 cents.
I then wandered to the heart of Times Square. All the lights were kind of cool, but I don’t know why it’s such a big draw. It’s basically just a lot of flashy advertisements, with the occasional weird person on the street.
Though my “favorite” weird thing was the Times Square Elmo. It was something out of a nightmare movie. The outfit was super old and dirty, like Elmo had been rolling around in the gutter. Something about the matted fur and human fingers sticking out of holes in the glove was unsettling. What was more unsettling was the parents who still let their children run up and hug Nasty Elmo. Eeewww.
I stopped in a couple random stores to pass the time. The coolest was definitely the Lego Store, where they had amazing Lego sculptures and individual lego pieces in every color.
This is totally different from the Pop-Tart store because Legoes, unlike Pop-Tarts, are super awesome. Just to clarify that.
I didn’t spend too much time exploring that night since I was tired from my flight and needed my beauty rest for the photo shoot. I was tempted to get a last minute ticket for Abraham Lincoln’s Big Gay Dance Party, but ended up being too cheap. I did get to see an awesome sunset before turning in.
I agree: LEGO blocks ARE super awesome.
Glad you had a fun time in NYC. Just for the record though, it’s TIMES Square (as in New York Times, which had their headquarters there at one time), not TIME Square.
I missed the Pop-tart store (luckily! – I nearly barfed when I saw that picture, it looks like spam) I did have the pleasure of going into the Lego store and visiting Ripley’s. Can’t wait to see more!
Times Square is kinda like the hub of Manhattan. From there you can grab four subway lines which can lead you to pretty much anywhere in the city. Kinda ostentatious though, all the best stuff is happening downtown if you ask me.
Me think you like:http://www.thebricktestament.c…
I see the TKTS sign in one of your shots of Times Square. It’s a great place to get discount theater tickets!http://laughinginpurgatory.blo…
Whoops, fixed. Tourist Fail.
Hey! Pop Tarts are venerated objects in many Pastafarian households! These thin rectangular prisms of fruity-substance-filled indestructably-apocalyse-ready delight are like little edible placemats for other guilty pleasures. That fruit-roll-wrapped-“sushi” token is never to be consumed; it is actually a sacrifice that is meant to be thrown into an active volcano to keep the Gods-Of-Optionally-Toaster-able-Treats from redacting their these-things-will-remain-unchanged-forever-if-left-in-their-original-sealed-pouches. Now that you have actually consumed a PT-idol yourself and made that fact public, I need to warn you to avoid invitations to cone-shaped mountains from anyone that reveals an unhealthy interest in flattish-rectangular objects (Chicklets, iPhones, etc.).By the way, people who think Twinkies will get them through the next catastrophic food chain collapse will die out in mere months. It’s the Pop Tarts, people! You’ve been warned.
Actually, for true Lego greatness in the name of religion, check out the astounding detail and construction of this Lego masterpiece.http://www.amyhughes.org/lego/…The builder did do this in the name of her religion, but that does not stop me from appreciating the amazing 7′ by 5′ Lego creation she designed and built here. Make sure to step through the photo gallery — the details and scale will astound.
Okay, I checked it out, and I started going through all the pages, and I’m thinking, “I don’t get it, it’s just a bunch of different views of the same model….”…Then I get to the “Special Guests” page, and-Whoa! Look who’s sitting in row six, four seats in from the center aisle, in front of a woman in a green top who looks like Kyle Broflovski’s mom and some guy in a brown top! The likeness is unmistakeable! She’s even still wearing the blue top she was wearing when she went to see Colbert!-Jen, I think you can sue them for this!
Hey what is the name of that cool hotel??
Hahaha. Hey, I see PZ in there too – 4th row, next to the red-head.
Cool! I LOVE midtown Manhattan. Go there every Spring with my wife (whose sister lives up near the GW Bridge) & son. Never-ending variety of things to see & do.
For lego goodness you have to check out the full sized house made of lego.http://www.milkandcookies.com/…
Shhhh! You’ll reveal his secret identity– I mean, uh, I mean, -PZ? No th-that’s not PZ at all, that’s mild-mannered Dwayne Towell of BrickWorx. Why, he doesn’t look anything like PZ. I mean, how could you even make such a mistake? Everyone knows that PZ wears GLASSES!
Okay, then how about these…?http://www.andrewlipson.com/es…http://www.andrewlipson.com/es…
Hope you went to central park (ironically my favorite part of the city). Also the promenade in Brooklyn Heights (2&3 to clark street) Great view of Manhattan and downtown especially. Sunset at the South street Seaport is amazing too. Can you tell I miss it? =(
It’s good to see you’ve accepted the truth of Lego. Hopefully someday all the world will let the Lego Maniac into their heart. Brick be with you.
People used to go to Times Square to see the sleaze, as it was the center of the porn industry in NY. After Giuliani cleaned it up by having the buildings of many porn theaters and sex shops condemned and Disney set up shop, there really hasn’t been that much to see, but tourists still flock there anyway.
Is it just me, or does that tower of Lego blocks sort of look like a massive Dalek???
i was lucky my first trip to NYC; i had natives who showed me around. i mostly skipped the tourist traps, and did the ‘hoods and art and funky stuff. i even did some activism! the museums are really where you need to go; it’s almost as good as London and has the flashy, trashy fun of parts of Paris. i actually need to do the true, tourist destinations of NYC. i still haven’t done them! every time i go, i hang out with Ch. boi types, and you know how they are. at least one literally can’t have a bad meal in NYC, that’s my favorite part as a former poor college student bartender worker. i live in Flyoverland, and it’s damn hard to get real food here, sometimes. and yes: Lego is made of WIN, while poptart “sushi” is the most horrendous idea ever created out of FAIL.