Foodie Oasis in Chelsea

Hop on the A,C,E,L trains to 14th street and 8th avenue then walk one long block to 9th avenue and you will find a giant factory building known as the Chelsea Market.  It is a giant and I mean GIANT food hall (with some other things) that spans an entire city block.  This market has everything from delicious eats to high end clothing and cookware.  The main concourse has markets while on the other hand, the upstairs has a wide open kitchen space where celebrity chefs gather and do cooking shows.  This market has some outstanding bakeries, including the Fat Witch bakery and Amy's bread.  The market also holds, in my opinion the winner of the freshest fish in town.  The Lobster Place sells fish from all over, from Sea Urchins to cockles and mussles to blowfish tails to the freshest Lobster you will ever get; their specialty of course.  There is also a place where they make vegetarian sushi.  It looks good, but veggie sushi is just not my thing.  Chelsea Market is also right below the high line: An old elevated railine turned greenspace for people to walk on.  So one can grab some grub then head up to the high line for a pic-nic.     

Though Far From The Main DC Drag, There's Lots To Check Out In Georgetown!

If you're a shopping freak, then Georgetown is the place for you.  It has several shops and high end boutiques to offer.  M street is the main drag, which leads right from the Foggy Bottom neighborhood all the way over to the Francis Scott Key Bridge; and that stretch is roughly a mile long.  Georgetown is not the most convenient when it comes to getting here by public transportation, but it is totally worth coming to because it is one of the trendiest, if not the most, places in DC.  One store that I like is called Paper Source located at 3019 M Street NW.  Apparently this place has several locations around the country including three of them in NYC.  They don't sell just paper, they have a lot of cool stationary items as well.  They are items you use everyday but they put some fun twists on them.  So it's fun store to check out! There are hundreds of other amazing stores around here that I cannot count, so Georgetown is the place where there is everything that money can buy and youy can shop till you drop!  

For some food and drink, head over to Pizzeria Paradiso for some of the best pizza in the city! In my opinion, it can be as good or maybe even a bit better than some of the pizza you can get in NYC.  After your delicious pizza, walk right next door to Dean and Deluca for some coffee and some sweet treats.  They have many things that are good including an enormous bulk section of candy, baked goods, and gourmet lunch and dinner foods.  There are also several pubs which are pretty much everywhere on almost every street corner so if you need swig of something, chances are you will come across a pub right in front of you as you're walking. 

Georgetown is a haven for college students since it is also home to Georgetown University.  You will see many college students drinking at the bars and shopping around in the town. 

All in all, Georgetown is a great place to go where there are many shops and restaurants that would appeal to everyone.  You might have a better kick out in Georgetown in the late evening hours and into the night since it's it's very lively then, but it's worth going to at anytime, but whenever you go, you will be glad you came in the end.       

Princeton, NJ. It's Not Just About the College!!

Ok, you might think that the only icon that shouts out Princeton is Princeton University. Hell, that is not the case! There are lots of things you can do in this quaint town. The train takes about 88 minutes on a local train from Penn Station in New York City. You take the train to Princeton Junction then switch to the "dinky" shuttle train and that stops right on the Princeton campus. The campus is right in town so it's a short walk from the station. You can take NJ Transit or Amtrak. I took NJ transit because it's cheaper. It's $33 round trip from the city. Yes, there are trains you can take in New Jersey. New Jersey happens to have the densest railroad system in America, with several commuter lines that span to almost every pocket of the state.

There are several shops that would appeal to all ages. One of my favorite stores in Princeton is the Princeton Record Exchange located at 20 South Tulane Street.  This place has thousands upon thousands of vinyls and dvds that you could ever imagine; in several price ranges. There are ones that are as cheap as a dollar and there are ones that can cost thousands of dollars depending upon how scarce or rare they are. I bought a Kinks vinyl, it actually came with 2 records. It's called, "The Kinks, Everybody's in Show-Biz." Everyone who buys a record must use a turntable in order to the record to play. I am especially impressed with the album cover! I interviewed the General Manager of Princeton Record Exchange, Jonathan Lambert. In this video he will talk about the history of the store and what the business is about. Enjoy!

Princeton also has a variety of eateries and food stores that are very enticing. If you are coming right from the train, and you need a caffeine boost OR something to munch on, I would say to head right over to Small World Coffee located at 254 Nassau Street.
The baristas are very friendly and they give you a great cup of joe. This place would be a great introduction to Princeton and would give you a sample of life there, even some of the college life since many students come and study while sipping a cup of joe. That is why this is the best place to start out as soon as one arrives in Princeton! There are several good places where you can get a bite to eat for lunch. Olives Gourmet Bakery and Deli located at 22 Witherspoon Street has a great selection for the health conscious. They have soups, salads, and typical Jersey subs. The other place you can go to is D'Angelo Italian Market located at 35 Spring Street. This place has a variety of tasty Italian goods such as sandwiches, breads, and pastries. They also have typical grocery store items and did I mention that there is an entire freezer section with over 15 different types of ravioli!? In case you haven't noticed, I like pasta.

There are so many different shops and boutiques ranging from a Lacrosse store to a spice shop to clothing stores catering to any style.

The bottom line is this is a great day trip from NYC.

Yellow Rat Bastard... A Clothing Store Other Than the Norm

If you want to piss off your teachers at school, you might want to check this place out.  The clothing store Yellow Rat Bastard is not the typical raunchy boardwalk logo shop, but it's not your regular clothing store either.  It is situated on Broadway right in the heart of Soho.  To get there, you can take the N,R train to Prince Street or the 6 train to Spring Street.  It can be a little hard to find at first.  All you have to do is look for three window panels that have open spaces in them.  There are three yellow signs on top of the window panels that have their logo, which is a dead rat.  When you walk inside, it looks like you are walking into a castle.  The place is very dark and is lit with old chandeliers.  There is a guy standing randomly to the left of the doorway awkwardly close to you.  I think he's there to monitor the flow of what comes in and out of the store.

Anyway, when you walk in there are several different articles of clothing, mainly T-shirts that have almost every design and logo you can think of, many of which are very explicit.  They have everything from heavy metal band covers, to a variety of designs. One example is a man painting a graffiti mural on the giant wall.  You can also see many different uses of swear words on shirts that sort of make fun of actual items.  I saw a shirt that had a picture which was similar to the person on an itunes gift card.  The  message said if**k instead of itunes.  That's how crazy this place is.  I have to say, this place will really appeal to teens like me.