Believe

 Life has just flown by this week, and the holiday break was way too short! Work has definitely started to get busier, and the holiday season is now in full swing. This week was so busy, and I have much to share. During my insanely long work day on Wednesday, Curtis and Ben came to visit me on my lunch break! We went to Room Service, and found some amazing Thai food for an insanely low price. Their visit was so lovely! My dear Uncle Andrew came into town this week and absolutely spoiled Mary, Matt and I. It was great to spend time with all of them. On Thursday, we met him for brunch reservations at Aureole which was absolutely fabulous. The food was wonderful, and we had a great view of the Macy's day parade. Here are a few of the floats. It was neat! The brunch was so delightful. We started out with a plate of fruit and a basket of mini croissants and assorted breads. For the main course, I tried the eggs benedict, and finished with their seven-layer chocolate cake. I forgot to take pictures of the food, so you can enjoy the parade pics instead.

After the parade, we took a water taxi to the tip of the island and visited the 9/11 memorial. It was really neat to see. Where the two towers stood are two waterfalls, and they're fenced with plaques of the names of all those who died on 9/11. It was super touching to see, especially being in New York on the 10 year anniversary. It's been so long, but even so, I never realized the enormity of what had happened before coming to the city, and now it's unimaginable to me. In the early evening we went to Pure Food and Wine for Thanksgiving dinner. Pure Food and Wine is a completely raw organic restaurant. Everything that is prepared is plant based, and nothing is heated above 118 degrees in order to maintain the complete enzymatic properties of the food that is served. Mary and I split their entire Thanksgiving menu and tried the smoked corn pudding and brussel sprouts for appetizers, the pear carrot ginger soup, the shepherd's pie and celery root ravioli for main courses, and the pumpkin cheesecake and apple crisp as desserts. It was amazing. I did manage to snap some shots of dinner. 

Celery Root Ravioli

Shepherd's Pie

After dinner, we headed to Brooklyn and spent some more time together conversing and playing scattergories. On Friday, we had dinner at Laconda Verde and headed to the Nutcracker, which was great to see. The only time I saw it performed was in Idaho Falls when I was 8 years old, and my memories of it are so vague. The ballet is beautiful - it inspired me to dance more.Both Friday and Saturday I spent all day working, and afterward I rushed to dinner and a show with Mary, Matt and Andrew. On Saturday we had vegetarian Korean food at Hangawi - it was absolutely delicious. Upon entering the restaurant, they ask you to remove your shoes. Then they put them away for you and seat you on the floor. The restaurant has a really great philosophy. If you're interested in reading about it, there's a short section on their website: http://www.hangawirestaurant.com/ After dinner, we rushed back to Lincoln Center to see War Horse. It was incredible. The staging and the puppetry of the show was beautiful. You forget that people are actually operating the horses. The story was a little shallow, and I wished there had been a bit more substance to the plot, but for turning a children's book into this amazingly staged production, they did a wonderful job, and it's definitely worth seeing. 

So very thankful,

Emily

Christmas Countdown: 27 days!