Just Shana: Memory Lane, NY style

Last week I was in NY for a job that didnt quite pan out as one would have hoped but in the spirit of lemonade created from lemons I took the down time to finally visit my childhood neighborhood.  As you may/may not know I work in NY quite a bit now but aside from seeing my brother in passing since I stay with him I dont get to visit other family members (I was born in NY so aside from the family in the DC area most if not all the rest of my family on both sides is in NY).  So via pics I will share what I did and saw last week.  If you follow me on Instagram this is a repeat, so my apologies in advance.  :)

Besides Lefferts Ave in Brooklyn where my grandmother stayed, my aunt had/still has a brownstone on Midwood, also in Brooklyn.  When I got to a certain age my grandmother allowed me to walk around the corner to my aunts.  I just knew I was grown at that point!

Beautiful Brooklyn brownstones

Allan's bakery in Brooklyn - almost always packed with folks trying to buy up all of the delicious Jamaican delicacies.  I hadnt been in so many years.

inside Allan's

saw these at Ricky's on the Upper East side but I was strong and didnt get any.  They also had Nail and Lip rock in gorgeous metallics

got to see this in person finally, its the concealer and corrector kit, it is a must have but it was $70.  Def not in my budget during that trip

I asked for an iced chai, which I HAVE had before at Starbucks, however this particular barista acted as if I asked her to recite the hippocratic oath or something so I opted for an iced green tea instead...as an aside who is "Shalma"?  o_O

while charging my phone I had a front row view to this hat stand and I couldnt  help but appreciate not only his hustle but the level of salesmanship he showed each and every potential customer because not everyone purchased but plenty of people stopped to peruse the merchandise...

that commitment must definitely pay off because when they were ready to pack up and head home this is what they drove off in and I am not EVEN mad!

once I had enough juice in my phone I headed to Central Park to walk around, or should I say through.  

I almost walked past it but something said, go ahead and do it Shana.  I was spending time with myself that day and I took full advantage

this is me after my carousel ride listening to my tunes and rocking my new specs I picked up at Rickys!

after Central Park I headed to Madison Ave for macarons at Maison LaDuree

treats are always nice but no need to be excessive, this was plenty for me - pistachio and salted caramel

i chose to indulge in the pistachio first

after the Upper East Side I headed to Union Square, caught a glimpse of the Old Navy flip flop ice sculpture being dismantled...the things you run across in NY, never a dull moment

As a Top Chef fan I almost flipped out when I saw this.  I wanted to go in just in the hopes of catching a glimpse of Tom Colicchio and his dreamy self but budgetary limits prevented it

so I stopped at Pret a Manger instead because it was time to charge up anyway.  I never stop in places to charge my phone without making a purchase.  For some reason I feel bad.  Pret started popping up heavy in NY while I was at FIT and I fell in love with it.  On a college student budget though it was def a splurge item.  So it was a nice treat.

came across this statue of Andy Warhol in Union Square.  Nice...

I saw a lot more but those are all the pics I snapped.  I surprised people from the old neighborhood and got to visit  my grandmother, uncles, cousins...I had a great time and will never take NY for granted again.  :)

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