The thing about New York in the Winter is that it is BITTER cold. Even though I did enjoy my stay, I would very much appreciate my time spent if gone in the summer where cool beverages are among every cafe and you’re not worried about fingers going numb. I carried hot pockets in all of my jacket pockets to keep my hands warm.

We started off our day with Juniors (a diner + restaurant known for its cheesecakes) for breakfast. A 2 minute walk from our hotel is a win to me, even though I love walking in big cities, when it is below freezing I prefer to avoid walking long distances. It was a very spacious area and very very busy, I guess the popularity of the place wasn’t a joke. We waited around 15 minutes to get and seated and once we did we were starving. My mom ordered some coffee which came with those crystal candies, it was fun t stir it in and watch it dissolve in the hot liquid. I got some pancakes which came with cinnamon apples (something I don’t think I’ve ever had before) and they were pretty good. My little sister went a little overboard and absolutely nailed her carb and protein intake in just one sitting by ordering potatoes, toast and an omelet.

After breakfast we headed into an uber towards Sloomoo Institute. It’s an interactive slime museum, normally presented for kids it was fun to be a child again and walk around touching all the slime samples. I remember back when I was younger slime videos were absolutely thriving all over YouTube, it was THE thing. Although not as popular today it was relatively crowded inside. We were first greeted by a wall covered in slime, apparently since the opening of the museum in 2019 they have been placing slime on one designated wall which every guest that enters the museum participates in. It was a huge clump of slime clinging onto the wall and it was really cool to see it. I did also slap some slime onto the already ginormous dump of slime and admired the dedication it must be to not clean it all up. Next we are presented with the option to stand behind a glass wall, which, a second person can literally fling slime at you. Just like that one Jimmy Fallon segment where they fling fruit at the celebrities. Right next to that are a bunch of slime samples. The samples are coded through their texture, from clear to crunchy, snowy to metallic, all of the types of slimes were presented to touch. My dad really liked this part of the museum, as someone who banned slime in the house when my sister and I were younger, it was ironic to see him enjoy the mess of the slime as much as we did. Once you go through the slime sample hallway you’ll see people waiting in line with ponchos. Those people are in line to get voluntarily slimed, like those clips of celebrities getting slimed on the Nickelodeon show they quite literally get covered head to toe in a gooey substance. If you don’t want to get slimed, which my family and I all collectively agreed upon, there is another room close by that tracks your movements and turns you into a silly little blob monster.

A real nostalgic time turner was when we could create our own slime, first we are presented with some textures we want, I chose clear for mine (they’re always silky and smooth for me), next you can smell an arrangement of scents that are plastered on the wall (be careful because some of them are REALLY strong), and then you can take a look at the slime counter and choose a color you want. For me I did a coffee scent with a black color and called it “Depresso”. My sister on the other hand did rose scents and a pretty pink color and named it something like “Cupid Shuffle?” [How many of you remember the cupid shuffle?] If you’re a parent who can’t stand slime but went for the kids there are places for you as well. They have ASMR rooms past the slime making ones. You’ll see a little hallway, each room a different furry color and once you step into one you’ll hear some satisfying slime crunches. Each room has a different ASMR. My sister and I did not hesitate using the furry walls as backdrops instead. At the end the kids are able to get rewarded some more because there is a little parkour pit. First an aisle of squishes you have to get across, then walk through the mush of smile and finally through a tunnel and out onto the other side. It looks really fun, but being the age I am it definitely would not fly if I went through that tunnel.

After the slimy experience, I really need some fresh air. So I explored the city a little bit more and stumbled upon SOHO, very aesthetic and filled to the brim with luxury brands and other stores. As I walked closer to my hotel I saw a huge Christmas tree that is all lit up at night. I stumbled upon it while walking to a market, there was ice skating there but I was pretty cold as it is and didn’t want to wait in the HUGE line. My toes were going numb and I knew it was time to go back to the hotel and maybe take a little nap.

For dinner we headed to Queen of Sheba, a very popular Ethiopian restaurant. We ordered sambusa as appetizers and I was shocked by how similar it was to a samosa. It wasn’t until I came here that I realized how similar Indian and Ethiopian cuisine truly was. We also ordered a plate full of food that we shared together as a family. It’s like the Indian equivalence as dosa and an arrangement of curries and dhals. Which I loved. Finally for dinner we got some flan and some sort of rum cake. But altogether it was an amazing dinner and an amazing night. We did walk to the restaurant which was like a 20 minute walk from our hotel so by the time I got back to the hotel my feet were so numb I could barely walk. Maybe I’m too accommodated to southern winter weather.

The view of NYC at night tho was lowkey so worth the numbness in my feet.