After exploring downtown and midtown, it's time to see the uptown. I decided to go all the way up, and work my way back down to the midtown.
Stop 1 - Breakfast and Coffee at Joe
Stop 2 - The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine
This is, in my opinion, the most beautiful cathedral in the US. There is a sculpture garden next to it, which is very interesting as well.
Stop 3 - The Columbia University
I don't usually have a strong desire to visit universities, but this is right next to the cathedral, so I decided to walk around a little bit.
Stop 4 - The Guggenheim Museum
I absolutely love the design of this museum. The idea is that you can walk in a upward spiral from the bottom, all the way up while enjoying different artwork. I always think that museums are a little chaotic with all the different exhibition rooms located in different parts of the museum, and people walking in different directions. You never quite figure out where does it begin, what is the order that I should be going with. In Guggenheim, there is only one way to see the exhibition.
Other museums options: The Metropolitan Museum of Arts, the American Museum of Natural History and the Frick Collection
There are numerous museums along the west and east sides of the central park, depending on what you are interested in, you can choose accordingly.
Stop 5 - Central Park
This is one of the most famous parks in New York. It is enormous. This is a great spot for dating, running, reading, walking around, I would say almost anything! There are meadows and lakes, with different views in different seasons.
Note* I later found out that there is an interesting sculpture "Alice in the Wonderland" that I missed.
Stop 6 - Washington Square Park
I was kinda taking a nice break before dinner in the park. It happened that there was some sort of event that day and it was very entertaining to watch people doing different tricks like the unicycle, juggling, etc.
Stop 7 Hakata Tonton
I met up with a friend for dinner, and I found this Japanese place to try. This is definite somewhere I would come a lot if I lived in New York.
Appetizer: Fatty Tuna Sashimi
Main course: Hakata Tonton Hot Pot (for 2 people)
Dessert: Premium Japanese Tea Crème Brulèe, black sesame ice cream
Everything was super fresh. The soup was delicious. The vegetables added a little sweetness to the stew, and the seasoning was just right. When the ingredient is good, you don't need a lot of seasoning because you should be tasting each individual ingredient. Not only was the soup so delicious, the black sesame ice cream was probably the best I have had in the US. Highly recommended if you are in New York and craving for some hot pot.
This day ended with an amazing meal. The rest of the 2 days will be focusing on exploring the other boroughs a little.