Coney Island Date Night

Two weekends ago my boyfriend and I decided to go to Coney Island for a date night. I've been to Coney Island a million times with my family, but never with him. The journey down there isn't too bad from Queens and who cares when you're looking forward to a fun filled night.

Once we got there the first thing we did was go to Nathans between Schweikerts Walk & Stillwell Ave. I've never been to this location before and I didn't even realize it existed because I thought they only had the one location on the Boardwalk. This location had a whole bunch of seafood items on the menu, and I got the clams and chips instead of their hotdogs. At first when I got it I thought it didn't look like much and that I would be hungry. To my surprise it was very filling and the clams and chips also came with cole slaw and corn bread. For $7 I was stuffed so this was bargain eating at it's best. My boyfriend opt for the more regular Nathan's items like their hot dogs and french fries. Even though I didn't get it this time their cheese fries are one of the best cheese fries ever. You have to try them at least once. 

After we ate we walked on the Boardwalk then walked into the amusement parks. The first ride we went on was the Polar Express. For $10 per person the ride was at least ten minutes long and you do feel like you get your money's worth. This ride is not scary at all and they play music while you're on it (mostly hip hop). The ride goes around in a circle and it has little baby hills here and there. 

Once we were done with the Polar Express we decided to take a break from the rides and play some games. First we went to the Arcade and we played Skee Ball and then played Terminator 2. During Skee Ball my boyfriend and I can get pretty competitive. We always have been whenever we're playing a game. After the arcade we played two of the typical carnival games. We didn't have any luck with the carnival games and didn't win any prizes. 

So for our second ride I was so determined to go on the Wonder Wheel. We bought our tickets and got on line. Once the family in front of us got in, I then started to notice how high the ferris wheel was. Also the seats looked like they were made out of really thin metal. I started panicking and had to get off the line. I just couldn't do it. The Wonder Wheel is super tall and I hope one day I'll be able to get over my fear. So we got our tickets back and went into the hunted house ride instead. We were the only ones on it, but it was fine with me. The ride had your regular hunted house items inside. Nothing out of the ordinary. My boyfriend being the jokester that he is told the attendant that he was so scared that his hair fell off. You can't help but laugh since he's bald. 

After the haunted house ride we decided we went on enough rides for the night. We walked on the Boardwalk towards the F train. Before we got on the train we went to this new candy store named It's Sugar. It had every kind of candy there was. Even older candy from the 80s. At this store I got myself a king size Air Head and a cute little tee for my baby cousin that said "I Love Boobs" on it. The store offers a variety of things, candy, shirts, household items (dishware) clothes; a little bit of everything. 

Once we got done shopping and looking around we went home. Being out on the Boardwalk and enjoying the summer night was by far one of the best date nights I had with my boyfriend. It's not always about going out for dinner and getting fancy. What's more important is enjoying the moments you and that special someone share and having fun together. 

Picnic At Brooklyn Bridge Park

                Three weekends ago my boyfriend and I went to the Brooklyn Bridge Park for a picnic. It was a good idea, but there were some flaws in our plans.

                First off we decided to take the East River Ferry. Last year when we took the ferry it wasn’t bad at all. So we decided to take the ferry from North 6^th St (Williamsburg, Brooklyn). Biggest mistake ever because when we got there the line was already long and the workers warned us that we might not be able to get on the boat, but we thought lets take our chances. It couldn’t be that bad, but it was. We didn’t make it on the first boat and it took another 40 minutes for the next one to come. A lot of people did got off the line once they weren’t able to get on and we got lucky being the first ones for the second boat. It’s just that the forty minutes wait was crazy. They should have had more boats on the weekends since more people will be using them. So note to self when going to Brooklyn Bridge Park it’s best to use the Subway because it gets you there a lot faster.

                Once we got to the park there was a bunch of people there. I guess word got around about the place. It's very easy to get to and the view of the park is just beautiful. Overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge and just being by  the water is a really great feeling. The park is very spacious so there’s more than enough space for people to set up for a picnic. We got a spot under some shade because my boyfriend tends to get sun burned easily. There’s also a pool there, but I haven't ventured to that part of the park yet. 

                Being at the park for the picnic was very relaxing. After eating our sandwiches I fell asleep for a bit. Being in the shade and having the breeze on you tends to put you in the mood for a mini nap. Once we got done with our picnic we were going to go to the small ice cream shop that’s there. The line for the ice cream shop was insane. You would think it’s a line for a famous club in Vegas or Miami. Same thing goes for the line for the ferry. This time around my boyfriend and I knew better not to try to get on the ferry. It probably would’ve been a two hour wait before we got home.

                Instead we took the train home. Although the F train had some work done on it I got home a lot quicker than taking the ferry and having to take the subway as well.

                So note Brooklyn Bridge Park is still a nice place to go to, but nowadays it’s more crowded and a lot of people seem to have found out about it. It’s definitely a place you should try to go at least once, but it’s no longer a hidden gem. 

The Last Concert I went to... Bruno Mars

My last concert was in June at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. For my 30th birthday my boyfriend bought me tickets to the Bruno Mars concert. Lucky for me this was the second time I got to see Bruno Mars. I had been to his first concert as well for my 28th birthday. It was at the Roseland Ballroom, so having the concert at the Barclays Center was definitely a step up for Bruno Mars.

The person I chose to come with me was my mom. Although my boyfriend gave me the tickets, when I first got them he said he didn't want to go. So then a few days afterwards I told him that my mom was going with me and he had the nerve to say he was just joking and wanted to go. Too bad for him and his joking around like that, I still ended up taking my mother. My mother and I haven't had a girl's day just the two of us for a while and she hasn't been to a concert since she was a teenager.

The concert started at 8PM so I left my house about 6:30PM so I could get to Barclays without rushing and to have enough time to shop.  The train ride took about an hour and when we got there we of course had to take pictures outside and inside of the Barclays Center. I always knew Barclays center was huge, but I never realized how big it was and this was my first time being there. It really see a sight to see.

Getting into the Barclays was very quick which is always a good thing. Once inside we went to the bar and ordered a round of drinks. I suggest to never drink there. The prices are sky rocket for such a little amount. So after getting our overpriced drinks we went to shop for some souvenirs. I got myself a t-shirt and then we went up to our seats. Our seats were in section 200 row 9. I don't recommend any seats above the 100 section because it's very steep and you can't stand up to dance during the concert. My mom is scared of heights and so am I; so it took us both a minute or two to get use to our seats.

Once we got to our seats the first band was performing and then about 9PM they were done and they started to change the set. It was an exciting moment once you know that the performer is coming on. Finally Bruno Mars came on and that's when the party started.

Bruno Mars is a great performer and this time around he was more interactive with the audience. Then at one point of the concert he was singing 90s R&B songs like My Boo and Candy Rain. That of course was one of my favorite moments since those were the songs I grew up with. He also sang the more popular songs from his first album like Runaway Baby, Grenade, Just The Way You Are, etc. After all of this he ended the concert with Locked Out of Heaven and Gorilla. By far this this was one of my favorite concerts. I've been other concerts like Katy Perry, The Big Four and Dave Matthews Band.

The next big concert I'm going to will be Macklemore. That I can't wait to go to since he's another really good performer to watch and he's also a good rapper. People mostly associate him with pop music because of the song Thrift Shop, but when you listen to his whole album he rap about real stuff. Well it'll be a little bit of a wait till the next concert, but I can't hardly wait for it.