New York in a Nutshell

I've been contemplating writing a post over this trip for a while now.
But to be honest, this is a hard one to elaborate on, I'm not sure this information will be of any help to those traveling here either. 
During the course of this trip, I gained a lot, but I lost a lot too.

If I was to classify one of these trips as "spontaneous," this one would have to reign superior. 
I had no idea what I was doing.
And neither did my parents. 
But I did have a train ticket to Albany, New York and that was something.
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If I were to pick a major highlight of this trip, it would most definitely be the train ride. I met some of the coolest people and the majority of the conversations were nothing less than scratch the surface. To sum it up, awesome humans, with awesome ideas. 

I had a train change at Union Station in Chicago. After a quick bite to eat and journal session, I wandered outside to people watch.

My senior year of high school (at this point I was a college freshman) I contemplated going to Columbia College in Chicago and sitting on a concrete bench with wind glued hair to my face, I was content with that possibility falling through. The overwhelming amount of people made me exhausted; I guess I'm a sucker for the simple life. 

When I arrived in Albany, it wasn't quite what I expected. It was abnormally quiet and that instantly made me feel uncomfortable. Although, I blamed it on the cold weather and tried to find excitement for this new city I just landed in. 
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I checked in to my hotel and took a shower after the two day train ride. By then it was dark. so I figured I'd catch up on homework and start my exploring in the morning.

I should have used the term "exploring," more lightly, because I only managed to walk about 5 blocks in each direction from my hotel. But I must say, these blocks didn't disappoint.

As the trip drug on, it morphed from a "getaway," to more of a "discovery." Instead of searching for restaurants to try, I was learning how to love a quiet city that intimidated me.

With a mountain of homework, I didn't have as much time as I wanted to venture out. But when I did, I made a point to browse in every open shop.

In one particular thrift shop, I found this adorable scarf. It was real cashmere and marked as $4, I was sold. 
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One mistake I made was wearing my ripped jeans out, at least I got a nice picture. 

This trip was the beginning of my curiosity in plant life, according my sister via Instagram lol.

I was tempted to buy this hanger, but after 30 seconds I realized that there was a slim chance I would ever actually use it. At least it's pretty to look at?
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I took this trip well before I knew what it really meant to be a travel blogger. Although, here are a few lasting details that you may find helpful:

*I never once felt unsafe alone on the Amtrak. The staff is super observant and I wasn't afraid to pass out and sleep for a few hours.

*I purchased coach seats for my entire trip and was overly pleased with how comfortable they were. (Suuuper easy to sleep in) My ticket was $334 for a round trip. Very affordable.

*I had to switch trains in Chicago, but this was very easy! 

*EXPLORE the train. My absolute favorite part of Amtrak is their observer car. It was a freakin dream to watch the world outside roll by. The car is made up of mostly big windows!! Holy picture time. :)

I KNOW that I didn't get the most out of this city. Where should I stop here next time?

Is New York City worth the hype?

Related posts:

• Family Trip to Maine
• Ten Photos That'll Make You Want to Visit Seattle
• Worst + Best Travel Moments of 2017

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