{"id":1703,"date":"2022-03-18T17:16:55","date_gmt":"2022-03-18T17:16:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/?p=1703"},"modified":"2022-03-18T17:23:56","modified_gmt":"2022-03-18T17:23:56","slug":"from-nyc-to-fl-at-last","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/?p=1703","title":{"rendered":"From NYC to FL…At Last"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

After almost three years of long-distance love with my new hubby Steve, I am finally a full-time Florida resident. I\u2019ve been asked a lot whether it is bittersweet to leave New York. Thankfully, I can honestly say the answer is no. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I truly made the most of my many decades in NYC. Raised by a Bronx-born Mom and Brooklyn native Dad, I grew up fortunate to experience the city\u2019s vast arts and entertainment offerings. Childhood outings to Broadway musicals and shows at Radio City fueled a passion that continues to this day. After spending most of my twenties working in TV news and living in small towns like Bangor, Maine and Dover, Delaware, I returned to the Big Apple determined to take advantage of everything I missed while I was gone. Which is exactly what I did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Only in NYC. Clockwise from top: Backstage at Kinky Boots on Broadway.
At a black-tie Oscars Party. With Ricky Martin at the Hispanic Federation Awards.
With Jennifer Grey at a Dirty Dancing 25th anniversary screening.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Concerts, theater, only-in-New York events \u2014 I maintained a pretty full, action-packed schedule during my thirties. Because, well, that\u2019s the whole point of living in New York. With so much going on all of the time, FOMO was a real thing long before it became a trendy acronym. Upon turning forty, though, I started to crave a less frenetic lifestyle. Visits to New Jersey and Long Island had me longing for a suburban hometown where the views are of greenery instead of tall buildings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Our picture perfect porch view in Casselberry<\/em>, Florida<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

That yearning prompted an ill-fated move to L.A. in 2016. So I have been ready for a different zip code for quite a while now, a fact of which I was reminded during a visit to Rise NY<\/a> in Times Square. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Rise NYC is a fantastic, must-do experience. (Photo Credit: RiseNY.co)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Billed as part ride and part museum, the recently opened attraction dazzles on both fronts. Rise NY begins inside a replica of the city\u2019s very first subway station, with a short documentary narrated by actor Jeff Goldblum. The engrossing, well-curated exhibit takes you all the way back to when New York was founded, tracing the city\u2019s rich history through the lenses of pop culture, finance and more. From the technology that made skyscrapers possible to iconic moments in music and fashion, Rise NY covers it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
All smiles in Rise NY\u2019s TV section with Oscar the Grouch.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And the grand finale doesn\u2019t disappoint. Giving Disney\u2019s similar Soarin\u2019 Around The World<\/a> ride at Epcot a run for its money, the epic 4-D journey suspends you thirty feet in the air, flying over NYC\u2019s majestic skyline. Highlights include the Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge, July 4th fireworks and Macy\u2019s Thanksgiving Parade balloons. It culminates in a birds\u2019 eye view of the Times Square ball drop on New Years\u2019 Eve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Jay-Z\u2019s \u201cEmpire State of Mind\u201d played, I found myself a little misty-eyed realizing it is the end of an era for me. The hometown that I love so dearly \u2014 and always will \u2014 is no longer home. But that\u2019s okay. Love turned this city girl into a beach babe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wouldn\u2019t have it any other way.<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After almost three years of long-distance love with my new hubby Steve, I am finally a full-time Florida resident. I\u2019ve been asked a lot whether it is bittersweet to leave New York. Thankfully, I can honestly say the… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"New Blog Post: Leaving New York. #moving #citylife #NYC #BigApple","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[335,334,331,332,156,329,333,336],"class_list":["post-1703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-disney-rides","tag-epcot","tag-florida","tag-long-distance-love","tag-moving","tag-new-york","tag-rise-ny","tag-tourist-attractions"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"cc_featured_image_caption":{"caption_text":"","source_text":"","source_url":""},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4J0fq-rt","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1703"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1703\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1759,"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1703\/revisions\/1759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.newyorkcitygal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}