Road Trip – PR – NY – CT – NYC

04/22/2013 - United States, Hartford

04/22/2013 – UNITED STATES

Road Trip – PR – NY – CT – NYC

Road Trip – Isla Verde, Westchester, Hartford, New York City

Wow! What a week…

My husband and I spent many hours on the road, driving, this past year.  We travelled from Oklahoma to Washington DC twice.  We did road trips to Kansas City, Dallas, and Houston several times.  We even ventured from Salt Lake City to Eastern Wyoming and back, stopping in Jackson and Yellowstone (easily my favorite of our travels.)

As you read my blog, you will get to know that I am a big fan of travelling by automobile.  When there’s time, you can find some really cool spots to spontaneously stop and enjoy along the way. 

We embarked, once again, on another road warrior adventure this past week. It begins though, with a six-hour flight experience that turned into an twelve-hour flight experience!

It started in Isla Verde, Puerto Rico where we had partied up the weekend at the Intercontinental San Juan Resort and Casino.  We had the same room as before, and I still love this hotel. (See the Puerto Rico blog for that review.)

Southwest Airlines began its inaugural day at the San Juan Airport on the day we left Puerto Rico so we were privileged to meet some of the higher ups, tell them about my blog, and ride on the second Southwest flight ever out of the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport. 

I think of Southwest as my fairy godmother.  Once a customer reaches 100 flights in a year, she waves her magic wand and bestows you with a Companion Pass.  Stephen reached that status in June 2012, and Southwest Air “rapidly rewarded” him with a Companion Pass that lets me fly free until December 2013! Needless to say, we are big fans of Southwest.

This particular flight was headed for Orlando and then Baltimore, where we would we pick up our car to drive to Westchester, New York that night.  Due to storms in Orlando, our flight was diverted to West Palm Beach where we had to wait until the storm passed to fly back to Orlando and safely land.  Needless to say, we missed our Baltimore flight, were rebooked on another flight, and finally made it to Baltimore at 12:30am. (Big Shout-out to the pilots and crew who kept us safe during some very difficult weather!)

Hence the start of our crazy road trip…

We drove from Baltimore to Westchester, New York starting at 1:00am and arriving at 5:00am.  I hadn’t made reservations, not knowing if we were going to stop along the way or just persevere.  We persevered so I googled the address of Stephen’s meeting, found the closest Marriott, the Westchester Marriott, and in we walked at 5:00am.

The ladies at the desk were actually a bit snooty and informed us that there were no discounts for arriving at 5:00am and check out was still at 11:00am.  We told them we just wanted to get a few hours sleep, got them to give us a late check out for 1:00pm, and proceeded up to our room located next to the elevators and ice machine.  Too tired to ask for another room, we laid our heads down on the always reliably comfortable Marriott bed and soon lumbered into a state of unconsciousness, one step above death…only to be woken by said elevators and ice machine at 8:00am.  Oh well, when we told the daytime staff of our experience, they gave us the AAA rate and profusely apologized.  I wish I had time to further explore the hotel.  I always recommend Marriott’s as a “go to” hotel for standard quality, but maybe when visiting this one, get there when the daytime staff is working.  😉

While Stephen was in his meeting, I got a nail fixed at Kiss Coco’s Nails, tried to shop in the TJ Maxx (not a great selection), and found the cutest little Mexican restaurant called Hacienda La Paloma.

Hacienda La Paloma is an authentic Mexican restaurant about a mile from downtown Mount Kisco in Westchester County, New York.  The guacamole is made fresh at the table, and the salsa is divine! I once had a Mexican cab driver tell me that if “the salsa and guacamole are good, then the rest of the meal will be good.  If not, walk out!  If they can’t get the salsa right, they won’t get the meal right!”  I live by that now.  With delicious guacamole and salsa here, I knew I was in for a treat.  I had the nachos with chicken and Stephen had the combination taco and enchilada.  Both thoroughlly enjoyed.  Muchas gracias, we will be back!

We hopped back in the car and headed up to Hartford, Connecticut, once again without a hotel reservation.  This trip was all about winging it!  I found us a Hilton, the Hilton Hartford, that was close to our meeting destination and decided to give that a try.

The Hilton Hartford is a high-rise hotel situated in Downtown Hartford next to the XL Center, the main arena for concerts, etc. in Hartford.  The lobby is nice and open with the MM Bistroon one side and the Element 315 bar on the other.  With underground self-parking, this hotel makes an excellent choice for staying overnight after events in the downtown area. 

We were given a room on the twelfth floor right next to the elevator and the ice machine (I couldn’t get a break on this trip), dropped off our luggage, and decided to explore Downtown Hartford.   It was quite cold so we dropped into the nearest bar/restaurant: The Russell.  It turns out they were having an open mike night called The Love Jones Experience.  It is a standing Monday night tradition, and we listened to some of the most amazing poetry and songs ever free-styled.  It’s random nights like these that remind me why I absolutely love our life.  We never know what cool experience we are going to stumble upon next.

From Hartford, we were supposed to journey down to Wilmington, Delaware, but seeing as how we had to pass by New York City, we seized the opportunity to explore another hotel that’s been on my personal short list of where I’ve always wanted to stay: The Bowery Hotel.

After Stephen agreed to pursue another travel indulgence with me, I immediately made reservations as soon as we left Hartford.  The Bowery Hotel, located in the NoLita section of New York City, is a famous boutique hotel known for its status to celebrities.  Everyone from Bradley Cooper to Lindsay Lohan has been photographed by the paparazzi here.  I can tell you…I couldn’t get enough of this hotel!

The Bowery is on the expensive side but the sheer “old world charm” makes it worth every hundred-dollar bill.  We drove up and the valet took our car for a mere $55 a night.  We were informed that each time we needed the car; it would be another $55.  Thank goodness we were in a city where driving would not be needed.

The room, accessed by actual iron keys (a novelty I always cherish), was much bigger than I expected.  The king bed had custom Bowery bedding and a Bowery Teddy Bear cozied against the pillows.  With floor to ceiling windows, a cute coffee table, an old fashioned wardrobe, and a rain shower, every detail was thought out to perfection.

We dined downstairs in The Bowery Hotel Lobby Bar and Lounge.  We ordered directly from their acclaimed restaurant Gemma, and the food was brought into the lounge area.  We tried the Octopus Salad, the Crostini’s, the Pasta Bolognese, and the Sea Bass, each dish deemed better through the progression.  Seriously, the Sea Bass melted in the mouth!  When you stop by, be sure to say Hi to Mario, the charming host who will find you the best seat in the lounge. 

The next day our journey continued with a two-hour drive to Wilmington, Delaware, and then a final two-hour drive to our home.

Sometimes the best trips are the trips you don’t fully plan.  Just knowing the destination points and improvising when you get there can lead to the most memorable and unique experiences.  This is just the first of many road trips I will write about for you! Stay tuned!