A tale of four cities: Roadtrip from NY to DC

Whether you start in NYC or DC; you’re in for a good time if you take on this East Coast road trip.

THE ART OF NAVIGATING NEW YORK

My tale of four East Coast cities adventure began the moment my flight landed at Newark Airport (EWR), and a 35-minute train ride deposited me at NYC’s Penn Station. To avoid that dreaded feeling of FOMO; I planned my route carefully so I would be able to see parks, art, museums and food halls by bus, bike and on foot.

My first stop after settling in was on the High Line, a free elevated 1-1/2 miles’ walkway (thehighline.org). This peaceful walking/leisure spot in the urban jungle opens around 7 AM and closes around 10 PM. It has access points about every 3 streets from West 34th Street to the Meatpacking District around 14th Street. This put me right in the middle of Chelsea where I was spoiled for choice with established modern/ contemporary art galleries such as Gagosian, David Zwirner and Hauser & Wirth as well as some up and coming smaller galleries. Check out (intheArtworld.com) or nycgo.com for more information.

After about two hours of seeing weird, wonderful and anything and everything art and sculpture; hunger called. A stop at Chelsea Market food hall at 16th Street and 9th Ave hit the spot where I enjoyed a big bowl of ramen noodles at Mokbar and a brownie at Fat Witch Bakery. Still hungry for art as well as cool architecture had me scoot over to the Whitney Museum of American Art at 99 Gansevoort Street where it was pay-whatyou-wish from 7-10 PM on Friday night.

The next morning, I took the subway up to 57th Street where I accessed Central Park on 59th Street and Fifth Ave. The park goes until 110th Street and over to Central Park West. After a scenic stroll, I jumped on a blue Citi Bike and rode over to Grand Central Station on 42nd Street to see the famous train station and its commuter rush. To top off the tour I went to the Empire State Building on 34th street and enjoyed the spectacular views of the Big Apple. My next stop: Philadelphia, PA.

SELFIES IN PHILADELPHIA

I arrived in Philly via Megabus after a 2-hour trip and walked over to Reading Terminal Market, a vast indoor food hall with cuisines from all over the world. Here I feasted on some Cajun food and then hopped on an Indego bike (rideindego.com) nearby and cycled up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to see the famous Rocky statue at 26th Street and Ben Franklin Parkway.

Since Philly is the City of Brotherly Love, I wanted to see the colorful pop art sculp tur es AMOR on N. 18th Street and LOVE by Robert Indiana at JFK Plaza/Love Park. They are both perfect selfie destinations! Wanting more cool experiences, I went on a mural tour (muralarts.org) and then found myself going down a very tiny alley to enjoy happy hour at Graffiti Bar on 124 S. 13th Street. Any visitor to Philly knows a cheesesteak is a must eat so I indulged in a cheesy one at Jim’s Steaks at 400 South Street. Geno’s is good, too, and is open 24 hours.

Before I left Philly, I knew I had to see pieces of American history here, so I arrived in time for the morning American flag raising at the Betsy Ross House and went to see the iconic Liberty Bell before taking the bus to Washington, D.C.

GREAT DAYS IN DC

Three and a half hours later, my bus arrived into DC’s beautiful Union Station which put me right in the center of the nation’s capital and near many of its 17 free and amazing Smithsonian Museums & the National Zoo. I learned all about stamps at the Postal Museum, saw countless books at the Library of Congress and discovered the many meanings behind its ornately painted walls/ceilings. I reveled in smelling all the fragrant scents at the U.S. Botanic Garden and whizzed by the White House on a red bike (capitalbikeshare.com) over to the National Zoo where I saw elephants, monkeys, pandas, snakes and tortoises. I only wished it was April, so I could see the city’s pretty pinky white cherry blossoms in full bloom.

A SHORT STOP IN BALTIMORE

I left DC with a lot more to do, but it was time to go to Baltimore via the MARC train where I visited the Inner Harbor and ate Maryland crab cooked all ways with a little bit of Chesapeake Bay Seasoning that gave it a little extra spicy and zingy flavor. In fact, I felt so full that a trip to the R. House food market was out of the question, but I’ll be back as I’m not done with the East Coast yet, and with that, I was off to BWI airport to catch my WOW flight back home.

Make the most of your vacation and take a road trip. WOW air offers cheap flights to the USA, with several destinations on the US East Coast.