Goodbye, NY! Hello, DC!

Oh, hey, there, errybody.

So, yesterday was our last day in New York City.

I've never been sadder.

But before we left, we woke up around noon.

Then decided to see what the whole hubbub was about with Soho.

It's cute and we enjoyed some of the best iced coffee we've had in a long time at a place called Cafe Duke. And then we picked out our apartments....but really.

Then we thought is would be fun to go see the Statue of Liberty.

We hopped on the Staten Island Ferry, then we realized we were on the wrong ferry. But then we saw that Liberty Island wasn't even open because of the renovation needed after Hurricane Sandy. So, that was a bust.

Benefits from this experience:

- We got to see the Statue of Liberty from afar.

- We got to ride the Staten Island Ferry

- We got stranded on Staten Island...

- AND GOT TO WORK ON OUR NEW YORK ACCENTS
...which are getting pretty good. Your welcome.

Then I spent the rest of time in New York talking about French cinema and the European Union with a Frenchman, while Hannah talked about TV shows and broadway shows with a Puerto Rican actor.

We also sang this song WAY too many times...

You know you're in New York when...

New York really is the greatest city in the world. I don't know what it is. I mean I am a TOTAL LA-girl. I love that place. I can't explain it, but I love LA. Hannah, grew up in SF and is a total San Fran girl, but for some reason, both of us fell in love with NYC this past week. We have both come to the conclusion that there's just something about New York that is just special. Quotation from Hannah, "I don't know what it is. I mean, I love San Francisco and DC, they feel like home to me, but there's just something about New York that tops them both."

Things about New York:

- EVERYONE we talked to, met with, chatted with, sat next to on the subway - was nice, friendly, and helpful.

- The city is SAFE. Yes, I am sure there are places that are not the safest of places, but the locations we went to - which was EVERYWHERE on Manhattan - the community life is bustling. I personally had so many woes of being in NYC because of so many stereotypes people throw out, but in reality, I have never felt safer in a big city in my life.

- The city really NEVER sleeps. I mean Hannah and I grew up in residential areas. Then we went to school in Irvine. And we all know that everything in Irvine closes at 2 in the afternoon. Noon on weekends. :/  ...Except for the Albertson's on Campus.

- We finally found a good piece of NY pizza from Sacco's Pizza. We had two pieces each. And then we ate some cheesecake. From Juniors.

...Our bodies hated us.

- SO many other things we love about this place...

But now we have left...

New York didn't want us to leave.

The weather was hot, humid, and not the most pleasant, but it was still sunny, and in the evenings, a nice breeze would brush up. Today, rain poured down on us. It was a genuine mission to get to the subway. Take the subway. And get to the bus stop. It also doesn't help that we stayed up until the sun rose and got only 2 hours of sleep. So being tired, hungry, and wet made us even more reluctant to leave the city.

Don't worry, New York, we'll come back. We have to give these other cities a try, right? Don't worry, you'll still be number one in our hearts.


And then we got on a bus to come to DC.

That bus was late.

And then we got stuck in traffic.

For two hours

So, a four hour bus ride,

Turned into 6 hours.

:////////

Thanks, Megabus!


And now we're in DC.

This is our hotel. Seriously. We paid nothing for it.
We lucked out on this one.

Hannah lived here from September to December doing an internship program called UCDC. She loved it. It was one of those experiences that really changed her, for the best. She learned so much about herself and what she was capable of and so many experiences that she shared with DC still remain. Since she's been back from DC in December, all she's ever talked about is how damn amazing DC is. I love Hannah, but sometimes I wanted to murder her when she talks about DC. You remember that girl from "The Magic School Bus" who always said "At my old school..." - that's Hannah - but with DC. But now that we've arrived I have realizes something about this place, which I think can provide commentary on most cities.

Hannah has been OBSESSING over this place called Shake Shack. It's a trendy little chic-modern burger joint. We saw a million of them in New York, but Hannah didn't want to eat there because she HAD have us eat at the store in DC. I thought, "Why? It's the same burger, right?" but then sitting there with Hannah in the Shake Shack in Dupont Circle in Washington, DC I realized that every place that we live, visit, or spend time in provides its own experiences that is special to each person. For me, the Shake Shack burger was delicious, but it definitely wasn't what Hannah hyped it up to be. She even asked me if she hyped it up too much. I was honest, and told her how I felt, but, that still doesn't mean that this restaurant and my opinion of it changes the life Hannah lived when she was here. The Shake Shack is a representation of her memories, her life, her growth, and strength as a young adult. Similarly, the location we are currently in is VERY bougie. I mean, this is how the rich people live. No wonder everyone gets mad at DC. The smallest part of the city is like living at Versailles, while the rest of the city lives on the streets. BUT this is where so many amazing things happened for Hannah. And I can respect it, 100%. I love LA, and most people don't. I love it because I have had amazing memories with my family and friends in this city. New York provided Hannah and I with everything we had hoped for AND MUCH more. Maybe others don't like NYC because of the experiences they had, but that will never change how Hannah or I feel about it.


It's all about perspective. And how you want you make those memories.

I've only been in DC for a five hours, but I am excited to see this place and gain my own experiences. I'm going in with no expectations, so DC make me proud, bro.

The Bridge

We have been doing a lot. Hannah and I decided that four days in New York is perfect to get all the touristy things done. Indeed we have been going, going, going, and at the end of everyday we are exhausted, but it is totally worth it.

Yesterday, we began our day with walking across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was a beautiful day, and a perfect day to walk across into Manhattan.

We ate hotdogs from a cart and sipped on iced coffee as we people-watched from an al-fresco table.

We then attended the Ground Zero tribute center. The pools that lay in place of the fallen towers were truly beautiful and breath-taking. Hannah and I both decided that this experience was not what we expecting. There is a lot of construction going on around the exhibit and they force tourists to travel within gift shops before attending the site. Overall, the way the exhibit was displayed was slightly off-putting for us. We thought such a site deserved a more significant homage to the people and families that have been affected by 9/11. Perhaps when the museum is finished and the construction site subsides, this tribute center could live up to it's expectations.

Being the weird people that we are, we then decided to travel down to The Limelight Marketplace shops; the abandoned gothic-style church that once served as the home nightclub of the Club Kids. I was freaking out. I'm pretty sure Hannah was really excited, also. The once-church, and once-nightclub, now serves as a posh-shopping center. Hannah and I sat on a vacant couch on the top level and looked down upon the mannequins and sequence, imagining the chaos that once reeked havoc in these spaces. We then ate some pizza at a B-rated pizza shoppe that was also located within the walls of The Limelight. It was alright. We are still looking for that truly New York piece of pizza.

Being the "Madman" fan that I am, I forced Hannah to venture to Madison Avenue where I could take a picture and imagine Don Draper walking across the street to his office. We relaxed a little while in Madison Square park and watched the copious amount of dogs and their owners.

Then Hannah and I realized we were exhausted and wanted to take a nap before we ventured into the New York Friday nightlife.

Something I've noticed about Hannah and I is that we have increasingly been sleeping in more each day that we've been here. Just an observation.

Today we eventually got ready by noon and decided to conquer Central Park. For me, this was one of the NYC highlights. It was like we left the city for a few hours and went camping. The greenery mixed with the city landscape is truly a scene. We felt like we were in a movie. This was also our first encounter with the New York sass we have been shielded from for the past few days. As three young hooligans were riding their skateboards down a steep hill in Central Park, a biker yelled loudly, in his best New York accent, "move over to the side, ya stupid idiots!" It was awesome. Writing it does not do it justice.

After walking for what seemed like forever, we decided we were hungry. Hannah wanted to take me to an authentic New York deli. Holy shenanigans, The Carnegie Delicatessen serves the biggest food ever. Hannah and I shared, and indulged, in a reuben with pastrami. We met some nice ladies from Florida and Hannah helped a nice couple figure our how to use the subway. Then we rolled our full-selves down to Rockefeller Center. Whatta a swanky part of town. We became best friends with a security guard who gave us the lay down of the area and the gossip around NBC studios.

We said a prayer in St. Patrick's Cathedral. THAT was a beautiful place. Even amidst the restoration that is currently going on around the church, it was totally worth seeing.

Hannah and I then decided that we wanted to see some artwork for cheap, so we rushed over the Guggenheim, but then we took a look at the line and decided it wasn't worth it to us. While walking to the H&M we mutually decided to shop at, we witnessed a robbery. And in New York, if you steal something from someone, be prepared to have a bunch of people chase after you, in the middle of the street. Social justice at it's best.

 Then we got sleepy again.

We came back to our hostel.

and we've been sleeping ever since.

We know it's a Saturday night, and we're in the city that never sleeps. But c'mon. We need to sleep.

We have been snacking on bread and cheese and watching terrible teen romances. Thank you, New York! And good night.

New York, We're Here.

Hello, all!

So, some of you might know this, but many of you don't. Being recent grads, Hannah and I looked at  our bank accounts after walking across that stage and realized that taking a month-long road trip across this beautiful country was just going to be strenuous on our sad little checkings. Therefore, we altered our vacation plans and decided that we wanted to hit up the Big Apple. And while we are there, we might as well hit up DC and Boston, right?

You can still donate us money here, if you're feeling friendly. A girl's gotta eat.: https://www.wepay.com/donations/hannah-and-paige-conquer-the-east-coast

So, Hannah and Paige set off to create a new adventure that was better fit for our budgets.

And now we're here. This is New York, baby.

Hannah and I had a nice flight. Almost missed our layover in Detroit because of an extended McDonald's feasting, but we still made it.

Our hostel is super classy for it being a hostel. We got a private room and bath. Suck on that, Europe. We do hostel's classy in America. Or maybe New York City is the classy one.

Anyhow. We have been roaming the streets for the past two days. Taking lots of pictures. Meetings lots of incredibly friendly people. Note: That New York sass and toughness has yet to show itself. Everyone we have met have been friendly, helpful, and non-threatening. For a big city, I've never felt safer. Sorry LA and SF. Love you, but NYC's got you beat. So far.

Wednesday night was a crazy night. Let's leave it at that. Something to be told in person, I believe. Needless to say, the start of our night was at a Japanese restaurant where the cooks, cashier, and music were all of a Latin flavor. We also met a 50 year old man who works at CBS. We also got blinged out

rings from a homeless man for free. Hannah has been wearing her's all day.

Thursday (today) was Hannah's 22nd birffffdayyyy.

We started the day off eating New York bagels with a whole gallon of cream cheese.
Then we beasted the subway system. We know these streets like the back of our hands. BEEN HERE FOR 24 HOURS, SUCKKAAA.
We traveled all over this island from the Empire State Building, to a random deli that sells EVERYTHING, to Ground Zero, to broadway, to times square.
Then we saw The Lion King on broadway. No big. It was just one of the most amazing experiences of our lives.
Then we had a tasty birthday dinner at Ellen's Stardust diner, and Hannah ate the biggest burger that ever existed because it's her 'effin birthday.

And now we're here. Back in our hostel. And we want to pass out. So good night.

P.S. The weather sucks. It's humid as hell and we have resulted to taking two showers a day. Sorry Planet Earth.

P.S.S Hannah will probably be adding her two cents, pictures, and more soon.

Meet the Kids

Hello! Welcome to Hannah and Paige Conquer America! This is an interactive blog where Hannah and I (as in me, Paige) will be updating all of YOU about our travels across this big, vast, country we have here. We have decided to tell you a little about ourselves before you decide to read our endless documentation of silliness or donate money to our adventure (which you should do here...I mean...if you want to) https://www.wepay.com/donations/hannah-and-paige-conquer-america

Paige Catherine Caldwell

Paige is in the forefront with her literal right-hand
woman, Hannah Sutterfield, sitting beside her.

Paige graduated from University of California, Irvine in June with a B.A. in History with and emphasis in European Studies and a Minor in Education. During her college years, she worked at a fish taco restaurant called Wahoo's. She would come home every day and smell up her apartment, thankfully her roommates didn't suck yet, so they put up with it. Paige worked at Wahoo's, slept a lot, and hung out with her friends every chance she got. Oh yeah, she might have done some school work, but who remembers things like that? Paige was a Resident Advisor for Middle Earth Freshman Housing at UCI and loved every minute of it. Well, maybe not every minute - there were some rough times - but for the most part she will be missing her Middle Earth residents and staff family more than she can bear. Overall, college was, by far, the best four years of her life, and is excited to embark on the amazing years to come, post-grad. She will be attending college in the Fall working towards her California Secondary Education Teaching Credential. Paige has a frequent internal, self-reflective, battle with herself about whether or not she really wants to be a teacher, but she figured she would stick it out and push through a credential program to hopefully gain insight into the profession. She currently works at Abercrombie & Fitch, and she does a great job acting cool, even though she is definitely not. Paige enjoys sleeping, watching weird independent movies, and pretending she knows what she's talking about - but then again - who doesn't? Someday Paige is going to write a book about her family, life, and friends. Hopefully this trip will be her inspiration.

Fun facts about Paige

- Her favorite color is green.

- He favorite animal is an orangutan.

- She has a condition called anosmia - lacking the sense of smell.

- Her favorite Quentin Tarantino movie is "Inglorious Basterds"

Hannah Jane Sutterfield 

Hannah also graduated from the University of California, Irvine in June with a B.A. in History except her emphasis was in American History with a minor in Global Cultures.  During her very first quarter as an anteater she got a job at the UCI campus Starbucks and worked there her entire duration of her undergraduate career.  Starbucks was an amazing home for Hannah and although she had days where she wanted to quit more than anything in the entire world, leaving Starbucks was an extremely bittersweet moment for her. In Summer 2011, Hannah decided to get a dog (crazy, I know).  Therefore, Hannah got Django, a Chihuahua-Lhasa Apso mix that you can't help but love. He's the happiest little guy you'd ever meet   Aside from working at Starbucks and getting a dog, Hannah studied abroad in the Summer of 2012 in Cambridge, England where she studied at Pembroke College.  While in Cambridge Hannah met some amazing people and had some amazing experiences.  She was able to attend the Summer Olympics in London and watch a play at Shakespeare's Globe Theater. After her study abroad she was able to travel throughout Europe with her mom for two weeks, which is a trip that she and her mother still think of fondly. Right after Europe Hannah went straight to Washington D.C. for the University of California Academic Internship Program (UCDC) where she interned for Congressman Howard Berman.  Although he lost his election, Hannah loved her internship on The Hill, especially giving tours.  Hannah was able to spend the 2012 Presidential Election in D.C. just outside of the White House.  Needless to say, Hannah had the most amazing time in college.  Now that she graduated Hannah is taking time off from school and working.  Hannah is planning on attending graduate school in about a year or two, but she's still trying to figure out what to study.  She also hopes to teach English abroad at some point.  Hannah is excited to see where life takes her. 


Fun Facts About Hannah:
-Her favorite colors are purple, orange, and mint green. 
-She has a rare eye condition called bi-lateral coloboma that makes her eyes look pretty cool. 
-She's obsessed with traveling.