Movin' (back) to Brooklyn

May 2nd was moving day - - - we loaded up the U-haul the night before with the help of my family (thanks again, everyone!!) and set out bright and early, even if it wasn't quite as bright and early as we were hoping. The drive across Pennsylvania went better than expected, with Matt driving the truck alone and me driving the car behind him with two (mostly well-behaved) cats in the backseat. When we arrived at our apartment, Matt's parents and brother were already there, with a parking spot for the car and everything! That evening was mostly a blur, especially since in the space of a few hours we unloaded all of our stuff, went to Ikea and bought a dresser, returned the U-haul, and got delicious Mexican food delivered to us. After we all flopped into bed, we woke up the next morning to spend a day sightseeing around the city!




Our park (Sunset Park) on top - Prospect Park on bottom!




We ate tasty Vietnamese food for lunch in the grass and walked up through the park to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. I had been anxiously checking the status of the cherry blossoms since late March, since it's one of my favorite times of year here. Usually, the cherry blossoms are done around the end of April, but because this past winter was so ridiculously cold everything was late. And so we arrived in town right when the kanzan cherries (my favorite) were at their peak!






Walking through the middle of the rows of cherries feels like you're completely surrounded by pink blossoms.





The lilacs were almost in full bloom too! You could smell them even before you could see them.



After spending the morning and afternoon in Brooklyn, we ate dinner in Chinatown and stopped by the promenade in Brooklyn Heights on our way home. Matt's brother had never visited New York before, so we thought it was a must-do.



We got home late and Matt's family went back up to Maine the next morning, leaving us with piles of boxes and bags everywhere. Thanks to them, we got moved in easily and were able to spend our first full day back in New York having fun instead of unpacking! We've had plenty of time for that over the past few days. More updates to come, whenever we get a break from unpacking / going to Ikea / enjoying the nice weather.