JFK

Hanging out in NYC

We rarely find deals for flights to Europe from Florida. Most of the deals are JFK to Europe. No problem. We usually fly JetBlue to the Northeast and never had problems finding flights up that way.

Our flight from Florida got into JFK late two nights before our flight to Europe. We decided to fly in a day early for cautionary measures–NYC in March could be affected by snowstorms. Luckily, there were no delays.

We stayed the night in Le Parker Meridien on points. Wooo!! Living the life of luxury! We went out for late-night ramen at Ippudo. Deanna fell asleep the second we got to the table. Ben and I had some delicious cocktails and ramen.

At the time, my cousin Katherine lived in NYC. Her sister, Becky, and her twin boys drove down to spend time with us. The boys and Deanna are thick as thieves, even though they live states apart. We all met up for lunch and roamed around the city. By the end of the day, the three musketeers finagled a sleepover at our hotel.

When we headed back to the hotel, we noticed a line of people behind a curtain in the hotel lobby. Weird. We checked it out. There turned out to be a secret burger spot in the lobby, Burger Joint. Even though we had already eaten, we opted for some secret burgers. I will have to have Ben make a post about the burger. I was a vegetarian a the time. I think I only killed the fries. It was cash only and the food was served in a paper sack. We killed the secret burgers and fries and went back up to our room. Becky and the boys stayed on the pullout couch.

The next day, Becky and I went out for some Halal Guys chicken and rice. We brought back some plates for breakfast/lunch. This was Ben and Deanna’s first time having the chicken and rice. Ben should also make a post about his experience with Halal Guys. The chicken and rice are perfectly seasoned. The white sauce!! The hot sauce!! MMMhhhmm!!!

Okay, the hot sauce has induced some acid reflux. Get me some Tums!

Time to book it for JFK to catch our flight to Paris. At JFK, we had about three hours to kill. We explored the Air France lounge. It was the perfect setup for our long-haul flight. Deanna nibbled on snacks. Ben and I of course had to sample some of the entrees that were set out and loosen up with some adult beverages. That chicken and rice guys was like two hours ago. There’s plenty of room to fit another bite of food!

On the Flight

The flight was pretty uneventful. We had dinner, wine, and dessert. I had a special vegetarian meal. The special meals come out before the standard meals. It has been so long, I could not tell you what I had, but I know it was good.

We wanted to prevent being extremely jet-lagged when we got to Europe, so we went to sleep not too long after dinner. Ben does not sleep well unless he has a soft bed. Deanna was little, so she just laid across our laps and slept the whole flight. I can pretty much sleep anywhere. I think I curled with Deanna and passed out for most of the flight. Of course, we woke up in time for breakfast! We were served a quick breakfast before we landed in Paris.

Itinerary (click the itinerary links below to view posts):

• JFK
• CDG
• LIN
• Venice
• Florence
• Rome
• Amalfi Coast
• Lake Como