Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Another trip to the Big Apple. This time, our main goal is to watch the Macy's Day Parade. Last year when Ogz & I flew in to NYC for Thanksgiving, we were already late for the parade. This time, we went back for it with Freya, Joy and Mich.

We left Ashburn before 1 in the morning. With me behind the wheel, we reached NYC around 5:30—with a brief stopover to get some coffee and a restroom break.

We found a parking spot near 7th avenue. They have a flat rate of 30 bucks for big events. Then we bought brekky at Dunkin' Donuts before taking our spot near the TimeWarner shop and Columbus circle.

While waiting for the parade to start, I felt the brutal cold. My upper body is just fine 'cause I'm wearing three layers of clothing but I forgot to wear my thermal undies so it's really tough on my bum and legs. Seeing families and couples wrapped in blankets doesn't help. I imagined the Little Match Girl. 

After a few minoots, Freya & Mich decided to leave. They plan to meet their relatives and just watch the parade on tv.

With an hour to spare, I asked Joy for the ticket to our car. I couldn't stand the cold anymore. I need to get my gloves and thermal undies from my luggage. Joy asked me to get her other jacket too. But before I left my spot, I excused myself to the peeps around me. I informed them that I'll just get sumpthin' and will be back in a few. They smiled and gave me their approval.

Made it back and I'm more comfy, thank gawd.

Soooo, the parade started at 9 o'clock. Guys in roller blades and clowns appeared.  

'twas really a fun atmosphere especially when the floats appeared. Here are some of my favorites:And the great news is, the celebrities came pouring in. We saw Miley Cyrus, Ashanti, Kristin Chenoweth, Idina Menzel and David Archuleta.

When I saw the banner, "Charice", I was, like, Charice? Could this be our very own Charice Pempengco? And when I heard "I will always, always love youuuuuuuu!" OMG! It was indeed Charice. Joy, Ogz and I shouted to get her attention. She waved at us.

I truly enjoyed this parade which lasted for more than 2 hours. Santa was the finale. The cops were never been more excited to see Santa. Someone even exclaimed, "Thank God, it's Santa!"

We claimed our car and paid for the parking fee (35 bucks plus tax). This time, Ogz drove us to his Tita Zonia's house in Ringwood. I took the time to catch some shuteye. 

Getting out of the city was quite a challenge due to heavy traffic. So instead of just an hour of driving, we didn't reach the place till 2:30. We're still the first guests to arrive though. We took the time to take photos:We also sampled the appetizers. It's my first time to eat goat cheese. It tastes like "yema". I enjoyed the mini crab cakes and the grapes. We didn't get to eat anything in NY besides the brekky we had at 6. That was, like, 9 hours ago.

Kuya Vans & Tina arrived. Shortly after, more guests arrived including Tita Letty & Mel, Tita Alet & Kuya Manny (along with Mariel & Mykaela and Tita Lina), Tita Dotit and son, Paolo.

As a tradition, we wrote down our names on the table cloth. Ogz brought out his artistic side once again.

Then it was time to eat! Yay! I grabbed some shrimp, turkey, cordon bleu, mushrooms and asparagus. Had some more crab cakes. Halfway through dinner, I felt tired and sleepy.I played the piano with Mariel though before I took another nap.

Around 9, we decided to call it a night. We still have to go to Woodbury for our Thanksgiving shopping. We thanked Tita Zonia and her hubby, Frank. Too bad, Dawn (their daughter) wasn't around this time.

We reached Woodbury before 10 pm. This reminds me of the outlet stores in Leesburg. I noticed that some stores were still closed though but I could see long lines near entrances of some. Joy found a parking spot near KB Toys. It's my first Thanksgiving shopping so I'm pretty pumped up.

First stop was at my favorite store, Armani Exchange. I'm just ecstatic when I find good deals in this store. Back home, their clothes are usually overpriced. I found this nice gray blazer with an A|X patch and a blue knitted jacket. Some t-shirts would only set you back 10 bucks plus 20% discount. Joy found a nice white jacket for less than 15 bucks. To think its original price was more than a hundred. Can you believe that?! I so ♥ A|X.

Other stores that I checked out are Kenneth Cole, where I bought a nice pair of shoes with snakeskin pattern, DKNY and CK where I didn't find anything cool to buy.

We finished our shopping at 1:30ish. It's been quite a long day.

We proceeded to Ogz's friend's house nearby. Sharon was Ogz's classmate in college. She and her hubby, Allan, welcomed us to their nice home. After a quick shower, I went to bed.