Wonderful Wednesday with Oh My Heartsie Girls

And summer continues.

#summerisON.

While enjoying super hot NYC, we managed fully enjoy NYC Restaurant Week.
Do you like to explore some cool eating places during this promotional week?
I do!
Here are a few snaps I have from my visit to 4 different restaurants this week.

NYC Restaurant Week

We also strolled around the city and spent some cool time with the kids.

We were actually thinking about heading somewhere in the upstate NY to enjoy cooler breeze but we decided to stay around as the trip would be super hot and we might not enjoy it after all.

cheers from Dumbo, Brooklyn

So, there we were.

Strolling around the city, catching Pokemon and having cool time with lots of ice cream and cook drinks involved :).

cheers

Although it was more than 100 degree F, Bo et Obi insisted on going to the beach. 

Well, why not...

As long as it's not in the middle of the day >_<. 

So we went to Plumb Beach in Brooklyn when the sun almost set.

Plumb Beach, Brooklyn

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Feature Pick By Evija // Evija With Love-DIY Marble Art Vintage Floral Mod Podged Ladder Shelving-Flamingo Toes ( Re-Pin It ) This vintage ladder is made with shelving, Satin Mod Podge and Floral Napkins making this a little rustic for Bev's new home.

 

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Galvanized buckets, florist vases and a feed container here to name a few. Some are old some are new to make up this lovely vignette!!

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New York Aquarium, Coney Island

"Ma, do you know that great white sharks can smell blood in the water up to three miles away?" exclaimed Bo while looking at the Shark sign
"And ooh ma.. Look at that tiny jaw. With sharp teeth! Touch it!" Said Obi while brushing her tiny fingers to the replica of piranhas' powerful jaws.

Bo et Obi happily bombarded me with questions and answer them themselves while we were walking along the Ocean view room at New York Aquarium, Coney Island, that day.

#summerisON!
And how we all look forward to have a lovely summer.

Here in NYC, kids have been enjoying their summer break since June 26. And since we have no summer classes this time, my hubby and I are working on making sure that the kids, and their parents as well :),  have an enjoyable, yet rewarding summer break.

Not that easy though..particularly as I still have to work full time and the UN, somehow, is still packed with meetings.

Nevertheless, whenever we have day-off and weekends, we try to go out with the kids.
During the Lebaran week, we managed to go to the Coney Island. 
Well, first destination here is the New York Aquarium.

Have you been here before?

New York Aquarium is part of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). As and ID NYC holder, my hubby and I can get 1-year free membership of the WCS which includes, among others, the New York Aquarium, Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo and Queens Zoo. So can visit those places for free. Cool, right.
As for the kids, as they do not have the ID yet, we still have to pay for their admission.
It usually costs $12 per person older than 2 years, but that day it was only $10.

New York Aquarium is undergoing a major change after the devastating storm Sandy.
They are rebuilding and transforming this place but we still have a lot to enjoy.

Coming from Indonesia, the largest archipelagic state, we pretty much miss the ocean and all its interesting creatures. And at this point of time, New York Aquarium is a prefect place to see those beautiful underwater world and spend some quality time with the kids, while at the same time getting closer and getting to know more about nature's wonder.

There are a few places you can visit and enjoy with your kids.

First, the Glover's Reef. 
This is part of the Ocean View Room, our first stop right after entering the aquarium.
And kids (as well as adults) will surely enjoy those great variety of fish and ocean critters from Atlantic, Pacific, Caribbean Oceans and more. Nemo or clown fish are abundant, so is Dory :). Not to mention mantarays and piranhas.

enjoy...

I really love this part as we get to see different types of fish from many corners of the world. My kids got so excited when they saw them so close, found out that piranhas are small yet have super strong jaws.

mantaray, electric blue and more exotic fish

For me who constantly missing the amazing underwater world of Indonesia, this spot is like a tiny home-sweet-home. I let myself immersed in those calming blue water and colorful schools of fish swimming freely right in front of my eyes. I wish I could join them.

the real 'aquarium' in Bunaken, Manado, Indonesia.

Then we also visit the Conservation Hall. And outside the Ocean view room, we have 2 sea cliffs, for walrus and penguins.
Love to see those cute penguins, critters in tuxedo :).
And they make cute noises as well.

What attracts most of my kids' attention is of course the Sharks temporary home. Bo has been smithen by sharks since he was on the 3rd grade. He has a lot of book about sharks and quite knowledgable about this amazing creatures. No wonder he was so happily flipped to see giants sharks in the nearby tank, together with giant mantarays.

the sharks behind the glass...

Before heading home, we watched the show at Aquatheater.
It was so much fun indeed. A 30-minute show with two intelligent sea lions who demonstrated great talents, including dancing, counting and mimicking. Super fun!
Bo et Obi really love the show.

up close and personal :)

You can also enjoy the animal feedings, scheduled at 10.30, 11.45, 1.30, 2.45, and 3.50 PM near the sea cliffs. We missed it because we wanted to see the aquatheater first. They also have 4-D theater featuring Spongebob Squarepants movie. I guess we have to go back here to watch it :).

And don't forget to grab some lovely souvenirs from the aquarium.
This way we can support the the NYAquarium project of rebuilding and transforming this oldest running aquarium in the US.

So, what are you waiting for?
Visit New York Aquarium, Coney Island and have a fantastic time with your loved ones.
We pretty much sure will go back here again :).

New York Aquarium
Surf Avenue and West 8th Street
Coney Island, Brooklyn
(718) 265 3474
For more info, visit nyaquarium.com

Bronx Zoo Revisited

I guess we just can't get enough with Bronx Zoo :).
I know I have visited this place several times with the kids and posted our visit in this blog as well, but I guess, one go will never cover everything. At least for us.

With so many exhibitions to see, one visit is surely not enough. 
Perhaps you can manage to see them all from the time it's open until closing.
But for us, we really enjoy strolling around this huge complex.  And we only have two legs, mind you :). So, about 1 year after our first visit to Bronx Zoo , we were back with more determination to see more of its great animals.

There are 19 exhibits that you can enjoy here, ranging from the roaring kings of the jungle from African plains to cute rodent families in the mouse house. From the magnificent snow leopard in Himalayan Highlands section to the tropical paradise of home, Indonesia, in Jungle World. Not to mention penguins, sea lions, reptiles, and komodo dragon as well.  And most of them are in natural settings, ensuring the animals are in the most comfortable environment that they can be.

So. on our second visit, we were directly heading to the world of birds.  

welcome to the world of birds

Here we saw a lot of beautiful birds from many corners of the world, including Hornbills from Kalimantan, Indonesia. the Hornbills' feathers from Bronx Zoo are sent to Indonesia so that they can use them for dancing and some traditional cultural items. 

We also saw the colorful toucans, eagles, and more. In our previous visits, we saw pinky flamingos in Bronx Zoo. But they are on the other side of the zoo. And how we love to see beautiful peacocks roaming around for free here and there. Bo and Obi got so excited with these lovely creatures.

some of the birds we saw in the World of Birds

Done with the World of Birds, we continued our journey to Jungle World. This is a special section in the zoo where you need a general admission and an additional Total Experience ticket. And entering Jungle World is like welcoming ourselves home. The typical humid air, the calming sound of running water and green, lush trees truly mimic the Indonesian jungles. Here we saw the famous ebony langurs or lutung (so famous back home), gibbons, tapirs, panthers, and more. We even saw giant Gourami or ikan gurame, one of the famous fresh water fish back home that tastes super yum if you deep fried it. 

they really reminded us of home. 

Obi loves to see the tapir which she mistakenly recognized as 'crawling panda' :)

panthers and tapirs in the proximity :). No wonder we all got so excited.

Then after spending some times in those two buildings, we also managed to see the African plains. Here you will get a chance to see the lions, wild dogs, zebras and more. 

they are huge indeed :)

And finally, Bo wanted to see the reptiles as he had studied about them at school. I really hate snakes and all their kinds but Bo was so excited to see them. I'm way more than happy to see them from a distance, although almost everything in the world of reptiles are behind the tick glass. 

in the world of reptile.

In between, we also decided to see the 4D movie, Rio. It's a lovely 15-minute move that everyone would definitely enjoy.

before the movie started :)

Then finally, for our visit that day, we went to the Carter's  Giraffe Building. I don't know why they keep these marvelous creatures inside the building but for sure the kids (and us) loved to see the giraffes. Obi has one giraffe plush toy and she was so excited to see the real one. And mama as well :).

the giraffes

So, that's as much as we can see during our last visits. We still want to come back for Madagascar, sea lions and and the Congo Gorilla Forest. See, it's still a long list indeed. 

For the entrance, Udi and I got it for free because we have NYC ID and it provides us with free membership in this zoo for a year :0. Awesome, right. We only need to pay the tickets for the kids (3 - 12), which is $15.95 per person or $14.35 online. For adults, ticket price is $22.95 per person at the gate or $20.65 online. 

To get there, best if you have your own car although you have to pay for the parking fee of $15. If you're taking the buses, there are several options, either you take Bx9 or Bx19 and stop at 183rd Street and Southern Boulevard, or Bx12 or Bx22 buses and stop at Fordham Road and Southern Boulevard as well.  And then, you need to walk to Gate C of the Zoo, which is the closest from those bus stops. Bus Q44 from Queens also takes you here, stop at 180th Street and Boston Road then walk north to Gate A of the Bronx Zoo's Asia gate. If you are taking subway, #2 train to Pelham Parkway will take you to Gate B of the zoo's entrance.

So, what's your favorite zoo? 

Do you keep coming back to the zoo as well like us?

Most photos are taken using iPhone 6 Plus and Ztylus lenses, and a little help of Layout and Snapseed :)

Bronx Zoo

2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, New York, 10460

Open from 10.00 - 4.30 for winter time. 

Check the website for more accurate hours.  

Fun at the Rink

Anybody here loves ice skating?

I bet some of you really enjoy it.

As for me, well... I think I really have to think twice :).

Ada yang gemar ber-iceskating di sini? Olahraga yang satu ini memang seru ya, dan pastinya tidak mudah, apalagi buat saya :). Di Jakarta iceskating pun cukup populer, karena arena iceskating memng tersedia di beberapa mall besar di ibukota.

Ice skating is certainly not my cup of tea.

Two wooden legs, weak knees and slippery ice are obviously not match made in heaven. Oh boy, I am just not built for this. Bring me the deepest part of the ocean and probably even shark-sighting, but not this rink of 'horror' hahahaha :).

However, we managed to go out and have fun with the kids and some friends with UN Hospitality program at the rink in Brookfield Place, NYC. 

Oh ya...we had fun. 

Lot's of laughters and some selfie, with a bit of falling here and there :). Which is indeed a pack-and-parcel when you learn iceskating.

Some enjoy it, some continue to struggle finding one's long lost balance or trying to get intimate with the skate. Like me, for example. :). I was fully struggling with almost everything for two full hours. So much for hours of watching ice-skating for beginners in YouTube hihi. 

Bo was enjoying it :)

But with Hudson River in the background and sunny sunshine under the Freedom Tower, it was indeed a lovely Saturday :). While I have no soft spot for ice skating, selfie and photo sessions are inevitable. And that's exactly what happened. One round trying to find my balance, a half round smiley face for photos.

Thanks for Udi for capturing all these happy faces :)

Cheeeers..

Dan entah kenapa, saya jadi ingat salah satu teman baik, Silviana Noerita. Mungkin semangat mencoba olahraga baru dan menjelajahi pojok kota yang lain yang membuat saya ingat pada Silvi  yang juga gemar menjelajahi banyak tempat baru dengan motornya. Gadis manis asal Kediri ini punya hobi yang sama denganku, traveling dan fotografi. Dan belum lama ini, dalam salah satu keseruan kuis berhadiah beauty products di grup ceria kami, Silvi bantuin aku banget dengan keahlian dan ketelitiannya menghitung. Oke banget pokoknya. Cocok jadi asisten pribadi niiiih Sil :). Sayang aku ngga punya foto berdua dengan Silvi deh. Nanti kita foto sambil main iceskating yaaa Sil. Cheers..

Do you like ice skating as well?
How long does it take for you to learn it?