My absolute favorite time of year in NYC is when the cherry blossoms hit peak bloom. I thought I would miss it this year due to our trip, so my plan was to catch peak bloom in D.C. instead. In a strange turn of events, we missed peak bloom down South, but timed it perfectly in New York.

I don’t think there could be a prettier shade of pink! We bopped over to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden to take in the view of the Cherry Esplanade, but tree spotting around the neighborhood has been such a lovely surprise.

Then, there’s the aftermath. This patch of wilted petals is from the same tree in the middle pic. Amazing what a difference a week makes!

PS: Did you know that Macon, Georgia is actually best known for their cherry blossoms? According to locals, it’s as big as NYC and D.C.!

During our vacation to the South, we encountered some of the friendliest, most hospitable people we’ve ever met. To say thank you, I’ve been trying to come up with Brooklyn-only gift ideas to send their way to say thanks. When I traveled to Paris last year, I remember how much I loved this blog post of cool gifts to bring back to family and friends. So, I thought I’d try to curate a similar list here.

For the foodie, some easy-to-ship gift ideas include Mast Brothers Chocolate Bars (each bar is wrapped by hand at their Williamsburg-based shop), Birthday Cake truffles from Momofuku Milk Bar (if you can find a way to chill them, even better!) or Garlic Dill or Spicy spears from McClure’s Pickles (my go-to booth at Smorgasburg every weekend). If you’d rather send something pre-assembled, visit By Brooklyn or Stinky’s Bklyn for a mash-up of delicious made-in-Brooklyn treats.

If you want to send something wearable, I love this No Sleep ‘Til tee from Brooklyn Industries. Another favorite? This Brooklyn Bridge necklace (Matt gave this to me for Christmas!).

For a friend who loves to entertain, I’m a huge fan of these cheese boards from Brooklyn Slate Company (not to mention, everything else on their site!). Other ideas: A Brooklyn-inspired wine tote (fill it with wine from Brooklyn Winery!), stationery that calls out the most notable landmarks in the borough, or a local cookbook (The New Brooklyn Cookbook is an oldie, but a goodie!).

What gifts do you send to represent Brooklyn?

(Image 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

Happy Friday, my darling readers! What are you up to this weekend? I’m hoping to squeeze in some gallery hopping and check out the new Whitney Museum. I also want to see the China: Through the Looking Glass exhibit at the Met, especially after spotting all those glam looks at the gala. Here, to get your weekend started right, a few happy posts from around the web:

Humans of New York covers the Met Gala.

So did Casey Neistat. Love!

Those occupations.

A touching tribute.

Rethinking the manicure.

Excited for this summer Meryl flick.

Seth and Anna. Hilarious.

A genius wedding idea.

Honest empathy cards.

Inspiring people to follow on Instagram.

(Image via Pinterest)

When Matt and I started dating, he used to have to beg me to go and see a Marvel comic book movie with him. Iron Man, Spider-Man, Captain America, The Fantastic Four — for some reason, I always felt pretty meh about checking them out. But something has changed: When the latest Avengers movie hit theaters last weekend, I wasn’t just psyched to go, I suggested it.

There’s something about the story, the action and the cast (Robert Downey Jr., I’m talking to you) that’s engaging and fun. I find myself on the edge of my seat — gasping at every plot twist and silently cheering for every small victory. I even have come to like ScarJo (did you see this hilarious spoof on Marvel movies that she shot for SNL?).

So, what do you think? Will you go see this film?

(Images via Entertainment Weekly)

Yesterday, I blogged about Savannah. Today, a quick glimpse at the time I spent in Charleston during my trip to South. What a cool city! The vibe is very similar to Boston, but the climate is much nicer. We spent the majority of our time walking around, which made it easy to picture life there — going for runs along the Atlantic Ocean, sipping al fresco cocktails in the French Quarter, walking under the Spanish Moss in the pretty parks. Here, how we spent our time…

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