Travelogue: Bright, Bold and Brilliantly NYC

Aside from the fact that it was more than 90 degrees outside on Saturday, last weekend in Manhattan proved to be bright, beautiful and unabashedly the most fabulous weekend ever.  Think of this blog as part three of the ongoing series, "Fun Adventures with Vivian and Salvador."  In this episode, Salvador and Vivian explore the rainbow-spattered world that is Soho, with the added bonus of the most colorful parade I've ever witnessed.  Spoiler Alert:  Vivian and Salvador see Cyndi Lauper, George Takei, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and the Bitch from Apartment 23 herself, Krysten Ritter (.... yeah Salvador had no idea who that was either, but apparently I watched enough Gilmore Girls to recognize that one).

Left:  Suit Supply at Broome and Mercer in Soho; Top-Right:  Uniqlo at Broadway and Spring in Soho; Bottom-Right:  Bloomingdales' shoe department at Broadway and Broome in Soho

No surprise, I dragged Salvador to Soho to go shopping.  His only request was that I take him to shops that can't be found anywhere else in the East Coast.  With really two real hours to go shop and wander, we were limited to three stores that were both New York-specific and male friendly.  Boys need to have fun too sometimes.  The stops?

• Suit Supply (Broome St. and Mercer St.):  Alright, I lied a little bit.  Salvador was the one who took me here.  One of our good friends David is a personal shopper over at the men's suiting store, which has a huge number of gorgeous suits and ties for good prices.  Word on the street is they're adding another U.S. store in Atlanta.
• Bloomingdales (Broadway Ave. and Broome St.):  Salvador shopped for t-shirts in the men's section, while I wandered around.  Surprisingly, I'm a much larger fan of the Soho Bloomingdales than the flagship over in Midtown.  This is mostly because I hate the idea of competing with people who can clearly afford these clothes more than I can.  The key takeaway?  Bloomingdales has a huge and fabulous sale on summer shoes right now.  Selected styles are an additional 40% off.  Go wild.
• Uniqlo (Broadway Ave. and Spring St.):  For New Yorkers, Uniqlo is as standard as H&M and Forever 21.  However, the Japanese basics brand's only North American locations are in the city.  With jeans, t-shirts, polos, and dress shirts from $5 to $35 and of pretty good quality, it's no wonder that Salvador absolutely flipped when he walked in.  It took a good hour to get him out of there.

Next stop?  The noted parade!  If you still haven't guessed what parade we went to this weekend by the description above, you best click the next page.  If you have guessed what parade it was, but just like to look at pretty colors, you should still click the next page.  Just click the next page.

2012 Pride Parade on 5th Avenue

New York City's annual Pride Parade down 5th Avenue!  You guessed it dear reader, you smart fellow you.  How did you know?  Was it Cyndi Lauper?  Was it George Takei?  Was it the fact that the picture on the front page was rainbow all over?  In any case, the Pride Parade was an amazing collection of showmanship, glitter, and Lady Gaga songs, though a little bit too long for my tastes.  In any case, the event made for a fun opportunity to play cell-phone photographer (which those pictures are later bastardized in Instagram as shown above).  I now definitely can cross this off of my bucket list.

Fun time with Salvador and Vivian?  Mission accomplished.

Got any NYC-specific stores or experiences you want to share?  I have one week left here, and I'd love to hear it!