Question: What should I do now that it’s nice out?
Erin:
Last week, Hoboken had its fool’s spring where the weather was lovely and life was wonderful. The birds were singing, the trees were blooming, and it was finally nice to be outside. There’s a nonzero chance that I am actually a plant, dependent on the sun to live.
Now that we can all emerge from hibernation, it leaves the question: what do we do now? As someone who lives outside as soon as the weather gets nice, I feel possibly qualified to answer this question.
If ‘walking with coffee’ was a sport, I could medal in it. It is my favorite thing to do on a nice day by far. Get some friends, get some coffee, and go somewhere you’ve never been before. Walking is a great way to appreciate the weather, people-watch, and explore new places. Try to find new places in Hoboken or Jersey City you’ve never seen before. If you’re feeling really ambitious, some have walked the entire length of Manhattan in one go.
Another more unique activity might be to visit some outdoor shops and farmers’ markets in Hoboken and New York. One will open at Columbus Park (4th and Garden) in May, and there is one year-round in Union Square in New York. It’s also a great way to support small businesses and farms.
Finally, it can feel like all of Hoboken is outside on a nice day, and it can be hard to get a quiet area all to yourself to read or relax. Try going off the beaten path to lesser known parks like Resiliency near Shoprite, or even make the trek to larger parks like Liberty State Park. If you have access, there are also plenty of State parks in upstate New York (also reachable by the MTA).
So, although the last week has been a miserable, cold, rainy, windy experience, appreciate that soon there can be coffee walks, and park days. Hang in there.
Nicole:
I know what it’s like to be bored when you don’t have 1000 meetings or assignments happening at once. And I for one hate wasting my time doing absolutely nothing—especially with the weather being so nice recently. I live in coffee shops (shout out Jefferson’s), be it winter or summer, but sometimes I can’t just sit inside them all day every day.
Recently I have been an avid dog park goer. The dog owners are so friendly and I become so happy just watching the dogs running around. I’m actually doing a project for my Intro to Anthropology class where I’m studying the culture within dog parks, and let me tell you, it’s so interesting (and adorable).
Also, as Erin mentioned, the Farmers Market at Church Square Park on Tuesdays from 2-7 p.m. is such a fun place to browse. I recommend the Amazing Sourdough vendor, and definitely getting the chocolate chip cookies (thank you to Rocco Gannon for showing me these—they’re addicting). They have full lists of vendors at the Hoboken Farmers Markets which I also recommend reading through beforehand.
The other day, my friend group went out to the waterfront and had a spontaneous photoshoot. I love any excuse to dress up, and we got such nice pictures of all of us. We coordinated our outfits (same vibe, different colors) so we matched while still letting our personalities shine through. After that, we headed into NYC to see the Zerobaseone concert movie and grabbed dinner in Midtown. It was such a fun way to spend the afternoon and evening. I’ve done a bunch of spontaneous NYC trips with this group now, whether it’s browsing around K-Town or just grabbing dinner somewhere new, it’s always a good time.
If you’re looking for more ideas in the city, Erin and I also walked the High Line and visited Little Island a few springs ago. Highly recommend it if you’re looking for something a little more outdoorsy and chill. And if being outside isn’t your thing? You can always plan a spontaneous Broadway trip like I did with my Sig Delt family line a couple weeks ago, for my little, Amanda’s birthday! We went to see Six the musical and grabbed brunch at Tosti beforehand. It was such a nice way to take a break from work and catch up with all of them!
All this goes to show: you don’t need a packed calendar to have fun. You just need good weather, good people, and maybe a slightly impulsive plan.
