Last summer on a whim, I accompanied my mom on her business trip to New York. As an aspiring author, it had been a dream of mine to see the Big Apple. Going from Johns Creek, Georgia to Manhattan, New York was a huge step, but with only 24 hours to spend in the city, I decided to throw away all expectations and just go with the fast-paced flow.

12 a.m.

We had so much trouble with rain that our flight was delayed, and it was such a mess to get another flight there. After what felt like an eternity of phone calls to different airlines and a number of potential connections, we got to New York in one piece. When we arrived at LaGuardia airport, I was so surprised to see just how New York everything looked. I felt like I stepped into a magazine, and I loved it so much.

We took a taxi to a Manhattan hotel “The Standard,” where my mom was set to stay for her business trip. Okay, I have seen some odd hotels, but this one was just wacky. The mattress was on the floor and the wall between the bedroom and the shower was clear glass. My mom and I had to take turns shielding our eyes from looking to the left, and it was super awkward.

3 a.m.

As if that midnight surprise weren’t enough, the fire alarm went off at the hotel. I was so sleep-deprived that I just started crying because I thought that I was going to be set on fire.

6 a.m.

We woke up really early because I was meeting my mom’s work friends who lived in New Jersey. They were kind enough to take me on a tour of all New York City. We walked past the meat-packing district to Starbucks, which really surprised me. We have Starbucks in Johns Creek (like a million of them), but this one actually smelled like coffee instead of frappuccinos. The smell combined with the line out the door made me appreciate how everyone had a place to be.

7 a.m. - 12 p.m.

My mom was with us for the first half of the day before she had to go to her conference, so we did all of the really touristy things, like riding the Subway and seeing the Statue of Liberty. We got lunch at Grimaldi’s Pizza in Brooklyn and it was no doubt the best pizza I’ve ever had. Fresh ricotta cheese makes any pizza a winner.

1 p.m.

My mom had to leave us after lunch, but I continued on the tour of New York with her work friends to Times Square. Times Square was a culmination of all my favorite stores on steroids. It was actually the best thing ever. I went to a couple of stores, but I remember H&M and all of its three-story glory standing out to me. While we were shopping, one of my mom’s friends went to stand in the discounted tickets line for Broadway (which was such a nice thing to do- I hadn’t even expected to see a play).

4 p.m. - 6 p.m.

After seeing the artists and people in costume at Times Square, we took the Subway (a lot grander than MARTA) to Chinatown. We walked around and saw some amazingly priced “Coach” bags, with someone yelling that they had them about every five feet. While this scattered area wasn’t my favorite part of New York, I couldn’t help but smile at the fact that I could see myself in the daily hustle and bustle of the city. For someone who could get overwhelmed easily, the chaos made perfect sense.

We ended up in Little Italy for a small time before our Broadway play began and we got some amazing gelato from a food cart. Little Italy was less crowded than Chinatown, but that meant it was also a lot more fun to walk around.

7 p.m.

We made our way back to Broadway and it resurfaced once again how fast-paced the city is. I’m from Atlanta, the fastest city in the south. I knew New York City would have an even quicker tempo, but I never could have anticipated how much. In Atlanta, when you bump into someone, you both turn around and say “sorry.” In New York, I turned around and they were already gone.

8 p.m.

We got amazing seats to see "Les Misérables." The cast was so talented and the play was definitely worth the hype.

11 p.m.

After a long day exploring the Big City, I was so grateful to my mom’s friends who gave me an experience that I never could have dreamed of having. And honestly, I was ready to go to bed.

7 a.m.

My mom and I had a couple of hours before we had to catch our flight back home, so we quickly stopped by Central Park, FAO Schwarz and the Plaza Hotel. I knew I hadn’t seen all of New York, but I was so happy with what I had seen that I knew I would be back someday.

So hopefully, when you go to New York, you will have a longer amount of time to see everything you want to see. But for me, it felt fitting to have a fast-paced tour of a fast-paced city that I’ll never forget.