The greenest and most adorable spots in the buzzing city of New York can be found in Central Park. I directly fell in love with the endless slopes and uncountable tiny path through different gardens and forests.

People call Central Park huge and I have to admit, it is indeed quite big, but if you are a good walker, it appears quite ordinary size. As beeing now used to a lot of nature in Sweden, i admired Central Park even more, since i really missed some fresh air in between the skylines of Manhattan.

While walking around Central Park there is always a fresh breeze, especially during hot summer days you can stroll by one of the lakes and enjoy nature. The high rise blocks of upper east and west side will either be in your back or front. Unfortunately one can therefore not forget being in a very big city, but one feels a bit further apart from the everyday stress in town.

We have walked through Central Park several times, but could not see all bits and pieces, but a lot of different areas. Since we lived in East Harlem, we always entered and exit Central Park from the east side.

Here's a small guide to some of the spots (north to south)

Harlem Meer
On our first day we were so excited to finally see Central Park, that we spontaniously walked over to the north east corner and made our way downtown. The Harlem Meer was the first lovely lake we saw when entering the slopes. Close by the water is build a tiny cute "witch house" and during summer lots of people will sit by the water and have a picknick or read a book. The shore is surrounded by high grasses and trees and you will spot people fishing here as well.

Conservatory Gardens

Walking by the lake south you will find the Conservatory Gardens which are themed by different countries, which you will directly see the influence from. There are lots of beautiful calm spots, nice fountains and alleys. These gardens are really neat and structured and so worth to see.

Jacqueline Kennedy Reservoir

This lake/pool is indeed huge. Walking around is approx 6km i guess, at least thats what my friends running watch said. She used to run around it, which is indeed a very nice track. You are always close to the water, due to its artificial origin, it is fenced and the path is directly around it. From east and west side of the water you'll have a fantastic view, either on Upper East Side or Upper West, while the first one is indeed nicer to be honest.

If you continue further south you'll find the Metropolitan Museum of Art to your lefthand side.

Belvedere Castle and Lake

In the center of the park, on same block level as the MET you will find Belvedere Castle, which is a tiny cute castle built on a high rock. From here you have a fantastic view on Belvedere Lake and closer surroundings. I just bumped into it accidently, since i lost my way in Central Park once, but if you are nearby you should definitely stop here.

The Boathouse
One of the most idyllic Cafés in New York is the Boathouse in Central Park. You will have seen it also in a lot of movies and it is a must to have a small drink/snack break here. You can either sit inside or outside with a view on the lake, where all romantic couples are going for a little boat ride. So cliché, but stunning. The prices in the Boathouse are quite okay, although i thought it must be incredibly expensive. Around the corner nearby the lake you can find the famous white "kissing bridge", which we unfortunately missed, since we did not see it was there.

Further south you can find the Zoo, which we did not visit either. But it already looked amazing from the outside, so when i am back, i'll try to see it.

Of course we have seen some other nice must-see spots in central park, but these are saved for one of my absolute favourite story of NY. TO BE CONTINUED...