Recently I took a trip to New York City with my sister and my friend. I’ve been to the city quite a few times, and the summer is when I look forward to city trips the most. Usually, I go to New York for a specific purpose: to try the new Instagram food fad, see my favorite artist in concert, or shop the streets of SoHo. Well, this day I went specifically to walk the NYC High Line and to try a Poke bowl, as well as famous edible cookie dough--DŌ.

I had high expectations for it all. But, expectations are overrated. I walked the NYC High Line, which was nice, but not as nice as I expected. As we walked the High Line, we came across Chelsea Market. A place I didn’t even think of going too was a lot more interesting than the High Line itself.

Next stop: Poke. We spent the whole day looking for a Poke place, because I so desperately needed to try the Hawaiian raw-fish dish that made its way to New York. My expectations were heightened by my sister. She has said “poke bowls were the best food I’ve ever eaten, trust me,” way too many times to count. I ate my poke, only to discover it was nothing but average.

I needed redemption. Next stop: DŌ. My expectations for this cookie dough treat were heightened by the constant flood of artsy pictures on my Instagram feed. DŌ was of course, miles away. We walked another 20 or so minutes, passing some of the nicest streets of New York.

We waited online for only 10 minutes, which surprised me. I ordered my DŌ, took the perfect Instagram worthy picture, and finally, five minutes upon receiving my delicious mix of one scoop birthday cake cookie dough, one scoop vanilla ice cream, I dug in. My expectations got the best of me, yet again. I’m not saying it was bad, it just wasn’t what I, and social media hyped it up to be. Yet another disappointment.

DŌ was in Greenwich village, home to NYU students, and the famous Washington Square Park. I have always wanted to visit Washington Square Park, but never thought it was enough of a reason to make a trip out of. But what New York taught me, was that I didn’t need to make a trip out of anything. I didn’t need a plan.

As my sister, my friend, and I explored New York, we found joy in the little things. As I sat on the bench of Washington Square Park eating my DŌ, I enjoyed people watching and dog watching. I found more pleasure in sitting and talking, watching street performers and enjoying summer in New York than eating the DŌ itself.

If you get anything out of this article it should be that not everything will meet your unrealistically high expectations, because most of the time our expectations are not the reality. New York taught me that even if your day doesn’t go as planned, it doesn’t make it any less enjoyable.

I would rather treat life as an adventure than plan every moment. This day, my friend, my sister and I ended up walking miles to each food spot. But, what we found along the way, what we found amidst the plans was way more enjoyable.

So next time, go somewhere without a plan. You’ll be surprised what you may find.