[Contest below.]

Several of us MSWers are in NYC for the RWA conference (and Allison and I will be staying over next week for the ThrillerFest con a well). It’s been a whirlwind (it always is) and I haven’t even seen half of the people I mean to see and hope to see before it’s over.

Here’s the view from our room:

It’s really terrible, isn’t it? Poor us. We’re just suffering over here, let me tell you.

And you know, there’s just hardly anything to do. Sad, really. We did trundle over to the Algonquin hotel last night to have a wonderful MSW cocktail party with the winner of our Brenda Novak auction package (us, cocktails, food, yammering for hours, lots of laughter)… Caroline Godin and her friends, Madeleine, Anita, and author Olivia Gates. We had a blast in a wonderfully luxurious corner of sofas and chairs. Although the waiter seemed absolutely determined to pour something on Olivia, since he dropped one drink *and* a plate on her head. We also realized we were sitting next to Algonquin royalty: Mathilda

Apparently, this is the new Mathilda as the previous Mathilda had been quite beloved there for 17 years.

The lobby/bar area there is so beautiful and comfortable, I can see why famous writers would have wanted to hang out there. It’s lush, yet warm and welcoming, and I could imagine that being a favorite haunt, were I to live around here.

What’s your favorite place to hang out? Whether at home or on vacation, tell me about one of your favorite spots and why you love it! All commenters will be eligible to win a $25 gift certificate to an online bookstore of your choice. (Contest ends Friday, midnight, CST – winner announced this weekend.)