New York Question :P by Jumpy

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New York Question :P

POSTED BY: JUMPY
UPDATED: Monday, January 9, 2006 01:23
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Sunday, December 25, 2005 5:23 PM

Heya Guys,

I'm goin on a one week trip to NYC with my family, We're leaving in about 3 days. I'm from Perth, Western Australia so not totally sure what to expect.

Anyway just wanted to know if anyone's got any suggestions about some must-see places to go or things to do, whatever they are. Would love to hear them.

Thanks guys :D

Peace

__________________________
There's no show I'd rather see, than the one with Serenity.
You can't take the sky from me...

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 6:04 PM

CARTOON

Hi.

Firstly, check what the weather's going to be over here before you come. This time of year in NYC, you can get a nice warm, 50F day, or blizzard (with below zero windchills).

Fortunately, the crime in NYC is the lowest it's been in over 40 years. It now has the lowest crime rate of any major city in the U.S. -- but, there are still places which should be avoided, and you should always exercise caution. Most of midtown (and downtown) Manhattan are fine (particularly during the day). If you're not sure, exercise caution.

I always found the World Trade Center to be the one "must see" place in town. Unfortunately, it's no longer around. I would still recommend visiting the "ground zero" site, though. Downtown (around Battery Park) is a nice area. It's easily reached from uptown by an R train (get off at Rector Street station). (Assuming the MWU doesn't go back out on strike, that is.)

There are quite a bit of museums, shops, shows, historical places, etc. So, it really depends on your personal tastes. If Letterman's taping the week you're in town (I don't know if he's live this week, or on reruns), you could try to get tickets to a taping. (He's probably on reruns this week.)
You could try the Empire State Building (it's about $12 a person to go to the observation deck). The view isn't as good at the WTC view was, but it's still good.

I'm not from NYC, but I've been there a lot. If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask.

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 9:30 PM

JUMPY

Thanks alot Cartoon very informative :) Much appreciated. You said a couple of places probably should be avoided, if you could let me know which one's that would be cool.

And yeh if anyone else has some suggestions of things to do fire away :D

cheers

__________________________
There's no show I'd rather see, than the one with Serenity.
You can't take the sky from me...

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Monday, December 26, 2005 3:46 AM

EMBERS

There are many museums to see, don't miss:
MOMA (Museum of Modern Art)
The Guggenheim
and my personal favorite: The Cloisters
(you might need to find a tour to go to the latter, it is way on the Western coast of Manhatten set in a large park overlooking the Hudson River, really very beautiful and unique).

Get tickets to see a show
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/93004.html
musicals tend to sell out far in advance,
http://www.telecharge.com/behindTheCurtain.aspx
(but it is always worth trying)
and there are always some wonderful straight plays and/or off broadway plays with tickets available

visit landmarks:
The Empire State Building
The Statue of Liberty
[s]The Eiffel Tower[/s] - oops wrong city...my bad

I was recently in NYC and we were walking around at night all over China Town (eating dinner, checking out shops, eating ice cream, enjoying the clubs that are open late), and we felt perfectly safe...
There are fun boat rides, but interestingly the ferry is cheapest and just as fun (see movie 'Working Girl')
um...whatelse?
I've never had a bad time in NYC, there is always a lot of whatever you're looking for
http://www.nycvisit.com/home/index.cfm
have a great time!

**********************************************
watch the R. Tam Session vids: http://www.hittarivertam.nu/
and buy the 'Serenity' comics published by Dark Horse,
and have you joined the Browncoats yet?
http://browncoats.serenitymovie.com/serenity/?fuseaction=tools.invlink
&u=embers&linkID=36

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Monday, December 26, 2005 5:52 AM

CARTOON

Yeah, if you stick basically to midtown and downtown, you'll be fine. (Basically, anything below the park.) For the most part, avoid walking down streets devoid of heavy traffic or other people. Most touristy areas are fine.

Embers mentioned Chinatown (which is down by Canal Street)(downtown), and nice, too.

Most of what you'd want to see would be south of the park (below 59th Street), and west of 1st Avenue. There used to be some tough areas in the lower East Side (The Bowery, etc.), but I haven't been to those neighborhoods in years, so I can't say how they are now -- and besides, there's no touristy things to see there anyhow.

Oh, and while I take it for granted that most people should know this, as someone who's never been here before, I should probably warn you about the traffic. Running down pedestrians is a sort-of hobby in the city, so be extremely careful crossing the streets. Don't assume because you have the traffic light, that people will actually stop for you.

Also, I don't know if you plan to drive or not. The official AAA travel guide for NYC says "If you must drive in the city -- DON'T." Personally, I've always driven there, and it's usually a hit or miss. There've been times I've had little or no trouble with traffic, but the rule is generally gridlock. (I've also been stuck in traffic for 2 hours to go a half mile.)

My suggestion would be to use the subways (I assume you're not travelling alone, and will have others with you?). It's $2.00 per person, each way (with free transfers to other runs, as long as you don't leave the subway station). Taxi's are a bit more expensive. As a tourist, you probably wouldn't know the bus runs, so you'd be better off with the subway -- particularly as you can easily see the routes on any subway map (the maps are free at most of the big stations: Times Square, Grand Central, etc.).

If you think of anything else, feel free to ask. If I don't know the answer, I'll do my best to find it.

Those websites Embers mentioned are quite good, too.

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Monday, December 26, 2005 4:59 PM

JUMPY

Thankyou very much to both of you. Helped a great deal. I definitely feel a lot better about going now :D

Peace!

Jumpy

__________________________
There's no show I'd rather see, than the one with Serenity.
You can't take the sky from me...

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Monday, December 26, 2005 6:18 PM

RKLENSETH

And if you want you can always visit the majestic and often ignored Upstate New York. There are places like Lake George, Saratoga Battlefield, Adirondack Mountains, Catskill Mountains, Niagra Falls, and just plain old wilderness with small pools of civilization here and there.

Oh, and avoid swimming in the Hudson River. Also avoid any place that resembles what you see out of the 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre'(which resembles a pretty good portion of New York State).

And remember, Upstate New Yorkers rule and those city folk smell funny.

Oh, and play Cantr II at www.cantr.net.

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Monday, December 26, 2005 6:33 PM

CARTOON

Oh, yeah, definitely do not ever swim in, fall in, or otherwise look at, smell, or even think about any part of the Hudson River -- or the East River (or any body of water within at least 75 miles of the city).

Granted, I've gone into the ocean at Sandy Hook (about 30 miles south of the city), but then that might explain why I'm several pickles short of a barrel. Besides, it's winter, and NYC isn't exactly the Bahamas.

Two winter's ago, large portions of the Hudson were actually frozen between Manhattan & the Jersey side of the river (I've photos to verify as much).

This week is supposed to be mild (if you're actually insane enough to give any credence to idiot weathermen), but the streets of Manhattan are windy, so it'll feel cooler than the actual air temperature.

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Tuesday, December 27, 2005 6:07 AM

JUMPY

Haha well its cool, I'm not the kind of guy to jump into a river for a swim in the middle of a city :D

__________________________
There's no show I'd rather see, than the one with Serenity.
You can't take the sky from me...

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Monday, January 9, 2006 1:23 AM

JUMPY

Hey Guys! I'm Back!

Thanks a bunch to CARTOON, EMBERS, RKLENSETH!

Had a great time in NYC. Visited the MOMA, checked out the Statue of Liberty and Empire State Building. Rode on the Staton Island Ferry. Visited the 9/11 ground zero. Went to a bunch of really nice restaurants and so many awsome stores, strolled through Central Park a bit and saw The Producers on Broadway (HILARIOUS!!!)

We TRIED to go to Times Square for the New Year's ball drop but the amount of people trying to get in as well was pretty daunting. We weren't so much concerned with getting in as getting out at the end.

But despite all that had one of the best times ever! One of the funnier bits was when our cabby driver cut off another cabby, whom proceeded to roll up next to us and start a huge argument with our driver through the windows (lol that was my first New York Cab expereince too! classic!).

I felt totally safe and pretty much everyone was so friendly!

Anyway, Thanks again for the input guys! was all reeeeaaaally helpful. Very much appreciated.

__________________________
There's no show I'd rather see, than the one with Serenity.
You can't take the sky from me...

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

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