My baby sister just moved to NYC for the summer. She’s never lived outside the North East Texas area, but she’s visited NYC a couple times and loved it. So now she’s moved up there and is subletting an apartment for the summer hoping to see if she wants ot move up there for good once she’s out of college. I’m trying to figure out if there is anything that a Texan would probably never consider but that she’d find very useful in NYC. This is also the first time she will have roommates. She’s had a full floor in the house to herself(four bedrooms worth) for the past four years or so. Something to help her adjust to that reality may be appropriate as well. Maybe something that she could use there and then take to college with her(she’s planning on going to UT in the fall).
If she’s used to a lot of space, she’s probably used to having a lot of stuff. New York City apartments (and dorm rooms), wherever they are, tend not to be good for stuff-storage - maybe you could get her some really good under-the-bed organizers, or nifty things-that-hang-and-hold-your-stuff. I know it’s not a particularly fun present, but all my friends and I (who all recide in NYC apartments, with roommates) could definitely use more of those. (And if anybody could recommend me a good wall-hanging spice rack that’d save me ultraprecious kitchen space, that’d be much appreciated :))
Zip code 10032, on the island, just south of the George Washington bridge. Couple blocks from the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center.
She took a few days and went up to scout around and she saw the apt beforehand. She packed very light, mostly just clothes and personal effects. It is a furnished apt and I think the only major thing she took was a TV.
Thanks for the tip about space organizers. Very practical and it could be re-usable at the university. Any NYC specific stuff? Is is possible to order subway fare and have it delivered via mail or held at a ticket booth?
Space organizers: it all depends on the apartment - is there closet space or not, stuff like that. Also it depends on your sister - is she the type of person who needs to have twenty or fifty pairs of shoes with her at all times, someone who might require a good hang-on-the-closet-door shoe storage device?
I don’t think it’s possible to order Metrocards (used for mass transit fares in this brave new post-token era) from elsewhere. A brief look at the transit authority’s webpage supports this, but feel free to peruse more seriously than I just did. Even if it’s possible, it’d be a mail thing rather than being held at a ticket booth.
Make sure she behaves like a New Yorker rather than a Texan, especially given the neighborhood (not the best after dark). When I transferred to Barnard, a bit further downtown, we had an orientation event entitled ‘Walk Like a New York Woman,’ something she probably needs to learn. It’s hard to explain in print, but briefly, walk purposefully (don’t stroll), act like you know where you’re going even if you don’t (consult any maps out of public view; duck into a store or something), don’t carry your wallet in an easily accessible place like the front pocket of a backpack, don’t look people in the eye (and definitely don’t greet them, unless they’re someone you have some reason to greet, like perhaps the guy you buy your coffee from every morning), and generally don’t gawk like a tourist. (In general, Pretend It Isn’t Happening is a good guideline - act like it’s absolutely normal that that guy went pogo-sticking down the sidewalk in his pajamas, and definitely don’t ask the celebrities for autographs (very not New York.))
We can’t ask celebrities for autographs anymore? Did I miss a memo?
Gila, I don’t mean to patronize Mtgman here, but perhaps he’s unaware of the MetroCard system-- sure sounds that way. If you are unaware, tokens have been phased out completely in favor of prepaid transit cards you swipe. If you do know, my apologies-- I’ve seen it confuse some out-of-towners in the past.
I had done some poking around on the MTA’s website and saw the tokens had all been phased out in favor of the cards, but the problem I’m really seeing is that there are tons of transit systems and rail lines. Is the MetroCard good at all of them? Which ones cover which areas? I’ll certainly pass along the “behave like a New Yorker” advice and I appreciate the heads-up about the neighborhood. She found out about the place through the NYT and I wasn’t sure how much research she had done on the area other than “it’s in NYC”.
Will she have much opportunity to eat out? You might consider getting her a Zagat’s (or, if she’s geeky enough, a subscription to the website). Good little restaurant guide, though it does focus on places well south of where she’ll be living.
I’ve been living here going on 15 years and I still gawk like a tourist and look people in the eyes. Probably not a great way to behave up in Washington Heights, though. After a while you get a feel for where and with whom to do those sorts of things, I guess. It’s best to play it as cautiously as possible, being a young woman from East Texas living in upper Manhattan.
One thing about upper Manhattan is that it isn’t serviced very well by standard yellow cabs, but it is serviced by gypsy cabs, so she should become familiar with the gypsy cab concept because sooner or later she’ll probably need a cab. Gypsy cabs are licensed by the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC should be on the license plate) and you typically negotiate the price of the ride up front. A lot of them are actually nicer than yellow cabs.
A good thing to have in the summer is a decent umbrella. If she always loses stuff, forget it. Otherwise a good umbrella is a must.
Is she into hats? Hats are good, too.
Chances are she hasn’t walked so much in her life. A pair of sturdy, sensible shoes are in order. A nice shoulder bag or tote is a must, too.
She should check out Central Park Summerstage. Free music by great bands from around the world. An awesome way to spend a weekend afternoon.
I really hope your sister has a great time in the city this summer!
You could get her tickets to a Broadway show or to the symphony. If these aren’t available online, you could order them by phone & pay with a credit card, and she could pick them up at the box office the night of the event.
If she likes art, you could get her a season pass for one of the big museums. (In my city you can by an annual membership that gets you into most of the museums.)
Thanks everyone, for all the great suggestions. I’ll probably print this thread and mail it to her. I have a couple questions on one or two items, but for the most part I think I’m looking at getting her a messenger bag, perhaps custom, from Timbuk2. Reflecting on the way she keeps her room at home makes me think a organizer system for clothes would probably not be optimal.
Is the summer the rainy season in NYC? I’m not sure if she took an umbrella with her or not. I prefer large golf umbrellas, like the Wilson Windbreaker. They are the size of canes even fully folded however and I’m not sure they would be suitable for subways/cabs or carrying all day. Any good collapsible umbrellas anyone could suggest would be welcome.
Me too. She’s spent a good bit of her life without a clear direction of where she wants to go and what she wants to do. NYC really energized her when she first went to the city and it is good to see her with a sense of purpose. Now all she needs is to temper it with a bit of caution and she’ll have a recipe for success wherever she ends up.
Timbuk2 is a swell brand. In fact, my bags are that brand.
My only suggestion is to not get the bags with ‘prints’. You’ll see what I am talking about if you go to their site; They have prints like ‘London’ and such.
They are really, really, really bad. I got a ‘London’ one because I thought it would look spiffy. It looked blurry and like someone scanned a underground map on a dirty scanner at too low a res.
I designed a custom one on their site and shot a pic of it to my mom to see if she thought my sister would like it. She told me that she already has a messenger bag. Oh well, guess that moves up umbrellas and city guides on the list. One of my sisters already got her the industrial canister of mace with the UV dye.
I’d advise against a golf umbrella - they take up too much airspace. A basic compact totes that she can toss into her bag ought to do the trick. I wouldn’t classify summer as ‘the rainy season’ per se. Like most other places summer thunderstorms pop up from time to time, in addition to periods of regular rain.
I love the Knopf City Guide. You have to see it to understand how incredible it is. Of course, I’ve never actually been any closer than the George Washington Bridge, but it surely does make me want to go. It rates 5 stars at Amazon.
