What are some fun, interesting things to do in the NJ/NY area?

What are some cool things to do in the NJ/NY area? I live in central NJ and I’m looking for a change of pace. Any suggestions?

What are you into? Do you like nature?

There’s the Great Swamp, in Morris County.

There’s the Frelinghusen Arboretum, in Morris County.

Newark Museum.

NJPAC (I know. I’m lame).

Delaware Water Gap, up I-80.

South Moutain Reservation, in Essex County, has some nice hiking trails and vistas.

Weird NJ may have some cool ideas. Never visited any of the places listed, though.

NJ has more diners per capita than any other state in the country, and quite possibly the world. My favorites are Tops (in East Newark) and Willie’s in Bloomfield. Ever tried visiting as many as you can? It seems like every little town and boro has one. Grab some friends and make it an adventure! (I know. I’m lame.)

Chang Library is a great hang-out too. (Just kidding! :))

I miss NJ terribly. I wish I had explored more of the area when I lived there. Sorry none of my ideas sound terribly exciting or fun, but I’m sure someone else will be able to recommend some cool bars and clubs.

Why, come visit me, of course! Just kidding. Not really. There’s an NYC Dopefest planned for the 20th. You should come! See the “NYC Dopefest in May” thread.

As far as other attractions, there are of course the large malls and shopping areas in Bergen County, where I live, as well as truckloads of smaller, almost cute shopping districts, such as the main streets of Ridgewood.

Museums? Tons. Liberty Science Center (yeah, I know. Take your kids or your nieces/nephews or something). Also, NYC is just brimming over with museums: MoMA, the Met, the AMNH, Guggenheim, and many, many more.

If you like nature, The Raptor Trust, near Basking Ridge, is pretty cool.

If you care to go across the Hudson, there are so many botanical gardens, parks, zoos, museums and cultural events in NYC that it would be impossible to list them all here.

Well, you could always go watch the Yankees blow another game. That’s always fun. :slight_smile:

You do know they just won 8 in a row, don’t you?

Buy a walking Guide to Greenwich Village (south of 14th street in Manhattan). Simply dozens of fascinating culturally significant people lived somewhere–and their apartments are all mapped. Don’t miss Edna St. Vincent Millay’s half-wide house. Plus there’s plenty of great little cafes where you can be welcome while you nurse a coffee for an hour (and there is none of that burned-to-charcoal sludge which Starbucks passes off on the American public.) The racier corners of Greenwich Village can expand your definition of “kinky”–and we’re just talking looking in the shop windows.

The West Village has actors’ studios and meatpacking districts and a large variety of ethnic restaurants. The East Village has so much stuff I can’t begin to describe it. I lived on the corner of Jones and Bleecker for four years and I still miss it (although the memory of some of the cockroaches still gives me nightmares…)

And STILL in 4th place… :eek:

Make that nine, going on 10…