What Would You Do As A Tourist in New York?

In My Humble Opinion
21

I’ve been to New York and London and Paris. Multiple times… and never done any of the tourist things.

Not out of hipsterism, or an anti-shallowness bias. Well, not just… but I’ve gotten so busy doing Little Things that I don’t have time for the Big Stuff. No Tower of London, no Statue of Liberty or the Eiffel Tower. Instead, pub lunches in London, out-of-the-way gardens in Paris, and in New York, quirky little places that the locals go to.

Last one-day trip: classic bagel shop, dim sum in Chinatown where we were the only non-Asians, found a “Milk & Cereal Bar” (Fruity Pebbles covered with berries and hot fudge, yum!), wandered Central Park and got recruited for a low-budget documentary, then spent hours buying our favorite books for each other in Strand Books (and Forbidden Planet next door).

Oh, and everything was so cheap that we had funds for a nice dinner, so we Yelped as we walked and ended up having *moules et frites *at “Flex Mussels”.

22

One nice thing about having an apartment is that I can get bagels from bagel stores and appetizing (New York for smoked fish) from a specialist. A friend of mine recommended Sables on 77th and 2nd Avenue and I highly recommend it. And don’t get lox. That you can get anywhere. Get sable or whitefish as a special treat. Though their nova is damn good also.

I had last gone to Forbidden Planet ages ago and went back. Not an sf book in the place. All comics and action figures. Feh!
Strand is worth it, but not cheap. Google for other used book stores - not as big a selection but sometimes better prices.

23

I would hit guitar center, buy a fat necked Les Paul and hit the internet to find out where all the open jam nights are.

If I’ve got a few nights in the big city, I’m gonna fly my flag and let people have a chance to salute it.:cool:

Guitar center has a 30 day return policy.:smiley:

24

Good ones! I’m planning on the Village Vanguard and Café Wha?, but would not have thought of the Electric Lady.

25

No trip to NYC would be complete without a stop by here.

How you respond is up to you!

26

The site of the former Triangle Shirtwaist Factory is now Brown, an NYU College of Arts and Sciences classroom building. I discovered this when on my way to French class my senior year, I ran into Cesar Chavez holding a rally in front.

Eva Luna, NYU ‘89

27

I’ve thought about that, too, especially since it is on the way to and from so many well-known sites.

What is the penalty for public micturition in New York?

28

This guy has a food blog that might interest you. He also does tours. Eating With Ziggy.

You could take the 7 train to Queens. It’s nicknamed The International Express.

I mostly drink, and see a show (Broadway or music) if there’s one that interests me.

When you exit the subway, one-way streets with traffic going east are even numbered, going west are odd numbered. Traffic on even-numbered avenues travels north, odd numbered travel south. Don’t ask me about Park, Lex & Madison. I can never remember.

29

Some folks may not agree with this, but… Go to Coney Island! Yes, it’s cheesy and somewhat dumpy, but it’s still the real deal. Take a ride on the Cyclone and grab a dog at Nathan’s. At the risk of sounding corny, there is a sense of “place” there that is becoming rarer and rarer in this homogenized world.

Also, if you’re a baseball fan, you’ve got two Major League and two Minor League teams to choose from. I was somewhat disappointed in the new Yankee Stadium, but seeing the Yankees at home is always an experience. Citi Field is beautiful, but not much in the way of a neighborhood around it. The Staten Island Yankees have a nice yard right next to the ferry landing, with excellent views of Manhattan. And the Brooklyn Cyclones play at Coney and they fit right in. I had a blast there.

30

I’ve been to New York four times. The last time was quite a short visit, and I did the Circle Line Landmarks tour. I thought it was an excellent use of 1.5 hours to get an overview of the main tourist sites in a short space of time. I paid the extra for the premium ticket, which meant the smaller top deck. Great views, and beer as well!

31

I’d be sure to move very slowly and weave back and forth a lot on the sidewalk for maximum obstruction and if I take the subway, I plan to spend at least five minutes trying to figure out how a turnstile works.

32

I’ll ask a pretty MILF type which way to the Statue of Liberty.

33

Ha Ha. When I visited I always wore a backpack, and slung a camera around my neck. The locals were very tolerant, and friendly and helpful.

34

I always enjoy the natural history museum. And you can spend days visiting the Metro museum. The Guggenheim is interesting too. And I just love the Dinner Party in the Brooklyn museum.

Aside from museums, I have seen two ball games in the NY, both Phillies vs. Mets (I’m from Philly). The first featured a perfect game (actually the first game of a double-header), June 21, 1964 and the second a walk-off unassisted triple play (one of two in MLB history), Aug. 23, 2009. So I recommend seeing a baseball game if possible. Can’t guarantee fireworks, though.

I lived for two years in NY in the early 60s and spent a lot of time in the Village. I don’t know what it’s like now though. Probably changed a lot. I ate at the Carnegie Deli once, but I think it has closed. Quite an experience.

35

Carnegie and Stage delis, once a few blocks apart on 7th Ave in the 50s, now long gone.

Go to Katz’s on East Houston Street on the Lower East Side for the Full Deli Experience, and bring your own Alka-Seltzer.

36

That’s damn good advice. Adding Sable’s to the list, especially since it’s not far from Central Park.

The idea of seeing a minor league game intrigues me. I honestly didn’t realize there was minor league ball in NYC. Old Yankee Stadium would have been a great place to visit, but I’m not sure I want to shell out major league prices for the new park.

One thing: am I the only person who calls NYC “The City”? I’m not sure where I picked that up. I don’t hear others doing it, but everyone seems to know what I’m talking about.

37

[Moderating]
While some of the answers include Broadway shows, it’s mostly not what the thread is about, so I’m going to move this to IMHO.

38

With that said, the one thing I’d make sure to do in New York would be to see the Statue of Liberty, since that’s (so far as I can tell) the only thing that New York has but Cleveland doesn’t. There are plenty of things that New York has more of than Cleveland, but what’s the big deal there?

39

I was trying not to be a thread shitter, but since you opened the door, I was kind of wondering this myself, except about SE Michigan rather than Cleveland.

Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, World Trade Center site… okay, sounds good.

I know that my wife is bugging me to go to NYC, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. Maybe to finally prove that NY pizza (rather than the “NY ‘style’” that we have) really is inferior to the Detroit/Sicilian style?

Central Park… I mean, I live where I do because he have a plethora of parks. Shows? Ethnic restaurants? Plenty.

I’m not really piling onto the shit, but if I have to go to NYC with the family, I’d like to find something that’s unique and interesting to NYC, aside from the things I mentioned.

40

Fair point, Balthisar. I’m often perplexed when I hear people talk about their vacations in terms of food or shopping. There’s a certain ritual about getting a good bagel in New York, but there aren’t many things that can’t be fabricated anywhere in the country if you really want to. There are some exceptions (like Oysters Rockefeller at Antoine’s in New Orleans), but local cuisine isn’t usually high on my list. Maybe I’m just weird that way.

Chronos, I posted this thread in Café Society because that’s where the London thread was. No big deal; just letting you know.

So far on my list, I have:

[ul]
[li]Empire State Building[/li][li]Citigroup Center[/li][li]Rockefeller Center[/li][li]Freedom Tower[/li][li]Central Park[/li][/ul]

Places that are “pure New York” in terms of history, culture, and architecture. I’ve used the example of Citigroup Centermany times when illustrating what to do if you catch an embarrassing mistake; I’d really like to see it in person.

[ul]
[li]Statue of Liberty[/li][li]Ellis Island[/li][/ul]

Due to their unique places in history.

[ul]
[li]Village Vanguard[/li][li]Café Wha?[/li][li]Electric Lady Studios[/li][/ul]

Mostly because of their place in musical heritage. I’d love to catch a show at the Vanguard if a good band is playing.

[ul]
[li]The Guggenheim Museum[/li][li]Metropolitan Museum of Art[/li][li]American Museum of Natural History[/li][li]Museum of Modern Art[/li][li]Whitney Museum[/li][/ul]

These more or less speak for themselves, I think. If you like museums.

[ul]
[li]Shaolin Temple[/li][li]New York Public Library[/li][li]Sable’s[/li][/ul]

More singular places with personal reasons for visiting. There is an incunabule at the Library that I used in facsimile for my MA thesis; I’d love to see it in person.

The list is still flexible, of course. Coney Island isn’t out of the running.