We've been enjoying roaming the streets of New York for a few days now. It's always a fun place to visit with endless things to experience. It's been a little chilly this week with the highs running in the 40's, but not too bad. After all, it is getting to be that time of the year. The seasons are changing and in some ways it's the "calm before the storm" around here. The bleachers are being set up and a week from today the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade will be kicking off the holiday season. The Christmas Tree has been installed in Rockefeller Center. It's currently covered in scaffolding (quite a site) as well as workers busy trimming it. The Ice Skating Rinks in Central Park, Bryant Park and Rockefeller Center are open (nope, those days are over). The Rockettes Christmas Spectacular has opened at Radio City. We've seen it before so seeing it again prior to Thanksgiving just doesn't seem right. We've been here several times between Thanksgiving and Christmas and it's a pretty special time of the year. It's been fun watching the preparation.
We didn't get a chance to do much walking in India and Nepal. Too many people. cows, pigs and other animals (and their poop) to dodge. We've made up for lost time the last two days. We've easily covered over 30 miles on foot, again showing why no one really wants to travel with us. We've crisscrossed from the east side to the west side, up as far as around 98th Street on the upper side and as far south as you can go (Battery Park) on the lower side. Heck, we even walked across the Brooklyn Bridge which spans the East River from Lower Manhattan to .............Brooklyn, of course.
It's a great walking city that offers so many opportunities and experiences for little or no money. Here are some of my recommendations if you're ever in the neighborhood:
Central Park-It can be seen by Horse and Buggy, Pedicab, Rented Bikes or on foot. However you choose to explore this massive park, dive right in and explore it. We tend to stay south of the park but like walking whatever path we happen to want to take with no particular destination in mind, although we often end up walking around The Reservoir which occupies a good portion of the upper/middle section. Don't forget to check out the apartments and condo's along the East and West side. This is where the big bucks live. There is also the Metropolitan Art Museum on the East Side and the American Museum of Natural History on the West Side. We had been to the Art Museum before. This time we spent several hours in the Natural History Museum absorbing knowledge until our brains were full. Both are excellent, and while they have a suggested entry free of around $20 it is strictly a "donation" so you can pay what you want. Seems like most folks pay around $5 per person.
http://www.centralparknyc.org/
https://www.metmuseum.org/
https://www.amnh.org/
The High Line- This is a section of an elevated train line on the west side between 34th Street and the Meatpacking District. It was scheduled for demolition but thankfully was turned in to an elevated walk way that is around a mile and a half in length. It offers great views of the skyline as well as the Hudson River without the hassle of traffic and red lights.
http://www.thehighline.org/visit
The Brooklyn Bridge-This was a new experience for us yesterday. There is a walkway across the bridge that allows pedestrians and bikers to cross between lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. It's an easy walk and it looked like some of the neighborhood just across the bridge in Brooklyn would have been fun to explore. Our legs were starting to wear out and we still had a long walk back to the hotel so we decided to save them for another day.
http://www.freetoursbyfoot.com/walking-the-brooklyn-bridge/
Of course all of these areas are connected by sidewalks. One of our favorite ways to get from upper to lower Manhattan is the west side along the river. There's a great walkway with parks and green spaces. There is also plenty of action on the water with boats, ships, ferries, and water taxis to keep you entertained along the way.
Staten Island Ferry-This ferry is free and runs from the Battery Park area in lower Manhattan to Staten Island. It's a five mile/25 minute journey that runs every thirty minutes, 24 hours a day. You get great views of the skyline as well as the Statue of Liberty. When you get to Staten Island you can explore the parks and neighborhoods or simply get off the ferry, walk into the terminal and catch the same ferry back. This was also a new experience for us.
http://www.siferry.com/
Cheap Eats- Surprisingly eating in NY can be pretty affordable. The first rule of thumb in my opinion is to get out of the tourist areas, especially Times Square. This trip we're staying in the Hells Kitchen area (west side around 48th street). There are plenty of great restaurants that are affordable and every block seems to have a couple of "pizza by the slice" places. Five bucks will get you two huge slices of pizza and a coke at most of these places. Also no trip to New York would be complete without a little "street meat". A hot dog or Italian sausage will set you back a couple of bucks and is probably good for your immune system as well!
https://www.eater.com/2015/7/10/8924449/halal-cart-street-food-meat-nyc-cheap-eats
We didn't get a chance to do much walking in India and Nepal. Too many people. cows, pigs and other animals (and their poop) to dodge. We've made up for lost time the last two days. We've easily covered over 30 miles on foot, again showing why no one really wants to travel with us. We've crisscrossed from the east side to the west side, up as far as around 98th Street on the upper side and as far south as you can go (Battery Park) on the lower side. Heck, we even walked across the Brooklyn Bridge which spans the East River from Lower Manhattan to .............Brooklyn, of course.
It's a great walking city that offers so many opportunities and experiences for little or no money. Here are some of my recommendations if you're ever in the neighborhood:
Central Park-It can be seen by Horse and Buggy, Pedicab, Rented Bikes or on foot. However you choose to explore this massive park, dive right in and explore it. We tend to stay south of the park but like walking whatever path we happen to want to take with no particular destination in mind, although we often end up walking around The Reservoir which occupies a good portion of the upper/middle section. Don't forget to check out the apartments and condo's along the East and West side. This is where the big bucks live. There is also the Metropolitan Art Museum on the East Side and the American Museum of Natural History on the West Side. We had been to the Art Museum before. This time we spent several hours in the Natural History Museum absorbing knowledge until our brains were full. Both are excellent, and while they have a suggested entry free of around $20 it is strictly a "donation" so you can pay what you want. Seems like most folks pay around $5 per person.
http://www.centralparknyc.org/
https://www.metmuseum.org/
https://www.amnh.org/
The High Line- This is a section of an elevated train line on the west side between 34th Street and the Meatpacking District. It was scheduled for demolition but thankfully was turned in to an elevated walk way that is around a mile and a half in length. It offers great views of the skyline as well as the Hudson River without the hassle of traffic and red lights.
http://www.thehighline.org/visit
The Brooklyn Bridge-This was a new experience for us yesterday. There is a walkway across the bridge that allows pedestrians and bikers to cross between lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. It's an easy walk and it looked like some of the neighborhood just across the bridge in Brooklyn would have been fun to explore. Our legs were starting to wear out and we still had a long walk back to the hotel so we decided to save them for another day.
http://www.freetoursbyfoot.com/walking-the-brooklyn-bridge/
Of course all of these areas are connected by sidewalks. One of our favorite ways to get from upper to lower Manhattan is the west side along the river. There's a great walkway with parks and green spaces. There is also plenty of action on the water with boats, ships, ferries, and water taxis to keep you entertained along the way.
Staten Island Ferry-This ferry is free and runs from the Battery Park area in lower Manhattan to Staten Island. It's a five mile/25 minute journey that runs every thirty minutes, 24 hours a day. You get great views of the skyline as well as the Statue of Liberty. When you get to Staten Island you can explore the parks and neighborhoods or simply get off the ferry, walk into the terminal and catch the same ferry back. This was also a new experience for us.
http://www.siferry.com/
Cheap Eats- Surprisingly eating in NY can be pretty affordable. The first rule of thumb in my opinion is to get out of the tourist areas, especially Times Square. This trip we're staying in the Hells Kitchen area (west side around 48th street). There are plenty of great restaurants that are affordable and every block seems to have a couple of "pizza by the slice" places. Five bucks will get you two huge slices of pizza and a coke at most of these places. Also no trip to New York would be complete without a little "street meat". A hot dog or Italian sausage will set you back a couple of bucks and is probably good for your immune system as well!
https://www.eater.com/2015/7/10/8924449/halal-cart-street-food-meat-nyc-cheap-eats
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| Brooklyn Bridge |
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| The Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center being prepared |
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| St Patrick's Cathedral |
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| Central Park-Nice colors this time of year |
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| Lower Manhattan from the Staten Island Ferry |
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| From the Staten Island Ferry |
