New York: You made us love you we didn't want to do it
Oct 16th, 2016, 07:55 AM
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New York: You made us love you we didn't want to do it
PART ONE –Hawaii via New York
New York was supposed to be a mere distraction – a stop off on the way to something much better: Hawaii. But now we look back, New York equalled Hawaii and we are busy planning our next trip there. That was despite the few mistakes we made in planning the trip.
We did the usual suspects, Empire State, Central Park, Statten Island, National 9/11 Memorial - these are well charted territories so I won’t go into all the details. What I can do is provide some personal opinions which may add a little more interest.
The most moving experience has got to be the National 9/11 Memorial. I was expecting it to be upset, but the stories of the people who died was truly heart wrenching. Those last phone calls to loved ones from people sat on planes about to crash must be one of the most painful things I have witnessed. It is difficult to find words that fittingly describe this experience. On the way back we did a bit of mind numbing and dropped in at an outside bar in the Seaport area. Great place, great distraction, very friendly and where I had a funny conversation:
Customer at bar: “Where are you guys from?”
Me in broad Lancashire dialect, “ Betyacantguess”.
Customer at bar looks perplexed, “Nope never heard of it – is it in Australia?”.
Other great experiences, cycling around Central Park, rowing round the lake in Central Park. There is something awesome about cycling around a green area surrounded by skyscrapers, a spine tingling experience.
What about mistakes? The visit to the US Open tennis was to be the icing on the cake …. in New York, at least. We got that wrong. We chose the hottest day of the year to visit and we selected an afternoon and an evening session. This was far too long. Our energy levels were also compromised by an early start in order to take in the view of Grand Central – what an exciting place…. magnificent. The evening session featured Djokovic – but we had to sit through Phil Collins blaring out “Something in the Air Tonight” and then the New York Mayor, dragged in to open the new roof, was booed on stage and wrongfully labelled the US Open as the greatest tennis tournament. We were done in and went home early.
Another mistake: Despite my normally intensive research on restaurants, I hadn’t done enough to commit Fodor Forum reader’s tips to memory and tried the spontaneity plan. We had heard about the eclectic mix on 9th Avenue and rambled down the length looking for inspiration and finding none. In the end we dragged ourselves into a Pizza Place (well that’s what you eat in New York) and it was just okay. It was the same story on most nights – looking for places and not finding anything that really grabbed us. Tip: Target places to eat and stay on target.
“Disappointments I’ve had a few” so the Frank Sinatra lyric goes . There were few real disappointments. The locals, I assume they were, are a friendly bunch who helped us out no end when we looked lost or tried to figure out the Metro. but my goodness some (only some) of the employees working at high profile public places need a better attitude. There are places in New York which, because of recent history, are almost sacred, and a privilege to work there … so why adopt such an apathetic and sometimes aggressive attitude? They are representing or misrepresenting New York – a city, which for me, is up there with the greatest cities on our planet (I didn’t know that before visiting). It should be a joy to live and work in such a wonderful place.
I am hoping to write up PART TWO: Manchester via New York, which will celebrate being off the beaten track and experiences with Cab Drivers.
New York was supposed to be a mere distraction – a stop off on the way to something much better: Hawaii. But now we look back, New York equalled Hawaii and we are busy planning our next trip there. That was despite the few mistakes we made in planning the trip.
We did the usual suspects, Empire State, Central Park, Statten Island, National 9/11 Memorial - these are well charted territories so I won’t go into all the details. What I can do is provide some personal opinions which may add a little more interest.
The most moving experience has got to be the National 9/11 Memorial. I was expecting it to be upset, but the stories of the people who died was truly heart wrenching. Those last phone calls to loved ones from people sat on planes about to crash must be one of the most painful things I have witnessed. It is difficult to find words that fittingly describe this experience. On the way back we did a bit of mind numbing and dropped in at an outside bar in the Seaport area. Great place, great distraction, very friendly and where I had a funny conversation:
Customer at bar: “Where are you guys from?”
Me in broad Lancashire dialect, “ Betyacantguess”.
Customer at bar looks perplexed, “Nope never heard of it – is it in Australia?”.
Other great experiences, cycling around Central Park, rowing round the lake in Central Park. There is something awesome about cycling around a green area surrounded by skyscrapers, a spine tingling experience.
What about mistakes? The visit to the US Open tennis was to be the icing on the cake …. in New York, at least. We got that wrong. We chose the hottest day of the year to visit and we selected an afternoon and an evening session. This was far too long. Our energy levels were also compromised by an early start in order to take in the view of Grand Central – what an exciting place…. magnificent. The evening session featured Djokovic – but we had to sit through Phil Collins blaring out “Something in the Air Tonight” and then the New York Mayor, dragged in to open the new roof, was booed on stage and wrongfully labelled the US Open as the greatest tennis tournament. We were done in and went home early.
Another mistake: Despite my normally intensive research on restaurants, I hadn’t done enough to commit Fodor Forum reader’s tips to memory and tried the spontaneity plan. We had heard about the eclectic mix on 9th Avenue and rambled down the length looking for inspiration and finding none. In the end we dragged ourselves into a Pizza Place (well that’s what you eat in New York) and it was just okay. It was the same story on most nights – looking for places and not finding anything that really grabbed us. Tip: Target places to eat and stay on target.
“Disappointments I’ve had a few” so the Frank Sinatra lyric goes . There were few real disappointments. The locals, I assume they were, are a friendly bunch who helped us out no end when we looked lost or tried to figure out the Metro. but my goodness some (only some) of the employees working at high profile public places need a better attitude. There are places in New York which, because of recent history, are almost sacred, and a privilege to work there … so why adopt such an apathetic and sometimes aggressive attitude? They are representing or misrepresenting New York – a city, which for me, is up there with the greatest cities on our planet (I didn’t know that before visiting). It should be a joy to live and work in such a wonderful place.
I am hoping to write up PART TWO: Manchester via New York, which will celebrate being off the beaten track and experiences with Cab Drivers.
Oct 16th, 2016, 11:13 AM
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"You made us love you we didn't want to do it"
And all the time we knew it, you know we really knew it.
I am glad you had an enjoyable time during your stay in NYC.
New York a distraction? NEVER!!!!!!
You will find that most NYers will be able to tell you where to go - I MEAN - how to go by the subway (please don't call it a Metro). It can get confusing at times (especially on a weekend when construction/repairs are done and trains are rerouted along other lines.
As to the poor attitude of some employees at high profile establishments - we tend to call them snooty. They take that attitude because they are at a high profile place (and get paid so little) so they expect the clientele to be as snooty as the place.
I look forward to reading part two and hope you'll visit NYC again.
And all the time we knew it, you know we really knew it.
I am glad you had an enjoyable time during your stay in NYC.
New York a distraction? NEVER!!!!!!
You will find that most NYers will be able to tell you where to go - I MEAN - how to go by the subway (please don't call it a Metro). It can get confusing at times (especially on a weekend when construction/repairs are done and trains are rerouted along other lines.
As to the poor attitude of some employees at high profile establishments - we tend to call them snooty. They take that attitude because they are at a high profile place (and get paid so little) so they expect the clientele to be as snooty as the place.
I look forward to reading part two and hope you'll visit NYC again.
Oct 17th, 2016, 02:06 AM
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Glad you had such a pleasant surprise about NYC. Shame you didn't find good food on 9th ave. because there's a fair amount...8th ave. too and on the side streets. That area west of Times Square is called Hells Kitchen and has become a real dining destination. Don Anotnio, Capizzi and Merilu are some good pizza places.
Oct 18th, 2016, 06:54 AM
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DH (RIP) and I hated NYC when we went for separate business trips. When went back as tourists, we fell in love and returned a couple of times.
Sorry you had surly servers. Loved your Lancashire quip!
Sorry you had surly servers. Loved your Lancashire quip!
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