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Jonathan
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NYC

Post by Jonathan »

New York City

140 photos HERE at Flickr.

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Despite living less than 9 hours from what some would consider to be the greatest city in the world, I made it to Europe before New York City. That was rectified on a weekend summer trip. We drove to DC and took a bus up. On the way up we took Tripper Bus, which was only $25, and on the way back Bolt Bus, which was just $19. Both buses were very nice and had free WiFi and power outlets at every seat. You can't really beat the deal.

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It's hard to beat the pick up and dropoff points either. We probably would have spent almost as much getting into the city from LaGuardia or JFK as we did on the bus tickets from DC, and it dropped off in Manhattan near Penn Station and Madison Square Garden (seen here).

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First impressions of Manhattan and the Empire State Building after arrival.

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While waiting for our hostel to allow check in, we walked a little bit in Central Park. It was absurdly hot and humid Friday, but luckily cooled down a bit the next few days.

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If someone can explain to me what was going on in the Park, I would love for you to contact me and let me know. This was the sight everywhere we went. Work crews were tearing down trees left and right. Old, healthy trees. It was kind of disturbing.

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What?

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Seems to me that the best way to "save" a tree would be to leave it where it has stood for the last few decades, but what do I know?

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The view from the Jazz on the City hostel in the Upper West Side where we stayed. Hard to beat for $25 a night, although I thought it was a bit of a downgrade from most of the hostels I stayed at in Europe. It was a few blocks from Central Park and one block from Broadway and the 96th St. Subway station, which had an express line, so that was very convenient.

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There was scattered rain during the weekend, but nothing that lasted too long. This was a sudden downpour that we ran into coming out of the Subway station at Times Square.

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We had to get some of the standard New York street foods out of the way, so the first meal upon arrival was a slice of pizza, and then the second some hot dogs at Gray's Papaya.

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Times Square. Worth a walk through to see what a zoo it is, but other than that it's just a massing of every chain restaurant and tourist trap that you want to avoid in the City.

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Not too far away, the NHL Store. I swear there was more Hartford Whalers merchandise here than Canes.

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I met up with a friend from nearby who is also a big hockey fan. We were scheduled to make the trip out to Queens and Citi Field, but the weather was not looking so nice.

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Citi Field is the brand new home of the Mets. The game was delayed by around an hour due to rain, but after that the weather was fantastic and there were no interruptions.

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Our seats were in the very top row of the stadium, but were in the infield, and still pretty good. Here is the view of Manhattan from the top of Citi Field. Big version at Flickr.

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The defending champion Phillies were in town, and fans from Philadelphia pretty much overwhelmed the stadium. It's good to know that this can even happen to sports teams in the biggest city in the country.

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The clearing rain clouds left behind a beautiful sky.

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Baseball is one sport I could not care less about and find to be fairly mundane, but I had a good time and it was a pretty good game. The Mets won 4-2. This was only the second MLB game I have attended, after going to a White Sox vs. Astros game in Chicago.

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I liked the new stadium, but can understand why Mets fans think it lacks character and personality.

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Bit of a what the hell moment here near the end of the game. Why are they still sponsoring things?

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Back in Times Square, here is the obligatory tourist photo of Matthew and I.

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Now, a few comments on the New York Subway system. I have heard a number of times that the New York Subway is the best system in the world. I will give them credit in a few areas. It is one of the largest in the world, the express lines are great, and it is really the only system of such a size to run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year (this can be quite annoying when out late in a lot of cities). It is definitely THE way to get around the city. Outside of those items, it pales in comparison to pretty much every other metro system I have used. It is one of the oldest systems in the world, and that shows. There is no ventilation in any of the stations, and I am certain it was at least 120 degrees on some of the platforms. The Metro Card readers are very buggy, resulting in multiple times where we had to purchase a single ride ticket despite having unlimited ride cards. Street level entries are not marked that well, so it can be difficult to spot stations. Finally, only two stations I encountered had electronic displays with arrival times. It is a remarkable transition going from the DC Metro, widely considered to be one of the nicest in the world, to the NYC system.

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Saturday morning I set out by myself to Nevada Smith's, the self-proclaimed "planet's most famous live Football venue" in the East Village.

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Nevada Smith's is the home of many supporters clubs, including the New York Gooners, who were out in full force on this morning for Arsenal's home opener against Portsmouth. The Manchester United fans were downstairs for their match against Wigan, and the floor would occassionally rumble, indicating that a goal was being celebrated below.

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I don't know what the typical crowd level is for an Arsenal match, but the bar was packed with Arsenal fans for this one. It was really an awesomefied experience, and probably the closest I will get to a true match day atmosphere until I actually make it over to London. Everyone knew all of the chants and songs for the team and players, and kept them going constantly. There was plenty to celebrate, with a 4-1 win. I took a short video and posted it on the Flickr page.

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The walls were covered in football memorabilia, including this signed Arsenal jersey from the final season at Highbury in 2005/06.

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Nevada Smith's is definitely a must visit if you are a fan of the beautiful game in New York. If your team is playing it is a good bet that there will be at least one other fan even if it is not one of the popular clubs.

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After the match I met back up with Matthew for a bit of a touristy, but still genuine, destination. Katz's Deli.

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At $15 for a sandwich, we split one, but oh whootah if there is ever a $15 sandwich, this may be it. Pastrami and bread. That's it, and that is all there needs to be, because the pastrami is just amazing.

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Next stop, another Manhattan institution, McSorley's Ale House.

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This place doesn't look like it has changed much since it opened in the mid 1800s. Supposedly no memorabilia has been removed from the walls since 1910. Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt drank there. The New York Rangers dented the Stanley Cup there drinking ale out of it in 1994. Drink choices are pretty simple. Light or dark. You receive two small (probably half pint) glasses. Still, it was actually fairly cheap, especially as far as New York bars go.

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Matthew made it to the MET while I was at the baseball game, but the best I could do was walk by it Saturday.

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We did make it to the Museum of Modern Art, which was pretty awesomefied.

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Here are some people gathering around Van Gogh's "Starry Night".

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In this room everyone is encouraged to sign their name on the wall.

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I was thrilled to see this display of The Smiths album covers in a cool music focused wing of the museum.

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Saturday night we had tickets to go to the top of Rockefeller Center.

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I saw this phenomenon at the Jungfraujoch in Switzerland, and here it is again. Why exactly would anyone (and they do) purchase a photo of themselves in front of a fake backdrop of the Manhattan skyline as seen from Top of the Rock when they are about to actually go to the very spot where said backdrop was photographed and could have a legitimate picture there?

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There was a neat little room with LED panels on the top floor that responded to people walking by.

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Manhattan at night from the Top of the Rock. I have some panoramas in the Flickr gallery.

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Isn't this better than a fake backdrop?

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The lower two levels had plexiglass walls, but the top level had an unobstructed view. I have heard this is one thing that makes Top of the Rock the better place to visit than the Empire State Building.

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Across from Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's Cathedral looms over a statue of Atlas.

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Cafe by summer, skating rink by winter.

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Sunday morning, and I was convinced to get up in time to make it down to Battery Park by 8 AM. This turned out to be a smart move. If you do not have a ticket for Liberty Island or the Statue, there will be massive lines and you might be out of luck completely. By getting there at the beginning of the day, we had no lines and were on the first ferry out and one of the first few people to enter the Statue.

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Here is the old Statue of Liberty torch, now on display in the museum inside the base.

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Creepy.

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Another spotty bit of weather made it not the greatest day for views from the Statue.

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Looking back at the City, Ellis Island, and New Jersey from Liberty Island. Full size at Flickr.

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Proof I was there.

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Looking up into the Statue at the structure.

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A not so original photo of the lady from Liberty Island.

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Next, we rode the ferry over to Ellis Island. Unfortunately, pretty much all of the grounds here are off limits, but the main building has been transformed into a pretty good museum.

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Matthew paid $5 to search through the records to find a relative that came over from Europe in the early 1900s and was processed at Ellis Island.

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There were lots of interesting relics of the past on display in the museum.

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The main hall at Ellis. It is very cool to stand and think of all the people that came through this room.

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I think the one on the left is a bit more appealing to me.

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One last shot of the Statue and the obligatory bird photo before heading back to Manhattan.

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We both wanted to find a good doner kebab place. This (Istanbul in the Meat Packing District) was not quite accurate, but it was very good.

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Next, the long Subway ride out to Brooklyn and Coney Island. Obviously this trip was not going to be complete for me without going here.

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The most famous roller coaster in the world.

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To say that opinions are split on this ride would be an understatement. I have heard some people say it is their favorite ride ever, and some say it is their most hated. The general conclusion seemed to be that avoiding the last seat of a car was the key to avoiding misery. I did that, and it was awesomefied. I am definitely a fan. Everything about this ride is a throwback; the definition of classic. There really is nothing else like it, despite all the imitations, and it delivers an excellent ride with some great airtime and laterals that throw you around the car, or into the person next to you.

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If you enjoyed your ride you can give the operator five bucks and you get to stay on for another spin.

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Traveling in style.

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The future of Coney Island is very much in question (and in fairness it IS a bit of a sad sight), but thankfully the Cyclone is a New York City Landmark and a National Historic Landmark, so it will not be going anywhere.

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Big nerd moment here. This was my 300th roller coaster. Yes, I sort of planned it out that way (by riding the junior coasters at Alabama Adventure and Lake Winnie). It just seemed like too perfect of an opportunity. 100 was the Big Dipper (now standing but not operating) at the former Geauga Lake/Worlds of Adventure park in Ohio, and 200 was Viper at Six Flags Great America, which coincidentally is a ride that is based off of the Cyclone.

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The boardwalk at Coney Island, not what it was in its heydey perhaps, but still a popular summer spot.

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Maybe I am spoiled by living in North Carolina, but this is not a very appealing beach to say the least.

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There were two other things I wanted to do at Coney Island. This is the classic Spook A Rama dark ride, which is a much smaller version of the original which was supposedly the longest dark ride in the world. It is good cheesy fun, and like other dark rides of its type, it is scary not because of the props but because of the thought that at any moment your car could go careening off the track.

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Finally, the Wonder Wheel, which is also a New York City Landmark. It is not a typical ferris wheel. In addition to the 8 normal stationary cars like you would find on any other ferris wheel in the world, there are 16 cars on rails that slide back and forth. It is one of the most terrifying rides I have ever been on, and I was convinced every time the car started sliding forward that it was just going to crash into the car ahead or go flying off into the sky.

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Back in Manhattan, we walked around some more, including a pass by Ground Zero. I don't really have any pictures from there because there isn't much to see, and it's not somewhere I feel comfortable being a tourist. Another thing I will say is that some of the 'souvenirs' being sold around there are disgusting, and I can't fathom why anyone would want to buy them.

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The (closed) WTC Subway stop was very eerie. That may be the most lasting image I have.

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On our final night, we went to see the Shakespeare in the Park production of The Bacchae. It is completely free, and tickets can be acquired the day of through a lottery on their website. They do two plays each summer, and typically they feature some big names. A lot of famous Hollywood actors have performed in Shakespeare in the Park productions. The Bacchae featured a number of Tony nominated actors, and the score was written by Philip Glass.

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The outdoor theater was located behind Belvedere Castle. I thought the performance was a great alternative to Broadway (and you can't beat free), and I was glad we got to take in a show in New York.

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I don't know how much we walked during the trip, but it must have been an absurd amount. Completely exhausted, we finished out the last night at the House of Brews in Midtown. Monday was the long travel day back to DC and then to Raleigh. I definitely loved New York City. I am not so sure that I would put it above Barcelona, Munich, or maybe Paris, but there is just so much to see and do that it is completely overwhelming. It is kind of bizarre to think that the metro area population of the City is double that of the entire state of North Carolina, with the city population being nearly as high as NC. I will be going back again for sure, and will have to keep an eye on future Hurricanes away games at the Rangers, as the Garden is one of my most wanted venues to see a game at. Now, on to Florida next week...
radial
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Re: NYC

Post by radial »

awesomefied report, loving the commentary.

Here's the deal about the trees:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32481101/ns/weather/
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