I'm in a New York State of Mind

[33girl]

Drink here. A lot.

http://www.continentalnyc.com/

[Rudey]

Originally Posted by 33girl

Drink here. A lot.

http://www.continentalnyc.com/

If you're going to go to super cheap bars in nyc, then subway inn is the way to go. It's right next to bloomingdales, which also has the best frozen yogurt in the city. The only problem with bloomingdales is that it's bloomingdales.

[Munchkin03]

The Met is indeed far too general for anyone with a real interest in art. Like Rudith said, there are other specialized museums that won't be as crowded:

MoMA
Whitney
Neue Galerie
Frick
Jewish Museum
Cooper Hewitt

It all depends on what you're interested in. You can buy something called an ArtPass that will let you go to a few museums for something like $35. But, if you like one-stop shopping and fighting large crowds of tourists, knock yourself out at the Met. If, however, you insist--the Temple of Dendur is pretty cool.

I'm a big fan of the Brooklyn Heights Promenade--the only touristy things I'd suggest in Brooklyn would be the Promenade, the Brooklyn Museum, and Grimaldi's/Brooklyn Ice Cream factory. The Brooklyn Botanical Garden is gorgeous.

Unless you plan on buying things that you can buy in Chicago with less madness, I'd stay away from Saks, Macy's (ewww), and Bloomingdales. Only go into Barney's or Bergdorf's or even Bendel's unless you came to run with the big dogs. Avoid Tiffany on 5th Avenue unless you're going during lunch on a weekday--the Wall Street store has much fewer Japanese tourists taking pictures of themselves at the counters.

My only real advice? Just be prepared for how expensive everything is. Yes, everything from bottled water to pizza to museum admissions will be far more expensive than where you come from.

[honeychile]

Have you been to the Jewish Museum? Is it any good? A friend of mine was terribly disappointed, but that could be for a lot of different reasons (like having too many kids in tow!).

[DeltAlum]

There are definitely still carriage rides in Central Park.

I've never taken one, but they look like fun.

I'm finished talking about the Met, except to say that my wife, with a degree in fine arts and a former docent at a fairly major gallery which shall remain nameless, loves it.

That is not to disparage in any way any of the smaller galleries mentioned. Your can get a lot for your money and time at The Met. The comment on crowds at The Met is valid.

Oh, and not everyone has a background or education in art.

I echo the comments on Times Square -- even in the daytime. Be mindful of your purse and/or wallet. We were sitting in a restaurant there with a friend of our son who was in Avenue Q at the time, and her purse was stolen off the back of her chair while we were all sitting at the table! One guy created a diversion and another lifted the purse. For the most part, the area has really been cleaned up and it's pretty safe.

I also agree on the comment on shopping, but I don't like shopping at all. Some people do get a big charge out of shopping at the big name stores, though. My post earlier was considering efficiency of time used. If you're at Rockefeller Center, some of the stores are within a couple of minutes walk.

If you have the time and inclination to see a Broadway show, I'd recommend doing some research on the web and ask friends for advice. Some tickets are nearly impossible to get less than a month or two in advence (Wicked and Jersey Boys for instance) unless you want to pay huge premium prices). Don't expect to walk up to the box office and buy seats for a good show like you would a movie. (You can buy online, but will pay a service fee -- which may be OK for the piece of mind of having your ticket in hand) Also, some of the shows (Lion King for instance) is a lot of glitter. If you like glitter, go for it. If you want something a little deeper, try something like Spring Awakening. I, personally, tend to stay away from the ones who rely on a "big name" TV or movie star. In my experience, needing the "name" is generally a result of a weak overall show.

ETA, please don't let any of us talk you out of seeing something you really want to see or do something you really want to do -- whether it's "touristy" or not. I've been to New York many times as a tourist, on business and I lived in Manhattan for a while supervising the radio and TV engineers at the UN. It's good, I think, to take in the bigger attractions your first couple of times there, and learn some of the things you'd like to see when you go back -- and most people do want to go back.

Have a great time.

[jon1856]

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

There are definitely still carriage rides in Central Park.

I've never taken one, but they look like fun.

I'm finished talking about the Met, except to say that my wife, with a degree in fine arts and a former docent at a fairly major gallery which shall remain nameless, loves it.

That is not to disparage in any way any of the smaller galleries mentioned. Your can get a lot for your money and time at The Met. The comment on crowds at The Met is valid.

Oh, and not everyone has a background or education in art.

I echo the comments on Times Square -- even in the daytime. Be mindful of your purse and/or wallet. We were sitting in a restaurant there with a friend of our son who was in Avenue Q at the time, and her purse was stolen off the back of her chair while we were all sitting at the table! One guy created a diversion and another lifted the purse. For the most part, the area has really been cleaned up and it's pretty safe.

I also agree on the comment on shopping, but I don't like shopping at all. Some people do get a big charge out of shopping at the big name stores, though. My post earlier was considering efficiency of time used. If you're at Rockefeller Center, some of the stores are within a couple of minutes walk.

Finally, if you have the time and inclination to see a Broadway show, I'd recommend doing some research on the web and ask friends for advice. Some tickets are nearly impossible to get less than a month or two in advence (Wicked and Jersey Boys for instance) unless you want to pay huge premium prices). Don't expect to walk up to the box office and buy seats for a good show like you would a movie. (You can buy online, but will pay a service fee -- which may be OK for the piece of mind of having your ticket in hand) Also, some of the shows (Lion King for instance) is a lot of glitter. If you like glitter, go for it. If you want something a little deeper, try something like Spring Awakening. I, personally, tend to stay away from the ones who rely on a "big name" TV or movie star. In my experience, needing the "name" is generally a result of a weak overall show.

I agree with you DA but for one (or two) things:
TDF's TKTS booths; one in Mid-town, the other in South Street Seaport.
For cash, luck and some time invested on lines (this is not a secret site any more to anyone) you can get same day tickets to plays both on and off Broadway.
For information:
http://www.tdf.org/TDF_ServicePage.aspx?id=56

And if OP is a member of AAA, pick up their New York TourBook.
Free to members and has pages of things to see and do.

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by jon1856

I agree with you DA but for one (or two) things:
TDF's TKTS booths; one in Mid-town, the other in South Street Seaport.
For cash, luck and some time invested on lines (this is not a secret site any more to anyone) you can get same day tickets to plays both on and off Broadway.
For information:
http://www.tdf.org/TDF_ServicePage.aspx?id=56

And if OP is a member of AAA, pick up their New York TourBook.
Free to members and has pages of things to see and do.

Yeah. The TKTS booth used to be right in the middle of Times Square, but that has been temporarily closed down due to construction in the area. It's about half a block off Broadway now. The other one used to be at the WTC. I didn't realize it had been moved to the South Street SeaPort. If you're in mid-town, though, that's a subway or cab ride away.

Also, as I said above, there are same day alternatives, even to the biggest shows. As you point out, though, you have to have time to invest. Standing room tickets, for instance, are generally sold mid morning for that evening's performance. Lotteries are usually held in the late afternoon for an 8:00 PM show and you have to be there in person for either.

Most of the stuff I've talked about is trying to take into account using your time efficiently -- not spending it in cabs, etc.

[Rudey]

Jon wrote me some ridiculous PM that made no sense. Probably because he couldn't respond to my comments after insulting me.

Evidently you just named a bunch of small galleries. Did you know that? Who knew the frick was a small gallery.

I guess I know nothing about art. Who knew?

The Jewish museum had a really cool wood sculpture exhibit not too long ago but I think it's gone. They have an interesting Warhol one now. I like the cafe at the neue.

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

The Met is indeed far too general for anyone with a real interest in art. Like Rudith said, there are other specialized museums that won't be as crowded:

MoMA
Whitney
Neue Galerie
Frick
Jewish Museum
Cooper Hewitt

It all depends on what you're interested in. You can buy something called an ArtPass that will let you go to a few museums for something like $35. But, if you like one-stop shopping and fighting large crowds of tourists, knock yourself out at the Met. If, however, you insist--the Temple of Dendur is pretty cool.

I'm a big fan of the Brooklyn Heights Promenade--the only touristy things I'd suggest in Brooklyn would be the Promenade, the Brooklyn Museum, and Grimaldi's/Brooklyn Ice Cream factory. The Brooklyn Botanical Garden is gorgeous.

Unless you plan on buying things that you can buy in Chicago with less madness, I'd stay away from Saks, Macy's (ewww), and Bloomingdales. Only go into Barney's or Bergdorf's or even Bendel's unless you came to run with the big dogs. Avoid Tiffany on 5th Avenue unless you're going during lunch on a weekday--the Wall Street store has much fewer Japanese tourists taking pictures of themselves at the counters.

My only real advice? Just be prepared for how expensive everything is. Yes, everything from bottled water to pizza to museum admissions will be far more expensive than where you come from.

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by Rudey

Jon wrote me some ridiculous PM that made no sense. Probably because he couldn't respond to my comments after insulting me.

Sometimes one insult draws another. See early post about the worst possible advice, etc.

Subtlity is not one of your many virtues.

But come on, Rudey, don't complain.

You live to trade insults.

[Rudey]

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

Sometimes one insult draws another. See early post about the worst possible advice, etc.

Subtlity is not one of your many virtues.

But come on, Rudey, don't complain.

You live to trade insults.

Worst possible advice is an insult? Who knew?

Now, now deltalum, it looks like you're making accusations again. Why is that? Perhaps you need to calm down by visiting a k-mart art museum with your art expert wife!

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by Rudey

Worst possible advice is an insult? Who knew?

Now, now deltalum, it looks like you're making accusations again. Why is that? Perhaps you need to calm down by visiting a k-mart art museum with your art expert wife!

Never claimed she is an expert.

And I'm not an expert on much of anything.

Good thing I've got folks like you to keep me informed.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by Rudey

Evidently you just named a bunch of small galleries. Did you know that? Who knew the frick was a small gallery.

I guess I know nothing about art. Who knew?

The Jewish museum had a really cool wood sculpture exhibit not too long ago but I think it's gone. They have an interesting Warhol one now. I like the cafe at the neue.

Yeah, I've been to museums all over the world, with my second major in art history...but apparently, what do I know? I'm just a redneck from Florida since I don't think the Met is the end-all.

The Jewish Museum is currrently having a Pollock-deKooning exhibit. Sounds interesting...and it's near all those other little no-name galleries.

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

...I'm just a redneck from Florida since I don't think the Met is the end-all.

Not at all.

On the other hand, people who have an interest in seeing it shouldn't be criticized either.

I wouldn't say I've seen museums all over the world, but I've seen my share in this country, Italy, France, Germany and the UK, and I rather enjoy The Met.

I don't think I'm a redneck either. (Although Mrs. DA sometimes has to explain things for me)

I'd rather see someone go to The Met than spend their entire vacation in Virgin Records, the M&M store, chatting with the Naked Cowboy or some of Manhattan's other cultural wonders.

[SWTXBelle]

Okay folks - let's bear in mind that what are or are not the best places to visit is a really subjective call. Tell the OP your favorite places, why you like them, and let him/her make up their own mind.

[DeltAlum]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

Okay folks - let's bear in mind that what are or are not the best places to visit is a really subjective call. Tell the OP your favorite places, why you like them, and let him/her make up their own mind.

Now there's a real concept.

I like it.

Gives we poor, underpaid moderators a lot less work to do.