I moved to New York (Kew Gardens, NY...in Queens) right out of high school to be a nanny. I then went back about a year ago and had an awesome vacation. So this post is going to be long, haha.
The first thing I had when the family I worked for brought me to their apartment was pizza. New York pizza is indeed delicious, but not ALL New York pizza. Danny's Pizza in Kew Gardens was absolutely delicious and the slices were giant. It should be noted that I gained about 20lbs or so during the year I lived there (not exaggerating!), so I found some good food.
Now I'm not into bars, clubs, etc..so none of my post are going to tell anybody where the "hot spots" for partying are. What I really was into more than anything was the theater. There are always dozens of Broadway shows and even more Off-Broadway shows. Tickets are expensive, but a lot of people utilized the TKTS booth in Times Square to buy last minute tickets. I never used that booth because they never had a show I wanted to see for a very good price, but if you're not picky (and you don't need to be, a majority of the shows are very impressive), it's a great way to get a better price.
As typical as it is, Times Square is a pretty cool place to walk through as a tourist. It doesn't cost you anything, but you get to see some serious characters and the flashing lights are too much fun. It does get crowded at night, especially on weekends. You almost can't walk at that point, so don't cut through if you're in a hurry. They set up some "bleachers" so if you don't want to walk through the madness and you just want to be still and soak it in, you can.
There are so many restaurants, and shops that I could never possibly have visited them all! I'm not a big shopper (unless it's food), so I didn't really pay much attention to the boutiques. So I'm not the person to ask where the best shopping is.
If you want to get away from the really thick crowds, head down to the Village, Brooklyn, or Queens. I spent very little time in the Bronx and I never went to Long Island so I can't say much for those two places. The picture above is right out of the Union Turnpike subway station in Kew Gardens. It's peaceful and residential, with some great restaurants mixed in. If you want a great park but Central Park is too crowded for you, there is a beautiful parked called Forrest Park in this area. Although I highly suggest giving Central park a visit.
Central Park
Forrest Park in Forrest Hills
I'm going to end the post here because I could honestly go on and on and on and on and on. I absolutely love New York! Rather then posting the links to all my NYC videos (from my most recent trip) on here, I'll link you to my blog post about it, HERE. Worth a watch!
Some quick tips:
-Use the subways and your feet as much as possible! Subways are $2 a ride, and they used to have a $10 pass for a day or two if you were going to be using it a lot. Bring your walking shoes...seriously. No flip flops. If you are all dressy then stick your heels in a bag and change when you get to your destination. Taxis are far too expensive. I admit I usually took one from the airport, but that's because I'm lazy.
-If you're there for a short period of time but you want to see as much as possible, I recommended those cheesy bus tours or a Circle Line cruise. Both are around $30, but if you'll kick yourself for not seeing all of the major sites, then it's worth it. If you have some time to kill, do what I did and make a list of MUST SEE'S and take a walk there or take the subway. Print yourself a subway and a street map unless you have a fancy phone.
-If you get lost, ASK somebody. You might encounter a snob here or there but most of the people are very warm and kind, they're just in a hurry.
-Keep your purse closed and in sight at all times.
I love New York!!!
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