New York review

[Cerveza mas fina]

A great holiday, went to a show on Broadway (Hedwig and the Angry Inch which I will recommend to anyone), saw  live jazz (Mingus Big Band at the Jazz Standard, great stuff), loads of nice food across town ranging from cheap stuff and street food to more high end, Central Park, Chinatown, Little Italy, Coney Island, Soho, High Line (very cool walk), Top of the Rock (I'm scared of heights but this was WOW), Moma...  enough to satisfy the appetite for sure

 Really happy to get a taste and glimpse of America and it's culture. The city lives up to the hype, it's more beautiful then I thought, but also more scrappy compared to Copenhagen for example. Everything seems a bit more old then here, maybe I just had expectations that everything would be new, shiny and classy, but there is a lot of stuff that looks shabby which I do like, makes it more real. The American obsession with militarism is a shame, every five metres you are reminded of the armed forces and veterans and the such, I have never witnessed anything like that.  US TV is so full of commercials I'm surprised anyone still watches it, every 5 min there is a break CRAZY.

+ Architecture, really crazy beautiful skyscrapers, art deco, nice brownstones. City doesn't need to feel ashamed compared to European ones for sure.
+ Public transport, it's easy and cheap to use. Clean too.
+Things to do, you can be in New York for a long time and not run out things to do. Museums, sites, stores, theatre it's all there.
+ Places to eat, the whole world in one city, and thanks to immigrants you really get the real food. Sure many cities have loads of restaurants from across the globe, but I think NYC is on another level.
+ Americans, friendly bunch they are, helpful and up for a laugh. Can be a bit over the top but it's New York so I fuggedaboutit
+ Coffee refills

- Humidity, when we got there it was really really bad in the 90's, felt more like Asia to me. Thank god it dropped later but still.
- Subway heat, jesus, I know the subway is old, but it's like 500 degrees down there, get with the times New York
- Tipping, it's stupid, I can write a book about it but its just a stupid custom, minimum wage should be minimum living wage.
- Taxes not included in prices, again a stupid custom that just doesn't help transparency.


Edit thoughts:

Visiting NYC and America was a live long dream come true for me, I have thought about this trip ever since I was a little kid.

Oh yeah, Raiders fans are silly (for whoever warned me about them) they took over the Irish pub next door for a few days and were marching with Raiders flags down the street. I said "Raaaiders" when they walked past me and they got very happy replying "yeaah Raider Naaatiioooon". Cool guys.

Brooklyners are a funny bunch, our guide had to mention every 5 minutes that Brooklyn is the city and NYC the outer Borough. He also said fuggedaboutit and whatever a million times. Great man he was, telling off the Spanish people that asked if there is Spanish as a language on the tour by saying he only speaks Brooklyn. I tipped him a fiver.

Also random Brooklyners shouted BROOKLYN at our bus.

Eating cold Borscht on a hot day at Tatianas

[T-Short]

I like your post except for the anti-tipping thing. Tipping is cool and a nice thing to do, get with the times.

Yeah super cool, keeps those pesky wages down

[Cerveza mas fina]

Oh I like tipping, I tipped fast food workers too cause they get the shaft from everyone.

Just don't like mandatory tipping. The minimum wage should be enough to live on and tipping should be for exceptional service, like in Europe.

I mean, why does a waiter at a fancy place get 50 bucks for bringing out a few dishes but the lady at a diner 10? And why does the fast food guy get nothing?
Tipping doesn't add up in my book.

[Reb]

The dutch are always annoyed at taxes and tips running up their bills.
Especially the pre-calculated tips that are included in the total are a hot topic.

I personally try to just adjust to the stupid things the locals do on vacation. People are being silly all over the world.


PS Wrath, it's your fault this is a GAF thread now.

[Cerveza mas fina]

Haha yeah, let's not delve into tipping too much. I think we all agree on the Bore that people should earn enough to live on in the end

Visiting NYC and America was a live long dream come true for me, I have thought about this trip ever since I was a little kid.

Oh yeah, Raiders fans are silly (for whoever warned me about them) they took over the Irish pub next door for a few days and were marching with Raiders flags down the street. I said "Raaaiders" when they walked past me and they got very happy replying "yeaah Raider Naaatiioooon". Cool guys.

[Eric P]

[Cerveza mas fina]

Brooklyners are a funny bunch, our guide had to mention every 5 minutes that Brooklyn is the city and NYC the outer Borough. He also said fuggedaboutit and whatever a million times. Great man he was, telling off the Spanish people that asked if there is Spanish as a language on the tour by saying he only speaks Brooklyn. I tipped him a fiver.

Also random Brooklyners shouted BROOKLYN at our bus.

Eating cold Borscht on a hot day at Tatianas

[Cerveza mas fina]

I meant to say Manhattan of course.

Yeah there were a few suicidal cyclists around.

[Atramental]

NYC is like taking a gigantic dose of America if it was a drug.

I'm from a somewhat rural area so it was a total sensory overload for me when I went there about 5 years ago.

[ToxicAdam]

I've been to Manhatten three times now (all during Christmas week). It's one of my favorite places to go. I would like to go back next time in the spring or the fall. NYC summers? No thanks.

My next 'big city' trip is going to be to D.C. I haven't been there since an 8th grade school trip.

[El Babua]

DC's nice, depending on where you go.

As for NYC, I go there every year or two and it's always a blast. Mainly hang out in Queens (Jackson Heights and Astoria) but have been to the other boroughs sans Shaolin.

[Dickie Dee]

I was there in August once, as heat intolerant as I am I somehow was fine.

But yeah, Fall/Dec. seems like it's really the time to go there.

[Reb]

I love the packed condensed feeling of Manhattan. I like just being in a big city center and soaking in all the energy.
And then leave after a few days to recover.

Also, November NYC was cold as fuck.

[Cerveza mas fina]

Yeah Reb, def nice to have a breather now from NYC and be back home.

Would have been an amazing place to have lived for 1/2 years a few years back.

[Cerveza mas fina]

NYC is like taking a gigantic dose of America if it was a drug.

I'm from a somewhat rural area so it was a total sensory overload for me when I went there about 5 years ago.

Rural usa?

Next time we prob will go to the countryside to see the contrast.

[Mupepe]

The pre tax advertised price is set up that way because taxes vary state to state, city to city, county to county so creating ads with accurate pricing can be a pain in the ass city to city or even state to state. Pre tax price just makes it easier/cheaper to create promo material.

I love NYC too. So much to do. It would take forever to get bored

[CatsCatsCats]

This thread is hard for me to understand without a #/10

[Mr. Gundam]

NYC is like taking a gigantic dose of America if it was a drug.

I'm from a somewhat rural area so it was a total sensory overload for me when I went there about 5 years ago.

Rural usa?

Next time we prob will go to the countryside to see the contrast.

It's not even rural USA. Most other cities in America are nothing like NYC. The density isn't even close.

[Human Snorenado]

NYC is like taking a gigantic dose of America if it was a drug.

I'm from a somewhat rural area so it was a total sensory overload for me when I went there about 5 years ago.

Rural usa?

Next time we prob will go to the countryside to see the contrast.

It's not even rural USA. Most other cities in America are nothing like NYC. The density isn't even close.

Yup. Atlanta is in the middle of a forest, for one, and spread out all over the fucking place because there was no planning, the city just sort of haphazardly happened around a train depot.

[Kara]

Oh yeah, Raiders fans are silly (for whoever warned me about them) they took over the Irish pub next door for a few days and were marching with Raiders flags down the street. I said "Raaaiders" when they walked past me and they got very happy replying "yeaah Raider Naaatiioooon". Cool guys.

Commitment to excellence.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

If only it happened on the field too.

[close]

Tipping is p. cool because you can get ahead by being nice. I tip well at my barbershop and I never have to wait for a barber (it's kind of an assembly line joint where there can be waits).

[a slime appears]

NYC

East Coast, Best Coast

[Cerveza mas fina]

The pre tax advertised price is set up that way because taxes vary state to state, city to city, county to county so creating ads with accurate pricing can be a pain in the ass city to city or even state to state. Pre tax price just makes it easier/cheaper to create promo material.

I love NYC too. So much to do. It would take forever to get bored

Never thought of this, good one.

[tiesto]

NYC is like taking a gigantic dose of America if it was a drug.

I'm from a somewhat rural area so it was a total sensory overload for me when I went there about 5 years ago.

Rural usa?

Next time we prob will go to the countryside to see the contrast.

It's not even rural USA. Most other cities in America are nothing like NYC. The density isn't even close.

Yup. Atlanta is in the middle of a forest, for one, and spread out all over the fucking place because there was no planning, the city just sort of haphazardly happened around a train depot.

Yeah, when I took an Urban Planning course in college for the credits, I remember reading that at that point (early 2000's), Atlanta was the fastest-spreading city in human civilization. I think with the housing bubble of the mid 2000's, Vegas eventually topped it though.

[recursivelyenumerable]

I generally tip 20% but will sometimes go up to 50% or more to show my appreciation for waiters with the skill and foresight to successfully serve me something that costs in the low teens$ while I have a $20 bill in my wallet 

[Himu]

Brooklyners are a funny bunch, our guide had to mention every 5 minutes that Brooklyn is the city and NYC the outer Borough. He also said fuggedaboutit and whatever a million times. Great man he was, telling off the Spanish people that asked if there is Spanish as a language on the tour by saying he only speaks Brooklyn. I tipped him a fiver.

Also random Brooklyners shouted BROOKLYN at our bus.

Eating cold Borscht on a hot day at Tatianas