Since April 2002, I have been to New York City 20 times.
New York City (NYC) is called “The Big Apple” and “The City that never Sleeps”.
I call it “The Greatest City in known Universe!”
I often get the questions: “Why do you love NYC so much and what do you like most?”
It is actually very difficult for me to answer in a short sentence, but I usually answer this:
“I feel at home in NYC and I like everything”.
Well – of course NYC has its flaws like any other cities, but I can live with that, because all the good things balance it out.
“The city smells”
“The city is noisy”
The city is expensive”
“The people are rude”
“The streets are filled with garbage”
“Its concrete jungle”
These are just some of the negative statements, I have heard.
If you only heard the above about any city, you would probably never visit, but I will make some comments to the above:
“Any city smell from time to time and NYC is no exception. In fact there lives 2 mill people just in Manhattan. The small island which is only approx 20 miles long and 2 miles wide at the widest point”.
“Yes, the city is noisy because it is the largest city in USA, but go to ex. Rome or Paris and you will have to buy a pair of earmuffs. Manhattan can be very noisy especially in midtown, but you also have quiet cobblestone streets in The Village!”
“Yes, NYC is very expensive, especially hotels, but you can find cheap accomodation if you search the internet or stay Airbnb.
I normally say that you can get dinner from $5 to $1.000 depending on where you look and how hungry you are – LOL. NYC has approx. 24.000 restaurants and street carts, so of course you can get a decent dinner without getting bankrupt!
“No, New Yorkers are not rude. Anyway not more rude than other people, but when they seems rude, it is usually because they are so focused and in a hurry. It is a busy city after all.
I have only met kind people, who are willing to help you, if you ask ,that is.
But if you act like a jerk and ex. stop in the middle of the sidewalk to take photos – then you will get pushed away by a rude New Yorker!
Yes, the sidewalks may be filled with garbage until it is collected by the sanitation department. The problem is that the city has no back alleys where you can store the garbage.
“New York has a lot of buildings, hence the concrete – LOL, but NYC is much more!!
When all this is said, New York City wouldn’t be NYC without the above mentioned statements, but NYC is so much more!!!!!!!! NYC has everything!!!
Just to mention a few awesome things:
“Beautiful beaches”
“Cobblestone streets”
“a lot of trees. 694.000 mapped trees citywide!”
“Great parks”
“World renowned museums”
“Great restaurants”
“ The safest big city in USA”
“Clean tap water”
“Great selection of Airbnb accommodations”
“The most recognizable skyline in the world”
“Great shopping opportunities”
“5 boroughs”
Yes New York City is much more than Manhattan.
Manhattan
Brooklyn
Queens
The Bronx
Staten Island
Within each borough there are countless neighborhoods.
Of course Manhattan is the most known borough with most of the famous museums etc. situated here, but visit the other boroughs and you will be surprised!!
Spend a day at one on the sandy beaches with miles long boardwalks or visit Corona Flushing Meadows Park in Queens (known from MIB – Men in Black movie – LOL
I often get the question: “When did your passion for New York City start?
Well, my passion started in April 2002, when I visited the city for the first time.
At that time, the exchange rate towards DKK was very good and a lot of Danes started to visit NYC back then.
Actually, in 2001 a buddy of mine and I joked about taking a shopping weekend in NYC, but it never happened due to a new job position I had in May 2001, and later in 2001 came the terrible attack on WTC, but in April 2002 we went to NYC on a long weekend from Friday to Tuesday.
We stayed at Wyndham “New Yorker” centrally located in midtown.
We arrived at Newark Airport and took the bus to midtown and got off right next to the hotel.
As we got out of the bus, The Empire State Building was the first I noticed and I remember vividly that I just stared up at the building and said: “ I have this strange feeling, that I have been here before”
Of course, I hadn’t been here before, but it seemed like I knew the city from countless of movies. It was a good feeling.
In 2003-2004, I had a new job situation and didn’t think so much about NYC , but then in April 2005 I went over here once again and BAAAM, I got hooked – LOL
Once again, I stayed at “The New Yorker”, and this time, I visited B&H photo store for the first time and purchased a new camera. I knew that I would shoot a lot of pictures and needed a new camera.
Beforehand , I had chat with this guy Eduardo Vienueza, and we decided to get together when I was over here. He was my first friend I had in NYC, and still is to this day!!
Awesome guy, by the way – LOL
Just as in 2002, the weather was fabulous, and when I returned to Denmark, I knew, that I had to go back, which happened in September 2005.
And then the story continued in 2006-2019 and counting! – LOL. 20 times with double vacation in 2005,2012,2013 and 2014.
It started with 4 days and I am now on 4 weeks per stay – LOL
Every time I come here, it is just like a paused movie and at the airport, I press play again, to continue the adventures – LOL
As the controller I am, I have made some statistics:
Number of vacations: 20
Number of days: 314
Number of months. 10.5
| Type of accomodation | Days | Mth |
| Hotel | 141 | 4,7 |
| Airbnb | 113 | 3,8 |
| Private (Friends) | 60 | 2,0 |
| 314 | 10,5 |
Approx. costs incl. 7 tattoos: USD. 75.000
All vacations have been with base in NYC, but in 2016 I went on a 10 days trip to Grand Canyon, Las Vegas and Santa Monica with a friend of mine from NYC.
Over the years, I have posted a lot of pictures and videos. You can find link below:
New York City is a walking city.
Not that NYC doesn’t have other transportation possibilities, but with the wide sidewalks, NYC is perfect for walking.
I have made a site with a lot of walking tours, that you can find by clicking here.
After walking a lot, you might get a bit hungry and the solution for this is choosing one of the restaurants from the list that I have made.
Check it out by clicking here.
Link to my latest 2019-Tour with awesome videos, pictures and daily bulletins.
My favorite NYC:
As I mentioned earlier, I like everything about NYC, but should I pinpoint some of my absolutely favorite places / things, it would be these :
Restaurants:
Pazza Notte on 6th Avenue, Manhattan
Heartland Brewery at Empire State Building
Heartland Brewery & Rotisserie at Times Square
Lasagna at 8th Avenue, Manhattan
Sammy’s Noodle Shop on 6th Avenue, Manhattan
Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden, Astoria Queens
Au Za’atar on Avenue A, Manhattan
Prime One 16 on 1st Avenue, Manhattan
Olive Tree Cafe & Bar on Mc. Dougal Street, Manhattan
Waverly Restaurant on 6th Avenue, Manhattan
Dallas BBQ on 8th Avenue, Manhattan
Mamoun’s on Mc. Dougal Street ( only to Go)
Red Rooster on Malcolm X Blvd.
Sylvia’s on Malcolm X Blvd.
Katz’s Delicatessen on East Houston Street
Parks:
Central Park, Manhattan
Bryant Park, Manhattan
City Hall Park, Manhattan
Battery Park, Manhattan
Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens
Highline, Manhattan
Pelham Bay Park, The Bronx
Union Square Park, Manhattan
Brooklyn Bridge Park, Brooklyn
Main Street Park, Brooklyn
Bronx Park, The Bronx
Inwood Hill Park, Manhattan
Prospect Park, Brooklyn
Washington Square Park, Manhattan
Beaches:
Coney Island
Brighton Beach
Rockaway Beach
Pelham Bay
Attractions and museums:
The Vessel
WTC Observation Deck
Empire State Observation Deck
Top of the Rock
Statue of Liberty
Brooklyn Bridge
American Museum of Natural History
The Metropolitan Museum
Whitney Museum
See my list of Restaurants, attractions and more.
Mr. New York
