My First Trip To New York Was Fun!
Constant noise. Interesting people. Bright lights. Breath taking views. These few words sum up my experience in New York City.
Guest blog by: Harrison White
Hallway in the Museum of Sex
Street art in the World Trade Centre Memorial
From the time you first touch down in New York, to the time you’re back up in the air; I’d be shocked if you were able to find a moments peace in Manhattan. As soon as you get off the train from JFK, you hear people talking on phones, the grinding of the trains on tracks and beeping of car horns. Regardless of the time of the day, you can always hear noise emanating from somewher, especially the car horns. New York has the most interesting modern symphony I have ever heard.
Beyond just the noise from the subway, the interesting people everywhere add another dimension to NYC’s orchestra of modern living. The street vendors and hackers pushing their fake luxury bags and watches, and even those going about their day-to-day life create an urban animation I have never seen before. The variety in how people live, dress, and act was astounding. There wasn’t a time of day where you didn’t hear and see New Yorkers going about their own business despite the intense tourism in their city.
From the booming billboards of Times Square to the lights illuminating a plethora of theatres, and the lights coming from the city’s thousands of skyscrapers; Manhattan is lit up almost everywhere you look. The only star’s you’ll see while visiting are the ones performing on Broadway.
These bright lights however help provide any visitor with some of the most breathtaking cityscape views I’ve personally ever experienced. From the Empire State Building to the One World Trade Center, there
Edge NYC / Hudson Yards
Unless you’ll be in New York for a few weeks, I think it’s important to prioritize the things that interest you most. It was difficult to fit in everything I wanted to experience during my six days in the city. For me, the most important things were the views of New York, museums and the food. I was able to visit all the iconic skyscrapers in NYC. I went to the Rockefeller Tower, One World Trade Center, Empire State Building and Edge.
No first visit to New York City would be complete without taking in the sweeping panoramic views from the Edge at Hudson Yards. Ascending nearly 1,100 feet in the air, this thrilling observation deck literally hovers you over bustling Manhattan. Gazing down through the glass floor past my feet clinging to the precipice, I beheld the vast cityscape unfolding below - endless grids of buildings and streets teemed with tiny yellow taxis. Giddy groups of sightseers joined me to soak up the vertiginous views and pose for gravity-defying photos.Of the four, I feel the Edge (provided me with the best experience, with clear glass walls and plenty of space to sit and have a drink in between activities. I felt it provided a great way to break up the day while giving you a chance stop and take in everything you see.
The other nice thing about visiting Edge is you get a glimpse into the Hudson Yard neighbourhood. Hudson Yards is a glimpse of what cities may look like in the future and is an interesting engineering project as it was built over top of 30 active Long Island Railroad tracks, New Jersey Transit and Amtrak passageways and a tunnel. It also has some other unique features such as giant cooling fans, underground garbage collection, rainwater collection and its own power generation source. Beyond just the engineering, it had some of the most greenery I saw in NYC outside of Central Park which broke up the concrete jungle nicely. I found this opportunity to learn more about this unique neighbourhood and potential glimpse into cities of the future a nice perk to visiting Edge.
Edge is the highest sky deck in the Western Hemisphere located at 30 Hudson Yards, with a one-of-a-kind design, it’s suspended in mid-air, giving you the feeling of floating in the sky with 360-degree views you can’t get anywhere else.
View from the Edge NYC Tower
View from the Empire State Building
Museums: Sex To Memorials
For “museumgoers” such as myself, again decisions will have to be made. With museums covering art, history and pop culture there is something for everyone, even people who even may not typically go to museums. It is to impossible fit them all in during a typical weeklong trip. I was able to fit in several but could have spent another full day just checking out the ones I missed.
For those interested in art, the one museum I couldn’t see and am most disappointed about is the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. I’ve heard nothing but amazing things art and architectural gem. For history, I’d highly recommend the 9/11 Memorial and Museum to learn about this devastating event in American history. I’d also recommend spending a full day to check out the American Museum of Natural history. They have a ton of interesting exhibits, and I was only able to visit for about 2.5 hours. I feel that you could spend an entire day there without realizing it.
In the pop culture realm, I’d recommend Madame Tussauds Wax Museum and the Museum of Sex for a fun and interesting experience. Madame Tussauds had an interesting top-down structure (start at the top and work your way down) with small concession stands located in between sections of the museum which allowed visitors to pick up a snack or drink while they went through.
The Museum of Sex was one of the most unique experiences I’ve ever had, with displays and activities to keep you entertained throughout the entire experience. It would be best to do as a couple and I would not say it is family friendly in the slightest, so you may want to give it a miss if you’re bringing your children with you.
Of all the phenomenal museums I explored on my initial New York City sojourn, none left a more remarkable impression than the sprawling Metropolitan Museum of Art. As I navigated through gallery after gallery, I was amazed by the scale and breadth of MOMA's treasured collections spanning 5,000 years of human ingenuity. I wandered mesmerized for hours through the Egyptian galleries, coming face to face with ancient temple statuary and glittering sarcophagi. The Arms and Armor collection dazzled with its array of intricately embellished Medieval suits and weaponry. But the pièce de resistance was the European Paintings galleries, housing countless masterpieces by legends like Rembrandt, Vermeer, Monet, and Van Gogh. As I sat transfixed before Edouard Manet's riveting portrait of the Parisian barmaid at Café Folies-Bergère, I felt as if I had indeed been transported through time and space. With so much left unexplored, the MOMA remains at the top of my sightseeing list for my next rendezvous with New York's thrilling art scene.
I’d also say any trip to NYC is not complete without checking out a show on Broadway. Although I am not a traditional fan of musicals, I did take the time to check out “The Book of Mormon” on Broadway and did not regret it. It was one of the funniest and most unique play concepts I’ve ever seen. If I can find a show I enjoyed (as someone who typically dislikes the medium), I think it’s safe to say that there is likely some Broadway show out there for everyone.
NYC’s iconic Central Library.
Wax sculpture from Madame Tussauds
American Museum of Natural History
Wreckage from 9/11 Memorial
Art piece from 9/11 Memorial
No Big Surprises
Not much surprised me in my trip to New York, it is very similar to what you see in the pop culture representations of the city. Busy streets, loud noises, garbage, homelessness and very little trees were all to be expected. The one thing that did surprise me a bit more than I was expecting was just how tourist-friendly the public transit in the city is. It was extremely easy to get around using public transit and it was often faster than taking a cab or Uber. The only time I’d recommend not using transit is later at night as the subway stations get a little less busy and even locals recommended avoiding certain stations after 9 PM.
Modern Art at Hudson Yards
Travel Tips
If you’re planning a trip to NYC, I think the most important pieces of advice I can give you is to do your research and prioritize the things you want to see. It is unlikely you’ll be able to fit everything you want to see into a 3 to 7 day visit.
I also recommend purchasing one of the sightseeing passes (we bought the New York sightseeing pass) that are available if you want to do at least 2-3 activities a day. It ended up saving us a ton of money as you can get in a lot of attractions without paying any additional fees. You can also adjust them based on the number of days you’d like to use them.
Also take advantage of the public transit and planning your trips out around it, as it will help keep the cost down.
Bull at the Financial District
Last Word
While I’d never personally want to live in NYC, it is definitely a place I’d recommend visiting at least once in your life; especially with it potentially being underwater in the future. Once you’ve had the time to visit, you’ll definitely understand why NYC is often called “The City That Never Sleeps.”
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