New York City Guide

This first part of my New York city guide will cover What to Do in New York, Where to Go in New York and What to See in new York.

I’ve probably been to this city more times than I can now remember but each time, it feels brand new. I tend to visit often as my older sister and niece live in Brooklyn so the city does have a special place in my heart.

Now, even though visiting NY is almost like going “home” for me, I still always do a bit of sight seeing and skip around all the familiar structures and landmarks, snapping away and marveling in awe like it is my first time in their presence. The vibe is fast paced like London which does give me joy and comfort; Mr E loves it so much and probably wishes we live there (Not going to happen my love haha!)

Grab your tea or coffee and some biscuits, as it is an extensive one; so let’s get into it, shall we?!

New York New York!! So good, they named it twice! - Gerrard Kenny

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New York City Guide: Where to go

Head to Times Square

Did you even go to New York if you did not go to Times Square? Did you? It is the most exciting tourist attraction with everything you can think of situated on it. Massive billboards with movie advertisements, shops, food stalls, high rise buildings, everryyything!

It is the heart of New York City! It is big, it is colourful, it is bright and it is fun! Beware of pick pockets and random (read: inappropriate) people trying to chat you up!

Go to Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of my favourite first sights to see whenever I’m visiting New York. Just walking on the bridge and seeing all the buildings around it gives me the ultimate New York vibe. Brooklyn Bridge is a suspension bridge, which is situated over the East River and essentially connects Brooklyn to Manhattan borough. It does get busy in the afternoons (damn tourists! lol) so if you want a quiet walk/cycle/run or you want a picture sans humans loitering around, you’re better off getting there in the morning!

Visit The Battery

The name was renamed from Battery Park to The Battery in 2015 and is a public park which faces the New York Habour. There are a few statues around the Park, which symbolise immigration, and my favourite is The Immigrants by Luis Sanguino. Such a poignant piece that stands in the middle of the park. There is also the East Coast Memorial which honours the seamen who lost their lives during the WW II.

Oh and you can catch the most gorgeous sunset as well.

The view from The Battery at sunset! Stunning!

Visit Liberty Island for the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island

From The Battery, you can get on the Statue Cruise ferry all the way to Liberty Island where you can get as close as possible to the Statue of Liberty in all its glory. She was usually the fist thing the immigrants saw once they sailed in to the US.

My up, close and personal view of Lady Liberty!

Make sure you also go to Ellis Island as well; this one holds meaning as it houses an immigration museum and was the former inspection station for immigrants entering into New York and New Jersey.

Visit the World Trade Centre Memorial aka Ground Zero

We all remember where we were when the twin towers were struck on September 11, 2001 killing almost 3000 people. The memorial sits where the twin towers once stood. It is an emotional site as you see every name of every one who was killed written in stone and embracing a fountain. It is a really beautiful site.

May their souls continue to Rest in Peace, Amen.

Across from it is The Oculus, which is located at the World Trade center site. It is a transport center slash shopping mall slash architectural marvel slash food court.

Go to The Highline and walk from one end to the other

I remember wondering why the highline was so popular. Isn’t it just an old railway that is now non-functional? I thought.

Ummmmm it is actually a pretty cool site if I’m honest. Walking down the Highline, it is now some sort of park with benches and art with the backdrop of the city.

From the highline, this view awaits you!

What did I say about never passing up a chance to pose?!

‘There is something in New York air that makes sleep useless.’ – Simone Beauvoir

New York City Guide: What to do?

Watch a Basketball Game at Madison Square Garden (MSG)

If off-season, visit the grounds. Located on 34th street, Madison Square Garden is one of New York’s gems. For any sporting event or concert that will attract the biggest celebrities, count in Madison Square Garden.

On this occasion there was nothing interesting we wanted to see but in 2016, we watched the NY Knicks game (vs Dallas Mavericks). Mr E was excited to see his first basketball game and I was excited to see Carmelo Anthony. We had some celeb sightings – Floyd Mayweather and Jason Derulo.

Not a basketball fan?

Then head to the baseball game at world famous, Yankee Stadium.

My older sister got us the best tickets and we saw the New York Yankees vs Minnesota Twins. I’m not a massive baseball fan; actually I don’t know anything about baseball but as it is a big part of the American life, we were so excited to be there!

I had a few questions though –

Why does it go on forever?
Why do the players seem to stand around for minutes doing nothing?
Do they always have to get to the 9th round?
Don’t they get bored?

You know how extra I am, so I got the hat; actually Mr E and I got the hats, we got the hotdogs, danced the YMCA and shouted and howled when we saw people doing the same. Trust me, you don’t have to understand or love baseball to attend.

It did get boring after about 2 hours so we left but hey, it’s the experience that counts right?!

I was clearly living my best life instead of paying attention to the game :/

Horse & Carriage riding and/or people watching at Central Park

I love the serenity of this park SO much and it is located just at the end of 5th avenue so is the perfect spot after walking and shopping. Try spotting the benches which have inscriptions on them, I thought they were cute!

If it is your first time in Central Park, I advise you to do the Horse and Carriage ride. It is nothing mind-blowing but it’s one of those experiences you should have in your lifetime lol. Plus it is very romantic which is always a plus right?! The chauffeur would usually give you some history lessons about the park and the surrounding buildings (which is an added bonus).

Light a candle at St Patrick’s Cathedral

For The Love of Cathedrals, visit St Patrick’s Cathedral – By now, you know my love for Basilicas and Cathedrals so I had to give you the cutest one in New York. St Patrick’s Cathedral is GORGEOUS. The Altar is so pretty and has that gothic style I love. According to wiki, it is the seat of the Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of New York and is on 5th Avenue.

New York City Guide: What to see

In what to see, these were buildings or paintings we came across and thought they were worth the (honorary) mention!

The New York Stock Exchange – Every finance-related movie that has been shot in NY must have shown the front of this building, which is such a landmark on Wall Street.

The Vessel, Hudson Yards. You can go in and climb to the top for a skyline view of the city

For HipHop lovers, the most impressive Biggie mural is at the intersection of Bedford Av and Quincy Street in Brooklyn

The Fearless Girl (in front of NYSE) – A symbol of female empowerment

New York City Hall; at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge going into Manhattan

As I previously mentioned, New York is A LOT! This New York City Guide has basically covered mostly Manhattan and some parts of Brooklyn. However, my plan for my next NY visit is to spend it in the Bronx and Queens for a more balanced itinerary but I hope I have covered the basics and more familiar places.

The next part of the NY series will cover where to eat in New York! Brace yourselves, it is a really good one!

Until next time….

…Bisous, ‘Bugo xx