Brand New Buzz

My flight arrived after 5am and despite arriving an hour early, the first thing I noticed in the airport terminal was just how humid and muggy it was. At 5am! I felt like I was arriving at a tropical country outside the US. I caught the Air-Train to first Howard Beach, where I would then catch the subway into Brooklyn, then into Manhattan. While I waiting for the subway, I began talking to this guy who lives in L.A., but was originally from New York and he told me about all kinds of stuff to do and see while I was here. Then this Russian woman entered into our conversation and gave me even more recommendations. I’m not in New York for more than an hour and I’ve meet some really great people!

Once on the subway and to Hoyt-Schermerhorn stop, I then got off and found the route that would take me to Manhattan where I have reservations at a small New York hotel. After dropping checking in and dropping off my bags, I immediately went exploring. I managed to find a nice little cafe that was just opening up for breakfast. Breakfast only made me more sleepy, but I really wanted to explore the city and not my hotel bed.

My hotel wasn’t too far from Times Square, so that’s where I went first. Even though it was still early in the morning, Times Square was bustling with people heading off to work! I walked around soaking it all in; everywhere I looked there were huge neon signs blinking one advertisement after another. It seemed that every single corporation of the world had purchase advertising space in Times Square and each one outshining the other one. I literally could only take so much before I got sensory overload. Gratefully, in the middle of all this hype, I saw an area set aside with tables and chairs. I had to sit down, but this gave me a great opportunity to observe my first morning in the busy, busy city.

I heard about the ‘hop-on hop-off’ bus tours, so I decided this would be the best way for me to explore the city. The buses took me all around the city and to all the major attractions. I think for the money I paid for one ticket – $54.00 – was well worth it. It was the best way, in my opinion, to see the city and at my own pace. It made my short visit here all that much better. I highly recommend taking full advantage of these ‘hop-on hop-off’ buses when visiting New York for the first time.

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1. Visiting Manhattan
2. Dylan Thomas in the Chelsea Hotel New York
3. Game at Yankee Stadium in New York Creates Lifelong Fan
4. Musical Theatre Tradition of New York
5. New York with a friend