NEW YORK CITY TRIP

This March I took a trip to New York for a few days.  I had never been to the big city before, flights were cheap, so I booked a flight and hotel and checked another box on my bucket list.  San Francisco to New York is about a 5-hour flight, so I made sure to stock up my laptop with downloadable movies from Amazon prime.  Upon landing I grabbed my checked bag and asked for directions to Manhattan.  Once figuring out how to take the subway to Manhattan, I had arrived.  The big apple.  From the subway it was about a 15 min walk to my hotel at the Yotel hotel near 42nd and 10th. The hotel boasts being on the cutting-edge side of technology, but the rooms are actually quite small.  

The first day was spent unwinding and relaxing from my day of traveling.  The next morning, I would begin my day of exploration. Equipped with my recording gear, I was off to Times Square. The buildings were huge, even bigger than we have in San Francisco.  I Visited some big brand retailers like GAP and Levis and caught some street performances that are a part of the NYC tourist attractions.  I even took some pictures on the famous red steps. It was all a lovely day until I ran into the famous street hustlers along Times Square.  Ashamed to say, I was hustled out of $1,500 playing this game with three bottle caps and a tiny red ball.  I’m not even a gambler.  One of my least proud moments to say the least.  

After being hustled, I felt pretty crappy and spent the rest of the day in my hotel room sulking.  The next day I woke up with the determination not to allow my New York trip to be ruined and shook off negative thoughts the best I could.  I decided to head to Central Park to get some filming in.  Central Park was beautiful and definitely helped to raise my spirits.  Later that day I would return to visit The Metropolitan Museum.  The Met was huge, and the exhibits ranged from Egyptian, to medieval, to the Harlem Renaissance.  Although I love a good museum, the museum staff wasn’t too happy about me recording, so I didn’t get to see the entire museum.  

The next couple of days were spent skating around Times Square and recording as much as I could.  If you are thinking of visiting New York in late March or early April, I would say to bring a nice heavy jacket, and even an umbrella.  Although there was plenty of sunshine, it rained a couple days and was pretty windy every day in the afternoon.  The winds were even stronger than those I felt in Chicago in September of 2023. Dedicate a day to Central Park.  There is so much to see and so many activities to be had in the park.  Since the Met is at the edge of the park, you can also plan to make a visit once you have finished touring the park. Although the Yotel was cheap and accommodating, I would definitely opt for a hotel with more space if you are traveling in a group larger than 1.  

If you want to hear more or have any questions about your upcoming trip to NYC, feel free to send me a message, or add your email to our mailing list on the homepage.  Thanks for reading.