N.Y. and Washington, D.C. in November

On Wed, 24 Aug 2005 17:15:20 GMT, "Woody"
wrote:

We have just returned from a vacation that took in both NY and DC so here
are my opinions

1. Try to get a hotel near Times square for your first visit (the area from
about 41st to 55st and 6th to 8th avenue I would say).

I and most other New Yorkers would really disagree. Stay around Times
Square if you want to spend your time looking at other tourists, and
some vendors selling things to tourists. Otherwise, stay near there
only if it's a good value, and use the subway to get out as quickly as
possible on waking up (or after going for breakfast on 9th Av.).

If you go back or
have an extended time there then you may spend time in the less tourist
areas but for your first visit you will probably want to do the usual
sights.

You don't have to stay near Times Square to visit the area, and once
is probably enough unless you're going to two shows. A large number of
subways stop at either Times Square, 42nd and 8th, or 42nd and 6th.

[snip]
2. The Ellis Island ferry does include the SoL, however to go up you need a
special timed ticket only available in advance from the internet or box
office. By the way Ellis island is very interesting and I would recommend
the audio tour at $6 extra.

Quite possibly; I haven't tried the audio tour and would expect it to
be good. However, I took a free tour with a park ranger when I was
there, which was a few years ago. He was very informative and took
questions. Such tours were available a few times a day, and we just
lucked into one. If you'd like to plan ahead, check and see if and at
what times such free tours are still available.

[snip]
4. Depends on how much you use it. We got a day card on the Saturday and
hardly used it as most lines were down for maintenance!

That's a big exaggeration. Yes, there's lots of track work and,
therefore, some route changes on weekends. No, it is _NEVER_ the case
that most lines are down for maintenance, and it is almost always
possible to get to virtually all stations some way or other. That's
especially true from Times Square, considering how many lines run into
it. If Times Square is shut down it's temporarily because of police
action. That happens quite rarely, and in all my years living in this
city, I can't remember any other time it was closed except during
transit strikes (of which I've lived through one).

5. We really enjoyed our 3 days in D.C. A day to do the big monuments, a
day to do the Smithsonians (max 2 per day), a day to do Arlington or some
other of the sites.
[snip]

Well, for real art lovers, the two buildings of the National Gallery
very arguably deserve two days by themselves. Then there's the Air and
Space Museum, the Sackler Gallery, etc. On my first visit to
Washington, I spent at least 3 days if not parts of 4 at the
Smithsonian Mall. Away from the Smithsonian Mall, I also highly
recommend the Phillips Gallery, a private museum (paid admission)
whose collection includes some of the most famous Impressionist and
Post-Impressionist paintings in the world. And there's a newer
attraction, the Spy Museum, which is expensive but in my opinion worth
the money. Of the monuments, I like the moving Vietnam War Memorial
best. And Washington is a good walking city. So you can see why I
think Washington deserves closer to a week than two days. I do agree
that three days is sufficient to get a pleasant taste of the city
(though only a nibble).

Michael

If you would like to send a private email to me, please take out the NOTRASH. Please do not email me something which you also posted.

On Thu, 25 Aug 2005 10:03:22 GMT, Rita wrote:

It can be a bit inconvenient at times on weekends when some subway
lines make express stops only within a limited area and you have to
backtrack if you want to stop at one of the stations missed. And
I'm sure that is confusing to tourists. But there are signs posted
that tell you how to navigate in such circumstances.

As a New Yorker, I still am occasionally confused by the numerous
service changes we've been having lately on weekends. What's more,
some of them aren't noted on the MTA website, aren't clarified by
signs I saw, and happen in spite of assurances to the contrary by MTA
customer service people at their phone information line, etc. But I
think tourists should roll with the punches; things usually aren't too
bad, and it's part of the New York experience.

But a day pass that allows unlimited travel on both subway and bus
is a good value for most.

Yes, unless they do a great deal of walking, instead. It pays to make
an estimate of how many trips you'll be making in the given period and
pricing the cost of those against the cost of the unlimited card(s).

Michael

If you would like to send a private email to me, please take out the NOTRASH. Please do not email me something which you also posted.

Pan wrote:
Stay around Times Square if you want to spend your time looking at
other tourists, and some vendors selling things to tourists.
Otherwise, stay near there only if it's a good value, and use the
subway to get out as quickly as possible on waking up (or after
going for breakfast on 9th Av.).

I've visited Manhattan at least seven times over the years. Most of
those visits, I stayed near Times Square. When I spent a month, I had
a room at 136 East Twelfth Street with co-residents who shot up when
they weren't shooting each other. Twice I've stayed at the National
Hotel, since razed, across the street from the police station and two
other times at the Stenton (comments on it posted to this Group) in
Chelsea (Twenty-seventh Street, I think).

For what I do there, I find being at the transportation hub that is
Times Square extremely convenient. I will probably stay there my next
visit, too, probably again at the Portland Square on Forty-sixth
Street. Within a short walk are two public libraries where one can
get on line, plenty of places to have breakfast for well under $5,
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Big Apple Visitor's Center where
one can also get on line, and much else.

Perhaps the streets are full of fellow tourists, but walking a block
or few in any direction, or getting on a bus or subway train, one's
with the locals doing as the locals do ('though perhaps not doing it
with as much style as they).

I am NOT saying that people should choose Times Square in preference
to other places. I'm saying only that it works very well for me.
__________________________________________________ _________________
A San Franciscan who's visited 49 of 50 US states.
http://geocities.com/dancefest/ - http://geocities.com/iconoc/
ICQ: http://wwp.mirabilis.com/19098103 --- IClast at SFbay Net

On Thu, 25 Aug 2005 03:56:49 -0700, Icono Clast
wrote:

I've visited Manhattan at least seven times over the years. Most of
those visits, I stayed near Times Square. When I spent a month, I had
a room at 136 East Twelfth Street with co-residents who shot up when
they weren't shooting each other.
[snip]

How long ago was that?

M.

If you would like to send a private email to me, please take out the NOTRASH. Please do not email me something which you also posted.

Pan wrote:
Icono Clast wrote:
When I spent a month [in Manhattan], I had a room at 136 East
Twelfth Street with co-residents who shot up when they weren't
shooting each other.

How long ago was that?

Quite. Very. Extremely.

I got back from Europe a few days before ThanksGiving, 1961, and
started hitch-hiking a few days before Christmas. Got home, after
seeing the Parade of Roses, New Year's Day. Egad! Izzat forty-four
years?!?
__________________________________________________ _________________
A San Franciscan who's visited 49 of 50 US states.
http://geocities.com/dancefest/ - http://geocities.com/iconoc/
ICQ: http://wwp.mirabilis.com/19098103 --- IClast at SFbay Net

"Rita" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 27 Aug 2005 04:38:03 -0700, Icono Clast wrote:

I am glad you clarified this, as I would not want prospective
visitors to our fair city to be concerned about the same kinds of
safety issues that once existed.

I would like to concur as a recent visitor that I have always felt very
safe, in Manhattan at least (I have not been to the other boroughs to be
fair to them). However, I am puzzled by the increase in unlicensed street
vendors since my previous visit in 2001. This time in Battery Park we had
to run the gauntlet of fake Louis Vuitton handbag sellers, there must have
been 50+ of them (and plenty elsewhere) and some were quite aggressive. Why
is this tolerated as it must be illegal to sell these fakes?

Is it due to the change of Mayor easing up on the great (IHMO) zero
tolerance policy?

Woody

More likely it's due to the economic situation. NYC hasn't recovered from
9/11 despite the appearance of normalcy. People need to feed their
families. Notice those people selling the fake goods aren't the type to be
employed by Wall Street, so what else do they have left to do?


"Woody" wrote in message
...
...I am puzzled by the increase in unlicensed street
vendors since my previous visit in 2001. This time in Battery Park we had
to run the gauntlet of fake Louis Vuitton handbag sellers, there must have
been 50+ of them (and plenty elsewhere) and some were quite aggressive.
Why
is this tolerated as it must be illegal to sell these fakes?

Is it due to the change of Mayor easing up on the great (IHMO) zero
tolerance policy?

Woody

On Sat, 27 Aug 2005 21:08:59 GMT, "Pan" wrote:

More likely it's due to the economic situation. NYC hasn't recovered from
9/11 despite the appearance of normalcy. People need to feed their
families. Notice those people selling the fake goods aren't the type to be
employed by Wall Street, so what else do they have left to do?

Unfortunately some of the money from those fake items actually funds
terrorism.

On Sun, 28 Aug 2005 23:39:45 -0400, Brian
wrote:

On Sat, 27 Aug 2005 21:08:59 GMT, "Pan" wrote:

More likely it's due to the economic situation. NYC hasn't recovered from
9/11 despite the appearance of normalcy. People need to feed their
families. Notice those people selling the fake goods aren't the type to be
employed by Wall Street, so what else do they have left to do?

Unfortunately some of the money from those fake items actually funds
terrorism.

Prove it!

I'll bet you the folks in Chinatown selling fake expensive watches are
big Al Qaida supporters! P:-

The answer is, the sale of counterfeit goods is _not_ tolerated in New
York. The police unfortunately bust people selling obviously
counterfeit goods that all purchasers know aren't really $10 Rolexes,
etc., but the amount of time-wasting on this stuff is limited, because
the police have to deal with much more important crimes.

Michael

If you would like to send a private email to me, please take out the NOTRASH. Please do not email me something which you also posted.

On Sat, 27 Aug 2005 12:44:16 GMT, Rita wrote:

On Sat, 27 Aug 2005 04:38:03 -0700, Icono Clast wrote:

Pan wrote:
Icono Clast wrote:
When I spent a month [in Manhattan], I had a room at 136 East
Twelfth Street with co-residents who shot up when they weren't
shooting each other.

How long ago was that?

Quite. Very. Extremely.

I got back from Europe a few days before ThanksGiving, 1961, and
started hitch-hiking a few days before Christmas. Got home, after
seeing the Parade of Roses, New Year's Day. Egad! Izzat forty-four
years?!?

I wouldn't have been too surprised if it had been in the early
1980s when I moved to NYC.
[snip]

Even the mid 80s. Agreed.

Michael

If you would like to send a private email to me, please take out the NOTRASH. Please do not email me something which you also posted.