NEW YORK

INTRODUCING THE CITY--NEW YORK

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The most beguiling city in the world, New York is an
adrenaline-charged, history-laden place that holds immense romantic
appeal for visitors. Wandering the streets here, you'll cut between
buildings that are icons to the modern age - and whether gazing at the
flickering lights of the midtown skyscrapers as you speed across the
Queensboro bridge, experiencing the 4am half-life downtown, or just
wasting the morning on the Staten Island ferry, you really would have
to be made of stone not to be moved by it all. There's no place quite
like it.

While the events of September 11, 2001, which demolished the World
Trade Center, shook New York to its core, the populace responded
resiliently under the composed aegis of then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Until the attacks, many New Yorkers loved to hate Giuliani, partly
because they saw him as committed to making their city too much like
everyone else's. To some extent he succeeded, and during the late
Nineties New York seemed cleaner, safer, and more liveable, as the
city took on a truly international allure and shook off the more
notorious aspects to its reputation. However, the maverick quality of
New York and its people still shines as brightly as it ever did. Even
in the aftermath of the World Trade Center's collapse, New York
remains a unique and fascinating city - and one you'll want to return
to again and again.

You could spend weeks in New York and still barely scratch the
surface, but there are some key attractions - and some pleasures -
that you won't want to miss. There are the different ethnic
neighborhoods , like lower Manhattan's Chinatown and the traditionally
Jewish Lower East Side (not so much anymore); and the more artsy
concentrations of SoHo, TriBeCa, and the East and West Villages. Of
course, there is the celebrated architecture of corporate Manhattan,
with the skyscrapers in downtown and midtown forming the most
indelible images. There are the museums , not just the Metropolitan
and MoMA, but countless other smaller collections that afford weeks of
happy wandering. In between sights, you can eat just about anything,
at any time, cooked in any style; you can drink in any kind of
company; and sit through any number of obscure movies . The more
established arts - dance, theater, music - are superbly catered for;
and New York's clubs are as varied and exciting as you might expect.
And for the avid consumer, the choice of shops is vast, almost
numbingly exhaustive in this heartland of the great capitalist dream.

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HISTORY

To begin, select a topic in the navigation bar to the left
Early days and colonial rule
Before the arrival of European explorers, Native Americans populated
the area now encompassing New York City. In 1524, 32 years after
Christopher Columbus had sailed to the New World, Giovanni da
Verrazano , an Italian in the service of the...

Revolution
By the 1750s the city had reached a population of 16,000, spread
roughly as far north as Chambers Street. As the new community grew
more confident, it realized that it could exist independently of the
government in Britain. In a way, New York's role...

Immigration and civil war
The opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 allowed New York to expand
massively as a port. The Great Lakes were suddenly opened to New York,
and with them the rest of the country; goods manufactured in the city
could be sent easily and cheaply to...

The late nineteenth century
The end of the Civil War saw much of the country devastated but New
York intact, and it was fairly predictable that the city would soon
become the wealthiest and most influential in the nation. New York was
also the greatest business, commercial and...

Turn-of-the-nineteenth-century development
At the same time, the emigration of Europe's impoverished peoples
continued unabated, and in 1884 new immigrants from Asia settled in
what became known as Chinatown ; Jewish and other European immigrants
continued to arrive, and in 1898 the...

The war years and the Depression: 1914-45
With America's entry into World War I in 1917, New York benefited from
wartime trade and commerce. Perhaps surprisingly, there was little
conflict between the various European communities crammed into the
city. Although Germans comprised roughly one-fifth...

The postwar years
Following racial tensions in the 1950s there was a general exodus of
the white middle classes out of New York - the Great White Flight as
the media labeled it. Between 1950 and 1970 more than a million
families left the city. Things went from...

The Giuliani years
Though it may have been coincidental, Giuliani's first term helped
usher in a dramatic upswing in New York's prosperity. A New York Times
article described 1995 as "the best year in recent memory for New York
City." Even...

September 11, 2001, and beyond
Nothing could have prepared New York - or indeed the world - for the
morning of September 11, 2001 , when terrorists took over four
hijacked planes, crashing two of them into the Twin Towers of the
World Trade Center, a third plane into the...

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CITY TRANSPORTATION

Getting around the city is likely to take some getting used to; public
transit here is on the whole quite good, extremely cheap, and covers
most conceivable corners of the city, whether by bus or subway. Don't
be afraid to ask someone for help if you're confused. You'll no doubt
find the need for a taxi from time to time, especially if you feel
uncomfortable in an area at night; you shouldn't ever have trouble
tracking one down - the ubiquitous yellow cabs are always on the prowl
for passengers
The subway
The New York subway is intimidating and initially incomprehensible.
It's also the fastest and most efficient way to get from A to B in
Manhattan and the outer boroughs, and it is safer and more
user-friendly than it once was. Put aside your...

Buses
The bus system is simpler than the subway, and you can see where
you're going and hop off at anything interesting. It also features
many more crosstown routes. The major disadvantage is that they can be
extremely slow - in peak hours almost...

Taxis
Taxis are always worth considering, especially if you're in a hurry or
in a group or late at night. Always use medallion cabs, immediately
recognizable by their yellow paintwork and medallion up top; gypsy
cabs, unlicensed, uninsured operators who...

Walking
Few cities equal New York for street-level stimulation. Getting around
on foot is often the most exciting - and tiring - method of exploring.
Figure fifteen minutes to walk ten north-south blocks - rather more at
rush hour. However you plan...

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ENTERTAINMENT

The performing arts and film

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From Broadway glitter to Lower East Side grunge, the range and variety
of the performing arts in New York is exactly what you might expect.
Broadway, and even Off-Broadway theater , is notoriously expensive,
but if you know where to look, there are a variety of ways to get
tickets cheaper, and on the Off-Off-Broadway fringe you can see a play
for little more than the price of a movie ticket. As for dance, music
and opera , the big mainstream events are extremely expensive, but
smaller ones are often equally as interesting and far cheaper. New
York gets the first run of most American films (and many foreign ones
before they reach Europe) and has a very healthy arthouse and revival
scene.

Listings for the arts can be found in a number of places. The most
useful sources are the clear and comprehensive listings in Time Out
New York , the free Village Voice (especially the pull-out "Voice
Choices" section), or the also-free New York Press , all especially
useful for things downtown and vaguely "alternative." For tonier
events try the "Cue" section in the weekly New York Magazine , the
"Goings On About Town" section of the New Yorker , or Friday's
"Weekend" or Sunday's "Arts and Leisure" sections of the New York
Times . Specific Broadway listings can be found in the free Official
Broadway Theater Guide , available at theater and hotel lobbies or at
the New York Convention and Visitors' Bureau.