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NEW YORK · USA

chrissihuf
Jan 10
7 min read

Updated: Aug 19



Brief History/Information

When you think of New York, most just think about New York City and Manhattan, but New York is much more that. New York was home to many Native American tribes. In 1663, the Dutch founded the colony of New Amsterdam which is now modern New York City. In 1664, the British took control and renamed it New York after the Duke of York.  New York was a major center of Revolutionary War activity. On July 26, 1788, New York became the eleventh state in the union). This is actually a very large state and it borders one country (Canada) and five states! New York has very diverse geography from urban, to mountains, to beaches.



NEW YORK CITY


What we did

There are so many things to do in New York City and so many little areas/boroughs to visit. Let’s break it down by NYC Boroughs. The five boroughs of New York City are Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island. I haven't been to all five boroughs, so I’ll only post where I’ve been.

**A Special Note on the Subway: I must say that the subway system and usage is so amazingly easy! You can use your phone/Apple Pay to pay for it. All you have to do is plug-in where you want to go and the maps will tell you exactly where the station is, what station to get off on, if there’s a transfer, if there’s a delay, and if there’s anything else you need to know. 



BROOKLYN


Brooklyn is such a fun place to visit and there is so much to do in this borough! You cannot do Brooklyn in a day... I actually haven't figured out how many days are needed yet.

What we did

  • Aska Restaurant - Michelin 2 Star, totally amazing and worth every penny

  • Banter - This is a cool little laid-back, Australian bar.

  • Brooklyn Bridge: Go on… walk all the way across (and back)

  • Brooklyn Inn: the oldest pub in Brooklyn. This place is incredible! The bartender is super cool and so are many of the patrons.

  • Cuban Shack: The food was delicious and plentiful!

  • DeKalb Market Hall - a food hall with so many options.

  • Evil Twin Brewery: a great place for some craft beer

  • Four Horsemen - Great food, service, and drinks

  • Franklin Park - this is an eclectic bar restaurant with old VHS tapes, posters of movies and Godzilla playing on the TV, the food here is really delicious, and they serve beer and alcohol as well.

  • Istanbul Mediterranean grill - a really good Turkish restaurant.

  • Janes Carousel: it was closed., but still a beauty to see.

  • Junior's Restaurant & Bakery - need good food? Go here!

  • Manhattan Bridge: on the East River and it’s beautiful

  • Pebble Beach: a great spot to take the typical tourist pictures.

  • Pio Bagels - need a good and filling breakfast?

  • Randolph Brewery: nice place for a drink.

  • Sauced Wine Bar -

  • Sheraton Brooklyn New York Hotel - This hotel was so convenient to everything Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the subway!



MANHATTAN


Lower Manhattan/Downtown


Lower Manhattan encompasses the Insurance and Financial Districts, but don't let all that 'business' steer you away from the area. There's a lot more than money here! It has the New York Stock Exchange, Wall Street, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and One World Trade Center.

What we did



Midtown Manhattan


Midtown has so much to offer. Here's a quick run-down of the area:

Diamond District, Flatiron District, Flower District, Garment District, Hell's Kitchen/Clinton, Murray Hill, SoHo Cast-Iron Historic District, Theater District, and Times Square. In order to do this area correctly, you'll need many days or weeks here!

What we did



North Manhattan & Harlem



Upper East Side


Along Fifth Avenue we have the Museum Mile, here are the most important museums of the city, it is one of the most affluent areas renowned for the many haut-couture stores, European designers, boutiques, antique and art galleries.

What we did

  • 7B Horseshoe Bar aka Vazacs: This is also your typical dive bar, dark and dirty; had a drink and then the bartender gave us a free promo beer.

  • Bar Snack - this is a great find with really good food.

  • d.b.a.: No one seems to know d.b.a. stands for and it doesn’t really seem to matter. This is one lively place and the owner is a huge Star Wars fan and was showing everyone some of his latest purchases

  • Doc Holliday’s: This is a cute bar with boots hanging from the ceiling.

  • Double Down Saloon. This place is known as a grimy, punk-rock dive bar and was used in the movie Caught Stealing. They have a drink that comes in a ‘toilet-cup’ (I didn’t have it) called ‘Ass Juice’, it’s a very sweet drink.

  • East Village: an eclectic neighborhood

  • The International Bar - had some great inexpensive and very tasty drinks.

  • McSorleys: this is a cash only establishment. McSorley’s Old Ale House has been serving folks from Abe Lincoln to John Lennon.

  • Mud

  • Schmuck - for a snack, we actually stopped there before going to International Bar to put our name in because the wait was long. This place is a great! The vibe and atmosphere is so young and lively. The food and the drinks were delicious and so was the service. We then went to this amazing

  • SteEight - a speakeasy that is behind a hair salon. They serve sake wine, and a couple other types of mixed drinks that they make with sake. They do not serve any food, so make sure you have eaten before you go, or at least check their website, sometimes they have chefs there serving their own food.



Upper West Side


Much more informal than the East Side. Beautiful walk along Central Park West, the road that runs along Central Park with a series of remarkable historical buildings, including the New York Historical Society Museum (1908), reopened after a restoration in November of 2011, the Museum of Natural history (1892), the Dakota Apartments (1884), home of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Here you'll find Columbia University (founded in 1754), SoHo Cast-Iron Historic District, famous for having the world's largest collection of cast-iron architectural buildings spanning 26 blocks, and the Meatpacking District, a former industrial meat-processing hub transformed into a high-end retail, dining, and nightlife area.

What we did

  • American Museum of Natural History - what an amazing museum! You can spend the entire day there and still not see all it has to offer! They have so many areas, movies, a butterfly conservatory, and much more

  • Cafe Wha?: So many East Coast musicians have started here before they knew they’d make it from Bob Dylan to Bruce Springsteen. And their ‘House Band’ is phenomenal

  • Central Park - walked around and took pictures

  • Central Park Zoo - nice zoo, great for the kids

  • ‘Friends’ fountain - located in Central Park lots of fun

  • Greenwich Village 

  • Pete’s Tavern (1864) - this is a true New York bar. We thought this place to be overpriced for what it was.

  • Stonewall Memorial - It’s a memorial for equal LGB rights from the 1970’s

  • Swift Hibernian Lounge: a great Irish Bar with amazing food.

  • Washington Square Park (the one with the arch): This is definitely a great place to people watch.

  • White Horse Tavern (1880, 2nd oldest in NYC) - this is a popular place but totally worth the stop!



QUEENS




STATEN ISLAND


What we did



THE BRONX






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