CITY OF ILLUSIONS: THE REAL AND FAKE FACES OF NEW YORK

NEW YORK is the kind of place you need to visit multiple times – it is that big!  Within the space of a week, we had visited twice, as we had a few days visiting Vermont in between, and we packed in as much as we could.  Prior to that, we were last in New York City in summer 2017, and we are sure to return at some point in the future.  There is that much to see and do!

Times Square was as crazy as it always has been and weirdly it seemed to smell a lot better than when we last visited!  The place was heaving with tourists and crawling with costumed characters, wanting gratuities in exchange for a selfie.  We laughed at ‘Mucky Mouse’, a kind of off-brand Mickey, as we had seen him last summer on Hollywood Blvd.  Despite their questionable likeness to the characters they were meant to be, visitors were lapping them up and it was great for us to people watch as we came and went over the course of our time in Midtown Manhattan. 

On our night of arrival (Sat Jul 27 2024), there was a bit of commotion: a group of Trump supporters were waving flags and placards in a barriered corner.  NYPD cops were in attendance, presumably ensuring the group remained in their designated area.  

Elsewhere, early in the morning, we saw that a section of Times Square had been cordoned off for ABC’s Good Morning America show to broadcast live from.  The ABC studio, of course, looks down on Times Square. 

On another occasion, apparent NYPD civilian workers were double-lining 7^th Ave. with crowd control barriers, creating a sizeable void between the road and the sidewalks.  It made us wonder if an event was due to take place?

 Always something going on in Times Square!

The streets of New York seemed to be awash with vendors selling counterfeit Gucci and Louis Vuitton bags and accessories.  In the past, they were few and far between, with their goods laid out on big sheets, ropes attached, ready to be cleverly bundled up in an instant should the need arise; this time, their displays were more elaborate and brazen.  We saw one tourist hand over $100 for a small bag!

We walked many miles around the city and didn’t use the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Subway as much as during our first visit to New York, but we found the system just as easy to use this time, if not easier, for we were able to tap and go with our cell phones thanks to the contactless fare payment system at the turnstiles.

Our journey down to Tribeca from Times Square and back again cost us:

17:30 = MTA NYCT Paygo = $4.25

17:31 = MTA NYCT Paygo = $2.90

19:45 = MTA NYCT Paygo = $2.90

The subway is typically as hot underground as it is on the surface.  On the way back to our hotel, we spent a while waiting on a platform at Rector St. station for the next train and the heat was torturous.  Worse still, when we boarded, a group of Italian teenagers surrounded us, chattering loudly in Italiano and talking over us.  I couldn’t tell them to shut up or ask them to show some consideration, as I was unwell and had lost my voice.  That journey felt like an age!  Other than that, we found the Subway to be efficient and safe – we thankfully encountered no indigenous crazies or smellies this time!

Up until this visit, the words ‘New York’ conjured up the iconic cityscape images of skyscrapers and crowds, seen in all the marketing, but as we left Manhattan by Amtrak for a couple of days in Vermont, we got to see Upstate New York and how green it was!  Graffitied concrete faded away to be replaced with river scenes, woodlands with wild turkeys, a castle and mountains.  Yes, a castle and mountains: a great view of the Catskill Mountains across the Hudson River, and Bannerman Castle sat on Pollepel Island, an abandoned military surplus warehouse!  

We rolled through places with unusual names such Poughkeepsie, Rhinecliff (population: 425 in 2010) and Schenectady.  On the way back, we noticed that the railroad even cut through the center of the infamous Sing Sing Correctional Facility!  Only in New York.

 New York has many faces - the good, the bad and the beautiful – and we felt like we’d seen them all during our all too brief visit!

 

 

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TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR TIME IN NEW YORK CITY, SEE THESE SPECIFIC BLOGS OF THE PLACES WE VISITED:

 

SAT JUL 27 2024

JFK International Airport

The Long Island Rail Road

Grand Central Terminus & the Chrysler Building

Hard Rock Hotel New York City

Hook & Ladder Firehouse (Ghostbusters)

Edward’s Bar (Tribeca)

National September 11^th Memorial

O’Hara’s Pub & Restaurant

 

SUN JUL 28 2024

The Empire State Building

5^th Ave., New York Public Library & Bryant Park

Rockefeller Center

Amtrak, Penn Station & the Moynihan Train Hall

 

TUE JUL 30 2024

Hard Rock Cafe New York

Sean’s Bar & Kitchen

The Port Authority Bus Terminal & Peter Pan Bus Lines

JFK TO NYC FOR ONLY $20!

How to get from JFK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO NEW YORK CITY as quickly and cheaply as possible?  This is how we did it for $20!  

On our previous visit, in summer 2017, we booked a shuttle from the airport to Manhattan and it had cost us a small fortune.  It wasn’t quick either, and while it was great getting to see the scenery of Queens on the way in, it wasn’t fun having to drop other people off at their hotels first.  In fact, it wasted a lot of time, and it felt even worse on departure day.  That roundtrip for 2 adults, booked via TravelRepublic in 2017, cost us about $85.00!

Although this trip was one way, we did some research online and thanks to YouTuber Here Be Barr, found a cheap, easy and safe way to get into the city - the Long Island Rail Road.

We arrived at JFK’s Terminal 8 at 12:06pm (EST), some 50 minutes early (the 42 mph tailwind must have helped!) and quickly cleared immigration using the Mobile Passport Control (MPC), a system where you submit your travel documents, photograph and customs declaration information through a free and secure app.  We still had to line up in a designated queue, but were ushered to the front of other passengers and dealt with swiftly.  Baggage claim took a little longer (as can be expected).  

The AirTrain is JFK’s driverless transportation train for ferrying passengers between terminals.  For some reason you only pay if you take it to Jamaica Station, off the airport property and a short 11 minute ride away.  Our research suggested that the AirTrain fare would be $8.25 per person, however it turned out to be only $4.25 each, meaning we saved some unexpected dollars there!  We simply walked up to the exit gate at Jamaica, tapped our cell phones and paid using Apple Pay.  No messing around at ticket machines!

Following the big signs for the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) at Jamaica Station couldn’t have been any easier.  While there didn’t appear to be many LIRR ticket machines close to our track, the one we found did seem simple enough to use, however the journey to Grand Central was coming in at around $16.00.  A friendly member of staff approached us at this point, kindly cancelled the transaction, tapped away at the screen and our two new tickets came to only $10.00. 

Another bargain and another simple transaction with Apple Pay!

The wait for the LIRR train was around 10 minutes and we were soon on our way to Manhattan.  The train did feel a little dated, but there was plenty of room for us and our small amount of luggage.  

The tickets were collected in by the conductor within moments of us boarding and only 17 minutes later we were alighting at Grand Central Terminal.

There was the option of taking a train from Jamaica to Penn Station, but as we knew we’d be at Penn in a couple of days time, we chose to get the Grand Central train so that we could have a look at the station’s distinctive Main Concourse and then the nearby Chrysler building outside before we headed to our hotel on Times Square by foot.

TIME FROM LEAVING JFK TO ARRIVING AT GRAND CENTRAL = 40 minutes

12:06 – landed at JFK
13:09 – boarded the airport’s AirTrain
13:20 – arrived at Jamaica station
13:31 – boarded the Long Island Rail Road train
13:49 – arrived at Grand Central Terminal

TOTAL COST FOR 2 ADULTS

AirTrain = $8.50
LIRR = $10.00
Total = $18.50

 

So, we got to Manhattan from JFK in 40 minutes and for less than twenty dollars!