New York

The underground is entwined with more than a thousand kilometers of subway lines, which take you quickly and cheaply all over Manhattan and also to other neighborhoods of the city (Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens). If you're staying there for a week or more and use the subway at least twice a day, buy a weekly subway pass. The streets and avenues are full of yellow taxis, which are mostly occupied, as New Yorkers prefer to use them, in addition to the subway. It's a must-have experience to stand on the edge of the sidewalk and flag down a taxi with a characteristic hand gesture, even if it's just to the next corner. First, head down the avenue Broad way to the park at City Hall, opposite which stands the once tallest building in the world, the 238 meter high Woolworth department store. If you continue down the path towards Battery Park, stop in Saint Paul's Chapel next to the point Ground Zero, where the two magnificent twins stood, but now there is a huge void. The church is dedicated to the memory of September 11, 2001. At right angles to Broadway you can find the famous Wall Street, which you must visit during the week, when there are tons of young and aspiring businessmen. The symbol of the New York Stock Exchange is a bull, which illustrates the upward trend of stocks on the stock exchange. When you arrive at Battery Park, which is along the coast, quickly line up for the ferry that takes you first to Liberty Island with the statue of liberty. If you register in advance, you can be one of the few selected to climb to the very top - the torch held by Miss Svoboda. The boat, which offers a phenomenal view of downtown Manhattan and neighboring New Jersey, separates them Hudson River, takes you forward to Ellis Island, where today there is a museum dedicated to immigrants who sought a better life in America. From the end of the 19th century to the middle of the 20th century, more than fifteen million of them passed or failed the entrance exam there. If you still have some energy left on a nice sunny day, take the subway (A or C) under the river East River and get off at the first stop in Brooklyn, from where it's a five-minute walk to the landmark Brooklyn Bridge.

Take the time to walk back towards Manhattan and enjoy the sunset and the view of the metropolis and its lights. You should never leave New York without seeing a musical or any other performance in one of the many theaters on Broadway. To secure cheaper tickets, go early in the morning to Times Square and look for the kiosk with the red tkts sign selling half price afternoon matinee tickets. A cute young man in panties may cross your path in Times Square, Naked Cowboy, with which you can take some "juicy" photos for one dollar. From there to Empire State Building, which is now the tallest building in New York, is just a few blocks away. If you want to catch the sunset, go there early enough because the rush of tourists is at its highest at that time of the day. A view of the Statue of Liberty with a lit torch, Chrysler Building, Flatiron Building and for us the unfathomable size of one city outweighs waiting in line, which at times seems endless. The top also offers a view of the green part of the city, the lungs of New York, Central Park, which is best visited at the weekend. It is where New Yorkers relax after a busy work week. In addition to walking and sunbathing, you can also take care of recreation and rent a bike, it's a lot of fun in tandem. Central Park stretches from 59th to 110th Street. Museums are located on the eastern side Metropolitan Museum of Art, Guggenheim Museum, Jewish Museum, Museum of The City of New York. The west side is worth a look American Museum of Natural History. It is definitely a "treat" for fans of modern art. The Museum of Modern Art - MoMa – between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. For the entrance fee, which includes a visit to all galleries and exhibitions, film and audio programs, you will be charged twenty dollars, and students ten dollars. There are quite a few MoMa shops in New York, where they can become your chosen designer items for the home and the soul. A complete list of exhibitions can be found at www.moma.org. At the intersection of 72nd Street and Avenue Central Park West standing The Dakota Building, the last residence of a group member The Beatles, of John Lennon, in front of whom he was shot by his fan in 1980. Across the street is the musician's favorite promenade, Strawberry Fields, where the Imagine mosaic, which is edited daily by his fan Gerry, was put together in his memory. Union Square (between Broadway and Park Avenue) is also worth mentioning, where in addition to sightseeing and interesting shopping at the market on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, you can join various events: from concerts to demonstrations, or eat lunch among the crowd of New Yorkers and you drink coffee. It's only part of the puzzle, but your New York experience won't end there. You will relive it with every movie or series that is filmed in New York. With a bit of luck, you'll be able to partake in some of that too.

CULINARY
The culinary choice is not easy, and there will not be enough time, as it would take forty-six years if you wanted to eat at a different restaurant every day in New York. You can get everything from typical American hot dogs for about two dollars, to high-end closed-type restaurants, where you will count from - one hundred to three hundred dollars for the main course. In Madison Square Park, you will find one of the best hot dog and hamburger shops, which are a little more expensive than street vendors, but worth a try. Try a delicious breakfast at the excellent Algerian cafe Atlas, on Second Avenue between Fourth and Fifth Streets. There they serve you meat and vegetarian sandwiches and baguettes, delicious coffee that you can take with you and thus blend in with the crowd of real New Yorkers hurrying along the avenues. They also cater for those with a sweet tooth in the morning. After midday lunch, both tourists and New Yorkers often go to one of the many fast but healthy restaurants, where they choose their own food from a very diverse buffet. The offer at Oliva on Broadway Avenue is tried and tested. Ninth and Tenth Avenues are lined with restaurants of cuisines from all over the world at reasonable prices, averaging twenty to thirty-five dollars for a main course. Try French specialties in the Pastis and Balthazar bistros, you will eat the best Mexican food in the Rosa Mexicano restaurant, and El Cid offers excellent Spanish tapas and sangria. Across from Bryant Park is one of the many healthy Jamba Juice bars, where they mix up freshly squeezed fruit and vegetable smoothies to go to your liking. Take your time and drink them with pleasure in the aforementioned park. Have an afternoon coffee in the immediate vicinity of Times Square at the Colombian cafe Juan Valdez Caffe, where you can try several types of excellent Colombian coffees. If you still have room in your stomach, go to one of the Max Brenner chocolate bars in the East Village area (you can choose different types of chocolates and cocoa from the chocolate market) or near Union Square, where you will feel like you are in a chocolate fairy tale. Lovers of good sushi should go to the Mizu Sushi restaurant, where you will eat one of the best sushi in New York.

FOR SPENDERS
At times, the streets of New York seem like a catwalk, as New Yorkers and New Yorkers take care of their outer appearance as perfect as possible even in the most mundane tasks. With such a varied selection of trendy clothes, this is not difficult at all. The largest selection of clothing from world-renowned fashion designers can be found an hour and a half bus ride upstate at Woodbury Commons Outlet, where prices are up to sixty percent off. There is no shortage of sales throughout the year, as every holiday, even Thanksgiving Day (the third Friday in November) is an excuse for price reductions and frantic shopping. If there's no limit to your budget, take a day to stroll down Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue, around 50th Street. There, let yourself be pampered in the stores of prestigious names such as Chanel, Prada, Fendi, Yves Saint Laurent, Calvin Klein, Gucci, Giorgio Armani, ... Fifth Avenue is the avenue of the largest department stores or department stores, such as Henry Bendel, Lord & Taylor, Saks Fifth Ave, Bergdorff Goodman, and Madison Avenue boasts the most expensive department store in the city, Barney's New York. If famous names don't move you too much and you're looking for something different, head to SoHo (south of Houston Street, between Broadway and West Broadway Avenue) for trendier clothes, where up-and-coming famous fashion designers present their vision of fashion. The streets of SoHa are full of smaller boutiques with much more affordable prices. At least take a look at Victoria's Secret, the famous treasure trove of women's underwear, and Macy's department store, where they offer you various benefits and discounts almost every day. For fun, try shopping and haggling on Canal Street, the main street of Chinatown, where Asian merchants tirelessly shout "Gucci, Gucci, Prada, Prada" to visitors and try to sell original fakes in every way. Another warning, in most shops the prices of items written do not include value added tax, so don't be surprised if you are charged a higher amount at checkout.

NIGHTLIFE AND EVENTS
Nightlife offers something for everyone. In the vicinity of Wall Street, you can listen to the conversations of New York businessmen in lounge bars in a comfortable armchair with a cigar and cognac. The SoHo area attracts more artistic people, there are also evening exhibitions in many galleries. Chelsea is a gay neighborhood marked by rainbow flags, and in Tribeca you might even meet a movie star in fine restaurants and clubs. The club scene in New York is changing fast, so it's best to read what's in and what's out in the monthly Paper magazine or on www.papermag.com. But right now, the trendiest and craziest parties are happening in the Meatpacking District on Manhattan's West Side. Events not to be missed this November and December are: the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center, the Saks Fifth Avenue window displays, the New York City Ballet's Nutcracker performance and the Christmas spectacle at Radio City Hall. Sports fans will enjoy the new baseball and basketball seasons starting at the end of November. Basketball games take place weekly in the largest hall, Madison Square Garden.

LIVING
Despite the fact that there are more than 70,000 hotel rooms in New York, most of them are occupied every day of the year, so it is recommended to book your accommodation well in advance. As befits the "Big Apple", you can find everything from the cheapest hostel room for 30 dollars, through the golden mean for 250 dollars, to prestigious hotel suites, for which you will shell out around 1,000 dollars per night.

HOW TO GET THERE
Air ticket prices vary widely, depending on the time of year and the airline. You can fly to New York via almost all major European airports.