New York introduction

History

The Dutch arrived in 1621 and lost the city to the English in 1664. After independence New York grew enormously and haargest city in the world by 1900. It is one of the main centers of immigrations to the United States. Manyd become the second largest city in the world by 1900. It is one of the main centers of immigrations to the United States. Many district are dominated by ethnic groups and serve as transit stations for new citizens.

Life

New York is always lively, sometimes friendly and even human at times. People talk freely with strangers, not only at the bar. Foreigners are accepted as people, partly because a third of the local people is born abroad. New York is not America and not Europe, but rather a melting pot of both and of the Third World too. Some parts of town are reminiscent of Cairo or Calcutta.

If there is a center of the world, it is Manhattan, the world center of art and museums. It also has outlets of all the famous shops of the world. It has 10,000 restaurants, including all the ethnic ones. It has newspapers and radio stations in 50 languages. Daily there are important happenings somewhere in Manhattan. Celebrities come by the dozens.

Manhattan is always changing. Some run-down districts have been renovated, mostly at the initiative of avant-garde artists. Restaurants, cafés and money have followed in their wake. People either love or hate New York. It is soft and hard at the same time, but mainly it is rapid and excited, sometimes frenzied. It is where the action is. It is the moment itself.

Embassies

Australia

636 5th Avenue. Phone: 245 4000.

Canada

1251 6th Avenue & 50th Street. Phone: 768 2400.

Ireland

515 Madison Avenue. Phone: 319 2555.

New Zealand

37 Observatory Circle, Washington DC. Phone: (202) 328 4880.

United Kingdom

845 3rd Avenue. Phone: 752 8400.

Accident

Phone: 911.

Ambulance

Phone: 911.

Complaints

Phone: 944 0013.

It is of no use to complain about anything. Stolen goods will not be recovered.

Travelers Aid, 944 0013, can give advice and help.

Dentist

Phone: 677 2510.

679 3966 (9-20), 679 4172 (20-9)

Fire

Phone: 911.

Hospital

St Vincents, 11th Street and 7th Avenue, 790 7997. St Lukes Roosevelt, 58th Street and 9th Avenue, 523 6800.

Medical care

Phone: (718) 238 2100.

Pharmacy

Kaufmans, 557 Lexington Avenue at 50th Street, 755 2266, is open day and night.

Police

Phone: 911.

Precautions

Avoid Central Park, the subway and deserted areas after dark. Stay where the crowds are and near the outer edge of the pavement. Hold fast to your handbag. Keep money in front pockets of trousers. Use credit cards as much as possible. Do not keep identification papers in the same place as your money. Do not leave valuables in hotel rooms.

Do not dress expensively. Walk with a good stride as if you knew your way. Tell rapists that you carry AIDS. Avoid fights. Have small bills in your outer pockets to hand to muggers immediately.

Banks

Most banks are open Monday-Friday 9-15. Some of them do not change foreign currency. Americans are not as used to foreign currency as Europeans are.

Credit cards

Credit cards are accepted almost everywhere.

Missing cards: American Express (800) 528 4800, Diners Club (800) 525 9135, Master Card – Eurocard – Access (800) 627 8372, Visa (800) 336 8472

Electricity

American electricity is 115-120 AC. For European appliances you need an adapter. American plug have two flat prongs.

Hotels

Copenhagen hotels are generally clean and well maintained, including plumbing. American hotel rooms tend to be larger than European ones and often have two double beds. A bathroom is taken for granted nowadays.

We only include hotels with private bathrooms, and in most cases we also demand a direct telephone line, working air-condition, and peace and silence during the night. Only hotels in the city center are included as we want to avoid long journeys between sightseeing and our afternoon naps.

The price ranges from $115 to $280, excluding breakfast, but including city taxes. Take note that hotels and travel bureaus generally quote prices without the 13,25% + $2 taxes.

We checked all the hotels in this database during the winter of 1995-1996 as everything is fickle in this world. We have also tested some other hotels that are not included as they were not on par with the best in each price category. Some expensive hotels in Copenhagen are in fact no better than our selection of smaller and cheaper hotels.

Money

The currency in the United States is dollar, $, divided into 100 cents, c. There are $100, $50, $20, $5 and $1 notes, and coins for 25c, 10c, 5c and 1c.

Prices

Prices are stable in the United States.

Shopping

Department stores and fashion shops are generally open 9/10-18 and in some cases on Thursday -20/21. Some are open Saturday and even on Sunday afternoon.

Everything is available in New York. Prices are generally low by European standards and the quality may also be low.

Tipping

Tips are not included in restaurant bills (checks). Normal tips are 15-20%. You can make it simple by doubling the amount of the 8,25% sales tax shown on the bill. Porters get $1 for each bag, room service gets 1$, room maids get $3-5 per week, toilet attendants 50c. Taxi drivers, barbers and hairdressers get 15%.

Toilets

Toilets are in restaurants, museums and department stores. You often have to pay 10c or tip 50c. Do not use the toilets in subway stations.

Tourist office

New York Convention and Visitors Bureau, 2 Columbus Circle. Opening hours: Monday-Friday 9-18, Saturday-Sunday 10-18, phone 397 8222.

Water

Tap water is drinkable but many use bottled water as a precaution.

Accommodation

There is no central agency for booking accommodation. New York Convention and Visitors Bureau, 2 Columbus Circle issues annually a free booklet: The New York Hotel Guide. Opening hours: Monday-Friday 9-18, Saturday-Sunday 10-18, phone 397 8222.

Airport

Carey Airport Express Buses depart for Kennedy and LaGuardia airports every 30 minutes from 125 Park Ave.(near Grand Central), Port Authority (42nd between 8th & 9th), the Hilton Hotel (near Rockefeller Center at 53rd & 6th, Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza (at 48th & Broadway), Sheraton Manhattan Hotel (7th between 51st & 52nd) and Marriott Marquis (at Broadway and 45th).

New Jersey Transit Bus departs for Newark Airport every 10-20 minutes form the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Olympia Trails Bus departs for Newark Airport every 20/30 minutes from Penn Station (at 34th & 8th), Park Avenue & 41st, and One World Trade Center.

A taxi takes one hour to Kennedy ($35) and LaGuardia ($20) and 40 minutes to Newark ($50). Between Kennedy and LaGuardia a taxi costs $15 and between Kennedy and Newark $60.

News

The New York Magazine, The New Yorker and the Village Voice list entertainment and culture activities in New York. Art News and Art Now concentrate on culture.

Phone

The United States country code is 1. The local code for Manhattan is 212, for other parts of London it is 718. To phone a number outside your area, first dial 1 before the local code. To phone long distance from a pay phone, first dial 0 before the local code. The foreign code from the United States is 011.

Post

The General Post Office, 8th Avenue and 33rd Street, tel. 967 8585, is open 24 hours a day.

Railways

Grand Central Terminal serves commuter trains from New Yorks suburbs and Connecticut. Penn Station serves long-haul trains from other parts of the United States and Canada.

Taxis

You can hail taxis in the street. Only use yellow, licensed cabs. Their roof numbers are lit up when they are available. All cabs have meters and most can issue printed receipts. Many cabbies do not speak English and more cabbies do not know where to find addresses. For information phone 840 4572.

Bell Radio Taxi 691 9191, Big Apple Car 517 7010.

Traffic

Pedestrians should take great care in traffic. Many drive carelessly and some ignore red lights.

It is easy to find ones way around in most of Manhattan, because of the numbering system of avenues and streets. Streets are numbered west and east from the 5th Avenue. They jump one hundred at each Avenue intersection. Even numbers are on the south side, odd numbers on the north. Addresses are often given with both avenue and street numbers.

The buses are cleaner and much more comfortable than the subway, which in turn is much quicker and is operated around the clock. The fare is the same. You pay with subway tokens from attendants at stations or from automats.

Cuisines

The 10,000 restaurants of Manhattan reflect the ethnic diversity of the city. You can travel around the world without ever leaving the island of Manhattan. Especially well represented are the cuisines of Latin America and the cuisines of the nations of the Pacific rim, such as Japan and China. France is of course well represented as everywhere else.

Restaurants

New Yorkers dine out every third day, according to researchers. They consider it a way of life and do not dress up to the occasion. Many of them are well versed in good food, making it possible to operate hundreds of excellent restaurants in addition to those who are bad or impossible.

Service

Generally not as formal as in most other countries in the world and generally not as educated. “Hi, Im Joe”, is typical of American waiters.

Wine

California wine can be very good. It covers the whole spectrum from plonk to similar heights as French classified growths.

1996

© Jónas Kristjánsson