Side Orders

Our NY City Survival Guide - more or less!

Look who's out for a walk too...

We purchased a weekly bus pass.  It was an excellent and very convenient way to travel around the city.  

Trusty runners (good walking shoes) were also very helpful.  You really feel less like a tourist on a hectic schedule and notice lots more on shank’s ponies (two legs!).  

We also have folding bikes (on floating home, WJ3), which are very handy when transport is not so common and interesting things are a bit out of the way.  I’m not sure I’d be game to ride in downtown NY.  All that traffic and driving on the wrong side of the road!

No Fashionista but at least dry...

Circle Line Tours or similar hop on/hop off orientation tours might seem a bit twee but are well worth the money.  We usually take them early in our stay to familiarise ourselves with new surroundings and to help in making those all important decisions about our "must sees".  

In NYC we did even better; we had a local guide who knew all the best spots.  

And if he didn’t, he had friends who did…. 

Meals are huge.  Be warned that for Australians abroad in NY, a US entrée is our main and OZ entrée is our starter.  Got it?  Don’t order an entrée size thinking you will be doing a good thing for your waistline.  We also found that ordering an entrée might also mean just a meat serving.  Vegetables or salad then comes as a side order at an additional cost.  Eating out or even ordering a coffee is just, well, part of the scene in NY.  A kitchen - what’s that?

Just everyone eats out!

Another Grump out on the Street!

Avoid tourist hot-spots and eat where the locals eat - goes without saying really!  We wanted to take our host out for a nice dinner.  Lured by the view from a revolving restaurant near Times Square, we were quite unprepared to be stitched over.  The expensive buffet left a lot to be desired.

There are grumps everywhere, aren't there!