MIKESTOPFORTH

It is no surprise, given my love for Johannesburg and all it’s diverse craziness, that New York stole my heart. I’m certainly not the most well-travelled human on the planet but I’ll go a long way before I find another place that inspires me like NYC. Note, I said ‘inspires’ and not ‘invigorates’. New York’s relentless noise and bustle left me flat-out exhausted, no doubt. But the architecture, human spirit, colour, history and undeniable energy of the place has left an indelible impression on me.

My trip to the city that never sleeps began smack bang in the middle of a chilly night, in a dingy corner of Brooklyn. Not an ideal first impression, mind you, but due to some confusion in the course of booking accommodation I chose the wrong hotel and landed up at a somewhat undesirable crap heap Holiday Inn Express.

It didn’t take long in the morning to get my Saffer bum out of there, though, and into an ancient, quirky little hangout smack bang in the middle of Manhattan dubbed Hotel Wolcott. It smelled a bit, and the staff were about as friendly as a pack of rabid Rottweilers, but it was affordable and did the trick.

Many of NYC’s most famous landmarks and attractions were well within walking distance, and I soon knocked the Empire State Building, Times Square and the shopping wonderlands of 5th, Lexington, Boradway and Madison Avenues of my to do list. Next up was a trip to Central Park and Grand Central Station (where I enjoyed a distinctly average burger at Michael Jordan’s highly-rated steakhouse), the Museum of Natural History (dino skeletons FTW) and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which was simply jaw-droppingly beautiful, inside and out.

Chinatown, a sub-culture within a city, blew my mind. Madison Square Gardens and the religious experience that is the Apple Store were just cherries on top. And then there are the so many cliched (and for good reason too) experiences that gave me a rich taste of the city’s culture; Crumbs bakery, La Famiglia pizza, the subway (yikes), cabbies (more yikes), Starbucks and more. I just so happened to be around for a solid display of American’s tendency to adopt and celebrate any holiday worth celebrating – and believe me when New York celebrates St. Patrick’s day, as was the case, they do it in style. A parade of thousands marched down 5th Avenue – pipe bands, police, armed forces, diginitaries, school kids – you name it, they were all there. Balls to the wall. And that evening, every Irish pub in the city (and there are more than you’d think) rocked out. It was something to behold.

It’s hard to believe that I achieved all this in just over two days, but if you do your homework and are prepared to walk your butt off, New York’s best can be consumed in relatively little time. I simply can’t wait to go back and absorb the finer details and the many things I missed, but for now, New York has far and away lived up to all the hype. I cannot wait to go back!