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ARGFest-O-Con IV NYC - A New Hope - www.argfestnyc.com
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joebrent
Unfettered


Joined: 01 Oct 2003
Posts: 640
Location: New York, sometimes

 		Re: Where oh where to stay?????
HiddenAlliance wrote:
As a confirmed "Chicago-er" I have no idea where to stay nor where the "safe zones" are in NYC. Looking at MS Streets and Trips I could pick from a zillion hotels . . . and probably get killed at most of them Wink

Help would be appreciated - hell just pick a general area that has a range and I would be willing to select from there.

I also have no clue about the "areas" you are talking about - mid-town etc. Help this feeble Chicago boy so he doesn't get his proverbial ass kicked in the big city.


Dude, seriously -- don't believe the hype! It's totally safe to walk around in NYC, day or night, in any neighborhood, including the subways.

And for the record:

Picture the island of Manhattan -- it's basically a thin strip of land, about 12 miles from top to bottom, and maybe 5 miles wide near the base.

There are 12 Avenues running north and south, 1st on the east side and 12th (also known as the West Side Highway) on the west, and Broadway likewise runs north and south from the top of the island to the bottom and crossing over a few of the Avenues. There are about 220ish Streets running east-west, beggining about a third of the way up the island and running all the way up. So it's usually very easy to find your way around, because if you are on 34th street and need to go to 42nd street, you know you have to go north; similarly, if you're on 5th Avenue and you have to get to 8th, go west.

So here are the neighborhoods you'll likely spend time in (consult this map for reference):

Downtown: Way down at the bottom tip of the island, encompassing Battery Park, the Wall Street area, the WTC site, the South Street Seaport, the Brooklyn Bridge, etc. Kind of tough to find your way around in because it's a very old neighborhood, so the streets are thin, twisty, un-numbered, and still appear to be designed for horse-and-buggy-type transportation, even with all the power tie wearing Wall Street people running around. The WTC site is accessable easily by several subway lines, and you can also take two different lines to the Staten Island ferry, which runs from the lowest point of Manhattan to Staten Island, past the Statue of Liberty, and whih is a very nice ride, plus they sell beer. And - perhaps intentionally - the ride lasts about a beer. It's free, and you can just ride it back and forth all day if you're so inclined.

TriBeCa: This is the true spelling of this neighborhood, because like many neighborhood names in NYC, it's an reduction -- in this case, from the phrase "TRIangle BElow CAnal street". It's just north of the 'downtown' area, and has a lot of cool restaurants like Nobu, etc. Also, whenever you see a car commercial where a car is peeling through a city early in the morning and the streets are still glistening with dew, and grocers are washing off the sidewalk in front of their store, that's TriBeCa.

Chinatown: a must see. Just above TriBeCa, running east-west along Canal Street, and especially north-south east of Broadway on Mott Street. Great food, great shopping, and on the west side of Broadway, lots of discount stores where you can get crappy bootleg DVDs, batteries, junk, and other stuff you didn't think you needed, but then you see it, and you're like hey cool man, I gotta get one of those things...

Little Italy: North of Canal, east of Broadway, especially along Mulberry Street, one block west of Mott Street. One of the coolest parts of Manhattan, I think, because you can be on Mulberry, where all the street signs are in Italian, and walk one block east to Mott, where all the street signs are in Chinese. The Feast of San Gennaro is in September, I think, so you'll probably miss it, but this is still the best place to get great Italian food in NYC. Also where most early Scorcese movies were filmed.

SoHo: Encompassing pretty much everything between Canal Street and Houston (pronounced how-stun), which is about 5-10 blocks to the north. Some parts of it are still mostly about the arts, like the galleries on Spring, Broome, and Prince; some of it is dedicated to high class shopping, mostly along 6th Avenue, Varick, and W. Broadway, which if you walk along them during the day you'd swear you were on Rodeo Drive. Cool place to hang out, if you can afford it.

Lower East Side: Which is technically a part of Soho, but became the epicenter for the artistic movement in America in the 70-80's, so it got its own name. Andy Warhol, J-M Basquiat, Lou Reed, John Cage, Phillip Glass, all those types are associated with the Lower East Side. Some funky little bars and stuff.

-------

Okay, so moving north, we're up to Houston Street, which bisects the island east to west about 15% up from the bottom. Don't worry, it goes faster from here on up.

-------

Greenwich Village: north of Houston on the west side, up to about 14th Street. Great jazz clubs like the Village Vanguard, Garage, Blue Note, etc, also lots of hip bars and clubs. Washington Square Park (big NYU and Rasta hangout, breakdancers, hippies, etc) is there, plus Chrisopher Street (gay/lesbian/bi Mecca), lots of comic book stores, antiques, specialty shops, live music...basically, everything cool.

NoHo: north of Houston in the middle of the island, sometimes called Central or Middle Village. NYU campus, Union Square (14-18th Street between Broadway and 4th Ave, stores, restaurants, more hippies, theatres, etc), and a lot of great cheap clothing stores. This is pretty much where I do all my shopping. Also great sushi, sake, and Indian food.

East Village: The 'alternative' epicenter of Manhattan, especially around LaFayette Square, St. Marks, Astor Place, etc. This is pretty much where you want to go to get a tattoo, kinky leather stuff, hemp clothing, used CDs, etc. This is where I hang out most of the time, in fact I used to play a jazz brunch at a cool French restaurant here every Sunday. Also my favorite bar (Decibel sake bar) and resturant (Chez es Saada) are here, along with the famous 2nd Ave Deli, CBGB's (famous punk club), lots of other stuff. Includes the Bowery, which is associated with CBGB's, The Ramones, Talking Heads, X, Richard Hell/Television/Voidoids, etc.

-------

The 'Villages' pretty much stop along 14th Street, above that up to 34th on the west side is Chelsea (gay boys, antiques, theatres), and on the east side is Grammercy Park (lots of ritzy apartments). Not a lot of nightlife, but like any neighborhood in NYC, both have a lot of great restaurants. In fact, you can probably start from any random point in Mahnattan, walk 30 seconds in any direction, and find a cool bar or restaurant.

-------

Midtown: pretty much everything between 34th and 59th street. Times Square is right in the middle between 42nd and 45th street and roughly 5th and 7th Avenue/Broadway. Macy's, Empire State Building, Theatre District (basically the Times Square area)...madness. And yes -- TRL too. Don't worry, it's ok, you can stop and gawk at the big buildings and the bright lights. You won't get mugged. Tourists tend to congregate here, despite the overpriced theme restaurants and congested pedestrian traffic.

Central Park: runs from 59th-110th Street between 5th and 8th Avenues. I won't even try to go into this too much, because you can walk through the park for a week straight and still not discover the whole thing. Totally beautiful summer or winter, one of the great American works of art. The amount of detail that went into the landscaping in the Park is stunning. Check it out, especially Bethesda Fountain and Strawberry Fields.

Upper West Side: mostly residential, but lots of cool bars and restaurants. Pretty much everything from 59th up, west of the Park. Think Seinfeld. I live in Washington Heights, otherwise known as the Upper Upper West Side, off 181st Street and right on the Hudson River, a lovely little neighborhood.

Upper East Side: also mostly residential, except a little pricier until you get to Spanish Harlem above 110th. 59th up east of the Park, if you couldn't figure that out.

Harlem: undergoing a major rennaissance lately. Most tourists are sort of surprised when they see Harlem these days -- "It's kind of...nice!" Great soul food, as you might expect. Essentially everything from 110-145th Streets, except the line between the Upper East/West Side and Harlem is blurring these days, and will probably disappear entirely within 10 years or so.

-------

And that's pretty much it, unless you want to go to the outer boroughs, Brooklyn and Queens. Staten Island doesn't count. Don't go to Staten Island. I'm from Queens, so I won't dis it, but there's really no reason to go there unless you live there. Brooklyn is where Bags lives, and it's cool, but again, it's residential, and not where you really want to go to look for places to hang out.

OK, done. Any questions?
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 12:26 am
Last edited by joebrent on Tue Jan 11, 2005 6:08 pm; edited 2 times in total
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addlepated
Unfictologist


Joined: 17 Aug 2003
Posts: 1885
Location: Austin, Texas

 		Shocked

Wow Joe, thanks a bunch for the city summary!

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 1:58 am
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dmax
Unfictologist

Joined: 09 Jan 2003
Posts: 1387
Location: Location: Location!

 		That was pretty great!

Except I didn't find any mention of the sewer alligators. Pretty glaring omission, IMHO.

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 2:24 am
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bagsbee
Unfettered


Joined: 21 Oct 2003
Posts: 417
Location: NYC

 		Re: Where oh where to stay?????
joebrent wrote:
Brooklyn is where Bags lives

I live in Queens you ninny. But he's right, there's not a lot in the way of touristy and/or nightlife stuff to see out here. Unless you're a Met fan.

Oh and you forgot the Bronx. There are 3 reasons to go to the Bronx: Yankee Stadium, Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens. That's pretty much it, unless you're a fan of the "Hookers on the Point" series on HBO.

To tell you the truth, there are lots of things to do in the outer boroughs, but the vast majority of the "big ticket" attractions are in Manhattan.

[OT]Hey Joe, I just started working in Midtown (31st & Park) I did some recon and I'm amazed at the variety of restaurants around here. It's smack in the middle of Koreatown and Curry Hill.[/OT]

Yes, we will be making a trip to Chinatown for Dim Sum. Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy Drool

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 9:31 am
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HiddenAlliance
Boot


Joined: 03 Oct 2002
Posts: 18
Location: Chicago

 		Holly &#)@. I expected an answer, but that . . . Dude you should write a book, excellent summary.

Thanks for all the input, and for lill-ole-me how nice Smile

I look forward to the Wiki and a list of those that a larger group will be staying at.

For the record my budget is "sleeping bag smack in the middle of bag's floor", but I am up for a nice hotel if there is a group staying at one, and will come up with the scratch necessary to participate.

As for dates are we locked to the weekend suggested??
And how about "plans" is someone going to champion the "where we go out thing" or is that traditionally an on the spot decision?

Just my organized mind kicking into gear (wait till Chicago - plan-aholic will kick in and you will all hate me)

l8r

HA
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 10:36 am
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joebrent
Unfettered


Joined: 01 Oct 2003
Posts: 640
Location: New York, sometimes

 		Re: Where oh where to stay?????
bagsbee wrote:
I live in Queens you ninny. But he's right, there's not a lot in the way of touristy and/or nightlife stuff to see out here. Unless you're a Met fan.

Oh and you forgot the Bronx. There are 3 reasons to go to the Bronx: Yankee Stadium, Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens. That's pretty much it, unless you're a fan of the "Hookers on the Point" series on HBO.


Sorry about the first thing. I've never been sober at your place, so...

And no, I didn't forget the Bronx. I just didn't mention it. I only gave Staten Island ink (pixels?) because I had already said a few words about the ferry, and didn't want to give people the impression that they should actually get off in Staten Island.

Bronx Zoo is nice, but there's also a zoo in Central Park that's much more accessable for tourists. The Botanical Gardens is redundant in a city with a 50-block-long Park.

Dim sum...mmmmm.

And btw, Bags and Rose, I should get extra credit for not dissing the East Side.
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 5:36 pm
Last edited by joebrent on Tue Jan 11, 2005 5:47 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Sin Vraal
Decorated


Joined: 28 Nov 2002
Posts: 219
Location: NJ

 		hey
Let me know if you guys need any help arranging things - I don't live in the city, but I'll have a little crashing space just across the Bayonne Bridge from Staten Island (30 minutes from the city, let's reckon for those playing along at home) to share with anyone who's nice to me )heh( and I don't mind a jaunt or two into the city to scope things out.

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 5:45 pm
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joebrent
Unfettered


Joined: 01 Oct 2003
Posts: 640
Location: New York, sometimes

 		I was thinking it might be cool to take people on a walking tour from Columbus Circle down to the Staten Island ferry to see the Statue of Liberty at night, then subway to Times Square to see that at night too. I walk that same path frequently if I have a day off and just feel like walking the city a little, so I know it's doable and takes about a day including stops for eating, shopping, etc, but I wouldn't recommend it for the faint of feet, it's about 100 blocks of straight pavement pounding madness. Bring good walking shoes. Also depends on the weather.
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 5:52 pm
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yanka|tage
Guest


 		Re: Where oh where to stay?????
joebrent wrote:
And btw, Bags and Rose, I should get extra credit for not dissing the East Side.

I don't know about bagsbee and rose, but I totally give you all the credit you want for not dissing the East Side! Very Happy

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 6:09 pm
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addlepated
Unfictologist


Joined: 17 Aug 2003
Posts: 1885
Location: Austin, Texas

 		Heh, let's take a field trip to the Tomorrow's Talk studios.

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 9:15 pm
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Diandra
Unfettered


Joined: 27 Sep 2002
Posts: 390
addlepated wrote:
Heh, let's take a field trip to the Tomorrow's Talk studios.

Shocked
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 9:55 pm
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konamouse
Official uF Dietitian


Joined: 02 Dec 2002
Posts: 8010
Location: My own alternate reality

 		Dim Sum !!!!
Seeing the sites (budget minded here) !!!
Camping out with the sleeping bag (joes or sins, or someone's hotel room) !!
Walking ! (It's good for me and I'll feel better about doing it by July).

I'm planning on flying on Friday night (arriving Saturday morning), and flying home on Monday night.
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r u a Sammeeeee? I am Forever!

PostPosted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 11:42 pm
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katya2032
Veteran

Joined: 08 Sep 2003
Posts: 149
Location: Texas

 		Well, you can count on one country bumpkin + one on this grand journey. Got a hotel room booked (sorry, guys, but I'm an early bird, if I didn't do it now, I wouldn't have done it), working on a flight. Been a rough week, so going to bed now.

PostPosted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 12:59 am
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GabrielBlade
Decorated

Joined: 17 Sep 2004
Posts: 202

 		Well, I'm frustrated. Work has completely and utterly screwed me out of pretty much all the money the promised me, and I'm barely scraping through at the moment. (I already owe my landlord 4 weeks rent, and that looks like it's going to get bigger before I get anything out of my old work.)


In other words.. I don't think I'll be making it to NYC. Sorry guys. I would have loved to have been there. Sad
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---»For Whom the Bell Tolls.. Time Marches On«---

PostPosted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 4:59 am
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astrovanman
Decorated


Joined: 04 Aug 2004
Posts: 162
Location: Dallas/Fort Worth

 		There's seems to be a lot of post about New York and what to do or see. I'm wondering about the actual ARGfest. What is the scale of this thing going to be. Are you expecting hundreds of ARGers to show up or just a handful? Are PM's from ended games going to be there? Will there be a seminar about how an ARG is designed?

I'm all about going to New York for touring stuff, I really want to go someday, but I really want to know what to expect from an ARG Convention. thanks

PostPosted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:24 am
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