Maya VPS

In a "spur-of-the-moment" weekend trip to New York City I planned, I made it my destiny to visit many of the major tourist attractions. I hit everything from the Statue of Liberty, Wall Street, Ground Zero, and the Brooklyn Bridge to Chinatown, Madison Square Garden, the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Plaza, and Times Square. If that wasn't enough, I made my way to a Broadway show and ate some peanuts from a street vendor all while managing to figure out the New York subway system enough to not die.

First Impressions

Well, I didn't get mugged, so I was a bit disappointed in that. There's a bit of exaggeration, of course as I felt relatively safe enough walking down Fifth Avenue to eat a muffin. Downtown Brooklyn might be a different story, though..

A few things I noticed (in bullet points):

• On the subway, everyone sits with their arms crossed over their belongings
• Regardless of the weather, people jog in shorts and go to work in skirts.
• Everyone walks looking straight ahead without acknowledgment
• It's one of the few cities where Russian is spoken on one street corner, German on the next, and Chinese on the subway
• The night clubs are filled with people saying "Hey, I'm walk'n ova' heer!"
• Everything's more expensive and there are no free refills in restaurants with waiters

I love to travel, and my time was well spent in New York. I love the pace of New York; it's ideal for young, articulate professionals. Everything moves fast, is done before sunrise, and all while managing to keep things in order. I could easily see myself adapting to that lifestyle.

In Pictures

From 289 pictures taken, I've narrowed it down to 55 with substance and quality. Though, I can't post 55 semi-full size pictures on one page without getting a letter from somebody, I've chosen the best from the best and posted them here. All 55 photos are on their own Flickr photoset page. Enjoy!