Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
...she figured it wouldn't be very easy for her to get from there to her main love in Manhattan - the Met (where she took classes). And to the Botanical Gardens? (we were there a few years ago - very pretty) - forget about it (it's easily > an hour using public transportation). I guess my general attitude as I get older is if/when I move again - it will be to a place where it's easier to get around - not harder (it's not especially hard getting around where I live now). Robyn
Unless someone is willing to stay right near home in the canyons of Manhattan a car is an absolute necessity. The places you mentioned in the Bronx, Bronx Zoo and the neighboring New York Botanical Gardens, the New York Aquarium at Coney Island, anything outside Manhattan really, are nightmarish to reach without a car. But a car won't work for most places from Central Park south. The problem isn't driving; the problem is parking. The American Numismatic Society (outstanding museum) is a perfect example.
I love museums. The best cultural feature where I live, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, has given me hundreds hours of pleasure. (Don't sneer, New Yorkers; we have visiting scholars from all over the world.) It's the largest museum between Minneapolis and Seattle. It boasts both the largest Plains Indian collection in the world, larger than the Smithsonian's, as well as the largest privately owned gun collection in the world. It was a major reason for my moving here.
I've only been a visitor in NYC so I've only stayed in hotels. I could only imagine maintaining a residence in NYC even for business if I had some extraordinarily juicy deal. Prices are astronomical. The big draw for me is the Met. I don't believe that I've ever traveled there without visiting it. The New York Botanical Gardens is another favorite. But my 4500 sq. ft. home here would be many millions there. No one there could own as much land as I have. No one there could keep his car keys in the car either or stick a gun in his pocket without special government permission.
Robyn called NYC a place for the rich and the poor; I've always thought the same; it's no place for the middle class.
I'll close with something that will really offend all of the New York boosters. NYC is the #3 food town in this country behind New Orleans and San Francisco.
Last edited by Happy in Wyoming; 06-25-2014 at 01:00 PM..
Unless someone is willing to stay right near home in the canyons of Manhattan a car is an absolute necessity. The places you mentioned in the Bronx, Bronx Zoo and the neighboring New York Botanic Gardens, the New York Aquarium at Coney Island, anything outside Manhattan really, are nightmarish to reach without a car. But a car won't work for most places from Central Park south. The problem isn't driving; the problem is parking. The American Numismatic Society (outstanding museum) is a perfect example.
Odd, I think they're fine and ditto with most of the outer boroughs. The New York Botantical Garden is a bit annoying but nightmarish is a stretch.
Unless someone is willing to stay right near home in the canyons of Manhattan a car is an absolute necessity. The places you mentioned in the Bronx, Bronx Zoo and the neighboring New York Botanical Gardens, the New York Aquarium at Coney Island, anything outside Manhattan really, are nightmarish to reach without a car. But a car won't work for most places from Central Park south. The problem isn't driving; the problem is parking. The American Numismatic Society (outstanding museum) is a perfect example.
I love museums. The best cultural feature where I live, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, has given me hundreds hours of pleasure. (Don't sneer, New Yorkers; we have visiting scholars from all over the world.) It's the largest museum between Minneapolis and Seattle. It boasts both the largest Plains Indian collection in the world, larger than the Smithsonian's, as well as the largest privately owned gun collection in the world. It was a major reason for my moving here.
I've only been a visitor in NYC so I've only stayed in hotels. I could only imagine maintaining a residence in NYC even for business if I had some extraordinarily juicy deal. Prices are astronomical. The big draw for me is the Met. I don't believe that I've ever traveled there without visiting it. The New York Botanical Gardens is another favorite. But my 4500 sq. ft. home here would be many millions there. No one there could own as much land as I have. No one there could keep his car keys in the car either or stick a gun in his pocket without special government permission.
Robyn called NYC a place for the rich and the poor; I've always thought the same; it's no place for the middle class.
I'll close with something that will really offend all of the New York boosters. NYC is the #3 food town in this country behind New Orleans and San Francisco.
And do you know what the irony of this whole thing is? There is 1 subway as in ONE. the D train, which granted would scare the he!! out of some folks around here that stops near the Botanical Gardens and a short ride over to the Bronx Zoo, then in to Manhattan and stops at the Museum of Natural History and a short walk therough Central Park to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, then down to Lincon Center, Times Square and off to Brooklyn where it terminates at Coney Island by the Aquarium and Amusement Park. How about that for convenience.
And no, NYC is not #3 for foodies. You just need to know the difference and where to go for whatever it is you want.
I have read every post on this thread hoping that some one could convince me to retire to NYC. I heard nothing that sounded good to me.
My company relocated 3 people from NYC when their jobs were eliminated there. All 3 told me that they regretted the move for the first 6 months and that during that time they would defend their life styles in NYC. After the first year in Omaha they had grown accustom to the slower lifestyle here. That was about 20 years ago, they are all retired and still living here.
They way we live is all relative to what we know. I have never met anyone here in Nebraska that has said that they wanted to live in NYC, however, I know people that have moved from NYC to Omaha and not moved back.
I'm familiar with New York City and the surrounding area. I have been there at least 10-15 times. I have never seen any reason for me to move there. How many times can you visit a museum, be jammed into the subway, experience frozen spit on the side walk, or 10 foot high old trash piled up on every curb that's weeks old (one of my trips was during a garbage strike).
I have read every post on this thread hoping that some one could convince me to retire to NYC. I heard nothing that sounded good to me.
My company relocated 3 people from NYC when their jobs were eliminated there. All 3 told me that they regretted the move for the first 6 months and that during that time they would defend their life styles in NYC. After the first year in Omaha they had grown accustom to the slower lifestyle here. That was about 20 years ago, they are all retired and still living here.
They way we live is all relative to what we know. I have never met anyone here in Nebraska that has said that they wanted to live in NYC, however, I know people that have moved from NYC to Omaha and not moved back.
I'm familiar with New York City and the surrounding area. I have been there at least 10-15 times. I have never seen any reason for me to move there. How many times can you visit a museum, be jammed into the subway, experience frozen spit on the side walk, or 10 foot high old trash piled up on every curb that's weeks old (one of my trips was during a garbage strike).
How many NYC kids do you think are looking at their college choices saying "oh yeah, I wanna be a Husker!"? On the other hand how many kids in Nebraska are applying to NYU, Columbia, Fordham, St John's, Manahattan, FIT, etc. How many people graduate from college and can't wait to get to Omaha?
I'm not trying to be a jerk but the folks you mentioned did their 20 and retired. I'm just 2 hours from the City, I'm down there often. I was actually offered a job back in NYC just recently but I'm past the point to up and move again.
It's not just how many times can you visit a museum, it's which museum to go visit. It's which park, what's happening this weekend and where. I lived in the Bronx, lived in Queens, family is from Manhattan, my first job in HS was in a sandwich shop arouind the corner from Rockefeller Center. I went to college in NYC, worked for 30 years in Manhattan, it's a way of life that this thread has made perfectly clear is not for everyone.
You see packed subways, frozen spit and trash. What would I see in Nebraska? Dry grass, chewing tobacco and cow patties. NYC is not for everyone, Tarzan went back to the jungle. It killed poor King Kong.
...The whole west Bronx and upper Manhattan are very hilly anyway, I imagine more difficult for people with disabilities. I have friends who come visit and are huffing and puffing after a walk here...
Most of the people who get disabled there are cab drivers who don't get there ever/often. We had a Bar Mitzvah reception up at Columbia a while back. Had to deal with 4 cabs (hailed at our midtown hotel) before one would agree to take us there. And he didn't have a clue. We wound up 2 blocks away from our destination (as the crow flies). But we were "down there" - and our destination was was "up there". And there wasn't an elevator . FWIW - this isn't a particular criticism of New York. We encounter many geography challenged cab drivers these days in many cities. Especially the so-called multi-cultural cities where 90% of the people driving cabs came to the cities last week and don't speak the language (whether the native language is English - or another language).
Quote:
...We have a house here too...
Maybe you live in my grandparents' house . I'll ask my father what block he grew up on - and do a Google "street walk" - see if the single family houses are still there.
Quote:
...Yes, you have the age right--but it would be impossible for us to spend most of our time just hanging out in Manhattan--we're not retired and we both work 5 days/week (my husband in Manhattan and 2 days/week in Manhattan for me). We generally only have the weekends free to do whatever we want--and often not the whole weekend since I often work one of those days. I don't know what we'd do if we had as much free time as a retired person -- I guess we'll find out in 20 plus years. But we still do things with the kids in Manhattan pretty regularly. I'm not saying that a newcomer on a limited budget should live here, but I'm pointing out that living in a borough shouldn't be automatically discounted either. Manhattan is expensive, but the prices you're giving are crazy also.
Well the prices are crazy in any but the most marginal parts of Manhattan (are there any left?). Especially if you're not willing to live in a walk-up without a doorman - and at least have pay laundry machines in the basement. One of the things the OP mentioned was not having to do home maintenance - having the great super popping up to her econo-rental whenever anything needed fixing. Guess that has happened in some TV sitcoms. In real life - perhaps not so much.
And the prices I gave you really are minimums for the better/best neighborhoods. If you pick up a copy of the WSJ on Friday (or subscribe to it) - there's a real estate section. And it's honestly not hard to spend $10 million plus on a nice sized new/newer condo in a high end neighborhood in Manhattan these days. Prices in excess of $25 million aren't unusual. And here are the top ten listings in terms of prices today in Manhattan (most expensive is $114 million):
There are a whole lot of people in Manhattan with tons of money. And many more working in industries like law - financial services - etc. who are pulling in high six or seven figures. Also - the housing stock is limited (to some extent artificially by things like rent control). Landlords often have to bribe tenants to "move on" so properties can be redeveloped (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/re...anted=all&_r=0). Don't know how much housing costs would go down if rent control disappeared and all this housing stock was replaced (maybe 20%?) - but it still wouldn't be enough to make Manhattan affordable for all except the .1%. Robyn
It's not just how many times can you visit a museum, it's which museum to go visit. It's which park, what's happening this weekend and where. I lived in the Bronx, lived in Queens, family is from Manhattan, my first job in HS was in a sandwich shop arouind the corner from Rockefeller Center. I went to college in NYC, worked for 30 years in Manhattan, it's a way of life that this thread has made perfectly clear is not for everyone.
You see packed subways, frozen spit and trash. What would I see in Nebraska? Dry grass, chewing tobacco and cow patties. NYC is not for everyone, Tarzan went back to the jungle. It killed poor King Kong.
Tarzan and King Kong are apparently the archetypes of those who would be unsuccessful in NYC. I know you conceived of it as a witty and urbane insult, but all it tells us is that you've never read Edgar Rice Burroughs.
New Yorkers are really provincial. Nebraska has among other attractions, the Pioneer Museum in Minden. It's large enough that most people buy two day tickets. NW Nebraska has the sandhills, miles of stark and alien undulations. Omaha has great German food and an active ballet community. The world doesn't end at the Hudson River although it may as well fo many.
We have a pleasant local park a few minutes from my house. It's called Yellowstone.
Have you ever seen a mother cow nursing her calf? A family of coyotes yelping and playing together? Ball lightning? A disappearing river? Messina in Sicily where Samuel Butler theorized that a teenage girl wrote The Odyssey and gave Western Civilization its first written literature?
We have a major museum in a city of 9k. In New Orleans even the poor can afford French food. NYC is not the ne plus ultra. Culture and joy are not bounded by the banks of the Hudson.
Since your dislike of large cities and PT has been discussed exhaustively, I have nothing to add, other than to note this is about the third thread I've seen you go on and on about it it. I suspect this is a hobby horse that's carried you through quite a number of threads.
As you your question "WhynotNY?" I guess your missed an earlier post of mine (Post 63 dated June 20). If I wasn't explicit enough, here's a hint: The answer lies behind Door No. 3.
Reread that message - and you didn't answer my question. Why did you move to "Center City" Philadelphia - a place I left decades ago - instead of anywhere in NYC? Answer behind Door No. 3 - is you could afford what is thought to be a nice part of Philadelphia - but couldn't afford a nice part of NYC. No shame in that. Who can afford the nicer parts of NYC - especially Manhattan - these days? Robyn
Unless someone is willing to stay right near home in the canyons of Manhattan a car is an absolute necessity. The places you mentioned in the Bronx, Bronx Zoo and the neighboring New York Botanical Gardens, the New York Aquarium at Coney Island, anything outside Manhattan really, are nightmarish to reach without a car. But a car won't work for most places from Central Park south. The problem isn't driving; the problem is parking. The American Numismatic Society (outstanding museum) is a perfect example.
I love museums. The best cultural feature where I live, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, has given me hundreds hours of pleasure. (Don't sneer, New Yorkers; we have visiting scholars from all over the world.) It's the largest museum between Minneapolis and Seattle. It boasts both the largest Plains Indian collection in the world, larger than the Smithsonian's, as well as the largest privately owned gun collection in the world. It was a major reason for my moving here.
I've only been a visitor in NYC so I've only stayed in hotels. I could only imagine maintaining a residence in NYC even for business if I had some extraordinarily juicy deal. Prices are astronomical. The big draw for me is the Met. I don't believe that I've ever traveled there without visiting it. The New York Botanical Gardens is another favorite. But my 4500 sq. ft. home here would be many millions there. No one there could own as much land as I have. No one there could keep his car keys in the car either or stick a gun in his pocket without special government permission.
Robyn called NYC a place for the rich and the poor; I've always thought the same; it's no place for the middle class.
I'll close with something that will really offend all of the New York boosters. NYC is the #3 food town in this country behind New Orleans and San Francisco.
I'm a big fan of the Met as well. Also MOMA - and the Whitney and Guggenheim on occasion. I saw perhaps the best overview exhibit I've ever seen in my whole life at the Whitney - The American Century: Art and Culture 1900-1950. Book about the exhibit here:
It was panned by some critics - but my husband and I (and many others) absolutely loved it. Perhaps people who live in or anywhere near NYC don't realize that some of us who live in the "outback" think you're kind of on Mars when things like this are in your back yards so to speak - but you don't go even a little out of your way to see them. My husband and I actually fly hundreds/thousands of miles to see stuff like this. Perhaps because we appreciate it more. Or - alternatively - we have a fair amount of discretionary income living where we live - and can afford to do these things.
We didn't see the Magritte exhibit at MOMA - we saw it at the Menil in Houston (a special trip). Only because the show at MOMA was in the winter - and we don't like flying up north in the winter. OTOH - when we spoke to people at the Menil who were up in New York for the MOMA exhibit - they said it cost an extra $25/per person to see it (in addition to normal admission) - and that - a lot of the time - people were 3 deep looking at the paintings. The Menil is free - and remarkably uncrowded. The former isn't of concern to us - the latter is. No one wants to be herded like cows going through an art exhibition.
FWIW - I don't agree with you about eating. I have favorite places to eat - not only in various cities in the US - but cities all over the parts of the world where I've traveled. I am very eclectic - and don't have one kind of cuisine that I favor. And - for example - you're not going to get good BBQ (Texas or otherwise) in New York - New Orleans OR San Francisco. Try the areas around Austin for the best fatty brisket . Robyn
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
. Robyn
