Traveling in Your City

When I was planning long weekend trips or spring break vacations during school my constant travel destination was New York City. This Big Apple is home to thousands upon thousands of entertaining activities that could captivate even the most traditional stay-at-home introvert; naturally, I was drawn to its stimulating adventures. Using any excuse that I could to fly away to its bright lights, I had then decided after the twelfth trip that my home was left in the streets of this city. I picked up and moved to the east side of Manhattan after graduation and have been here ever since exploring my home. Exploring the place that you live in can be tricky at times. Your work week can consist of a nine to five job, where at the end of the day you would like to relax and unwind, and your weekends tend to be spent recovering from the night before. After this pattern becomes more present you wonder when you stopped exploring? This is a pattern that I have found in my time being in the city and here are a few practices that even I need to remember when moving to your dream vacation spot.

You're not a tourist, you're an explorer.

As you are walking down the streets of the number one tourist attraction within your home, you tend to be stopped by the occasional lost stranger or the couple that needs a third party to take the photo. Naturally, you want to speed through the streets or avoid the beautiful area in general due to locals giving a negative connotation to these strangers. Even though it is overpopulated and a bit annoying to walk through, have you truly taken the time to stop and glance at the tall skyscraper that everyone flocks to to see? Do you just rush through this spot and focus yourself to look down at the stained sidewalk to avoid eye contact with strangers? Instead of by passing these priceless area, add an extra 15 minutes to your routine walk to work to enjoy these tourist attractions a few times a month. Remember to take time to appreciate the normal views that everyone else wants to travel to.

Go outside your neighborhood.

My first move to the city was in upper west side where the Trader Joe’s was two blocks over and Central Park was at the end of my street. I had two roommates and neither one of them made an excuse to leave the neighborhood. Why would they? Everything they needed was within a ten minute walk and their friends would come to the local bar to socialize. I adapted to their way of life and once I moved from the area I was completely lost. When living within a larger city you find comfort in the four block radius around you and lose your since of wonder for what lies past that. Taking time to plan on a trip out to Brooklyn just to try a new beer or to jump on a subway to visit the other side of your borough once a week shows you all that there is to explore with your city. (A New Yorker good reference website for events https://theskint.com)

Check the reviews.

When walking down the street from work or my weekly shopping trips, I pass by restaurants and trendy bars that were built overnight. Curious as to what the new places hold and if they will stand for a few months I tend to try them out. I’ve learned to live by the law of what Yelp reviews say. I have wasted too much on dirty taps and gross dinners to go without reading other stranger’s experiences. Don’t let that scare you from venturing out from your regular places, but checking the voices of the people can really be beneficial to your eating out adventures.