United States Destinations

New York City always offers something new

By Nicholas Spillios

Photo by Nicholas Spillios

No matter how many times one visits the Big Apple, New York City offers an array of new sights, as well as many worth rediscovering. There are always surprises.

As a senior, you will probably aim for comfort, security and economy. My wife Charlotte and I certainly do, so read on for some of our discoveries.

We arrived in New York earlier this year for a limited stay of four nights, and sought out the most economical hotel in close proximity to the theatres, museums, Central Park, and shopping – not to mention the theatre discount centre.

That hotel proved to be the Comfort Inn on 46th Street, a short walk from Times Square, which offered a rate of $135 including a continental breakfast. What more could one ask for in a city whose average hotel room cost is $250?

New York is a great walking town and we were happy to take advantage of that. The aim of our first walk was to regain a feel for the city that never sleeps. We headed uptown along Fifth Avenue, with its glittering array of stores and shops, including Saks, and then over to Bloomingdale’s at Lexington Avenue and 59th Street.

Bargain hunters can expect no finds in this area. But the entrancing window displays are worth the stroll.

Once we got to Bloomingdale’s, we headed for one of our favourite lunch spots, 40 Carrots, which is located within the store. On this occasion, we chose the $13 soup and sandwich, the sandwich coming on brown cranberry bread. A cafe specialty is frozen yogurt, which is highly recommended.

The cafe has a mainly female clientele, and there is a good possibility you will find yourself in close proximity to a woman who is breastfeeding. My, how times have changed!

Museums are generally not economical, although an appealing exhibition may make it worth the price of admission. The Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, on 53rd Street off Fifth Avenue, is in this category. But it also offers free admission on Friday evenings.

Admission to the Onassis Cultural Centre, 645 Fifth Avenue, around the corner from the Trump Tower, is free at all times.

We are always drawn to the Onassis not only by the quality of works, but by the location, and the lack of crowds. We were delighted with the museum’s major exhibition, The Origins of El Greco, displaying works by this Greek artist of the Spanish Renaissance and his contemporaries.

Walking back to our hotel, we passed by another free attraction – the Diamond District, with its treasures for window shopping. Visiting New York would not be complete without taking in a show on Broadway. We made our way to the TKTS Booth in Times Square, where tickets for the day of performance are available at 20 to 50 per cent discounts.

We were fortunate to get seats for A Little Night Music with Catherine Zeta-Jones and our favourite octogenarian, Angela Lansbury. The cost? $70 including taxes.

Although a somewhat scaled down production, the show was enjoyable – lilting and well performed. Lansbury did not disappoint. Taking an ovation, she jumped out of the wheelchair she occupied during the show and made her bow.

While in New York, we returned to a number of our favourite economical restaurants. La Bonne Soupe on 55th Street is a delight, still full of charm after these many years. The soupe paysanne, accompanied by salad, wine and a chocolate mousse, was a bargain for New York at $26.40.

This time around we also made a new discovery: Akdeniz, a Turkish restaurant on 46th Street. Here we had a sumptuous meal consisting of an appetizer, which was blini pancake with thick yogurt; salmon; and for dessert, kadaifi, shredded filo and pistachio nut pastry dipped in syrup.

An alternative dining option is a visit to the Emporium, an extensive grocery outlet on 9th Avenue where snacks can be purchased.

One of our last stops was the main branch of the New York Public Library. The ghost of Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany's was well in evidence with several references throughout the imposing building.

The library is an architectural dream that includes an imposing reading room with a 52 foot high ceiling, grand chandeliers. Readers sit in rows facing one end of the room while awaiting books brought to them upon request from closed shelves. The library is basically a research library.

There are exciting exhibits. During our visit, an exhibition on Voltaire was taking place, featuring letters and memorabilia of the great French writer.

So much to see, so much to do in New York City. There was much that we simply did not have time for. Next time, next time.