NYC discoveries

I am glad you enjoyed your visit to NYC - there is so much to see and do. I have only been to the Cloisters once but can't wait to go back. What other musuems have you been to as there are several and they are all amazing. You can also very easily ( in the spring or summer but any time of year) go to the Brooklyn Botantic Gardens, very easy to get to from Manhattan to Brooklyn by subway and right next door to the gardens is the Brooklyn Museum!! Have you been to the Metropolitan Musuem of Art? Have you taken the Staten Island ferry ride ( free) where you can see the NY sky line and the Statue of Liberty. I only fly in and out of Newark, you may want to check that out as it is a smaller airport but still international. And of course the Whitney Museum now is next door to the High Line which I love to walk!!! Safe travels. Ann

Hello Inbsig. I'm glad you had a good trip to NYC. I lived there many years ago.
One of my favorite places to visit was the Cloisters. A little hard to get to, but worth it! The medieval tapestries alone are worth the trip all the way "up north" in Manhattan to see. For future reference, there is a bus that travels up Third Avenue, to the Cloisters, and returns to Midtown. Fort Tryon Park is lovely, especially in the spring. There are some lovely apartments as you walk through the park on the left side. I was always wanting to find out how I could move into one of those.

Yes, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was instrumental in saving Grand Central Station. One friend who stood beside her to accomplish this was Andy Warhol. Three legends. While I lived in New York I was active in historic preservation. One person who knew all about the history of New York and its buildings was the late star Tony Randall. He was an encyclopedia of knowledge about Old New York, and frequently gave walking tours to groups of people he knew or met.

A great book if you can find it is "Lost New York". Photos of historic old buildings, including the old Penn Station.

If you visit New York again, you may want to visit The Museum of the City of New York. It is a great museum detailing the beginnings of the city. It has many exhibits, paintings, drawings and photographs. Located at 1220-1227 Fifth Avenue.

The Guggenheim is always fun. Other favorite museums include the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. All three have good bookstores. MOMA and The Met are my favorites.

I love the Cloisters! It's such a treasure, and I felt it took no time to get there by express train (due to skipping of most stations in between). I made a huge mistake and took the bus the first time and it took forever, with countless neighborhood stops. I'm not sure many visitors are aware that it is part of the Met, and the Met admission gives you a chance to see both. I think it's really difficult to try to see both in one day, though, and really appreciate each. Much better to see in two (consecutive) days.

One of my favorite NYC museums is the Museum of the City of New York. It has a wonderful film about the history of NYC, among other great exhibits. It is farther north on Fifth Ave than the Met, across from the park. From there, we took a bus to the Met.

EDIT: Didn't notice that Rebecca had already mentioned this gem.

Thanks for all the encouraging replies and interesting suggestions! Yes, I did go to the Metropolitan this time (far from my first), using my Cloisters admission; I always feel that one could go there all day, every day for a year, and still not see everything, so I tried to be selective. Went for Asian art, the Impressionists, and the Pacific Islanders. In previous visits, I've also been to the Whitney (in its old location, which I gather is now a modern art branch of the Met), the International Museum of Photography, the Cooper-Hewitt, the Museum of Holography (no longer there, I think), the Museum of Natural History, and probably some I'm forgetting. I've also ridden the Staten Island Ferry. Have been to the Bronx Botanical Gardens, but need to check out the one in Brooklyn.

Yes, if you come back to NYC -- do check out the Brooklyn Botanic gardens and the Brooklyn Museum, easy subway right from lower Mahattan! Also check out the new Whitney and the High Line which is a wonderful place to take a lovely walk. It was the old subway and now they made it into a park. Also if you like Klimt paintings go to the Neue Galerie which is a very nice small museum and a lovely cafe. The MOMA is also wonderful!!! There is the World Trade Center to see too. So much to see and do.

Thanks, Ann! I'm getting more and more intrigued by Brooklyn. I was also wondering - I see that you're on Staten Island, and I learned awhile ago that it has a museum of Tibetan art. I'm hoping to see it someday. Have you been?

Don't forget the High Line in Chelsea area. This is turning into one of America's most famous and fabulous urban gardens - above ground on top of a former elevated train track! Amazing! It's the first place I check out when in NYC.

Near the Highline you'll find the famous Chelsea Market and a little below the market, you'll find the new location of tne Whitney Museum. The building is fun to see as well as the art collections. Lots of outside terraces with views. Rubin Museum of Art is farther east on W. 17th Street specializing in Himalayan Art.

Thanks to Ann, Susan, and Suki for suggesting the High Line - it's for sure on my list for next time. And Suki, thanks so much for mentioning the museum of Himalayan Art. This is the first I've heard of it.