Howcast

How to Find Great Jazz in New York City

Howcast — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 07:13:05 +0000

Instructions

Step 1: Head to the Village Head to Greenwich Village, the home of jazz in New York City. Wander the cobble streets and you’re sure to find some cool spots.
TIP: You can’t go wrong with the Blue Note or the Village Vanguard, the legendary Greenwich Village club now in its seventh decade.
Step 2: Check out Birdland Check out Birdland. Now located north of Greenwich Village on West 44 Street, Birdland originally opened a few blocks up Broadway in 1949—with headliner Charlie Parker.
TIP: Know your jazz etiquette. Don’t talk loudly—you’re supposed to be listening!—and applaud at the end of each solo.
Step 3: Head north Head north to Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola in Columbus Circle’s Time Warner Center. The club, which is run by Wynton Marsalis’s influential organization, Jazz at Lincoln Center, features after-hours sets five days a week.
TIP: Some jazz clubs can be expensive—find out how much they charge before you go.
Step 4: Continue up Broadway Continue up Broadway to the Upper West Side club Smoke, famous for its Monday night jam sessions.
TIP: Most clubs have multiple sets—or at least an early and a late show. Find out when each set starts.
Step 5: See Starry Nights Swing by the Museum of Natural History’s live jazz program, Starry Nights, held in its stunning Rose Center for Earth and Space on the first Friday of every month.
Step 6: Head to Harlem Check out jazz clubs in Harlem, like the storied Lenox Lounge, which has endured since 1939 and hosted such legends as Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, and John Coltrane, as well as historic Harlem literary regulars like James Baldwin and Langston Hughes.
Step 7: Go to the Carlyle If you’re feeling flush, see Woody Allen and his New Orleans jazz band at Café Carlyle in the Upper East Side’s swank Carlyle Hotel. The group plays there many Monday nights—but be sure to call ahead and check. It’s expensive, but if they’re playing, it’ll be worth it.
TIP: If you’re visiting New York in the summer, check out the free concerts put on in Queens by Astoria Jazz Nights at both Astoria Park and the Bohemian Beer Garden, the last beer garden in New York City.
Step 8: Ask around Ask around. Just walk into any jazz club and ask either your fellow patrons or the bartenders for suggestions. True lovers of jazz are always happy to share what they know.
FACT: The origin of the word ‘jazz’ is unknown, but it was first used to describe music in Chicago in 1915.

You Will Need

An openness to little-known clubs
A willingness to venture outside Manhattan

How to See New York for $35 a Day

Howcast — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 07:23:52 +0000

Instructions

Step 1: Start with breakfast Start your day right, with a New York City bagel. Grab one and a cup of coffee from any deli or street vendor for about $2.50.
TIP: To sound like a native, order yours with a ‘shmear’ of cream cheese.
Step 2: Get a Metro card Get a Metro card. As of spring 2008, a one-day unlimited pass for the public transportation system will be $7.50. It allows you to take as many subway or bus rides as you like at a fraction of the cost of a tour bus.
Step 3: See free landmarks Check out gorgeous free landmarks like Grand Central Station, the New York Public Library, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Rockefeller Center, and the Chrysler Building.
TIP: Grand Central Station and the Public Library offer free tours.
Step 4: Take the Staten Island Ferry Take the Staten Island Ferry; it’s how 70,000 New Yorkers commute to work every day. You’ll have excellent views of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and lower Manhattan—and, unlike tourist boats that roam the Manhattan shores, it’s completely free!
Step 5: Head to Central Park Now that you’ve worked up an appetite, head for Central Park for a picnic. A hot dog, piece of fruit, and drink will only cost you about $5, and a Central Park Conservancy walking tour is free.
TIP: Make your way to the Central Park Boathouse where, right next to the pricey, lake-view restaurant there’s a huge rock that’s perfect for sunbathing and watching the expensive gondola rides.
Step 6: Be a kid again Be a kid again, with or without little ones of your own, with a trip to famed toy store F.A.O. Schwarz, where Tom Hanks famously played a tune with his feet in the film Big.
Step 7: Head to Little Italy Head to Little Italy, just north of Chinatown. Each neighborhood has its own distinctive flair, and they’re both great places to buy souvenirs. If you’ve got an extra few dollars, spring for an Italian gelato or a red-bean ice cream.
TIP: Head to a bookstore and leaf through a local weekly magazine’s listings to find loads of free readings, tours, festivals, and even films or concerts.
Step 8: Stay downtown for dinner The East Village and Lower East Side are great neighborhoods for great, cheap eats. You easily can keep the price of a delicious, filling restaurant meal down to $20, especially if you find a place marked BYOB – Bring Your Own Booze.
Step 9: Visit Times Square If you’re still standing, visit Times Square after dark. Just strolling around looking at all the neon should be entertainment enough.
FACT: In 2006, international and domestic tourists combined spent $24.71 billion dollars while visiting New York City.

You Will Need

A Metro card
Comfortable walking shoes
Energy
A sense of adventure

How to Take a Cab in New York City

Howcast — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 08:07:51 +0000

Instructions

Step 1: Know where you’re going Before you hail a cab, get a rough idea of how far you’re going and how much it should cost. If you’re not sure, ask a New Yorker. Most will be happy to help you avoid getting ripped off by an unscrupulous cabbie.
Step 2: Step off the curb Step off the curb and face the oncoming traffic. Just don’t step so far off the curb that you’re standing in a lane of traffic.
Step 3: Hail a cab Hail a cab by raising your arm when you spot one with its middle roof light on, indicating it’s available. If no lights are on, it’s occupied. If the outer lights are on, it’s off duty. If it’s a livery car or limo—and not a real yellow cab—it’s not supposed to stop, so don’t get in.
Step 4: Avoid busy areas Don’t try to hail a cab just slightly in front of someone else with their arm out—it’s rude. If you’re in an area where lots of people are trying to get cabs, walk a few blocks to a less competitive location.
TIP: New York cabs go off duty around 4:00 in the afternoon to change shifts, which makes finding a free one almost impossible. Try hailing an off-duty cab by indicating with your fingers that you’re only going a short distance—if the cabbie is going your way anyway, he might just take you.
Step 5: Enter and exit on sidewalk Play it safe by always getting in—and out—of the cab on the same side as the sidewalk.
TIP: Only four passengers are allowed in a regular-sized taxi—unless the fifth passenger is under 7 and seated on someone’s lap.
Step 6: Know your rights Know your rights. You have the right to tell the driver which route to take, you can ask him to slow down, and you are in control of the heat, AC, and radio. You are also entitled to be driven anywhere in the five boroughs.
TIP: If the driver says he doesn’t go outside Manhattan, politely contradict him and make a note of his medallion number—located on the window shield dividing the front seat from the rear—so you can report him if need be.
Step 7: Buckle up Buckle up. Better safe then sorry.
Step 8: Watch the meter Watch the meter. When you hop in the cab, the fare starts at $2.50. The meter will increase 40 cents every fifth of a mile (approximately four blocks) or, if you’re standing still or crawling along slowly, once every minute. There is no extra charge for luggage.
TIP: On weekdays from 4pm to 8pm, there’s an extra $1 surcharge. And every night after 8 p.m., there is a night surcharge of 50 cents.
Step 9: Know airport fares Know your airport fares. LaGuardia is a regular metered fare, but you’re also responsible for any tolls along the way. If you’re going from JFK to Manhattan, or vice versa, there’s a flat fare of $45 plus tolls. If you’re heading to Newark airport, there is an extra $15 charge plus return tolls to New York City.
TIP: Note that New York City cabs can drop you at Newark airport, but because it’s out of state, they’re not legally allowed to pick up fares.
Step 10: Pay the fare Pay the fare, and unless you had the worst ride of your life, add a nice tip: cab drivers work hard for the money. 10 to 20 percent tip is customary.
Step 11: Get a receipt Always get the receipt. It has the taxi’s medallion number on it, which will come in handy if you accidentally leave something in the cab.
And before you get out, take a last look around… inside and out.
FACT: There are more than 10,000 yellow cabs servicing the city of New York.

You Will Need

Attentiveness
Some street savvy
Money for the fare
Knowledge of your rights

How to Pretend You’re a Real New Yorker

Howcast — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 19:41:21 +0000

Instructions

Step 1: Scan the local papers Start the day by scanning The New York Times and reading the gossipy Page Six of the New York Post. Forget USA Today – New Yorkers only read that as a last resort.
Step 2: Ditch the map Ditch the map – it’s a dead giveaway! Get the general lay of the land before you leave your hotel, then only take the map out when you can study it surreptitiously – like in a bathroom.
Step 3: Don’t ask for a toilet Speaking of bathrooms, there are hardly any public restrooms in New York, so take advantage of ‘semi-public’ bathrooms in department stores, museums, cafes, and restaurants.
Step 4: Be provincial Be provincial. If anyone mentions anyplace in the country other than Los Angeles, Miami, and Chicago, ignore them.
TIP: Pretend to know everything there is to know about New York City. Make sure to reminisce about the good old days when Time Square was riddled with crime and porno shops.
Step 5: Never drive Never drive a car in the city. Take the subway, a bus, or a cab—or better yet, walk.
Step 6: Walk fast Walk as fast as you can at all times, even if you’re not in a hurry.
TIP: Never stand on the curb waiting for a light. Step off and edge your way into the street until you can cross.
Step 7: Know the cab lingo Know how to give a cabbie directions: New Yorkers never give an exact, number address. They give the street and the cross streets that border the block, like ’50th between 5th and Madison!’
TIP: H-o-u-s-t-o-n Street is pronounced ‘How-stun,’ not ‘Hyoo-stun.’
Step 8: Wear lots of black Wear a lot of black, especially if you’re a woman. It doesn’t matter if Manhattan women are going to work, to a nightclub, or to a two-year-old’s birthday party – it’s always better in black, and it’s always better to err on the side of dressy rather than casual.
TIP: If you must buy a souvenir ‘I Heart New York’ t-shirt, for goodness sake, leave it in the bag. Don’t wear it until you’re home.
Step 9: Eat street meat Eat from the street. No, not dumpsters – street vendors! Yeah, it’s a little scary, but it’s also cheap, convenient, and surprisingly good. And we can’t remember the last person who died from it.
TIP: New York City honors its food vendors with the annual Vendy Awards. Research who won most recently and hit up their cart.
Step 10: Go out late Eat in restaurants after 8 p.m. – before that, they’re either empty or—horror of horrors— patronized by families with small children. Play it safe; have dinner at 9 and drinks at 11.
Step 11: Always be on your cell Always be on your cell phone or checking your Blackberry. Is it rude? Yes. Is it the norm in New York City? Yes.
Step 12: Come back Come back soon! You’re not nearly as annoying now as you were when you arrived.
FACT: Two-thirds of New Yorkers polled said that the holidays are the best time to visit New York City.

You Will Need

A copy of The New York Times
A copy of the New York Post
A quick stride
Black clothes
A cell phone
An outsized ego