Today, we are taking a 9:30am Amtrak train from Boston to the Big Apple! So, around 8:30am, we headed out of our Airbnb, walked for about 10 minutes to the Tufts Medical Center Station to take SL4 for 2 stops to the South Station.
Time Check: 9am at the Boston South Station
Given how frequently comparisons were made about public transport in Asia versus in the US and how Asia almost always comes out on top, I had pretty low expectations about public transport as well as rail travel in the United States. However, I was pleasantly surprised with my Amtrak experience! Clean trains, spacious seats, charging points at every seat and of course, on-time depature all added together to create a pretty good impression on me.
As much as I can, I always choose train over plane, bus or car for intercity travel. Think about it, there are several benefits to taking trains.
Our train details:
Boston South Station 9:30 am - New York Penn Station 1:47 pm
US$ 49 per adult
We were glad we took train as it afforded us to enjoy beautiful scenery of countryside.
Our initial plan was to stay at AirBnB but we couldn't find a decent, convenient place that was also affordable. While we found some in Harlem, we were told it was not a recommended area, especially for first time visitors. My high school friend had so kindly offered to let us stay at her place in Queens and we were so grateful to her. She even met us at Penn Station to bring us to her place. So sweet!
By the way, Penn Station was huge! There were so many tracks, platforms and many train lines serving this station. We had a hard time meeting up with my friend. Luckily, Mister has a local SIM card with umlimited call, message, data usage for US$ 100. Right after we met up, she advised us to get 7-day unlimited pass for US$ 30 as we would be there for a few days.
By the way, Penn Station was huge! There were so many tracks, platforms and many train lines serving this station. We had a hard time meeting up with my friend. Luckily, Mister has a local SIM card with umlimited call, message, data usage for US$ 100. Right after we met up, she advised us to get 7-day unlimited pass for US$ 30 as we would be there for a few days.
And I must share with you interesting tidbits about the NYC subway - the largest rapid transit system in the world by number of stations (a whooping 469 in total). Did you know it is actually one of the world's oldest subway system, in operation since 1904? Being that old of course means lift and escalators are rarity and staircases will be your friend. We were initially concerned about all these staircases as we would be taking subway with our luggages. But it wasn't so bad, probably because we reached during off-peak afternoon. The good thing about NYC subway is that its services are available 24 hours a day for every day of the year!
http://web.mta.info/nyct/maps/subwaymap.pdf
It was around 3pm when we reached my friend's place in Queens. Our stomachs were rumbling in protest so we dumped our bags and headed out again in search for late lunch. There were a few Asian eateries in Queens so we settled on Chinese restaurant for fried rice. After late lunch at 4pm, we unpacked, showered and dressed up for our first ever Broadway show! We headed into town around 545pm and got first hand experience of the notorious rush hour human traffic of NYC.
Showtime was 7pm but we cut it a bit too close, especially in an unfamiliar city where we were unsure of our way. We still needed to exchange tickets with our PlayBill receipts. Fortunately for us, we made it in time for our show with a few minutes to spare. Let me tell you, I had never walked that fast in my life before, partially to be on-time, and partially due to being pushed by the human traffic flow :D
The Grand Central Station
(Cort Theatre was about 15 min walk away)
(Cort Theatre was about 15 min walk away)
This Is Our Youth
(a play by American dramatist and screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan, which premiered Off-Broadway in 1996 and on Broadway in 2014)
The play explores timeless issues of adolescence and maturity, as well as the Reagan Era in which it is set: the characters feel adrift in 1980s-style materialism (Source - Wikipedia).
Despite not knowing what to expect, both of us thoroughly enjoyed this play. It was an entertaining, witty show, covering the very real issues teenagers and youth faced in today's materialistic world. Some of the jokes were a bit on the crude side for me, but we nonetheless appreciate the raw honesty of this show. I would say US$ 45 well spent.
We then walked around Times Square to just soaked in the famed exciting atmosphere.
We browsed a few stores too. Humongous stores with big discounts - how could we refuse?
It was pretty late and we were not very hungry. For dinner, we chanced upon a store which sell a variety of cooked food by weight. There were many choices and they all looked appetizing. However, taste was another matter altogether :( We quite regretted spending US$ 15 on such lousy meal and were lamenting even McDonald's would have tasted better!
Around 11pm, we took subway line R from Times Sq - 42 St station back to Elmhurst Ave station. That's about it for our first day in New York City.
Stay tuned for the rest of our journey.
Adios!
xoxo
Nandar
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