Help me prepare for a trip to NY City

General General Discussion
1

I will be traveling by bus to NY City on March 18-22 as a school chaperone for the high school chorus where I teach. This will be the first time I know that I cannot travel with my pistol in a city. What regs exist on carrying a knife or other types of conventional self protection.

I also had questions about dress. I have no idea on what to expect as far as weather is concerned and would appreciate any suggestions.

Also any suggestions on things to see or do that are not the typical tourist attractions that would be appropriate for high school teens.

Anything to avoid?

Thanks for all the help.

2

I ate lunch with some guys from New York(Westchester county) at Knob Creek last year and they said they were restricted to knives less than 1.5" in length. I cant remember if he said that was fixed blade or folding. I know he had a little tiny folder on him, but cant remember if he said fixed could be longer.

Super nice guys, it was just odd to eat lunch with a bunch of New Yorkers at Knob Creek, kind of surreal.

3

I don’t believe that there is a blade length restriction but I know that folding knives can not have any time of assisted opening. Also, if a cop sees the clip, ur pretty much screwed. When I worked in NYC I would have my knife in the small phone pocket inside my pants pocket to ensure the clip will not show. I only have third party stories (thank god) but I am told that if they see the clip, they will stop you and take your knife and try to see if it’s assisted opening. They will hold the handle and try to flick/flip it open. Even if it takes ten flicks and opens partially because of the combination of ten flicks, ur screwed. I’ve been told some will even hold it by the blade and try to flick it open.

Point is, don’t have the clip show.

As for places to go that are not tourist traps, that’s hard, because all of Manhattan other than the residential areas is a tourist trap. I could not walk from work to the Port Authority Bus Terminal without bumping into at least 20 tourists with their heads pointed up instead of looking where they are going.

I would hit up John’s Pizzaria near Time Square. You can’t go to NYC without having real pizza and John’s is possibly the worlds most famous and biggest Pizzaria. You will have no problem seating a buss full of kids.

I’ll try and think of more stuff but it’s difficult to think of places that are not the typical tourist things to do. To me NYC if either for work or to be a tourist. There is little in between.

There are a ton of museums and parks. U can take them ice skating in Bryant Park if the rink is still up, which it should be. The line is not as bad as Roc. Center and you can walk to it from Time Square / John’s Pizzaria, it’s only a few blocks east down 42nd street.

I would say to take the kids to the 9/11 memorial but that is, after all, a bit of a downer. And u would have to leave ur knife at home. Last time I checked they has metal detectors at the entrance.

You could show them Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall. Maybe they have tours. As a group of performers and singers, I’m sure they would get a kick out of that.

Get a group picture at TKTS. It’s a cheap Broadway show ticket sales building that is a glass stairs. People sit on it and look at Time Square. It’s all glass and actually, kinda cool.

You can go down to 18th and West 10th and walk the SkyLine. That’s free. It used to be an elevated train that was converted to a park. Won’t be so green in March but it’s still kinda cool. A lot of walking tho. U can start at the south end and have the bus meet u at the north.

I’ll try to think of more options. But like I said, it’s all touristy unless you are going to an office lol

4

Folding knives are a huge gray area in NYC. Like others have said, even if it can be flipped open using just centrifugal force, it can be considered assisted. To add, if you are doing touristy stuff, a lot will have metal detectors so it will likely be found and cause a headache. Although it sucks, I’d suggest just leaving it home. I think there is some sort of loophole involving folding knives that do not lock in the open position, I believe Spyderco makes a line called the “Slip-It” for example, but I’m not positive if there is actually an exemption.

As for attractions outside of the norm, I’m not much help. When I go to NYC I prefer to hit up the old, but still operational, speakeasies which obviously would not be appropriate for teens. There are about a million restaurants, but since you are with a big group I’d recommend one of the Carmine’s locations. It is family-style, so you just order a bunch of stuff and everyone can grab what they like. Great food.

http://www.carminesnyc.com/

5

Been there one time back in highschool in a similar situation. Our marching band was in the Maceys Day Parade in 1996. We mostly did all the tourist type stuff, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Time Square, Central Park. We went to Radio City Music Hall, and also went to watch Les Miserable. You do have to have some NY pizza for sure while you are there.

6

Yup. If you’re not 100% on the knife laws, don’t take the risk. When I go to NYC (rare since its a flight, but I have family on Long Island), I usually go with a kubotan or an E2D. There’s a great thread in Lightfighter about this right now.

Plus 1 for John’s Pizzeria; there really is no substitute for a genuine New York slice.

The museums, depending on time and day, can be busy, but they’re great. The Intrepid Sea Air and Space Museum is great if you have a lot of military, flight, and space buffs, but not too easy to get to.

Chinatown, Greenwich Village (yes, I said it), and 5th Avenue are neat neighborhoods to walk.

Take the ferry to Weehawken, NJ in the evening. Watch the skyline light up.

Avoid the 9/11 memorial. Nothing against it, but it would be a handful with a bunch of HS students. Same with the Bronx Zoo; very cool, but definitely an all day thing. Empire State Building takes forever, too.

Dress. Mid-late March can be wet, and possibly snowy. Jeans or mid-weight pants, a soft shell jacket, and a hat will do it. Good walking shoes are a must. If it gets too wet or cold, you can always duck in somewhere, or catch a cab or the train (an experience in and of itself).

In the end, if you have limited time, New York is a city that can be explored on your stomach; enjoy the food.

7

NYC is a city that I both love and hate. I hate it for all the reasons that have been discussed here ad nauseam, and yet I do love it for its history, interesting culture, and most of all, food. God would have to grant you eternal life here and now for you to live long enough to try all the good places to eat in New York. Here are some places I would recommend:

Smac: Great little mac and cheese joint. A tad pricey, but really good stuff. The original one is near Union Square if I remember correctly, but there’s a few others scattered around the city.

Angelo’s Pizzaria on 6th Ave. I’m more partial to New Haven style pizza, but Angelo’s is one of the few New York places that I place in my top 5 for pizza.

Avoid Katz’s Deli. The pastrami sandwiches are good, no doubt, but WAY overpriced (usually around $20 for a sandwich). There are (surprise, surprise) a lot of other Jewish delis in NYC that are a lot less and just as good

This may sound funny, but find someone whose look screams hyper liberal, possibly gay, elitist, snobby I’m-better-than-you-because-I-live-in-New-York asshole and ask them their favorite places for whatever kind of food you’re looking for. Now, there’s a chance that they’re vegan and don’t know any place that serves more than kale chips. Or, there’s also the chance they’ll give you a look that says you non-New Yorkers are unwelcome in the city and would not be worthy of them pissing on you if you were on fire. However, there are many who are all too eager to show that they live in New York and know all the good spots and NEVER go to the dumb tourist spots, and they’ll be more than willing to dispense with some good advice on where to eat. :jester:

8

When someone asks you to take their mix tape or to come to their show just keep walking, don’t even make eye contact. People think us NYers are rude but I’m not wasting half my day saying no.
If you don’t keep it moving your in for a conversation and sales pitch that will never end.

9

And everything that’s for sale that’s a killer deal ($40 oakleys) is fake. Make sure your students don’t go spending there lunch money on that stuff… or the mix tapes haha

10

Don’t try to sell loose cigarettes either… Lol.

Just saying.

11

Id hate to go to NY honestly. Id both like it and hate it. Id like to see the pretty views, but when the local commie govt. wont even allow you to carry. No thanks.

12

I should have mentioned that we will be going to two Broadway shows, Wicked and another which escapes me at this moment. We are staying at the Hilton on 35th street Manhattan. 9/11 memorial is on the agenda as well as a night in Times Square. Thanks for the clothing recommendations as well as the restaurants. Keep the suggestions coming.

13

Yes, stay away from Canal Street. It’s all fake and not even good fakes anymore. The NYPD really cracked down and all the “fallen off the truck” designer stuff at 1/10th the price is all but gone.

I would also recommend a ride on the subway. Why the hell not, it’s the largest subway system in the world and not something people outside The NE see every day. Plus, where else can you see a bum shit himself right next to a Wall Street exec wearing a $3000 suit.

Avoid uptown. No need to go above midtown. Yeah the Apollo may be cool but the neighborhood ain’t.

14

Here is a good training vid for just such an excursion . . .

//youtu.be/qk73mJVMp8A

:jester:

15

I went to NYC for the first time two weeks ago.

I didn’t do anything touristy - just ate and drank. Check out Brooklyn Brewery if you’re in the area.

I didn’t think I would like it, but I loved it.

I never felt unsafe.

Dress for the coldest you’ve ever been.

16

Been to NYC many times. Two things come to mind:

  1. Take a surefire defender flashlight: one of the pencil length really bright ones with the semi-sharp edges. You probably will need a flash light if you are out at night anywhere other than Broadway… and that gives you a bonus of at least SOME kind of tool for defense beyond your fists. A defender flashlight is not as “issue creating” as being caught with a blade some policeman decides is dangerous.

  2. Check out Casa Mono:
    http://casamononyc.com/

Make reservations in advance. The food is eccentric, tasty, and expensive so IMHO kids/teens are a waste of money because can’t really enjoy it for what it is. Each entré is small because you are supposed to order two or three to try several things. I understand you asked about “teen” related things, oh well.