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New York City

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AwakeAndFree

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BTW, those of you who are moving to NYC: welcome. the first thing you'll probably notice will be the grey smoke coming out of the grey sidewalks covered in grey snow. when you look up, you'll see the grey meters, filled with grey quarters, and then the beautiful grey buildings (okay, some are brown or red). you might think that the grey squirrels running on the grey fences are cute, and you might like the song of the grey birds perched on the grey telephone wires.

OK, OK, I know, the cabs and the trafiic lights are not grey(yellow)but the poles, and the hubcaps are.... the mail boxes and trash cans are not grey (blue, green) but the letters or the trash might just as well be. the cockaroaches are brown, but the mice are grey. the pumps are not all grey but most are close to that color.

and hey, on a cold, grey winter day, we really match well :)

have a nice time! and don't forget: I :wub: NY

Edited by Marty McFly
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Hello everyone,

I'm a Norwegian with a strong interest in Objectivism, and will be going to the USA for the first time in my life next month. I'll be staying there over the weekend, from Thursday-Sunday, in New York. As the Norwegian capital of Oslo is but a small village compared to New York, I could use some advice on where to go and what to see while there. It'd be greatly appreciated.

Best regards,

Jan Erik L. Martinsen

Edited by JMartins
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I'll be leaving for New York in a few days now, and this is the list of things to see that I've compiled so far:

General locations:

Times Square (at evening, +the Hilton)

Union Square

Central Park

Wall Street

The Empire State Building (on top, at night)

Brooklyn Bridge

Historical landmarks:

The Statue of Liberty

Ground Zero (former Twin Towers)

The Federal Hall

Stores:

The Rockefeller Center (Atlas statue)

Barnes and Nobles (new books)

Strand Bookstore (used books)

Museums:

The Guggenheim

The Museum of Natural History

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum

Do you have any advice as to where I can purchase old movies, such as the Fountainhead or Boom Town? Is EBay the only option available, or are there any large stores in New York that might actually have them?

Also, I'd be interested in purchasing a small bust of Aristotle for my apartment. Can you recommend a place where I might find one?

If anything vital is missing from my list, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know. Thanks.

P.S. I don't care about restaurants and nightclubs.

Edited by JMartins
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Do you have any advice as to where I can purchase old movies, such as the Fountainhead or Boom Town? Is EBay the only option available, or are there any large stores in New York that might actually have them?
Here's an idea: At BORDERS they will order any book/DVD and hold it for you for store pickup. That link seems to suggest that one do this over the web, something I have not tried, but they're reliable. So, you could locate a Borders store that is close to where you're staying. Then, place your entire order, ensuring that it will be available for store pick-up a couple of days before you hit NYC.

You say you're not interested in restaurant. However, if you want to make a sight-seeing trip of a restaurant visit, you could do a meal in China Town, or the Little Italy area, or something like that.

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  • 1 year later...
Guest Erik Martinsen

I'm going to NYC for the second time in my life, and will be staying there from Tuesday—Sunday. I've planned my visit there very thoroughly, and figure I have time for a few day-trips to other locations in the east/northeast. One day, I'll be going to Washington D.C. Another day, I'll be going to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Do you have any recommendations on other things I, as a person very influenced by Objectivism, might enjoy experiencing not too far from NYC?

Also, assuming I purchase some art while in NYC, how would you recommend I ship it back to Norway? Can I walk into a UPS store in NYC with a bust, or a painting, and pay them to both package and ship it for me? Do they offer some sort of warranty for art items, in case they are damaged while in transportation?

Edited by Erik Martinsen
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Also, assuming I purchase some art while in NYC, how would you recommend I ship it back to Norway? Can I walk into a UPS store in NYC with a bust, or a painting, and pay them to both package and ship it for me? Do they offer some sort of warranty for art items, in case they are damaged while in transportation?

Any art gallery worth its salt will ship it to you themselves and knows how to pack it to avoid damage. UPS absolutely does not know how to pack things. It won't be cheap though. The bigger worry in my mind would be legal BS... customs, tariffs, import/export bans, etc. I'd find out what the rules are in Norway. (I think, though I may be wrong about this, that the US has no duties on exports.)

As for the prospect of damage in transit: I once had something drop-shipped to me (I paid the gallery for a sculpture, and the foundry that produced the edition shipped it directly to me) and the marble base was broken. (It really was drop shipped. :P) Anyhow, the foundry replaced it free of charge. They even paid to ship the broken one back to them. I believe this would have been true if the actual sculpture had been messed up in transit, rather than just the base. I have never had such problems with a print of a painting, but I suspect (do ask!) that one damaged in transit would be replaced by the shop that makes the print; possibly even by the same edition number, once they get the damaged one back. An original painting.... fortunately I've never had any trouble with those! Those are utterly irreplaceable.

It is important in all cases to unpack and inspect the artwrok immediately on arrival, even if you don't have a place to hang it or display it yet. If there is a problem, complain immediately.

Really I think the bigger challenge will be finding something worth the trouble of purchasing and shipping!

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Guest Erik Martinsen

Thank you very much for the sound advice, Steve. :pimp:

I'm interested in purchasing "business casual" attire while in NYC, and would appreciate it if any of the New Yorkers here would recommend me a few clothing stores—I'm sure I'll waste a lot of time without good advice.

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Thank you very much for the sound advice, Steve. :)

I'm interested in purchasing "business casual" attire while in NYC, and would appreciate it if any of the New Yorkers here would recommend me a few clothing stores—I'm sure I'll waste a lot of time without good advice.

One thing to note: If the items you are purchasing are (individually) $110 or less, you will not pay sales tax. At $110, you'll start paying another 8.875%. (If you have time for a side trip to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania charges no tax on clothing!)

Are you looking for high-end clothing? If so, you can find it at shops like Barneys, Faconnable, and Bergdorf Goodman, though you will pay a steep price for it. A step down but still not cheap is Brooks Brothers. And if you want something inexpensive or moderately priced, the Gap and Banana Republic are good choices.

Alternately, try Macy's or Bloomingdale's. The shopping experience will be chaotic, because the stores attract both shoppers and tourists who are there just to gawk, but the selection is large and the prices are often quite reasonable.

Now's a good time to be shopping -- there are many markdowns since people are spending less due to the economy.

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