What to see in New York

Q: I will be traveling to New York in December. Its a first time trip abroad. Please indicate the best sightseeing, the best shopping and how to make my trip a memorable one? - Kgomotso Mojapelo

A: You are lucky to have New York as your first foreign destination, it is a fabulous and exciting city. There are so many options that no answer of mine could do it justice. First, though, let's look at the top attractions in the city: the Empire State building, the Statue of Liberty, the Rockefeller Center (including the Radio City Music Hall), Central Park, Times Square and Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art. These are must-sees for any visitor. One of the easiest ways for a first-timer to get around is to buy a ticket for the double-decker, hop-on, hop-off guided bus tour, which passes all the major attractions. Hop-on and hop-off as many times as you would like to explore, dine and shop along the route. Many of the tickets are valid for 48 hours, so you can really get around. Don't worry if the weather turns sour, your bus will have a covered lower deck or a removable cover for the top deck.

For shopping, Fifth Avenue and the surrounding streets are lined with department stores such as Bergdorf's, Bendel's, Saks, Macy's and FAO Schwarz. Madison Avenue is designer heaven, with all the big names (Calvin Klein, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Giorgio Armani, Prada, Hermès, Chanel and the Polo Store). If you are a keen shopper, you may want to try out the "Sex and the City Tour", where you follow in the fancy footsteps of Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda to conquer New York City! Drink where they drink, shop where they shop, and gossip where they gossip (Must See Tours). There are many such speciality tours - New Yorkers are not short on iniative! The key to a good stay is to find out as much as you can before you leave home. That means reading guide books and to randomly surf the Internet for ideas. Some of the websites you could visit are www.iloveny.com, www.nycgo.com and www.nyc.gov.

Finally, make sure you do things that ordinary New Yorkers do every day, which will give you an idea of what it is like to live in the Big Apple. This ‌includes catching the subway, dining at a deli, taking the free ferry to Staten Island, strolling through Central Park at lunchtime, eating a fresh bagel from a street cart and checking out an off-Broadway show. If you can, investigate as many of the diverse neighbourhoods, such as China Town, Little Italy, Spanish Harlem, Korea Town and Little Sri Lanka, to name only a few. (7 June 2009)