Eileen Ogintz - The Kids Guide to New York City

Special thanks to my daughter Melanie Yemma and Nora Brown, who was raised in Brooklyn. for their research help. Thanks also to the NYC kids at the American Museum of Natural Historys Lang Science Program for their insights and to CityPASS for the passes that facilitated research.

All the information in this guidebook is subject to change. We recommend that you call ahead to obtain current information before traveling.

Globe

Pequot

An imprint of Rowman & Littlefield

Distributed by NATIONAL BOOK NETWORK

Copyright 2016 by Eileen Ogintz

Illustrations licensed by Shutterstock.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available

ISBN 978-1-4930-2387-5 (paperback)

e-ISBN 978-1-4930-2388-2 (e-book)

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

There is so much to do here that you are guaranteed to have funsports, art, science, music, theater, and more! You can also take your pick of any food. And it will be great.

Check out all the big buildings. This is one place you wont get bored. In fact, theres so much to do ts impossible to do it all no matter how long you stay.

Thats why New York is always tops on kids lists of places they want to visit. Listen to all the different languages that people are speaking. The experts say 160 different ones, everything from Arabic to Spanish to Chinese, Russian, and Hebrew. But New York is also home to millions of parents and kids. Many of them have come from around the world to live here. No matter what they wear or what language they speak, theyre all still New Yorkers.

Whats Cool? You can always find something to eatright on the street. New York kids love soft pretzels from the street vendors. Youll also see vendors and trucks selling kabobs, ice cream, cupcakes, and Italian ice. Visit nyctruckfood.com and take your pick...

How Did New York Get Its Name?

The Algonquin Indians and other tribes were the first New Yorkers, here when Henry Hudson showed up in 1609. He was actually looking for a passageway to the Orient when he stumbled into New York Harbor. Fifteen years later, the Dutch had settled here and named the area New Amsterdam. But by 1674, the English were in charge, and they renamed the busy settlement New York after James, Duke of York.

DID YOU KNOW?

Manhattan is an island just over 12 miles long and 2.5 miles wide.

NYC is shaped kind of like a fish, and to get on or off most of it, you've got to use either a bridge or a tunnel.

Whats Cool? You might be able to be on TV if you get up really early and hold up a funny sign outside a broadcasting studio. Head to NBCs Studios at Rockefeller Center (just off Fifth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets) to join the crowd at The Today Show. You can join the crowd at Good Morning America in Times Square. There are other shows filmed in NYC too. The website nytix.com can tell you how to get tickets.

Ask a New York kid on his way to school or in a museum to point you to the nearest playground or place to get a bagel.

DID YOU KNOW?

New York City is made up of five different boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Nearly 8.5 million people live here-that's nearly double the number of people who live in the whole state of Colorado.

So where do you want to go first? The Kids Guide to New York City helps you have the most fun! Weve asked kids to help, too. Youll see their ideas in every chapter.

GOT A MAP?

Manhattan is split into the East Side and the West Side by Fifth Avenue. Youll hear people talk about the Upper East Side and Upper West Side as if they were different countries! A lot of kids also live in Brooklyn, the Bronx, Staten Island, and Queens. Its easier to understand New York if you think of it as a lot of little neighborhoods. Youll also hear some other funny names of neighborhoods, and if you know what they mean, youre on your way to becoming a New Yorker!

Pick places within one neighborhood to explore at one time. Your feet wont get nearly so tired!

DID YOU KNOW?

New York was the first capital of the US. George Washington was inaugurated here!

New yorkers are really nice, even if they seem like theyre always in a hurry.

Musicians play in NYC subway stations.

SUBWAYS & BUSES

Got comfy shoes? The best way to get around NYC is on footor on public transportation. Subways are the quickestthe first subway car is always the most funbut you can see where youre going on the bus. Make sure youve got a yellow MetroCard to pay for your ride. Check out the big subway maps that are posted in every train station.Its fun to follow your route with a pocket map found at any train stationor check outmta.info and click on Trip Planner. Check out the tile walls along some of the platformstheyre often the work of local artists.