1) Hold onto something at all times.
2) Bend your knees just a little bit while the train is in motion. It helps you keep your balance.
3) Resist the urge to look around too much, and of course it goes without saying that you shouldn’t stare. New Yorkers expect to exist in a state of high anonymity, even when crammed into a subway car like sardines.
4) If you feel compelled to wear sunglasses in the subway system, you are trying much too hard to be cool.
5) It’s okay to ask somebody for help or directions, as New Yorkers have become friendlier in the past several years. But New Yorkers love to give you a zillion different ways to get somewhere via subway, so if you ask an open-ended questions, like “how can I get to Times Square from here?” be prepared to be confused by too many options. Instead, it's better to ask yes or no type questions, like "Is this the train to Times Square?"
6) The subway is safe. It was actually quite safe even in the 80s and early 90s, despite the impression you got from the media. But now it’s incredibly safe.
7) The subway is the easiest and cheapest way to get around town for any distance too great to walk. The $2.00 fare will get you from one end of the subway system to the other--you can theoretically take the subway from Rockaway Beach in Brooklyn all the way to Wakefield in the North Bronx and it will still cost you only $2.00. Not that you’d necessarily want to make that trip, since it will take you two hours. But this is in stark contrast to most major cities (D.C., Paris, London, etc.) where they charge you extra for riding longer distances.
8) Don’t expect to be impressed with the beauty of the NYC subway system. It’s dirty, some of the trains screech painfully loudly, and at times the entire system can truly tax one’s patience (timetables? What timetables?). Instead, try your best to be impressed with the utter utilitarianism of it all.
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3 comments:
If you're gonna listen to your ipod get some new headphones. Using the white ones is like taping a $100 bill to your back.
I think the most important tip of all was left out. If one car in an otherwise full train is empty, there's a reason. Seriously. It normally involves a homeless person, and you will never forget that smell.
Also look before you sit! Seriously. If the car is empty, look. If the car has some people standing but empty seats, look. And most importantly, don't feed the bums! I tried. They don't want your food. They want money.
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