New York City
Bored of small-town life? Try "the city." New York is a bit intimidating at first, but once you get used to the quicker pace, you’ll learn to love it. There’s a neighborhood for every mood: SoHo for shopping binges, the Village for ethnic restaurants, the Upper East Side for museum- hopping, Chinatown for (what else?) Chinese food. Start by checking out these useful websites.
Resources
Citysearch -- New York, a guide to attractions, events, restaurants and nightlife.
New York, a magazine for navigating New York's social scenes.
New York Convention and Visitors Bureau, 810 Seventh Ave.
New York Times, Travel guide.
Time Out, for event listings.
The Village Voice, for up-to-date cultural info.
Must-See Museums
American Museum of Natural History, 79th Street and Central Park West. No longer just a boring field trip for school children. The museum features a state-of-the-art planetarium housed in the Rose Center for Earth and Space and has 45 permanent exhibition halls on subjects ranging from anthropology to zebras. Tickets to the space show and the IMAX films are sold separately.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave., between 79th and 84th streets. The Met is a must-see if you have any interest in any kind of art, but don't expect to see everything in one visit. Stop by the Egyptian temple and roam through the medieval knights collection. Take in the Met's concert and lecture series. Take a hands-on version of ART 101 and attend the free tours. Wear black if you must. The museum is closed on Monday.
Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), 11 W. 53rd St. MOMA houses the most extensive collection of 19th- and 20th-century art, and is itself housed in a fancy, modern, newly-renovated space. If you go frequently, you might want to check out the student membership, which gives free admission and other perks as well. The museum is closed Tuesday and free on Fridays from 4 to 8 p.m.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Ave. A spiraling staircase leads you through temporary exhibits of contemporary art, and a rectangular tower houses a pretty impressive collection of 20th-century art. Closed Thursday.
Other Museums
Asia Society, 725 Park Ave. When you tire of the Princeton University Art Museum's East Asian collection, drop by this place for an overwhelming but satisfying visit.
The Cloisters, 99 Margaret Corbin Drive, Upper Manhattan, inside Fort Tryon Park. Definitely worth the hassle of getting there. Housed in four reconstructed medieval cloisters, the collection is devoted to the art and architecture of medieval Europe.
Frick Collection, 1 E. 70th St., at Fifth Avenue. Small, but by far the best-arranged and maintained collection. Every piece here, from Rembrandt to El Greco to Turner to Renoir, fits harmoniously into the lavish surroundings.
Guggenheim Soho, 575 Broadway, at Prince Street. A contemporary art museum, featuring some high-tech exhibitions.
International Center for Photography, 1133 Avenue of the Americas, at 43rd Street. Houses more than 100,000 photographs and has a learning center for both beginning and advanced photographers.
Jewish Museum, 1109 Fifth Ave., at 92nd Street. The country's largest collection of Judaica; also features some great temporary exhibits examining different themes in Jewish history and culture.
Museum for African Art, 36-01 43rd Ave., Queens. The museum is in the middle of moving to a new location in Harlem, so most of its exhibits are traveling to locations inside and outside of the city. Check the website for info.
The Paley Center for Media, 25 W. 52nd St., between 5th and 6th Avenues, near Rockefeller Center. Definitely a must-visit if you have a couple of hours free. In this museum, you can browse through their extensive collection of past radio and television shows and pick up to three selections for viewing.
Morgan Library and Museum, 225 Madison Ave., at 36th St. Wander through financial giant Pierpont Morgan's abode. It's a beautiful place to relax for a few hours. There are benefits to being rich: feast your eyes on Morgan's collection of artistic rarities as well as many recent acquisitions.
Whitney Museum of American Art, 945 Madison Ave. American avant-garde and postmodern art.
Theater & Dance
City Center, on West 55th Street, between Sixth and Seventh avenues. Performances by Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, American Ballet Theatre and other groups.
Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Ave. Touted as one of the premier performance venues for dance.
New York State Theater. Part of Lincoln Center and home to the New York City Ballet and Opera. Its box office is located at Columbus Avenue and West 63rd Street. Call (212) 870-5570 for more information.
The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette St. This theater is the home of the New York Shakespeare Festival.
Theatre Development Fund. The largest nonprofit service organization for performing arts in the country. Check the Web for special student deals. They also run the TKTS booth at 47th Street and Broadway in Times Square and a second booth at the South Street Seaport (Front and John streets). Stop in there to get 25 to 50 percent discounts to Broadway shows; the Times Square location sells same-day tickets, and the Seaport location sells matinee tickets the day before and evening tickets the day of. A must-do for the frugal student. Cash and traveler's checks only; check their site for hours.
