Africa
Asia
Caribbean
Central America
Europe
Middle East
North America
Pacific
South America
The Capital of the World? Take a bite and see.
They don't come any bigger than the Big Apple - king of the hill, top of the heap, New York, New York. It's got its fair share of the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses, but it also has world-class museums, big statues, even bigger buildings, outrageous excess, and a whole lot of whooo-wheee!
'New York, you are an Egypt! But an Egypt turned inside out. For she erected pyramids of slavery to death, and you erect pyramids of democracy with the vertical organpipes of your skyscrapers all meeting at the point of infinity of liberty.' - Salvador Dali
New York is a densely packed mass of humanity and all this living on top of one another makes the New Yorker a special kind of person. It's hard to put a finger on what makes the place buzz so hard, but the city's hyperactive rush keeps drawing more and more people to it.
Restrictions on airline carry-on baggage are in place throughout the US. For details check the Transport Security Administration website.
Most of Manhattan is extremely easy to navigate, thanks to a grid system of named or numbered avenues running the north-south length of the island, cut across by numbered streets that run from east to west. Above Washington Square, Fifth Ave and Central Park serve as the dividing line between the East Side and the West Side. Cross-street numbers begin at Fifth Ave and grow higher toward each river, generally (but not exclusively) in 100-digit increments per block. Broadway, the only avenue to cut diagonally across the island, was originally a woodland path; it runs in some form from the southern tip of the island all the way to the state capital of Albany, 240km (150mi) away.
Craning your neck amongst the skyscrapers of Manhattan, it's easy to forget that islands make up most of New York City's land mass. Manhattan and Staten Island stand alone; Queens and Brooklyn comprise the western end of Long Island. Only the Bronx is connected to the continental mainland. The water gap between Brooklyn and Staten Island - the 'narrows' through which the first Europeans entered the area - serves as the entrance to New York Harbor, which is also accessible to ships from the north via Long Island Sound. Manhattan is bordered on the west by the Hudson River and on the east by the East River, both technically estuaries subject to tidal fluctuations.
If you're hungry in New York, you're just not trying - it's a glutton's dream. With around 20,000 eateries, the possibilities are almost endless: you could have dinner at a different restaurant every night for 50 years, running the gourmet gamut from hot dog to Cordon Bleu.
Need a place to rest your head? Your options include some of the grandest hotels in the world, hip boutique hotels, anonymous but bustling mid-price places, cozy private guesthouses and cheaper lodges, some of which can only be described as fleapits.
There isn't a craving that can't be satisfied in New York. Tibetan fur-trimmed hat? Worm-studded lollypops? Thought you'd never ask! The shopping is so good that you might find yourself buying something you thought you'd never need: extra luggage.
New York's novella-length weekly entertainment listings tend to include a favourite performer you never dared dream you'd see live. The city also contains thousands of venues, ranging from poky East Village bars to pulsating mega-clubs or luxurious late-night lounges.
From the top of the Empire State Building to the bottom of a glass in a Manhattan nightclub, New York has it all. For a closer look at the city, wander through Times Square and the streets of Greenwich Village and Soho, check out the Wall Street super traders, or hop on a ferry to Staten Island.
