Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Hello, everyone, and welcome to the New Yorkers, a podcast by New York City Cop. I'm your host, Kelly Kopp, published photographer, New York City tour business owner, real estate content creator, podcaster, and above all else, a New Yorker. Ladies and gentlemen, the next Brooklyn found.
[00:00:17] Speaker B: Train in Mount Riding. Stand clear of the closing doors, please.
This is Times Square on Sydney street.
[00:00:55] Speaker A: With me today. I have my good friend Wolf Taylor back again for episode two of answering your questions, my friends. Welcome back, Wolf. How you doing?
[00:01:05] Speaker B: Yo, yo, yo. I'm happy to be back, man. Part two.
[00:01:07] Speaker A: Good to see you, buddy.
[00:01:08] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:01:09] Speaker A: Ready to rock this out for sure. This is fun. These are really fun, you guys. Your questions are great. This is really fun. Answering your questions with Wolf.
And we're gonna get on them right now.
So Gally, Feliba, and G. I hope I'm saying your name correctly. G is awesome. She follows me on all my social media and I see her on X too.
So she asks, which neighborhood in the heart of Manhattan is considered relatively quiet?
[00:01:38] Speaker B: It's a lot of neighborhoods in Manhattan.
[00:01:40] Speaker A: What was. Yep. What would you consider the quieter. Quieter areas in New. In Manhattan?
[00:01:47] Speaker B: That's a good question. I feel like is West. West Village is kind of quiet.
[00:01:52] Speaker A: Yeah, I thought that too.
[00:01:53] Speaker B: It's kind of quiet.
You know what I mean? SoHo is kind of. I mean, it's energetic, for sure. Well, it depends on what you mean by quiet, right? It depends. You mean like streets and cars and, like, honking and traffic? Or do you mean like people outside? Energy, kids?
People playing instruments outside? It just depends. I don't know.
[00:02:12] Speaker A: Yeah, that's a hard question.
[00:02:14] Speaker B: Yeah. Tribeca. I don't know. It depends. You know what I mean?
[00:02:18] Speaker A: I mean, anything outside of midtown Manhattan.
[00:02:21] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure.
[00:02:23] Speaker A: Uh, but, you know, there were some neighborhoods. I did a little research.
And so, you know, on the east side, for instance, Carnegie Hill from 86 up to 96.
This is all on the east river, too.
And also Yorkville on the East river. That neighborhood from 79th to up to 86.
So all basically from 79th up to 96th on the east side, on the east river on the east side. Upper east side, I should say. And then upper West Side, 2, Morningside Heights, 110 to 125.
That's where. What Riverside park is, too, which is really nice.
That's a nice park.
[00:03:07] Speaker B: That's a nice park.
[00:03:08] Speaker A: The beauty.
I mean, gosh.
From Morningside Heights in Harlem on the west side, 110 to 125.
These last two neighborhoods are both on the Hudson River.
[00:03:21] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:03:21] Speaker A: So, I mean.
Yeah. I mean, on the. The. The sides where the rivers are, the east river and the Hudson river, almost any.
[00:03:30] Speaker B: That's a good point.
[00:03:30] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:03:31] Speaker B: Anywhere. Any. Any place near the water is going to be a little calmer. Correct? That's true.
[00:03:36] Speaker A: Yep.
[00:03:36] Speaker B: That's actually true. Yeah.
[00:03:37] Speaker A: Yeah. So midtown, even.
[00:03:39] Speaker B: Very expensive by the water, though, mind us.
[00:03:41] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. You're gonna pay a lot of money.
[00:03:42] Speaker B: A lot of money. A lot. Even for a roommate situation, you probably looking at two grand.
[00:03:48] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. Oh, I would. I was gonna say more than that, even.
[00:03:51] Speaker B: Honestly, probably more than that. For roommates.
[00:03:54] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:03:54] Speaker B: Not the house.
[00:03:55] Speaker A: Two roommates.
[00:03:56] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:03:56] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:03:56] Speaker B: 100 some. I've seen rooms go for as much as $2,000 in New York City.
[00:04:01] Speaker A: Well, I was just talking to Wolf, and I won't say what he's paying, but you live in Brooklyn, right?
[00:04:06] Speaker B: Yeah, I live in bed stuff.
[00:04:07] Speaker A: And you live in a brownstone.
[00:04:08] Speaker B: Yep. Garden level.
[00:04:10] Speaker A: Yeah. So he told me it's rent, and I was like.
[00:04:13] Speaker B: Astronomical.
[00:04:14] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah.
Wow. Yeah, That's. That's. That's all. Yeah.
[00:04:19] Speaker B: Not a game. Listen, if y' all got a place you want to sublet.
[00:04:21] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:04:22] Speaker B: You going to France or something for a year, let me know. I'll be there.
[00:04:24] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Okay. That's a great question. Galley. Because we. You know, I really had to think about this, but, you know, it's along. I would say along the Hudson river or along the east river, you know, in Manhattan. On the sides of Manhattan.
Steve Larose and Denise LaRose, they're great friends of mine as well. We've done actually quite a few tours together, and they're doing another tour with me soon in August. Can't wait, you guys. Can't wait to see you again.
They're asking, how long do the cherry blossoms last?
[00:04:57] Speaker B: That's a great question, isn't it?
[00:05:00] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:05:00] Speaker B: While he looks that up, listen. The cherry blossoms are absolutely beautiful. For anybody that's listening and is not familiar, you can go to Central Park. Is a really known. Has a beautiful array of cherry blossoms. You can pull out a blanket, have you a nice lunch, or just sit down, kick it with your friends. People are taking amazing photos.
I don't think they last long. I could be wrong, but all I know is that when they're there, take advantage.
[00:05:22] Speaker A: Yeah.
I think they're two weeks max.
[00:05:25] Speaker B: That's crazy. You gotta take a minute. Yeah. And understand. They're two weeks. That's official.
[00:05:31] Speaker A: In my opinion, from. You know, as. Cause I go out for my Social media every year to get them. And it's a short window. Yeah, it's a really short window.
[00:05:38] Speaker B: There's always a lot of people there waiting. It's something literally waiting in line to take pictures with the.
[00:05:42] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, so packed. Because it's just a small window of time, for sure. You know, I mean, from what I'm aware, there's a. At least there they. They bloom in waves around the city, too.
[00:05:51] Speaker B: They do.
[00:05:52] Speaker A: Not just all at once. I mean, they start April, late March, April, throughout April, but they're in different waves. And. And they are in Central park, obviously.
[00:06:03] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:06:05] Speaker A: They're on Park Avenue.
They're also.
I love them on Long Island City.
[00:06:13] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:06:13] Speaker A: Has some of my favorite, favorite. The trees that, you know, kind of. There's a circle area in Long Island City that's really pretty. Where the ferry pulls up. Exactly. I love it. Like Hunter's Point or whatever.
[00:06:24] Speaker B: Okay. Yeah.
[00:06:25] Speaker A: Stunning. Stunning, stunning. And where's the. Where's the fourth place I always go to? Oh, Roosevelt Island.
[00:06:31] Speaker B: Okay. Oh, yeah.
[00:06:32] Speaker A: And that has Roosevelt Island. Yeah. So they. Did they. They're. They bloom in waves. And I think the. The most prominent cherry blossoms in New York City are the.
Are Yoshino or. Gosh, that's the other one. Yeah. And Kwanzan.
[00:06:48] Speaker B: Oh, man.
[00:06:48] Speaker A: Yeah. So the Yoshino bloom first, and then the Kwanzen are second.
But that's. And. Oh, but also Brooklyn Botanical Garden.
[00:06:57] Speaker B: Oh, of course.
[00:06:58] Speaker A: Oh, my gosh, this is incredible. But they also have these. These, like, weeping willow type cherry blossoms, too. Have you seen those? Gosh, those are my favorite.
[00:07:06] Speaker B: New York has amazing trees.
[00:07:08] Speaker A: Like, we do, don't we?
[00:07:09] Speaker B: I don't think New York gets enough credit for having beautiful, like, plant life.
[00:07:15] Speaker A: I completely agree.
[00:07:16] Speaker B: It's amazing.
[00:07:16] Speaker A: Yep. So what I see here is the Oshino.
Early to mid April.
Exactly. Yep. Perfect. And then the Kwanzen are mid to late April. So I was right.
So, yeah. So they're in. They're in two waves. And the timing is. That's exactly how it is. So you will see beautiful cherry blossoms in the month of April, specifically when you visit. But they do. They do come and go quickly. Yeah, definitely.
[00:07:42] Speaker B: That's dope.
[00:07:43] Speaker A: But, yeah. So. Oh, the weeping willow, the weeping Hagen cherry blossom tree.
[00:07:48] Speaker B: Very beautiful.
[00:07:49] Speaker A: That's what those are called. I love those. I love, love, love those. But, yeah, that's a great question, Steve. So thanks for asking that. Cherry blossom season is probably one of my top things to see in New York every year. I mean, the city is just.
Just you know, coming to life and all the beautiful white and pink cherry blossoms and how beautiful this city is. It's incredible.
[00:08:11] Speaker B: One day I walked around Bed Stuy, and I literally just made a whole, like, Instagram carousel of all the trees I saw walking that day. Everything was beautiful. Purples, beautiful yellows, pinks. Different things that I've never even seen before. It's just. It's. Springtime in New York is such a magical place.
[00:08:27] Speaker A: And what is that? There's also these bright yellow blooms, and I don't know, is it forsythia or is that the name of it?
[00:08:33] Speaker B: I don't know. You know your plants, though.
[00:08:35] Speaker A: Yeah, I'm gonna. I'm gonna get on the old Google real quick. Yeah, I think that's.
Is that it? Am I saying it is? Maybe it's not. A restaurant came up.
That's the name of a restaurant. But, yeah, so, yeah, those are them. So we have forsythia. They have a lot in Central park, which are stunning, too. Like the bright yellow. Can you see those?
[00:08:57] Speaker B: Oh, that's beautiful.
[00:08:58] Speaker A: Yeah, those are really cool. Really gorgeous. Yeah.
[00:09:00] Speaker B: Kelly is a botanist. Y' all.
[00:09:01] Speaker A: We just finding out my night job is a botanist.
[00:09:04] Speaker B: Yeah, that's fire. We need more botanists in the world.
[00:09:07] Speaker A: So here's a question.
Wolf, I'm curious what you have to say about this, too.
I think. I mean, I know what you're gonna say, but in addition, Maria's asking. Maria. Cecilia Bule asks us if we have free health care service.
It says, do you have free health care service or. Everything related to health must be paid.
[00:09:27] Speaker B: You can get free health care in New York City. There definitely are services. There definitely are ways you can go about getting it.
[00:09:36] Speaker A: Depending on your income, correct?
[00:09:38] Speaker B: Of course. Depending on your income, of course. You know what I mean? Me personally, I had free healthcare at one point. At least I thought I did. I had a card, I had everything. And then I had a panic attack, went to a hospital in the Bronx. Somehow I still was charged with a bill of $1,500. I don't know.
[00:09:53] Speaker A: That's crazy.
[00:09:54] Speaker B: So maybe it worked. Maybe it didn't work. They didn't even draw my blood. You know what I mean? They just checked my vitals and EKG and all that type of stuff.
But, yeah, short answer is, yeah, you can definitely find proper channels and resources, for sure. Depending on how much you make, of course.
[00:10:10] Speaker A: Right? Yeah, I'm gonna. I'm add on. On to that, too. That's a really interesting conversation to have. When I do my tours, I Think that's one of the most asked questions from. Because I get a lot of Europeans and Australians, and for the most part, it is challenging, in my opinion, to get health insurance. During the pandemic, a lot of us had insurance, which was nice, but, yeah, it's. It's expensive. It can be expensive, too, depending on your. Your income bracket as well, but it can. It can be expensive. And I was talking to some people.
I was talking to my good friend Jill, who was just here from the uk and she was just. Couldn't believe that we have to pay for an ambulance ride even. You know, she goes, she goes, you guys, she asked me, she's like. I said, yeah, I can just go to the doctor right now with a broken arm and, you know, if I don't have insurance, I have to pay for it. You know, like, you know, most countries in Europe are in Australia. Even Australia, I should say, is they have health care provided, you know, that they pay through their taxes, which is nice, so they never have to think about it like this. But I mean, many people that I now have lost their houses, have declared bankruptcy, have done. Have had some serious financial issues due to not having health insurance, which sometimes is unattainable because of how expensive it is.
So it's a lot of people that, you know, most people do have to pay for their own insurance, unless it's through their job is provided as well. Then that's a good thing if it's provided for your job. But if you work for yourself, you have to get it yourself and it become expensive. There can be issues. I mean, you have to pay for everything. So. Yeah, it's a whole. That's a whole show right there.
[00:11:53] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure. Absolutely.
[00:11:54] Speaker A: With health insurance.
[00:11:55] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:11:55] Speaker A: I mean, it's a sore subject with a lot of people, you know, but some people do have insurance, but again, it's either provided through your job or a lot of times you have to pay through it through your job.
And a lot of times you just. It's hard to get and it's expensive.
[00:12:09] Speaker B: Absolutely. Yeah, it's hard to get, you know, but there are resources, depending on your financial, economic status situation.
[00:12:15] Speaker A: That's a great point. Yeah.
[00:12:16] Speaker B: You know, do. Do the knowledge, do some research. And may peace be upon you with that.
[00:12:20] Speaker A: Yeah, that's. That's a really good point.
[00:12:22] Speaker B: Mm.
[00:12:23] Speaker A: And that's a good question, Maria.
So thanks for asking that too. So, Loretta.
Loretta. Hope I'm saying your name right. Haruba. Ruby. Griner. Reiner. I'm sorry, I'll just Say Loretta. I don't want to say your name incorrectly.
How do you find out if the subway stations, mostly in Manhattan, have elevators?
[00:12:43] Speaker B: Just about every station has an elevator, right?
[00:12:47] Speaker A: Not.
Some do, some don't. Okay, good question.
And a lot of times they are out of service or smell like piss. Yeah. And they're getting. You know, it's. The elevators are a pain. And now that I'm starting to get a little bit older and sometimes I do look for the elevators. They're hard to find sometimes. A lot of times I see one and it's out of service.
So what you can do. And I actually post this, posted this on my Facebook page two months ago.
It's a.
A photo that has a. What's it. What's this called? What's that code called?
[00:13:19] Speaker B: Oh, it's like QR code.
[00:13:21] Speaker A: The QR code. Thank you.
Thanks. So that's funny. What is this called? Yeah, and then it also has a website. It tells you how to check the elevator status from anywhere.
So you can scan the QR code or. Or just google mta.info/elevators, and then that'll tell. Tell you the exact status of the elevators in New York City and also where the elevators are. There's an MTA accessibility map, too. It's www.new.MTA.info accessibility stations, and it shows all the stations with elevators and ramps.
And you can filter it by Burrow Line or ADA Accessibility.
[00:14:05] Speaker B: That's dope.
[00:14:06] Speaker A: So you can. That's a great question.
If you want to ask me on Facebook too, I can post this again because this is really good information.
And I do my tours. Sometimes I just end up taking the bus instead of the subway because it's very easy to take the bus, even with a wheelchair, but the bus, you. It's easier. You don't have to go up and down stairs and worry about the elevators, too. I do like taking the bus, too. There's also an escalator status, too, you can look up, which is not as important, but I do when I see an escalator, I'll take it.
[00:14:37] Speaker B: Yeah, I see less escalators and I see more elevators, in my opinion.
[00:14:40] Speaker A: Yeah, me too. Me too. Exactly. That's a really good point.
[00:14:43] Speaker B: For sure.
[00:14:44] Speaker A: Yeah. So definitely you can check elevator status from anywhere. So just go to the MTA site or you can do the MTA.info/elevators, and that'll give you all the information.
So I hope this helps everybody, because that's a real. That's a very that's probably one of the most answer asked questions I get throughout my day, throughout the, you know, things that I do. So that's a. That's a really important question. They all are, but this one gets asked a lot. My friends, too.
So Nancy Paquin Thearon asks, are they really getting rid of the Metro cards?
[00:15:18] Speaker B: They. They. Are they saying that?
[00:15:20] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. Did you know they are.
[00:15:21] Speaker B: I haven't even heard that.
[00:15:22] Speaker A: Really?
[00:15:23] Speaker B: What are they going to do then?
[00:15:24] Speaker A: They're doing the. They're phasing out the Metro cards and they're replacing them with the Omni cards.
[00:15:30] Speaker B: Oh, I've seen that. Oh, I've seen that. Yeah, the gray machines.
[00:15:34] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. So now they're kind of. Right now they're right next to the old MTA machines. Now, where you get your Metro card, however, this is what I recommend. I think it's going to be at least until the end of the year that the MTA cards are valid. But I say continue to use the MTA cards because you get to keep them and they're going to be collector's items soon.
So I don't use. I'm not going to use Omni until it's completely the only thing that is available.
I'm. If I need to use a card or when I have tourists come here and they want to get their, you know, pay for their weekly, you know, unlimited inexpensive, you know, traveling MTA card or whatever.
[00:16:11] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:16:11] Speaker A: I say get mta, not Omni yet, because you want to use it till it's done, because that's going to be a really cool collectible item.
[00:16:18] Speaker B: Because I'm sitting here thinking, like, you're gonna get rid of the MTA card. That's like, that is part of the culture of being in New York City. One hundred and absolutely. The Omni card is like. Is tasteless, is lifeless, is. It just doesn't have. It doesn't look as interesting.
It looks disposable.
[00:16:34] Speaker A: Yeah, right. There's nothing exciting about it. There's nothing like, oh, this is cool.
[00:16:39] Speaker B: It's not attached to a culture, the MTA cards, even the colors of it. It's attached to culture. So you see it and you know what it's about already.
[00:16:46] Speaker A: That's New York City.
[00:16:47] Speaker B: It's New York City. And regardless, you have to use the car to get on the train. So what does it matter?
I wonder, like, why get away with the mta? It's like, it's still. You're still using a card.
[00:16:58] Speaker A: Right? Right.
My guess, technology wise, it's more modern. And you can. You can tap the Omni card to.
[00:17:05] Speaker B: Make better MTA cards then.
[00:17:07] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:17:07] Speaker B: You know.
Yeah. And make the MTA machines better instead of giving us machines that's been around for, like, 50 years, you know.
[00:17:14] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:17:15] Speaker B: Make them.
[00:17:15] Speaker A: Update them.
[00:17:16] Speaker B: Update them.
[00:17:16] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:17:17] Speaker B: And make the MTA cards have a tap button, you know, but it's like. So they going, no, that doesn't make any sense.
[00:17:23] Speaker A: You know, that's what I like, this perspective. Well, if I really like this, why did they talk to you when they decided to do this?
[00:17:29] Speaker B: They should have talked to me, man. I set him straight.
[00:17:32] Speaker A: No, that's a really good point, because the MTA cards we have now and we've had forever.
[00:17:37] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:17:37] Speaker A: Are. They Are New York.
[00:17:39] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:17:39] Speaker A: And they're a nice collector's item in general. I mean, you can still keep that. You keep them when you leave New York and you'll have them and, you know.
[00:17:45] Speaker B: Yeah. Dominicards are ugly.
[00:17:47] Speaker A: They are ugly.
[00:17:48] Speaker B: They just look like. So regular. It's like, this doesn't look special at all.
[00:17:51] Speaker A: That's true. I thought that, too. That's funny you said that.
[00:17:53] Speaker B: Like, what are we talking about?
[00:17:54] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, yeah, so they're definitely getting ready in the. Rid of them. And then you can get your Omni card and, you know, you can tap your phone, you know, now because your credit cards are in your. Your whatever. You can just tap your phone easily.
But, yeah, sadly, they're getting. They're getting rid of them. But, you know, I started. I actually started buying Metro cards this last few months.
[00:18:16] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:18:16] Speaker A: Just to have.
[00:18:17] Speaker B: I'll buy me one today.
[00:18:18] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:18:19] Speaker B: For real. Give them out to people.
[00:18:21] Speaker A: Buy one ride in that way.
[00:18:22] Speaker B: For sure. Exactly.
[00:18:23] Speaker A: You know.
Okay, so the next question is from Curious Creature, and Curious Creature asked what famous person is from Washington Heights?
And right off the bat, I know exactly who is. Do you know who's from Washington Heights?
[00:18:46] Speaker B: I'm like, is it a rapper?
[00:18:49] Speaker A: It's. He's the creator of Hamilton.
[00:18:52] Speaker B: I don't know.
[00:18:52] Speaker A: Lin Manuel Miranda.
[00:18:54] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:18:54] Speaker A: You know the. The. The musical or the. The movie, which is a musical.
[00:18:57] Speaker B: Oh, for sure.
[00:18:57] Speaker A: In the Heights.
[00:18:58] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:18:58] Speaker A: Yeah. He's the one who created that movie, you know, the play on. On, you know, Broadway.
Yeah, he's. I'm a big fan of him. And actually, yeah, he. That's where I live is where they filmed it. Where did you see the movie?
[00:19:13] Speaker B: I haven't seen it.
[00:19:14] Speaker A: Yeah, where they filmed a movie.
That's where I live, right there on those blocks.
[00:19:18] Speaker B: That's Cool.
[00:19:19] Speaker A: So it's really cool to watch the movie in the bodega where. Who's Navi worked in, where his apartment is or his. Yeah, just. Just down the street from me. And. And then the park they were in, which is J. Hood, right? Park up in Washington Heights. I mean, I. I was watching them film it, and now to watch the movie. It was really cool.
[00:19:36] Speaker B: Yeah, that's one of the.
In New York, like, you really always walking around things that have been documented on film.
[00:19:43] Speaker A: Yeah, well, at the time, I didn't know it was in the Heights. I was just annoyed because I was trying to get home and they're. They're in my way, you know, because, you know, we're not. We're not, you know, thrilled when there's movie sets on our way.
[00:19:53] Speaker B: You know, I love that about New York. Not impressed by anything.
[00:19:55] Speaker A: We don't care. You know what's so funny, Wolf? There was a. There was a Marvel movie being filmed on Broadway, like at 1170 in Fort Washington. 170 in Broadway.
It's this Chinese restaurant in the corner that I like. And I walked by it one day, and in one day it was completely changed into a different restaurant. And I was really confused because I was like, how did they change this in one day? And then the next day I saw all the big, huge movie set stuff around the restaurant on the corner, and it was all blocked off.
And then I found out it was a Marvel movie.
[00:20:31] Speaker B: Yeah, that's crazy.
[00:20:32] Speaker A: And then the next day it was back to normal. It's crazy how they.
[00:20:36] Speaker B: I was at a bar the other day, and there's a. I was. There's this big glass window by the bar, and I'm looking across the street and these guys made this, like, larger than life, like, light reflector to go over this restaurant. I think it's called Los Feliz or Feliz or something. It's right around the corner from here. But anyway, yeah, I've ran. I've found myself walking in the middle of movie sets several times in New York. You just kind of start what's going on? And you start looking around like, oh, they're shooting something. This is probably gonna be on Netflix or something like that.
[00:21:03] Speaker A: What's funny is a few years ago, I was walking down Flatiron district and I was doing a live video, and I. I don't even know how this happened, but I. I started getting yelled at and I. And this guy grabbed me and I. I didn't know what was going On. He's like, you're walking through the middle of a movie set right now. They were mad at me. I was like, how in the hell was I even to get this far?
[00:21:20] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:21:20] Speaker A: You know, I was like, what the heck? You know? Stop walking there in the live video.
[00:21:23] Speaker B: You know, I just thought about. Side note, I don't know if you talked about this already, but we should get a podcast of Kelly giving his recommendations on places to go. Take somebody out on a date.
[00:21:34] Speaker A: I should.
[00:21:35] Speaker B: You should do that.
[00:21:36] Speaker A: You think I would know that?
[00:21:37] Speaker B: You. I mean. Yeah. Yeah, you would.
You would. Like, in your mind, places that be like, you know what?
[00:21:43] Speaker A: I gotcha.
[00:21:44] Speaker B: Like, good places to take somebody on a date. Or like, you can just have an episode of, like, if you want to take your girlfriend or your boyfriend on a day date in New York City.
[00:21:53] Speaker A: Oh, that I would love to do.
[00:21:54] Speaker B: This is how I think you should do it.
[00:21:55] Speaker A: That's a good point.
[00:21:56] Speaker B: Started off like this. You can catch the sunset here.
[00:21:58] Speaker A: Yeah. Oh, man, you're right. I guess I could do that.
[00:22:00] Speaker B: Good coffee there, good drink here, good dinner here. Stroll through the park. And then you could plan it from, like, start from here, and then all the destinations are, like, ongoing. You know what I mean? In a similar direction.
[00:22:11] Speaker A: That's a really good idea.
[00:22:12] Speaker B: Just something came to mind.
[00:22:13] Speaker A: Podcast episode.
[00:22:14] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:22:15] Speaker A: A date. A date in New York City. A day date in New York City.
[00:22:18] Speaker B: That would hit. That would hit, man, that would hit. Cause people that are coming to visit and people that live here, because a lot of people live here don't really know what's going on here, ironically, because they don't kind of stay in their regular routine. And then there are people that are coming in. They want to get the most of it.
[00:22:33] Speaker A: Wow. Yeah, That I definitely could do. That's a great idea.
[00:22:36] Speaker B: That would be a layup for you.
[00:22:37] Speaker A: Maybe you could help me with the podcast too.
[00:22:39] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure.
[00:22:40] Speaker A: Yeah, for sure. You could jump in with your ideas, too. That's a great idea, buddy.
So Mark Hughes is asking, which I'm not too aware of, so I don't even know how, if I could answer this correctly for you, my friend. Okay, this person is asking, is it only the esta we need to have before we come to nyc?
That is something I'm not really too aware of. Have you heard of the esta?
[00:23:07] Speaker B: What is this?
[00:23:08] Speaker A: Yeah, it is from.
If you're coming from overseas, for instance, say you're coming from Europe, there is something they have to get, which is called the esta. It's the electronic system for travel authorization.
So what I found out is yes, travelers to New York under the visa waiver program need to obtain an ESTA before their trip. It's recommended to apply for an ESTA at least 72 hours before travel. According to the Department of Homeland Security, the ESTA is an electronic travel authorization that allows eligible travelers to visit the US for tourism, business, or transit purposes for up to 90 days.
So from what I'm aware, that is the only item you need, my friend. But I don't want to be quoted specifically on that because that is something I don't know enough about. And I'm glad you asked because I didn't know much about it and I will find out more about it. So if you actually want to email me, Mark, at New York citycop, you know, N, E, W, Y, O, R, K, C, I, T, Y, K, O, P, p, mail dot com. I can give you more answers and I'll find out more information.
But from what I understand, that is all you need, my friend.
That's a good question because that's the first question I never. I didn't know either. I had to look it up. I didn't know what it was. But I see you guys talking about it, so I should know about it more, you know, on my social media and across, you know, the Internet on New York City pages. So that's a. That's a good question. Obviously, you know, and they're all good questions.
So Judy McGrath wants to know what are the best places to see? Wolf? Not necessarily the popular tourist sites. Do you have any you like to go see?
[00:24:53] Speaker B: Best places to see?
[00:24:54] Speaker A: Yeah, that would not be, like, known as tourist sites.
[00:24:58] Speaker B: So one thing I'm into, I'm into parks, and I'm into being next to water.
[00:25:03] Speaker A: So it kind of falls into line, what I'm about to say.
[00:25:06] Speaker B: Yeah. So, like, some places that I like. A lot of people don't know about that. Again, I'm giving up another gym. I don't want to give it up because it's never crowded when I get there.
But Busch Terminal, which is like kind of.
[00:25:17] Speaker A: I don't know, it.
[00:25:18] Speaker B: It's kind of like near the Prospect park area. Just that kind of that area. Like, it's like an area where you can take, like, the N or the Q or the R and like, almost like Sunset park area.
[00:25:29] Speaker A: Oh, I love Sunset Park.
[00:25:30] Speaker B: Yeah. So it's like, not too far from there. You could walk here from Sunset Park.
[00:25:33] Speaker A: This is in Brooklyn. Brooklyn, yep.
[00:25:34] Speaker B: Yeah. And I Love Busch Terminal because it's right by the water in such a way.
[00:25:39] Speaker A: What is it? I don't even know it.
[00:25:40] Speaker B: Bush Terminal. And it's like endless. It's like instead of being usually like when you're near the water, you're near a pier in New York City. You're by the river, connected to the ocean. But when you're at Bush Terminal, it's like, it's the. All across is the ocean. It's like you're right there in the ocean. I find an area right past the soccer field where there's these jagged edge rocks. But there's so many rocks.
Everybody goes down there. I'll go all the way there with a drink and a sandwich and I'll watch the sunset or something like that. You know what I mean? So.
[00:26:09] Speaker A: Pretty cool.
[00:26:10] Speaker B: Yeah. It's a fly area. You know, the sky is completely above you. There's no buildings on the horizon line blocking your point of view.
[00:26:17] Speaker A: I know the area.
[00:26:18] Speaker B: You get what I'm saying? You can see the Statue of Liberty from there.
[00:26:21] Speaker A: That's nice.
[00:26:22] Speaker B: Yeah, so that's. That, that, that's a good place. I know a lot of people don't know about because I always go there and I'm never competing for space.
[00:26:28] Speaker A: That's nice. Well, now you just change that.
[00:26:30] Speaker B: Like.
[00:26:34] Speaker A: A couple places that I like too, that are in Midtown that are just little hidden gems that you can just zip to quickly. You know, from, like if you're in that area too is there's two.
There's two waterfalls in Manhattan.
There's one called Paley.
Paley Park. It's not really a park because it's only like a little space, but it has a waterfall, a man made waterfall, obviously.
And it has some tables and chairs there, but it's on 53rd street in between 5th Avenue and Madison.
It is just this really cool space of this really beautiful waterfall.
And it's a hidden gem. People walk right by it and they don't even know about it. And I think that's a really amazing spot to go to. And there's also another park with a waterfall that I've done a live video on too recently, which is called Greenacre park.
And that's on East 51st again on the east side, on 51st, between 3rd and 2nd Avenue. And that has this beautiful space.
[00:27:41] Speaker B: Oh, nice.
[00:27:42] Speaker A: I'm showing Wolf a photo.
[00:27:43] Speaker B: This is really beautiful.
[00:27:44] Speaker A: Yeah, it's Green Acre Park.
It has these chairs you can. You can sit around. There's all these tables and chairs and Then there's like a. A cafe right here that has like 100 items. Like one of the biggest menus I've seen for lunch or even breakfast.
[00:28:00] Speaker B: Oh, wow.
[00:28:01] Speaker A: It's insane.
[00:28:02] Speaker B: Yeah. I gotta check that out.
[00:28:03] Speaker A: It's a beauty of a space, you guys. It's called Greenacre Park. That's when you walk in, seeing.
[00:28:09] Speaker B: Yeah. It's giving a lot of green life. It's giving botanist vibes.
[00:28:12] Speaker A: Yeah, it is. It's definitely. It's really cool. That's one of my favorite spots.
And those are just, you know, two little spots on the. On the east side.
And there's another spot, Jay. It's like a little secret treehouse oasis and the heart of nyc. And it's. It's. I love it. It is in the East Village between avenues B and C.
And it's this awesome, beautiful park that has this tree house in it. And it's like this oasis too, in the middle of the.
Of the East Village. And it's all this lush greenery and trees and you see birds there and things like that.
[00:28:54] Speaker B: There's books in the tree house.
[00:28:55] Speaker A: Yeah, there's books. Yeah. You've been there?
[00:28:57] Speaker B: Well, I've seen it so many times. Wanted to go. I always miss it.
[00:29:00] Speaker A: It's really cool.
[00:29:01] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:29:02] Speaker A: Yo, I've been there a couple times. I love it.
[00:29:03] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:29:04] Speaker A: Another spot I love is people might think is interesting too. Is. Is it Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn? Is that the name of it?
[00:29:14] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:29:16] Speaker A: Greenwood Cemetery has these parrots that are wild parrots. And they have found a home in Greenwood Cemetery. And right there, right at the entrance, and there's this huge nest of these parrots.
[00:29:32] Speaker B: Are you serious?
[00:29:33] Speaker A: Yeah, it's. It's amazing.
So Wolfter Monk parrots, also known as Quaker parrots, and they established a thriving wild population in Brooklyn. Yeah. At the. At the beautiful Greenwood Cemetery. They arrived here. It's funny because you just said, what? Like, how do they survive the winter?
They arrived in New York in the 1960s.
[00:29:54] Speaker B: Oh, my God.
[00:29:55] Speaker A: And I think it's after a shipment from South Africa escaped at JFK airport. And then they found their home at Greenwood Cemetery. And they've been there ever since. And you can see them when you go there. But the cemetery is beautiful too. And backtracking to cherry blossoms. Some of the most beautiful cherry blossoms of Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn.
[00:30:12] Speaker B: Cemetery's got good trees.
[00:30:13] Speaker A: Yeah, that's about they do.
We have beautiful cemetery. The ones we have in New York. They're huge.
[00:30:19] Speaker B: The dead people got the best plants.
[00:30:20] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:30:21] Speaker B: For Real.
[00:30:21] Speaker A: They're the best scenery, don't they?
[00:30:23] Speaker B: They got the A. For some people who can't see it, the view sure is nice.
[00:30:27] Speaker A: Yeah, it's. Yeah, it is really beautiful. And they be. They build these large stick based. Stick based nets on utility poles within the.
The buildings. They're right at the front entrance to their. Right there.
[00:30:39] Speaker B: That is insane.
[00:30:40] Speaker A: Yep. And they've adapted well to the city environment, surprisingly, surviving winters and coexisting with residents.
[00:30:46] Speaker B: I'm gonna go catch one.
[00:30:49] Speaker A: Wolf. That's hilarious, man. That's. That's hilarious.
But that's a really cool, you know, hidden gem that people don't know about as well. So if you want to take the trek out to Brooklyn in Greenwood Cemetery and check it out, I recommend it. Okay. The next question, my friend, we're. We're getting towards the end.
Jim Keywork asks, how do I get your podcast?
That's a great question. You can find my podcast on all audio streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Pandora. What else is there, Wolf?
Oh, not YouTube. That's a. That's a great question or a great point. YouTube? Not yet.
It's because it's only. Well, I guess we could do it if it's only audio, but I just haven't done it on YouTube yet.
But you know any other audio streaming platform that you can think of?
So. Yep, even Google.
So Google. Google streaming or whatever it is. So. Yeah. So thanks for asking that.
So, Hanza Bures. I hope I'm saying your names right. My friend is asking, is Pier 17 a very well known place?
And I'm going to ask Wolf if he knows what Pier 17 is.
[00:32:03] Speaker B: Let me look it up just to refresh it because I go to a lot of piers. Let me see some piers. I do like. I like Pier 25. It's in. Pier 25 is like battery Park, I think.
[00:32:13] Speaker A: Oh, I don't know that one.
[00:32:14] Speaker B: It's fire. Oh, my God.
[00:32:16] Speaker A: 25.
[00:32:16] Speaker B: Fire.
Fire.
[00:32:19] Speaker A: And I, I'm the pier expert.
[00:32:21] Speaker B: Are you the pure God?
Oh, pier seven, pier 17. Is that what they said? Yeah, I went to a concert at Pierce.
[00:32:29] Speaker A: Exactly. I was gonna say that.
[00:32:30] Speaker B: It was amazing.
[00:32:31] Speaker A: I love Pier 17. I think it's getting to be pretty well known, my friend. Hanza.
It's down at the end of Fulton Street. If you're at World Trade center at the Oculus or the literally like one World Trade right there is where Fulton street starts. So you put your back to World Trade center, you walk straight down Fulton street to the end to the East River. And right there, you're gonna see Seaport, Pier 17, and also the Tin Building. All that right there. The Tin Building is new within the last couple years. It has all these restaurants. It's really nice. Have you. Have you seen the Tin Building? Yeah, it's beautiful inside.
You know, it's beautiful or trendy now because they just filmed last year, you know, not Sex in the City, but in. Just like that in that building. So they did an episode, you know, part in there. So, you know, it's. Yep. Or whatever they say. Pier 17 is incredible.
[00:33:20] Speaker B: Pier 35 is dope, too.
[00:33:21] Speaker A: That's a good point. Because if you just walk from Pier 17 up to Pier 35, past the Manhattan Bridge, that's where those huge metal swings are. Have you seen those?
[00:33:29] Speaker B: Yeah, exactly. Yeah.
[00:33:30] Speaker A: I love those swings. It's super popular at Sunset. Yeah, you'll get millions of views with that post thing.
[00:33:35] Speaker B: The piers at Wall Street. I don't know. I don't remember which ones they're called, but it's like, right by the ferry. You can take the ferry. You could take that pretty much anywhere, really.
[00:33:45] Speaker A: Oh, you mean like at the Staten island ferry?
[00:33:47] Speaker B: No, like, so there's a pier right. Right at. Right by Wall street. By the water. Like, right by, like, 161st Water Street.
[00:33:54] Speaker A: Oh, I don't know it. I know that the New York City ferry kind of goes right there in that area.
[00:33:59] Speaker B: Yeah, so they do. You can. You can. You can catch a nice little ferry over there. What pier is this?
[00:34:03] Speaker A: Oh, I don.
[00:34:05] Speaker B: Oh, is it. It's pier 15, I guess.
Oh, just like, right by 17. So anyway. Yeah. You're in good company.
[00:34:11] Speaker A: Oh, I do know that. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[00:34:13] Speaker B: Oh, Pier four, five, six, and seven.
[00:34:15] Speaker A: Where are those?
[00:34:17] Speaker B: They're in Dumbo.
They're in Dumbo. And they're like. They're all connected.
[00:34:21] Speaker A: Oh, yes.
[00:34:22] Speaker B: Yeah. So there's like, the basketball court.
[00:34:24] Speaker A: Exactly.
[00:34:24] Speaker B: There's the soccer field right there.
Fire. You know what I mean? Like, you can play.
Not volleyball. You can play pickleball there. It's like. It's amazing. Yeah.
[00:34:34] Speaker A: And one of them is, like this huge l. Lush green area. You can just get 100.
[00:34:38] Speaker B: Just trees.
[00:34:39] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:34:40] Speaker B: And they're all. They're all separate.
[00:34:41] Speaker A: Boom, boom, boom in a row.
[00:34:42] Speaker B: Yeah, they're all separate, but you can. You can. Like, everything is kind of like a U connected to a line, if you can imagine. Like a line, Right. Then everyone has a U, so you do a loop. Then you get back to the line. Do another loop. Yeah, it's beautiful. It's amazing.
[00:34:52] Speaker A: Oh, my gosh. I'm glad you brought those up, Wolf, because you can see the one with all the sports area first. That's all open. Basketball and athletics. Hockey. Athletic stuff. Yep. As you're looking at this beautiful skyline of lower Manhattan.
[00:35:05] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:35:05] Speaker A: And then you continue to, you know, you can check that out. And then you move up to the next pier. Or down, I should say.
[00:35:11] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:35:11] Speaker A: And then in succession, there's four. Like you said.
The last one is the one that's all like lush and greenery and you get lost.
[00:35:18] Speaker B: It's a different vibe depending on what. You're super cool, you know, but it's all cool to look at, though. So even if you don't want to play basketball or play tennis. They got tennis available. Yeah. Pickleball, whatever. Ping pong. You can just check it. Just. Just walk through everything.
[00:35:29] Speaker A: Yeah, it is. Really. That's a. I'm glad. That's a really good.
[00:35:31] Speaker B: Get you a nice sandwich, get you a nice beverage.
[00:35:33] Speaker A: You know, people don't know about that. That's a good one because that's all locals, mostly.
[00:35:36] Speaker B: It's so nice.
[00:35:37] Speaker A: Yeah, it's really nice. So if you're walking, you know, if you're in Dumbo, Brooklyn Bridge park area. Yeah, it's just the south end of Brooklyn Bridge park, basically. You know, so if I can.
[00:35:49] Speaker B: I just want to say something. Wherever the locals are, that's the best place to be.
[00:35:54] Speaker A: I agree.
[00:35:54] Speaker B: You know, and that's subjective. That's very subjective. But wherever the. Whatever the locals are doing, you're going to get a lot of value out of that one. You're not competing because there's not. It's not, you know, there's not a lot of people there. You know, I mean, it's just the people that live in the area who are just looking to have a peaceful day in their week. And so wherever you can find the locals, that's a good place to be.
[00:36:16] Speaker A: I agree 100%.
Yep. I say that. I say that too. Sometimes I think that's where the locals are. That's the cool spot to be.
[00:36:24] Speaker B: Yeah. Whenever I'm showing people around New York, I always tell them, like, when you're with me, you're gonna. It's gonna feel like you live here.
[00:36:30] Speaker A: For a couple days. Yep. No, I like that. I like that.
[00:36:33] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:36:33] Speaker A: You know what I like about Pier 17 too, is there's. Ironically, it's a tourist area too, but there's a lot of Locals. Because when I go there around 6pm A lot seems to be the time I'm there. Just by coincidence or chance, it's every. All the people who live in that area with their dogs.
[00:36:48] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:36:49] Speaker A: So they're all down by that. Those big clipper ships down by the wooden area.
[00:36:53] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, for sure. Yeah.
[00:36:54] Speaker A: And so it's all dogs running around and playing, you know, every. Like every night around 6, 7pm it's really cool.
[00:36:59] Speaker B: Yeah. I got bit by a dog yesterday.
[00:37:01] Speaker A: What?
[00:37:02] Speaker B: I have a bruise on my body right now.
[00:37:05] Speaker A: Why? Like, I mean, where.
[00:37:07] Speaker B: How, yo? I was just walking through Brooklyn and the lady had the dog on a leash, seemingly regular. So the dog had like this thing around his body, I guess, saying like, he just got rescued or whatever. But I'm like, this dog. Dogs are off leashes in New York all the time. That's another thing you can know when you're not from New York. There's almost no place in America where you'll see dogs just so frequently running around without a leash. True, but in New York, that's a normal thing, no matter where you at in New York. And somehow the dogs just know not to run into traffic or something like that. But anyway, this dog was on a leash walking past, and then the dog just bit me. And it took me a minute. I didn't really register until 30 minutes. I was like, down the street. I was like, yo, the dog bit me.
[00:37:44] Speaker A: What kind of dog was it?
[00:37:45] Speaker B: It was a small dog, a small one, but he. But he really bit me and it was sore. I went home and then I looked at it. I was like, oh, my God, like, it really bit me.
I got attacked by an animal. You know what I mean? So first time for everything.
[00:37:58] Speaker A: Did it bark or how'd this happen?
[00:38:00] Speaker B: It was barking, but it was just like, that's what dogs do, though, you know? And I was. It was. I was on the sidewalk, so I was close, but not that close, though. And it just reached out and literally put teeth on me. And it hurt in the moment, but I was just thinking like, yo, like, what? And then as time went on and I went home and I looked and I was like, yo, it really bit me. Like, I really got bit by an animal. That's crazy.
[00:38:20] Speaker A: That is crazy.
[00:38:21] Speaker B: I got a bruise on my body right now.
All right, man, that nuts.
[00:38:24] Speaker A: It's funny, but it's not.
[00:38:25] Speaker B: No, it's hilarious. It's actually.
[00:38:27] Speaker A: I feel bad.
[00:38:28] Speaker B: Yeah, it's crazy.
Anyway, shout out to the dogs.
[00:38:32] Speaker A: Shout out to the dog. You're just like, yeah, whatever.
[00:38:35] Speaker B: But I mean, it's like what I'm doing, you know, It's New York.
[00:38:37] Speaker A: Wow, that's. That's just.
Just how you're handling it. You're like, yeah, I got bit by a dog.
[00:38:41] Speaker B: Yeah. It's crazy. It hurt.
[00:38:45] Speaker A: Let's go back and look for that dog, man.
[00:38:47] Speaker B: I swear, I was like, man, if I get rabies, how am I find the person?
[00:38:50] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:38:51] Speaker B: Dang. Who? I'm a blame.
[00:38:52] Speaker A: I mean, that's a. It's a good point. Yeah, that's a really good point.
Okay. So thank you, Honza, for asking that. Hey, Loretta. I feel like I'm on a live video. Hey, Loretta. That's how I said it.
[00:39:05] Speaker B: Loretta.
[00:39:05] Speaker A: Hey, Loretta. Loretta asks Harubi, I want to say your name right. I'm so sorry if I don't say your name is right, my friend. Loretta. Harubi.
Loretta. We'll just say Loretta.
[00:39:16] Speaker B: Loretta. You know who you are.
[00:39:17] Speaker A: Yeah. Have you ever had any close calls with traffic or cyclists while doing a live video?
Not with traffic, but with cyclists? Yes. And I even say, you know, I. I've yelled a couple times. My bad. I know better. I live here. You know, that's what I say. Because it's funny, when you say my bad in New York, instantly you get no worries. Like, no problem. You know, that's what. That's what I love about New Yorkers. Like, if we, you know, we don't say I'm sorry, we say my bad, mostly. And which means I'm sorry, obviously.
[00:39:48] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:39:49] Speaker A: But that's all we need to hear.
[00:39:51] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:39:51] Speaker A: That's all we need to hear is some sort of considerate My bad.
[00:39:54] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:39:54] Speaker A: And then no matter what collision or something happens, it's like, oh, you're good.
[00:39:58] Speaker B: No, it softens the blow.
[00:39:59] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:00] Speaker B: Just let me know that, you know, that you was out of line.
[00:40:02] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:02] Speaker B: And then we can keep it moving.
[00:40:03] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly.
[00:40:04] Speaker B: Because if you don't know, you out of line. Now we got to have a conversation.
[00:40:07] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:07] Speaker B: So it's like. Yeah, it just helps. It helps a lot.
[00:40:10] Speaker A: You know, when I hear my bad, I'm like, oh, yeah, no worries.
[00:40:12] Speaker B: Yeah, you're mindful.
[00:40:13] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:13] Speaker B: It just means you're mindful. It's like, thank you for being a mindful person. Because if you're not being a mindful person, that means you're kind of being a jerk.
[00:40:19] Speaker A: And I find that New Yorkers are very mindful. I mean, we get some rap. We are. I. I hear my. A lot of times when Someone says, my bad, or whatever. I know it's a New Yorker who's like, oh, I'm sorry. You know, New Yorkers will walk around my me when I'm taking a photo.
[00:40:33] Speaker B: Yeah. 100.
[00:40:34] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:34] Speaker B: What? That is so true. Happened to me yesterday. I was at this bar and I was trying to record a video, and I was right by this car. This guy was waiting. I thought he was passing by. He was waiting to get into his car. I was right.
He's being mindful.
[00:40:47] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:40:48] Speaker B: You know what I mean? The only people that are not mindful are the tourists.
If you ever see a person not being mindful, they're not from here.
[00:40:56] Speaker A: I. Yes.
[00:40:57] Speaker B: That's just kind of.
[00:40:58] Speaker A: And I love our tourists, but.
[00:41:00] Speaker B: No, we love it.
[00:41:01] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:41:01] Speaker B: The city would not.
[00:41:02] Speaker A: I know. You do, too. Well, yeah. But I do notice that they are New Yorkers who stop and wait for you to do your thing.
[00:41:09] Speaker B: For sure.
[00:41:09] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:41:09] Speaker B: And for the tourists, it's like, it's a good practice to keep in mind, like, if you ever want to continue to visit New York or you ever want to live here one day, one way you could assimilate very comfortably into the city is just being mindful. You know, and that's something that you don't have to worry about in other cities because you got your car and there's not a bunch of people walking all the time. But here, you know, stepping out the way to take a picture, not stopping in the middle of a sidewalk so people can comfortably get to where they're going because they're probably running late for work or something. These things are my.
[00:41:37] Speaker A: Don't walk, like all five of you taking up the whole sidewalk or all.
[00:41:41] Speaker B: Four of you, because that happens a lot.
[00:41:42] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. It's like it's. Yeah, it's. It's. You're trying to get around.
[00:41:45] Speaker B: It happens a lot, especially on Canal Street. Like, people are moving at their own leisurely pace, but people around you are zipping and zooming because they trying to get somewhere. You know, so just mindfulness.
[00:41:54] Speaker A: It's funny.
[00:41:55] Speaker B: Yeah, it's mindful.
[00:41:56] Speaker A: Mindful is correct, my friend.
So Lydia Steinfeld Killian is asking, do people need a vendor's license to sell? Are they?
Or do they find a spot and just set up?
[00:42:09] Speaker B: It depends on who you asking in New York City. Because one thing you're going to notice about a New Yorker, they gonna set up shop wherever they feel like. Go to Washington Square Park. Ask them, do they have vendors, vendor's license.
[00:42:19] Speaker A: Right. I completely agree.
[00:42:21] Speaker B: Probably not you know what I mean? So it depends on who you're asking.
[00:42:24] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:42:25] Speaker B: The spirit and motivation to make a dollar is strong in New York.
[00:42:28] Speaker A: Yeah, 100% true. I completely get it.
But in general, just in case, Wolf, you must have a general vendor license to sell, lease or offer to sell or lease goods or services in a public place that is not a store.
You do not need a general vendor's license to sell newspapers, periodicals, books, pamphlets or other written matter, just so you know.
But the city issued permit usually cost around 200 bucks.
So it's, it's not too bad.
But this is the, this is the problem or the challenge if you want to set up your spot and a very popular spots like say, Times Square, you know, Central Park. A hot spot. Grand Central, Grand Central terminal area. A very, you know, high tour. Very, very, very high tourist area.
[00:43:21] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:43:21] Speaker A: I mean, you can spend up to thousands of dollars. You know, just. It is, it can get really expensive.
Really? Really? It's like $50 for a new application every year or, I'm sorry, $50 for a new application and $60 for a renewal every year. And then there's other little, you know, protection like food protection courses, like 53 bucks. But the total cost can range, depending on the area, from $15,000 to $30,000.
[00:43:48] Speaker B: You better be making, you better plan to make a lot of money.
[00:43:51] Speaker A: That includes permits, vending, health compliance and parking and all that.
[00:43:54] Speaker B: Goodness.
[00:43:54] Speaker A: But isn't that insane?
I mean, $30,000, that's like, it's like.
[00:44:00] Speaker B: You would think I was asking to rent out the park.
[00:44:02] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:44:02] Speaker B: You know what I mean?
[00:44:03] Speaker A: Yeah. But the, the amount of money that these vendors make in these high, you know, traffic spots are hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
[00:44:11] Speaker B: You think so?
[00:44:12] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. Because I have a friend who has a spot down my Grand Central Terminal.
[00:44:15] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:44:16] Speaker A: He makes bank.
[00:44:17] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:44:17] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:44:18] Speaker B: Because to me it just be looking like they'd be outside all day waiting.
So the whole time they up and I didn't even know it.
[00:44:23] Speaker A: Summertime, they are cranking. Yeah, yeah, that's a real. That's a great question, Lydia. Really great question.
[00:44:29] Speaker B: Just make sure it's a smart investment before you do it.
[00:44:31] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, exactly.
[00:44:32] Speaker B: Make sure you know you're gonna get that money.
[00:44:33] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly.
So the last question, Wolf, is from Melody Kelly. Are taxis as numerous as they used to be or did Uber and Lyft cut into their business?
It seems like I don't see a lot of taxis anymore flooding the streets like I did back in the day. Well, that's a great question. Another great question. And that is true. You do not see taxis as much as you used to. I think from what I understand it, they're down to 50% of what you used to see.
And, you know, Ubers and Lyfts and, you know, even pedicabs have really taken over, so.
[00:45:04] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:45:05] Speaker A: Yeah. So that. That's very true.
[00:45:07] Speaker B: Yeah. So much so to the point now where taxis are waiting outside of airports offering rides to people if they haven't already caught an Uber or a Lyft, you know, and, like, that's really the only places that I really see them outside of, like, Midtown and, like, that part of New York. I don't see taxis in Brooklyn at all. Yeah, you know, I mean, I don't see them in Harlem. I don't see them.
[00:45:28] Speaker A: The place you can see them mostly, I think, is Park Avenue and. And Times Square.
[00:45:32] Speaker B: That area exactly where it makes sense to see them.
[00:45:35] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, the peak taxi. Peak taxi numbers were around 13,500 in 2014, but now it's down to 8,000.
[00:45:44] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:45:45] Speaker A: So it's almost half.
[00:45:46] Speaker B: I believe that.
[00:45:47] Speaker A: Yeah. Isn't that crazy?
[00:45:48] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:45:49] Speaker A: And many of the drivers themselves have just switched to Uber and Lyft due to flexibility and less overhead and things like that, for sure. So, I mean, there is a benefit to do an Uber and Lyft, so.
But, yeah, so, yeah, you've seen a lot, lot fewer taxis. You're 100. Right. So, you know, great question, but, you know, I guess from the COVID 19 shutdown, that really affected, you know, people's pockets and they couldn't pay for their taxes anymore, too. So. Yeah, there are some factors in the last few years that really added to the decline.
[00:46:24] Speaker B: Shout out to the taxis out there still on the ground trying to get to a dollar, man. Yep, we see you out there.
[00:46:29] Speaker A: You know, I respect our taxi drivers. I mean, all of our public service, any public transportation. You know, I just. I just hopped in a taxi to see the cherry blossoms. Right. I wanted to hop in a taxi and then drive down Park Avenue to see the cherry blossoms, you know, with. And video that. But I was a few days late, and so there were no cherry blossoms.
[00:46:49] Speaker B: Oh, man.
[00:46:49] Speaker A: But I still, you know, I still did a ride and I posted it. Yeah, for sure. You know, I tipped the guy good, too, because, you know, I'm like, I just want you to stay in this lane and drive down Park Avenue, you know, go around Grand Central Terminal and end down, like, at 25th. And he did. He was. He was really cool.
[00:47:04] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:47:04] Speaker A: I asked him to play this certain music and.
[00:47:06] Speaker B: Oh, nice.
Yeah. You know, community works together sometimes.
[00:47:10] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly.
Okay, everybody, thanks for your questions. I hope we answered them for you in a way that you are happy.
And thanks, Wolf, again for doing this.
[00:47:22] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:47:22] Speaker A: We'll do that. We'll do that. I like that day date type info podcast episode.
[00:47:31] Speaker B: That'll be a good one.
[00:47:32] Speaker A: And we'll ask our guests, what do you guys think about that? You think you want to hear? You want to hear about that too?
Thank you for joining us today for this week's episode of the New Yorkers podcast. My friends and Wolf, why don't you let everyone know where they can find you on your social media?
[00:47:47] Speaker B: Yeah, guys, so my name is Wolf Taylor. You can find me@underscore, Wolftaylor, and I am at the Halfway up podcast. Call it Halfway up because you never finish rising. It's like another way of saying it's not about the destination, but it's about the journey. And I would love to connect with you guys, man.
[00:48:01] Speaker A: Very cool, my friend. And once again, everyone, I am your host, Kelly Kopf, also known as New York City Kopp, all across my social media.
[00:48:10] Speaker B: Please like and subscribe to the New Yorkers podcast and you can follow the New Yorkers on social media at the New Yorkers Podcast.
[00:48:18] Speaker A: You can leave a comment or a rating to let us know how you are enjoying the show. And we read through all your comments and DMs. So please, we would love to hear from you.
[00:48:27] Speaker B: See you guys later.
[00:48:28] Speaker A: Thanks everybody. Have a great day.
[00:48:31] Speaker B: This is the last stop on this train, everyone. Please leave the train.
[00:48:36] Speaker A: Thank you for riding with MTA New York City Transit.
