Happy New Years Eve! Do you have any big plans for tonight? Personally, the boyfriend and I are going to go to a nice restaurant around 9:00, then seeking refuge in our apartment for some quality couch time to watch the ball drop. I'll be wearing these pants...
... to dinner. And then some fleecy pants and a comfy tee to ring in 2014.
You may be wondering why I'm not doing something more exciting for the big night. Why aren't we watching the ball drop in Times square and then partying all night in NYC? Well, we've done that already. Once was enough, thanks.
A few years ago, the boyfriend and I decided to celebrate NYE in NYC and watch the big ball drop. Unfortunately we decided to choose one of the coldest years in recent history to do so. It was well below freezing all week and the temps dropped to the teens just in time for the big night. We wore so many layers, bought those little hand and feet warmers and were still peoplesicles by the time midnight rolled around.
One other thing, I don't like to just sit around. I have ADD or something and need to move, walk, stay warm somehow! People start camping out in Times square just after 9:00am (I'm sure people are there earlier, but they're crazy). The entertainment doesn't even start until 8:00pm! That's almost twelve hours of sitting in the cold. Bring food, hot chocolate, and your own bathroom?
When it gets to a certain time, you can't enter Times square from the west or east, you have to walk all the way to 59th street and enter from the north. It's a long walk, the ball is at 42nd street. By the time the boyfriend and I decided to join the crowds in the square at 4:00, we were corralled at 50th street, seven blocks away from the ball drop.
No thank you. We escaped and continued wandering the city for a few hours and finally settled at the corner of Bryant park - 42nd & 6th avenue - one block east of the ball drop, around 11:15. The police cordoned off the street, yelled constantly at everyone and looked like they couldn't wait until tomorrow. Luckily we were waiting on this corner with about a hundred other people. We weren't too cold anymore since we were all jammed together.
But remember, everyone else thinks they are more important than you/have a better idea of how to get to Times square. They will try to push past you, sneak across the street and inevitably get screamed at by the police. I must have heard "Excuse me, I'm trying to get through" about a thousand times. My only response was "Where should I move? On top of this car I'm wedged against? Or perhaps into this crowd of shoulder to shoulder people?" Seriously, if you are claustrophobic, avoid NYC on NYE.
When it was finally time for the ball to drop it got very loud and exciting. There were fireworks and sparklers. Giant balloons and confetti floated down the avenues and bounced down the streets. People cheered, blew horns and noisemakers and kissed their favorite person. Then they all went home/back to their hotel rooms/raced to the train stations. The streets were clear by 12:30.
We did it once. That was enough. Now we stay warm and either enjoy our friends or just our own company.
Should you plan a trip to NYC for NYE? Maybe. Do it once in your life and plan ahead. The hotels charge the highest prices during this week, hundreds of dollars higher than the rest of the year. The city is packed. I know, there are already 8 million people here, but the NYE crowds are insane! Reservations are your friend! If anything, come this week for the sales. So many good deals out there right now!
