Navigating around the city.

So one thing I never had to worry about back home was transportation or how to get to places because stupid me never got her driver’s license *facepalm*. So I never actually learned how to read directions and get to places. When I got to the city I would only explore and go places if it was with someone else – I was TERRIFIED of going anywhere by myself!

It was only at the beginning of this semester, when I started going out on “city exploration” dates with my boyfriend, that I got the courage to actually navigate my way around the city (because my boyfriend is from Jersey so he doesn’t know how to get anywhere here).

How’d I do it?

1- Google Maps

This helped me soooo much in the beginning. I’d punch in my starting location (usually my dorm address) then I’d Google the place I wanted to go and also punch that in and it would give you simple written instructions, plus a map, showing how to get there.
Tip: Google Maps isn’t too mobile-friendly so look up the directions at home, print them and take the page with you!.

(directions from FAO Schwartz to the AMoNH in case you were wondering =P)

2- Hop Stop

This is my current life-saver. It’s an app for iPhones, Blackberries and Androids that gives you clear step-by-step directions that make even transferring from one subway to another -when you’ve never ever done it before- super easy!

(Credit to IntoMobile for the screenshots)

Tips:

1- If you have a smartphone and it doesn’t have a compass app, download a free one! Sometimes Google Maps and/or HopStop will tell you to go Southeast or West down a street and I honestly don’t know how to tell that myself so I just refer to my compass really quickly to get oriented.
2- For the most part, NYC streets are pretty much just numbered so it’s fairly easy to get the hang of getting around once you know in what direction the numbers go up or down so don’t sweat it! If you can count, you can get to a lot of places!
3- Long blocks = walking from one avenue to the next (example: 6th ave to 7th ave). Short blocks = walking from one street to the next (42 st to 43 st)
4- Practice your navigation skills by travelling by yourself to nearby places to test how well you can read directions. (If you get lost, it’ll be easier to get back to your starting point since it was just a few blocks away)
4- When in doubt, refer to HopStop on your phone. I always do!

Hope this was helpful to you guys! Navigating yourself around the city can seem pretty scary, it was to me! But trust me, it gets easier the more you practice and it’s actually much easier than you think!

xoxo Aleks