Times Square:

Where does the name come from? Where else? The New York Times, which moved into a building on then Longacre Square in 1904 and kicked off the move with a New Year's Eve fireworks celebration - a tradition which has been continued ever since. Cleared of garbage,bums and prostitutes by Mayor Rudy Giuliani's steely hand, Times Square is beginning to look dangerously like a neon version of Anywheresville, U.S.A. Catch it while there's still some grime and flash to show to the folks back home.








United Nations:

Itching to go abroad?Then take in the UN. Technically, its 18-acre site is not on U.S. territory, but in an "international zone" with its own stamps and post office.Dotted with peace sculptures from Luxembourg to the former Soviet Union, the UN is at its coolest when listening to the Tower of Babel that makes up the General Assembly.

LOCATION: 1st Ave. at 46th St. Take the 4,5,6,or 7 to Grand Central OPEN:9:15 am - 4:15 pm daily March - December; Monday-Friday only, January - February








New York Public Library:
What's cool about going to the library? Lots. No ordinary city public library, architecturally, the NYPL represents the best of New York's Beaux-Arts period. Bookwise, it is the world's largest and most comprehensive library: on its 88 miles of shelves you can find everything from Thomas Jefferson's handwritten copy of the Declaration of Independence to a Gutenberg Bible. The building's airy reading room is ranked by many as the quietest place in the city. Free tours of the library leave daily at 11 am and 2 pm.

LOCATION: 42nd St. at 5th Ave. Take the 7, B, D or F to 42nd St. OPEN: 10am - 6pm Monday, Thursday-Saturday; 11am - 6pm Tuesday, Wednesday









Macy's:

If this gargantuan store does anything right, it has to be the nationally televised Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Jumbled departments, endless floors, porrly marked signs and hordes of gawking tourists make Macy's a place to do anything but shop. Ranked as the world's biggest department store, Macy's is without parallel for a fast lesson in the New York "Big is Beautiful" ethic. Founded in 1857 by onetime whaler Rowland Hussey Macy, the store's red star logo is a reminder of Macy's seafaring days.

LOCATION: 151 W. 34th St. at Broadway. Take the subway to 34th St.-Penn Station OPEN: 10 am - 8:30 pm Monday, Thursday, Friday; 10am - 7pm Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday;
11am - 7pm Sunday









Madison Square Garden:

On the outside, it's your worst nightmare in concrete. On the inside, it's the home of the New York Knicks and Rangers and the hometown fans tolerate no abuse of the Garden. Its 20,000 seat auditorium is also the site of superstar rock concerts (Michael Jackson), championship tennis tournaments (Virginia Slims) and Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus.

LOCATION: 4 Penn Plaza. Take the subway to 34th St.-Penn Station. The Garden sits on top. OPEN: Monday-Sunday