Random/Fun Facts About NYC

Well, I've gotten you prepared to get around New York City, and I've given you some things to see and do, now I'm going to just get random on you.

One thing that's not so random and you might need to know is that NYC is made up of 5 boroughs: Manhattan, The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. And following are some fun borough facts:

• Manhattan is the most densely populated and it would be the one with Times Square, Central Park, The Empire State Building, etc (for those just tuning in to my blog). Manhattan is also the only borough without a Main Steet.
• The Bronx is the only borough that is actually part of the US mainland and houses Co-op City, the largest cooperatively owned housing complex in the US as well as Yankee Stadium and The Bronx Zoo
• Brooklyn is the most populated borough (Manhattan has more people in a smaller area though) and is the home of Coney Island.
• Queens is the largest borough and includes Citi Field (where the Mets play) and LaGuardia and JFK airports.
• Staten Island is an island (duh) that connects with Brooklyn and Manhattan. The island is covered in 28 miles of walking parks and contains one of the largest undisturbed forests of NYC.

There are over 20,000 restaurants in NYC - most of them being in Manhattan.

• 100 million chinese food cartons are used annually in the city.
• There are around 4,000 street food vendors. 
• The first American Pizzeria was opened by Gennaro Lombardi in NYC in 1895.

There are 6,374 miles of street in NYC. 

• An average of 4.9 million people ride the subway each day.
• There is 722 miles of subway track, with 468 stations and 6,200 subway cars.
• New York's Yellow Cabs have yellow taxis because founder John Hertz heard yellow was the easiest color for the eye to spot.
• Musicians performing in the subway system have to go through an audition process.

NYC was the nation's capital briefly in the 1780s. 

Wall Street was the city limit when the Dutch ruled the area and there was an actual wall standing there.

There are only four theaters that literally sit on Broadway - The Marquis, The Palace, The Winter Garden, and The Broadway.

• A Broadway Theater must have at least 500 seats, while an off Broadway theater can have less. 
• Most theaters skip the row I, so it doesn't get confused with the number 1. 
• Phantom of the Opera is the longest running show (over 9,100 performances) followed by Cats (1982-2000 with 7,485 performances).

The nickname "The Big Apple" has many origin stories. Two popular stories are that it was either coined by Jazz players who said playing in NYC was like hitting it big (The Big Apple was a night club). Or by horse racers, also referring to the fact that they were hitting it big by racing in NYC and called it The Big Apple in reference to the biggest possible prize a horse racer could earn. Apple...horse...get it?

There you go. You're all set to get out and see one of America's grandest cities!