IT Organization Circa 2017

Having just moved to New York City for a 3 month stint, I thought it might be interesting to post a series of reflections on my experiences here.  For context, I was born and grew up in London, (North Kensington).  As a young teenager, I moved to the London suburbs, moving a little further out when I got married.  We then moved to the USA 30 years ago – first living in Boston, MA, then in the suburbs of Atlanta, GA, with a one year stint in Somerset, NJ about 6 years ago.

A “Townie” In The Big Apple

I’m living in a hotel suites facility in an area of Manhattan called Murray Hill – on 39th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenue.  This location gives me about a 15 minute walk to my consulting client – a real pleasure in the current early fall weather, but I’m sure it will challenge my Atlanta-centric thinned blood by the time Christmas comes!

First Impressions Mattered!

Actually, my wife and I first visited NYC in the early 70′s as part of a grand tour of the USA, from coast to coast, and from North to South, making 39 flights in 3 weeks!  As a kid growing up with American TV programs (which dominated British TV), I felt like I knew the city.  Influenced by shows like Kojak, one of my first missions was to “grab me a pastrami on rye!” without any idea of what either “pastrami” or “rye” were.  (I satisfied that craving at the Stage deli on 7th Avenue, being presented by a sandwich at least 6 inches thick, with about 2 pounds of meat in it!  By contrast, the great British sandwich was typically 1/4 inch thick with one slice of meat!)

I found New York back then to be intoxicating but also intimidating!  People’s demeanor was generally rushed and had a hostile edge to it.  For example, I recall a couple of most unpleasant interactions with the front desk staff at the Americana Hotel on 7th Ave. One of these was with regard to the many mistakes the hotel had made on my final bill.  “Jeez, why are ya doin’ this ta me!” was the cry from a very grumpy desk agent when dealing with a host of hotel errors!  (Note: The Americana Hotel has long since gone!)  But it was not just the hotel – shop keepers, cabbies, everyone had a hostile and paranoid edge about them.

Since that first visit in the early 70′s and since moving to the USA in the late 70′s, I’ve visited NYC countless times – but usually as a business visitor, and occasionally as a tourist.  Now I’m hoping to experience it as a pseudo New Yorker! (Well, at least an approximation!)

But Second Impressions Also Count!

I have to say, New York City is a much more accessible and welcoming place today.  Like most big cities, it has some ugly parts, and some gorgeous – but I find them all to be clean – people always seem to be sweeping the area in front of their home or store. More importantly, I feel as safe in NY as I have in any big city.

The city has a constant “buzz” to it, though the specifics of that buzz vary by neighborhood and time of day.  I walked to Times Square over the weekend – which was recently partly turned into a pedestrian precinct.  It was crazy – a mass of shoppers and tourists, and all the kinds of shops and attractions designed to separate the tourist from her money!

The Power of Walking

Great to get in lots of walking, and the city is very walkable due to it’s general lack of hills and its logical layout with a strong North-South orientation.  It’s also nice to know that an efficient and reasonably priced public transportation in the form of subways and buses is available most of the time.  Finally, the excellent cab system is a great “safety net” for getting around.  Today, all cabs are equipped with credit card readers and flat panel TVs which can provide news, mini-features, weather, a moving GPS map so you can follow where you are/where you’re going, and even a way to finalize your payment (tip calculator included for the mathematically challenged.)

Food to Power the Walker

I’d say NYC is a heaven for the foodie.  No, it’s not France or Italy, but it does offer the widest array of cuisines from around the globe – with world class quality!  I’m sure you can get any ethnic type somewhere in the city, and if you have a particular lusting for one type or another, there’s probably a whole area of town devoted to it.  As a Brit, I love Indian food, and New York has plenty of that.  It even has the more obscure (and even more spicy) Indian-Chinese which I absolutely love and find hard to impossible to get elsewhere (Edison, NJ aside!)

Money to Power the Eater

I’m finding New York living expensive!  I don’t think its a particularly expensive town compared with the likes of London, Paris or Rome, but it is compared to the rest of the USA.  And there’s lots of goodies to spend money on, so the old wallet seems to have a way of draining itself!

Well, that’s the first post – I’ try to get one out every week or so, or if something very noteworthy happens.

Image courtesy of New York City Pop Warner Football League

Filed under: General Tagged: | Atlanta, Boston, New York, New York City, Times Square, United States