BEA and BBC 2010

I was invited to take part in the blog tour hosted by Book Blogger Con to help gear everybody up for the upcoming bookish festivities in May!

Now, if you've never been to BEA, or NYC, I can give you a couple of quick tips:
*wear comfortable shoes. Seriously. The best you can find.
*be bold! If you're not ready to stick your hand out and talk to every stranger you see at these events, it's going to turn out like a bad school dance.
*bring a shoulder bag and set some cash aside to ship books home to yourself. (last year they wouldn't take a debit card)
*plan and map, plan and map.
*buy an NFT Guide...

a WHAT?? The Not For Tourists (NFT) guide book is the best recommendation I have for you. It's small and practical, has the best subway map you're going to find anywhere, and looks far less touristy than giant triple fold maps or cheesy pop-up ones. Don't get me wrong. I totally own a pop-up map. This one works really well if you're trying to get an idea of where certain sights are in Manhattan, but the NFT will offer you detailed maps of each neighborhood. If you're standing on a corner, you can open the book up and find the restaurants, ATMs, coffee shops, etc., in the immediate area.

And while we're chatting about all there is to see and do, I must let you know this: you will not be able to see and do everything you want on this one trip! I lived there and still never made it to the Empire State Building. Most people have an enormous list of 'I wanna see', and there's nothing wrong with that. You just need to be realistic. Manhattan is huge and packed with people. It takes time to travel from one place to the next (20-40 minutes most times) and there are lines for everything. And don't you want to enjoy the time you have in the City?

So here are my tips for ya:
*La Guardia airport is much closer to the City than JFK.

*if you want to go to the Statue of Liberty, please visit the website as soon as possible to plan it. Something is always updating or changing. As of a year or so ago, you couldn't go higher than the pedastal of the statue and you had to reserve those tickets months in advance.

*if you would like to get cheap tickets for a Broadway show, visit one of the TKTS booths. I recommend the South Street Seaport booth. It's less trafficked than the Times Square one. Give yourself time for this because you will wait in line!

*'The Beast' is tons of fun.

*Chocolate by the Bald Man is one of my favorite places for chocolatey goodness.

*I cannot recommend the The Sex and the City bus tour enough! It takes you to several trendy neighborhoods and is a pretty good tour of some places you might not make it to otherwise.

So start planning and get ready for fun! BEA and Book Blogger Con are going to be a blast, but don't forget you'll be in NYC! Be sure to let me know if you have any questions or want some insider tips. :-D