Eating historically in New York’s Chinatown and Little Italy

by Jessica Festa on

As a native New Yorker, I’ve spent many afternoons wandering the streets of Chinatown and Little Italy, stopping to get some dumplings or some pasta and wine. While I had always kind of thought of these places as tourist hubs with delicious food, I never realized just how much history belongs to these areas, and how much of this history is still alive today.

After going on a walking tour with Ahoy New York Tours and Tasting, I now look at Chinatown and Little Italy with a new appreciation. Alana, the tour guide, led the group through each area, speaking about how the regions came to be and letting everyone sample from historical eateries.

As Alana likes to say, “If a restaurant has been around for 40 years or more, you know it’s good because it has stood the test of time.”

Around the time of the United States‘ Industrial Revolution, southern Italians began coming over to get away from high taxes and low wages. In order to help ease their culture shock they began importing foods from their homeland and opening restaurants that reflected their heritage. Lucky for us, a lot of what was created back then is still around today.The first stop on the tour was Alleva Dairy to sample prosciutto and homemade mozzarella. Opened in 1892 by the same family that runs it now, this is the oldest Italian cheese shop in America. Fun Fact: Mozzarella originated in Naples, Italy, when a monk accidentally dropped a cheese curd into a pail of hot water.

Ferrara Bakery & Cafe was the next stop, where the group got to taste their world famous cannolis. My grandmother, who is from southern Italy, actually used to swear by these, and my father still refuses to eat cannolis from any other bakery. This eatery was opened in 1892, and during WWII many Italian families would purchase Torrone, a nougat confection, from here to send to their loved ones who were fighting because the treat wouldn’t spoil.

After our sugar indulgence, the group traveled to another continent and headed over to New York’s Chinatown. People first started to notice the Chinese coming into the United States in the 1840’s. While they first tried to settle in California, they were not socially accepted there and so they came to New York in an attempt to better assimilate. While the original Chinatown was made up of only 3 streets (Mott, Doyers, and Pell) and consisted of mostly immigrants from southern China, today the area has grown to encompass 2 square miles and 200,000 Chinese-Americans from diverse backgrounds.

A family-style lunch at Pongrsi Thai Restaurant, the oldest family-run and operated Thai restaurant in New York City, allowed the group to sample 40 years of delicious hard work with rice, Orange Chicken, Pad see ew, and a spicy Chicken Pra Ramm.

In order to let the group digest, Alana took us to visit Columbus Park, a cultural hub for the Asian community where people go to play Mahjong and checkers, practice Tai Chi, and relax. Standing there today, you would never know that the area was once considered the worst slum in the history of the U.S., and possibly even the world.

No tour of Chinatown would be complete without eating some dumplings. What many people don’t realize is that dumplings aren’t just delicious, they’re an important part of the Chinese New Year as they symbolize wealth with their ancient silver and gold ingot shape. If you’re looking for taste, try Tasty Dumpling on 54 Mulberry Street. However, if you want a front-row view of how they are made, go to Fried Dumpling on 106 Mosco Street. Hint: It’s actually a lot more complex than you probably think.

To end the tour, the group was taken to a place that isn’t known for its history but for its flavor. Everything Frosted sells cupcakes with an Asian flair with choices like Lychee, Red Bean, Jasmine Tea, and Black Sesame.

While the tour tells a lot about food and its historical significance, you will also see a lot of other notable points of interest, such as the Transfiguration Church, which services the most Chinese-Americans than any other church in U.S., the former Bloody Angle, which is said to be where the most murders in America have ever occurred, and the oldest tenement building in New York at 65 Mott Street.

For more information or to make a booking with Ahoy NY Tours & Tasting, click here.

Chicago’s loop in HD

by Jessica Festa on

Want to spend a lazy day riding around on an architecturally-scenic elevated railroad in Illinois? Now, you can. Watching this high definition video by Michael Salisbury, listening to the dreamy, relaxed sounds of Boards of Canada, you will be transported to The Loop in Chicago. Glance out your window at the commercial style architecture, the impressively complex rail tracks, and some of the city’s tallest buildings (the 110-story Willis Tower, which is 1,454 feet high, is not only the tallest building in Chicago, but in the United States, as well).

If you don’t have time to head over to the Windy City to see The Loop for yourself, you can check out this video:

Want to walk up a giant, looping roller coaster?

by Jessica Festa on

On November 13, 2011, the “Tiger & Turtle – Magic Mountain” sculpture in Duisburg, Germany, opened to the public. This isn’t your average piece of public art, however, as it is designed like a giant roller coaster with stairs and slopes that people can actually walk on.

Traversing over the sculpture, visitors will be put 148 feet above the surrounding countryside, gaining access to great views of the famous Rhine. While trekkers will reach great heights, they unfortunately will not get to go upside down, as the intimidating-looking loop actually contains stairs that keep you standing straight up.

The piece, which took one year to build, was created by German artists Heike Mutter and Ulrich Genth, who describe the sculpture like this:

“The curved flight of stairs inscribes like a signature on the landscape and recruits the nimbus of the classical roller coaster. Having a closer look, the public is disappointed in a disarming way. The visitor climbs on foot via differently steep steps the roller-coaster-sculpture. So the sculpture subtly and ironically plays with the dialectic of promise and disappointment, mobility and standstill. Visitors happen to briefly meet with oncoming visitors on the steep and about 1m | 1yd wide corridors. Led-lights are integrated in the handrails and highlight the flight of stairs so the sculpture is accessible at night, too.”

Make sure to visit during the day, as well as at night, when the LED lights are on.

Frequent flyer applies to 13 credit cards in one day to earn points

by Grant Martin on

There’s a whole pseudo-science on the web regarding the art of earning miles and points by means of credit card applications. Many in the mileage running and hoarding business use credit cards heavily to earn special bonus or signup-miles by applying at certain times or hitting minimum spend limits. With a decent credit score it’s a fairly easy game to play, though I’ll be the first to admit that the full ramifications of cyclically applying-for and canceling credit cards are still unknown. Still, that doesn’t stop many from churning out the applications.

Recently I came across the most outrageous example of this sort of activity from a blogger named Ben from The Man From 1000 Places, who actually applied to thirteen credit cards in one day in order to reap a total of more than 500,000 miles and points. Ten of those applications have currently been approved while another three are still pending. With a score in the high 700’s before the application, Ben expects his credit rating to take a brief hit but return to his normally high rate after 6 months.

With the 500,000 points, a wide variety of travel rewards and upgrades are available to the savvy hoarder. Round trip, business class tickets between North America and Europe, for example, cost 100,000 miles on American Airlines, and though the blogger wont be receiving all of the miles in one specific account he’ll be able to combine several of them.

In order to keep those points, he’ll will need to pay $233 in annual fees and then cancel most of the cards to prevent more annual fees. The only other trackable cost is his credit score. Gary Leff, co-founder of frequent flyer community milepoint.com and author of the ViewFromTheWing blog suggests:

Applying for credit generates a consumer-initiated pull of your credit score, and every time you apply for credit it’s an indication you might NEED that credit, and may be a bigger risk.

In the long-run you might well improve your score by having more available credit that you aren’t utilizing, and over time as the accounts age by having more older accounts. But the short-run effect of several credit pulls and a younger average age of accounts will make a big dent in your score.

If you see your score drop below 750 you’ll begin receiving higher interests rates on major purchases like mortgages, and those costs will likely exceed any benefits you get from signups. So it’s important to stay away from plenty of new card signups leading up to a home purchase or refinance. Individuals with more borderline credit may experience problems with auto loans.

Taking the time to apply for and earn the cards thus might be a decent way to get some extra points, as long as the financial preparations are made and the credit cards are properly disposed of. Hopefully there’s no long term financial impact beyond the credit score.

[Flickr image via Andres Rueda]

Tips for choosing the right hostel

by Jessica Festa on

Hostels are well-known for being budget-friendly and filled with backpackers. However, not all hostels are created equal, and choosing the wrong one could put a damper on your trip. Before booking, read this list of tips to help you decide which hostel is your perfect fit.

Create an itinerary

In the city you’re visiting, what are the must-see attractions on your to-do list? Are there any sites or regions that you’ll be going to more than once? Once you have this narrowed down, pull out a map or do a Google search and see which neighborhood(s) you will be spending the most time in. If you want convenience, choose a hostel that will allow you to walk to the places you will be spending the most time in. Now if this area happens to be a major city, you will probably end up paying extra. If you’re more interested in saving money, choose a property in a smaller neighborhood and make sure that there is a metro or bus within walking distance of the hostel that will give you easy access to where you need to go.Know your personality

Like people, hostels also have personalities. Are you a party animal who likes to stay up all night? Look for a property with a bar or club on premises and no curfew. Do you like to meet new people or would you prefer a lot of alone time? Hostels with common areas like game rooms and kitchens tend to be more social in nature than those without. Are you a flashpacker who carries a lot of electronics? Making sure your hostel has security and lockers is a must. Before booking, just make sure to search through the amenities of a hostel to choose the one that offers the features that will make your trip better.

How much are you willing to spend?

Budget is a big factor in what accommodation you will choose. With hostels, there are a few ways to cut costs. As mentioned previously, if you’re willing to stay outside of the major cities and use public transportation regularly you can save quite a bit on your room. Choosing the dorm with the most beds is also cheaper than taking the room with more privacy. Moreover, certain amenities may be free at one hostel but cost money at another. For example, a hostel that includes breakfast can be worth looking into if you’re the type who likes to start their day off with a meal. Checking to see if things like linens, towels, lockers, airport/train pickup, tours, hot showers, and baggage storage are included can also be helpful if you plan on using these services. Bonus: If your hostel has a kitchen, you can save money by cooking meals instead of eating out.

Get a second opinion

Of course, if you’re reading the hostel’s website it is going to look like a luxury resort, with pristine rooms and a friendly staff. This is not always the truth, however, and before booking it is important to do your homework. There is a wealth of resources on the internet to help you get answers. You can try perusing the well-known hostel booking sites that have been around for awhile, like HostelBookers and Hostelworld, that will give you property descriptions and traveler reviews. Newer booking sites, like inBed.me and GoMio, incorporate a social aspect to the booking process by allowing you to connect and interact with other travelers who have been to certain places or will be there in the future. Websites like Ajungo, which is basically a social network for travelers, can allow you to ask other people similar to you what their experiences were at certain hostels and see photos. You can also check out the site’s “Places” feature that allows you to see hostel recommendations made by people in your network.

Safety first

Before booking a hostel, make sure that you are keeping your safety a priority. Get information on the crime in the neighborhood the property is in, check how close the nearest metro or bus stop is, and see what kinds of security measures the accommodation has in place. Do you need a key or code to get in the front door? Can anyone come into the hostel or only people with a room booked? Is there someone at the front desk 24 hours keeping guard? Are there lockers provided to store your valuables? Keep these questions in mind before booking.