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Best Free Things to Do

  • Ride the Staten Island Ferry: The Staten Island Ferry is used daily by thousands of commuters. Ride it for a great view of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, New York Harbor, and the lower Manhattan skyline. You can’t beat the price: free.

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  • Attend a Gospel Service: All around New York, you’ll find Sunday gospel services, but for some special soul stirring, head to Harlem and the Abyssinian Baptist Church or Brooklyn and the Brooklyn Tabernacle. Services are free, but when the basket is passed, don’t be stingy.

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  • Visit Free Museums: Believe it or not, there are museums in New York that don’t charge admission. Two of my favorites are the National Museum of the American Indian and the Federal Hall National Memorial.

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  • Take in a Game at the West 4th Street Basketball Courts: On West 4th Street and Sixth Avenue, you’ll find the legendary public hoops courts. I don’t know what’s more entertaining: the moves on the court or the inventive trash talk accompanying the games.

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  • Walk. Anywhere: New York City is the most walkable city in the world that I know of. Since most of it is planned on the grid system, it’s hard to get lost (except in the West Village, where getting lost is part of the fun). Avenues go north and south, streets go east and west. (The Bronx is up and the Battery’s down!) You will never find a better way to get to know New York. I would recommend starting at the foot of the city, where it all began over 400 years ago, then strolling up Broadway, the only street in Manhattan that goes from one end of the island to the other. You can actually walk the entire length of Manhattan, a walk that, done briskly, would probably take you about 6 hours. That’s a 13 1/2-mile hike, by the way!
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    Author: Brian Silverman
    Pub Date: September 21, 2011

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