A romanticised city where superheroes save the planet, or the main place aliens want to attack! One of our featured travel writers Jade Stallworthy is a recent film studies graduate who has been used to seeing those iconic New York locations through the eyes of a camera lens and cinema screen. 

However, in September, Jade along with her best friend Abbie decided to strip away that lens and see New York City with their own eyes. They set out on a mission to travel to the Big Apple and witness first hand all of those iconic locations featured in Hollywood films.

Here Jade shares a run down of the places you might want to visit.

 

1. Times Square

Full of energy, bustling with visitors and workers alike, with random street performers sashaying around trying to catch those unaware tourists; Times Square is exactly how you see it in the movies!

Parades like in the 1994 remake of Miracle of 34th Street, taxis left, right and centre like in Spider-Man 1, 2 and 3 and musical street performances as shown in Disney’s 2007 semi-animated kids film Enchanted. It was an intense and exciting blur!

 

2. Marilyn Monroe’s Subway Grate

While on the surface, the subway grate located on the Northwest corner of Lexington Avenue and 52nd Street looks like a normal grate; this place is infamous.

In 1955, a famous actress in a flowing white dress got caught short when a gust of wind lifted her skirt, exposing her knickers to an array of paparazzi.

 

3. 5th Avenue

Sprinkled with designer stores, 5th Avenue played center stage in Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard’s romantic comedy Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Hepburn’s Holly Golightly stops outside the famous jewellery store on 5th Avenue and stares longingly, whilst eating cart-bought breakfast. Here, you can see Abbie & I tried to experience the scene for ourselves.

 

4. The New York Public Library

You might remember this beautiful looking building in Roland Emmerich’s 2004 dystopian sci-fi The Day After Tomorrow. Thankfully, when I saw it, the library was in excellent condition with no snow in sight!

 

5. Empire State Building

Let’s not lie, the Empire State Building is one of most famous building in New York City and has to be witnessed first hand. However, it’s not just tourists that like to travel to the top floor. Peter Jackson’s 2005 primate adventure saw it’s star gorilla climb to the top of the tower to rescue Naomi Watts.

 

6. Central Park

One of the most popular places to shoot a Hollywood romantic comedy, and probably my favorite place in New York. Whether it’s partaking in a pony and trap ride like in Serendipity, meeting in the flowerbeds like in You’ve Got Mail or breaking up with your girlfriend like in Spider-Man; Central Park oozes with Hollywood presence.


By Jade Stallworthy

 

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