A beautiful and abandoned New York subway station from 1904, complete with chandelier. Take the 6 train heading downtown. When the train makes its final stop at the “Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall” station, passengers are told to exit the train. Stay on the train and duck down so as not to be easily spotted. When the train departs the station, it will pass through the abandoned City Hall Station.

When I first moved to New York, enamoured by its parks and museums and design firms and restaurants and bars, I never imagined that there could be much more to its geography than that. How wrong I was. My first drive across the George Washington Bridge was jaw-dropping - the cliffs of New Jersey are astonishingly tall, covered in a dense thicket of trees. But that was just the tip of the iceberg. Drive up 87 to the Catskills or the Adirondacks and you'll witness the Hudson River winding its way through spectacular scenery and unforgiving seasons. Now I can't get enough; just two hours up the road, it's like the city never existed. Perfect recuperation after a long week.

Paris in Brooklyn, etc. I have to try hard not to say 'Garçon.' But either way, 'monsieur' would be more appropriate; proper French waitstaff, proper French food.

A long weekend brunch is my idea of the perfect meal. Paired with a watermelon mimosa at Cafe Gitane's Jane Hotel outpost is the perfect way to do it.

No, it's not a butcher shop. It's a destination sneaker spot with the best selection of Vans!