When most 20 something’s hear the words “New Year’s Eve”, thoughts of big parties, drinking, and staying up for the countdown fill their heads. As an introvert who usually goes to bed around 10pm, this was never the case for me. This year I wanted to do something different. My friend Clay, who is like me in the sense that he does not like parties, also wanted to try something new. Jokingly, I suggested we go to Times Square, and somehow that is what we ended up doing.
We took a bus from Philadelphia and arrived in New York City at about 2:00 in the afternoon. Basically, all roads leading to 7th avenue were barricaded by the NYPD. There was an estimated 5,000 officers in NYC at the time, which definitely eased our parents’ minds. Obviously, it was packed, and we could only walk down 8th avenue for most of the night until the police officers removed the barricade and started slowly letting people closer to the performances. The officers used metal detectors and did a pat down and bag check of everyone they let through to Times Square. If you had a backpack or tote bag of any kind, you had to leave it at the entrance or you were not allowed through. Considering what a stressful night it was, all of the officers were very friendly to everyone and gave as much information as they could. At one point, we saw the top of the ball, but we were more interested in getting closer to the stage. The closest we were able to get to the performances was about two streets down. There were large screens that showed the performers, and we saw Gavin DeGraw and Rachel Platton sing medleys of their songs.
A little after midnight, all of the barricades were taken down and we were free to go wherever we wanted. We followed a trail of confetti up 7th avenue to meet up with Clay’s friend who was there too. We walked around the city until about 2am, and then we headed back to the bus station.
Overall it was a good experience. However, there are some not-so-glamorous aspects of spending New Year’s Eve in NYC. For one, if you were one of the lucky people to make it in the middle of everything, you were stuck there for the night. You could always leave, but you wouldn’t be allowed back in. There were no bathrooms anywhere in Times Square. All of the trashcans were locked for safety reasons so there were piles of trash all throughout the street. If you don’t like crowds, this is not the place for you. It was packed, but it wasn’t as packed as I had anticipated.
A few tips I would give to someone who wants to spend NYE in the city would be to pack light, (remember they don’t let anyone with large bags through). I would also suggest getting a hotel on 7th ave, so you can show the officers your key and they will let you right through. However, hotels in Times Square are usually very pricey, so if that’s out of your budget, I suggest getting there early. WAY early. That way you can get as close as you want to the show, but don’t drink a lot before going in, because remember, no bathrooms.