New York City is one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world, which lies at the mouth of the Hudson River, in the Northeastern region of the US. “The Big Apple” is the most populous city in the United States. 

New York was first inhabited by various tribes of Algonquian and Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans. In 1524, an Italian-born navigator sailing for France, Giovanni da Verrazano, discovered New York Bay. In 1609, Henry Hudson, an Englishman employed by the Dutch, reached the bay and sailed up the river that now bears his name. In the same year, northern New York was explored and claimed for France by Samuel de Champlain. In 1624, the first permanent Dutch settlement was established at Fort Orange. One year later Peter Minuit purchased Manhattan Island from the Indians and founded the Dutch colony of “New Amsterdam” (now New York City), which was later in 1664 taken over by the British. The borders of the British colony, the Province of New York, were roughly similar to those of the present-day state. About one-third of all the battles of the Revolutionary War took place in New York. New York endorsed the Declaration of Independence on July 9, 1776. New York became the 11th state to ratify the United States Constitution, on July 26, 1788.

Both the city and state were named for the 17^th century Duke of York, the future King James II of England. New York City served as the capital of the United States from 1785 to 1790 and was the site of the inauguration of President George Washington, the drafting of the United States Bill of Rights, and also the first session of the United States Supreme Court.

Today, New York covers almost 141.300 km² and ranks as the 27^th largest state by size. The great metropolis of New York City is an important center of the nation, as it’s a leader in banking, manufacturing, commerce, foreign trade, book and magazine publishing, and theatrical production. New York is home to the New York Stock Exchange, the largest in the world. The state is also a leading wine producer.

Major landmarks for visiting are Statue of Liberty, Times Square, the 850-acre Central Park, Broadway, Castle Clinton, and Fort Stanwix National Monuments; Niagara Falls; National Historic Sites that include homes of Franklin D. Roosevelt at Hyde Park and Theodore Roosevelt in Oyster Bay and New York City; The Empire State Building, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Central Park, the Museum of Modern Art, the children-friendly American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan, the Grant's Tomb and the Federal Hall; The Wall Street, the headquarters of United Nations, Long Island, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point; the largest state park in the US – Adirondack Park, the Women's Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls; the New York Public Library, the Rockefeller Plaza (home to NBC Studios, Radio City Music Hall and the famous Christmas Tree and Skating Rink during winter-time) or South Street Seaport that is a combination maritime museum and mall.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (“The Met”) is one of the largest art museums in the world and contains over 2 million works. The Bronx Zoo has almost 4.000 animals from 650 different species. Niagara Reservation became the first state park in the United States, but the highest waterfall is the 215 foot Taughannock. New York State is home to 58 species of wild orchids. After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the National September 11 Memorial at the World Trade Center Site was built to commemorate the victims. The 104-story One World Trade Center (or the Freedom Tower) is the spiritual successor to the fallen Twin Towers and is now the tallest skyscraper in both New York and the US. 

It is actually recommended to walk in crowded areas, as it’s a great way to see the city. New York also hosts many parades, street festivals, and outdoor pageants, such as Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (the morning of each Thanksgiving), St. Patrick's Day Parade, or the New York's Village Halloween Parade.

Today, more than 8.3 million New Yorkers live in the five boroughs (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island), with almost 36% of the current population was born outside the USA. Alone, the city makes up over 40 percent of the population of New York State. It is believed that New York has the greatest linguistic diversity in the world. 

This city excels at every kind of restaurant, so tourists can find almost every type of food available and every cuisine of the world represented, including lots of “street food”. Food considered of New York’s origins are: baked pretzels, Eggs Benedict, doughnut, hot-dogs, Delmonico steak, Waldorf Salad, New York-style cheesecake, the Manhattan clam chowder. New York City has a humid continental climate and experiences all four seasons. The temperature in any season is variable and tropical storms can hit the city in the summer and early fall.

The city is served by the John F. Kennedy International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport, while LaGuardia Airport is a busy domestic airport. All three airports are run by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. John F. Kennedy International Airport located 15 miles away from midtown Manhattan is the 17^th busiest airport in the world and the sixth busiest in the United States by passenger traffic.

Did you know? ..... 10 Interesting Facts about New York

1. New York City was the first capital of the United States. In 1789 George Washington took his oath as President on the balcony at Federal Hall.
2. New York City is now the most populated city in the USA with more than 8.3 million people.
3. The city’s nickname “The Big Apple” has a number of origin claims: in the 1920^s, "apple" was used as a reference to the racing courses and to the apple prizes that were awarded. Later it was a term coined by musicians and meant to play the big time. Then, a 1971 campaign to increase tourism to New York City adopted the Big Apple as an officially recognized reference for the city and it stayed that way.
4. The economy of New York is the biggest regional economy in the US and the second-largest city economy in the world, after Tokyo.
5. New York was the first state to require license plates on cars.
6. New York has over 70,000 miles of rivers and streams and a total of 842 miles (1.355 km) of subway track. The subway runs 24 hours a day.
7. Joseph C. Gayetty of New York City invented toilet paper in 1857.
8. The first showing of 3D films for a paying audience took place at Manhattan's Astor Theater on June 10, 1915.
9. Central Park is the most visited urban park in the United States and attracts 35 million visitors annually.
10. New York City has over 4.000 street food vendors including hot dogs, pretzels, kebobs, falafel, and more.