We decided to go to breakfast at Norma’s, a famous New York brunching institution in midtown at Le Parker Meridien. It wasn’t just around the corner. We used Yelp (Free), which set us off on our hunt. As the rain poured down we approached the quarry. We knew we were close, but the scaffolding obscured our view and rain continued to cascade down like a wet veil.
Apple Maps (built into iOS) told us we were 200 yards away from our destination, then 300, so we backtracked. Finally, there it was: 119 W. 56thStreet. We walked in. A very nice security guard offered to cook us breakfast. We weren’t at Le Meridien, we were across the street from it! We walked back into the rain and then into the hotel and enjoyed a fabulous breakfast.
Throughout the day I used FourSquare (Free) to keep the #urbanadventure hashtag fresh. I don’t have many followers on FourSquare, but it has the benefit of generating tweets simultaneously. When I wandered outside the path of the itinerary, not only could my followers continue to map my movements, but my companions also knew where to find me, and they could quickly determine how far I was from them.
Here is a sampling of a few FourSquare-generated Tweets:
1. Hey @iphonelife The Mothership #Urbanadventure (@ Apple Store w/ 8 others) [pic]: http://4sq.com/YzWU17
Yep, I had to visit the Apple ‘Mothership.’ It is huge, but don’t forget, all Apple stores sell essentially the same products, so don’t feel too bad if your local store isn’t an impressive temple of technology — it will still sell you an iPad. I used the iPhoneLife app (Free) to show the store manager recent blogs and make them more aware of the magazine and the website.
2. The #urbanadventure continues with Ivanka Trump (@ Trump Tower w/ 4 others) [pic]:http://4sq.com/XGEBIk
Yes, we crashed the Celebrity Apprentice press event at Trump Tower and caught a glimpse of the beautiful Ivanka Trump.)
3. #urbanadventure FourSquare special! (@ NBC Experience Store) [pic]: http://4sq.com/XbpfiF
People sometimes ask me why I use FourSquare. First, I find it fun to see where my friends are; second, when I check in and I’m not with the family, they can keep track of events like my landings and take offs. And third, it offers special deals, such as NBC’s check-in special pictured above. I was issued two regularly priced t-shirts for $46. NBC has a strong social network, as you can see from the image of its “social door,” letting people into its store physically and virtually.
4. Hey @iphonelife– pickles – half sour or full? #urbanadventure (@ Carnegie Deli w/ 2 others) [pic]: http://4sq.com/13miChk
Besides checking in, I used The Weather Channel app (Free) to keep tabs on the weather, so we could decide when to take long internal adventures like the NBC Studio Tour.
I also used apps built into iOS, such as Messages to communicate with my family, and Camera, which I took plenty of pictures with. I calculated tips and bill splits with iHandy’s Tip Calculator Free (Free). Just before I left, I sent out my newsletter, and used the ConstantContact (Free) app to keep apprised of how many people were opening this month’s missive.
It was a great day. The weather cleared up. It became clear and cool. We bought cupcakes. I’m going to post this and go find my Swirl before someone else eats it.
Oh, and by the way, Angry Birds are really big (but not so angry) in New York (Picture of me at FAO Schwatz).
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