New York City is one of the largest cities in the world with rich culture and history. This can also make New York very strange at times. In this blog post there are 1 random facts (part 4 of a series of four blog posts) about that Big Apple that will blow your mind.
1. Sixty percent of cigarettes sold in NYC are illegally smuggled from other states.
2. There are tiny shrimp called copepods in NYC’s drinking water.
3. 100 million Chinese food cartons are used annually in New York City.
4. There is a secret train platform in the Waldorf Astoria hotel.
5. From 1904 to 1948 there was an 18th Street station on the 4/5/6 line. It’s abandoned now, but you can still see it on local 6 trains.
6. Annual location shoots on the streets of New York number 40,000 — including commercials, feature films, television shows and series, music videos, and documentaries.
7. The Big Apple is a term coined by musicians meaning to play the big time.
8. New York City taxi cabs are yellow because according to car salesman John Hertz (1907), yellow is the easiest color to spot at a distance.
9. On a clear day, the Empire State Building offers 80 miles of visibility, which encompasses parts of New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
10. The Manhattan grid pattern produces an effect known as “Manhattanhenge” (like Stonehenge) as, on two days – around May 28th and around July 12th – sunset is directly aligned with the street grid pattern.
11. The scary nitrogen gas tanks you see on the corners of streets are used to keep underground telephone wires dry.