My wife wants to visit the city sometime. You know, the shows and the night life. Yuck!
I remind her of the Stones song — “Shattered.” “...bite the big apple don’t mind the maggots... bed bugs uptown..” Heck, we’d probably get mugged or some “terrorist” might explode a bomb not to mention NYC is an armpit.
My excuse is that it is expensive even though we could afford it if we saved our pennies. I’d rather spend that fortune somewhere else.
I've only been back a handful of times, but my impression is that the "night life" is vastly overrated - expensive beyond all reason, unless you like $15-$20 cocktails and obscenely loud music. Broadway show tickets can run upwards of $200 apiece, though they can be had for considerably less.
On a nice day, you might check out Central Park and its zoo, and then up Fifth Avenue to the museums (the Guggenheim, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Natural History) or go downtown to Little Italy or for Asian food - the places can be crowded, but the food is often great and not outrageously priced. If you want to visit the World Trade Center memorial, you have to get tickets in advance (they're free, and available online).
Daily parking rates seem to be about $30-$35 these days, and then navigate the subway system or crosstown buses to get where you want to go. Definitely would not want to live there today - I'm not young or rich.