I love the subway

The first day in New York we bought two 7 day all you can get a subway pass for $31.  This was a great investment.  We have made a few missteps but only minor ones and after a day or two of riding the subway we are pretty good at it.  It is very comfortable and has never felt unsafe.  We can get from one end of Manhattan to the other faster than you can go in a cab and for next to nothing.  There is even free entertainment on the subway.  Every now and then you get one of the panhandlers who will walk through the cab begging for money.  They will come into the car and announce very loudly their well practiced routine.  They are a very interesting combination of semi threatening and polite.  They walk in and are obviously homeless and talking very loudly but they are also polite and loud.  The usually have a story that is barely plausible   Today we had a guy that reports that he was in a Sargeant in the military 6 months ago who was discharged for being HIV positive.  Of course he was missing a bunch of front teeth.  They all seem to finish with a loud, thank you and god bless.  As they go through their little performance I glance over at the locals and they look at me, smile and roll their eye. I couldn't agree more.