Visiting friends often ask me about unusual attractions in NYC, places that only residents would know and which you'd never find in a travel guide. Given that my interests take me to places tourists would visit, museums and galleries, I always found it hard to answer that question. I'd tell them about things I'd read about, like the tunnels beneath the city, the people who live there, and the remnants of old subway systems. My listeners would nod politely. Either they already knew about the mole people, or after further questioning they'd be disappointed that you couldn't see the tunnels. After all, it's not much fun to hear about things you can't see in a place you're visiting from miles or oceans away.
The last time I was put in that spot by a friend from out of town, I told him about the Whispering Arches in Grand Central, something I'd read about recently. As we were near the station, I led the way down the ramp to the arches by the Oyster Bar. Standing diagonally across from each other, faces to the wall, we spoke into the marble. Our voices carried clearly across to each other, just like over the phone. Excited, we turned, smiled at each other, then promptly turned back to the wall and rambled away. So much more fun than playing phone with paper cups as kids! And way more exciting as adults to carry on a secret conversation in a place through which hundreds and thousands of people pass, gleefully impervious to the glances of strangers.
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