I like the Isle of Manhattan...

In the five years we've lived here, we've done some really fun things on the water, so I thought I'd share my top 5 so far.

1. That first summer, when we were extended visitors rather than residents, we took a trip on the Clipper City Schooner. It's a lovely way to see the city from a different perspective, and you get to have a drink and hoist the sails if you like. :)

2. Our friends Rafe and Robin introduced us to the William Wall over this past Memorial Day weekend. The Manhattan Yacht Club's floating clubhouse could be the best place to watch the sunset in the city. Anchored just off Ellis Island and sporting a full bar (you can bring your own picnic), you can have a drink and, on Tuesday-Thursday evenings, watch a sailboat race as the setting sun reflects off of downtown. We had to take the launch ($20/person) from Jersey City, but they've recently added shuttle service from Pier 25 in Manhattan.

3. City Sights and City Sightseeing tours are a great way to see the city, whether you're on one of their double-decker buses or one of their cruise ships. We took the City Sightseeing cruise. The tour guides are informative and funny, and the boat went down the Hudson and up the East River and back again, giving us an almost-full view of the island. (You can tell this is from awhile back - One World Trade aka Freedom Tower is still under construction.)

4. The three-story floating lobster shack known as the North River Lobster Company, is one of my favorite summertime venues. It docks at Pier 81 (about a mile from our apartment) and takes periodic 45-minute trips up the Hudson River. There's no cover charge, and the shrimp po'boy is excellent. It can get crowded in the evenings, though, so get there early if you want a spot on the top deck.

5. And finally, if you want to be on the water, but you don't want to go for a sail, visit the Frying Pan. Housed in a former lightship (floating lighthouse), and located at Pier 66 (26th Street), this is the place to be on a warm summer day. On weekends, the line can go down the block, so consider yourself warned. Be sure to go below decks to check out the barnacle-encrusted walls leftover from the three sunken years before her salvage and restoration.