A Thankful City Salutes Them For Their Service

Unsatisfied sailors? Some among us say, “Not on my watch”:

With thousands of sailors and Marines pulling into port for Fleet Week, it’s the best time of the year for gals — and guys — looking to salute wide-eyed mariners in from out of town.

From innocent tours of the Big Apple straight out of “On the Town” to steamy hookups right out of “Sex and the City,” our uniformed visitors are in for a wild ride.

“You just walk down the street and they’re everywhere,” said Anne W., 24, of Jersey City. “They’re looking to have a good time and so are you.”

. . .

For several years, Jeni Hyland and her friends have enjoyed meeting uniformed men and women during Fleet Week, praising them for their patriotic duty and showing them what she called “the real New York.”

“They make me proud to be a taxpaying American,” said Hyland, 27, of Hoboken. “I only wish that we had more time to spend with them in our great city because I love seeing their faces when they see it for the first time.”

Last year, while living in Manhattan, Anne W. met a group of sailors from the South on her walk home. They ended up hanging out together for several days, with the sailors following Anne to Central Park and the Empire State Building.

A brief romance with a sailor grew out of the visit, Anne said, but fizzled because “he was so far away.” But the warm memories from last year persuaded her to get wrapped up in Fleet Week again this year.