We started out the day atop the famous Empire State Building. With the twin towers no longer dominating the skyline, the view from the 86th floor of the ESB was the hottest view in town. It was bitterly cold that high up and it took us more than half an hour to just venture through all the maze of lines and elevators to get there but it was a great start to my first time in the City.
One of the amazing views of the towering skyscrapers of NYC.
We then jumped on the subway and headed down to the harbor to get a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty. Here we are at Battery Park just before walking down to the harbor.
I love this shot. Off in the distance is the famous Statue of Liberty. It was a lot smaller than I had imagined from all the years of seeing pictures of it. One of the symbols of American heritage and a monument to the rich immigrant history of our country, I can only imagine what it would have been like to be heading into a new land on a tired boat crossing the great Atlantic Ocean, and, just as you land, you look up to see the eternal flame of a motherly figure welcoming you to a new land. As the boatloads of immigrants poured into the harbor, they integrated into a new way of life, a new language, new foods, and a new land full of opportunity and discovery. It's interesting in light of the shift in immigration mentalities today and the waves that had once come looking to settle permanently and raise their families with the American Dream have devolved into transient labor forces merely seeking work. It was a great site to visit.
Unfortunately, we couldn't get on the ferry right away to get a closer look and saved our tickets for later in the afternoon. We did, however, get this view of an up-and-coming statue lookalike offering pictures for a price. I snapped some clandestine shots and we headed to the streets to walk up to Ground Zero.
On our way, we ran into the famous Bull of Wall Street. You can't see it in this shot, but behind the bull was a big celebration for Albanian Independence Day. As we strolled around, we could hear the echoes of shouts of "USA! USA!" as the 30 or so Albanians in the crowd celebrated their heritage while in a new home.
Here we encountered the famous Trinity Church at Wall Street and Broadway. For more action-filled commentary you should check out the new National Treasure movie.
This is Ground Zero, once home of the World Trade Center towers destroyed on Sept. 11, 2001. I remember that day with vivid detail. While I didn''t have any friends or family that suffered in the attacks, I nonetheless remember the effects of fear and uncertainty that plagued the country following the attacks. There was nothing to "see" at the site, just a block long perimeter and the peeking necks of the construction cranes rising above the walls. The feeling of emptiness was almost palpable and it was truly a sobering site.
As we walked down the barricaded empty pit, I caught sight of the fire station, home of Engine co. 10, one of the most devastated companies in all of NYC as a result of the attacks.
We were lucky enough to see one of their trucks coming back to the station, complete with a bold American flag on the side and "We support our troops" etched across the windshield.
Most poignantly, the side of the fire house was dedicated to the memory of those killed in the attacks, emblazoned in a copper mural showing firefighters and other responders during 9/11 with the buildings on fire and people streaming out. Really a powerful depiction especially as you turn your shoulder and look at the actual Ground Zero across the street.
Almighty Kristine holds up a multi-ton sculpture!
We headed to Chinatown for lunch...that is after every single corner cop failed to give us directions. Apparently, nobody knows how to go anywhere in the city, including Chinatown. So, every time we tried to approach somebody and ask which way was best, instead of just being cold and refusing to tell us anything, it was always "uh, Chinatown? Yeah, maybe you should like take the subway or something." We finally made it thanks to a homeless man accompanying a cop...note NOT thanks to the cop but the homeless man...and then headed to a restaurant recommended as one of the best Chinese joints in town. It was packed and we huddled against the cold at the door until we were seated, but had a great, authentic Chinese lunch before heading uptown.
Times Square in all its glory. The whole area was JAM PACKED and teeming with people carrying inordinate amounts of shopping bags from Black Friday. I was admittedly overwhelmed by the amount of neon shining down on me...and it was still day time! We waddled along with the crowds and attempted to get in line for the TKTS discount Broadway tickets...but the line was more than 2 hours long and the windows had just opened so were unlikely to get any good tickets. We decided to head back to the Statue of Liberty and opt for a Broadway show another weekend.
After RACING through the park to make it onto the ferry, we had to convince the workers that they should actually let us on as they were already pulling up the gangplank. We had gotten tickets for the ferry that stops on the island and lets you walk around the statue but the ferry that we were trying to board just did a sweeping tour of the harbor without stopping. So, the worker tried to deny our tickets and I just yelled "I don't CARE if you don't stop, just let us on!" and they finally conceded and we made it just as the sun began to set. It was freezing atop the open-air ferry and once we made the run past the the statue, we headed down inside the ferry and grabbed some hot chocolate while we listened to the rest of the history of buildings around the harbor. I like this picture with the sun hitting the buildings. The big clock is a 55-ft wide dial that used to stand atop the Colgate building.
A view from the boat.
A last minute shot before my camera battery died..and the sun went down.
We then fit in some shopping at Ann Taylor Loft and took advantage of some of the amazing deals before jumping back on the train and returning to New Jersey. It was a GREAT trip and while I am more thoroughly convinced that I do NOT want to live in the City, I'm glad that I got to visit.
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