On Friday morning I got up early (well early for being on holiday) and then headed out to see some of the town. This place is HUGE and there is so much to see.
I started the day by heading to Time Square, now this isn't much of a square, infact I couldn't find a square at all, just an amazing area of lights and colors and advertisements. Nothing I could say here would do it justice, so you'll have to wait until I get some photo's to add to this post. Let me just say that it was amazing.From there I planned to head over to Grand Central Station, but as normal I just wondered around and I stumbled on to the Rockefeller Center. I wasn't going to bother seeing that, as I hadn't heard anything about it in the past and there was heaps to see and do in NY, but as I was there I stepped in side. The Rockefeller Center is the home to the NBC, the network that created things such as Friends, Scrubs, Sienfield and heaps more. There store was interesting, of coarse it was all about selling t-shirts and key rings of the shows they produced but it was still ok. Apart from there the Rockerfeller Center just looked like another city center shopping mall, all be it one with expensive shops. I hear that it also has an ice rink in there somewhere but I didn't manage to find it, although I didn't look to hard.
After that I headed over to Grand Central Station to see this amazing roof they talk about. It is fairly impressive, but nothing like some of the roofs and halls that I have seen throughout Europe. An interesting point is that there isn't much national rail traffic through Central Station any more, it is more just local services.
From there I headed over to Central Park. On my way I passed a stage where Train where rehearsing for a show they are doing tomorrow morning. I stopped by had a listen and moved on. They are good live, I wouldn't mind seeing there show tomorrow but there is still heaps to do here :-)
The Lonely Planet book I have says that Central Park is the one thing that is keeping most New Yorkers sane in this huge city. Although it is nice, there is still the city smoginess and the smell, I would they are all being ripped off after seeing Hyde Park in London.
After Central Park I wondered around for a while, I headed back to Time Square had a bit of a walk around and tried to look for an internet cafe. As you can tell I found one, but not before stopping my the hotel and asking them. There doesn't seem to be any in this town, it's crazy.
That night I headed out to the Empire State Building. I had planned on getting there as the sun was setting but due to the lines I was late. There was still light when I got up to the 67th Floor but the sun had set. The city is so amazing from up there. I had an audio tour that kept me oriented and explained all the areas that I was looking at. An amazing fact about the building is that it only took 16 months to complete. Apparently there where so many people looking for work that it didn't take to long at all. I headed back to the hotel after that, blisters and all to get some sleep.
On Saturday morning I spent the time doing some washing. I am back to a climate where I can't wear a set of clothes more that once, the heat makes sure of that.
After that I headed out to Ground Zero. There isn't much to see there at the moment as they are building the new Freedom Tower. It looks like it is going to be something special when it is completed. There where a lot of poems and flowers on walls remembering what happened on 11 September 2001. One thing that did surprise me was the demonstration that was on the path near it commenting on how the government new about it and set the whole thing up.
I had an early night that night to try and give my feet a break. I think it worked cause on Sunday I was feeling a lot better (could have something to do with the 12 hours sleep I got.)
I headed out with the intention of getting on the ferry to go to Liberty Island on Sunday morning. Well I got to the (I should say a) ferry terminal and heard an announcement that it was just about to leave. I asked someone and they said that it was free and that is all I needed to hear. I ran to the ferry and boarded it just before I left. The thought then occurred to me I should have looked before I leapt. I managed to get on The Staten Island Ferry. It wasn't a complete loss thought, it went straight past the Statue of Liberty and gave me a great view of it, not only that the view of Manhattan was fantastic.
After I got the ferry back to New York I went in search for the correct ferry. As you can imagine this one wasn't free, but it didn't break the bank either (US$11.50), the annoying thing was the lines. Unlike Europe where you have to line for something and it can sometimes take longer over there, at least you know where you stand. I had to queue in 3 different lines to get the ferry. Once there it was all worth it. I spent a good hour or two just laying on the grass reading my book. I had a great view of the New York sky line and a nice cool breeze coming off the harbor. I went for a walk around the Statue after that before making my way back to the city.
One thing that I think has been misrepresented about New York is there sub way system. The news, movies and TV shows back home make it out to be a dangerous place, somewhere to be avoided. On my first day here I did just that before realising that I will need to venture down there if I am going to see any of the city outside of Manhattan. It is clean and I always felt safe when I was using it. The ticket prices are reasonable and I am very happy with the service that I received.
I have found New York to be one of the Highlights on my trip home so far. I haven't really got into the night life as I am on my own and I think that if I did then I wouldn't have had the same experience during the day. If you can get over the heat and the concrete jungle then it is just amazing and really has to be seen with your own eyes.
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