New York City

Summary of time:
• Walking Tour of Central Park
• Tour to Staten Island, see Statue of Liberty, Downtown Manhattan at night, Times Square
• Walking Tour (for 13 hours) of Down Town New York.....Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn Bridge, Wall Street, Ground Zero, China Town, Little Italy, Soho, East Village, 34th Street – Flat Iron District, Grand Central Station, Times Square
• Battery Park, Penn Station, Macy’s, Empire State Building (see the sun set over the city)
• Ferry to Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island
• Phantom of the Opera on Broadway
• Chill out time.

Handy hints –
 Good map and make sure you know where going on Metro (and know your uptown & downtown!)
 Get the right metro card, if likely to be in NYC for more than 3 days and using metro 4 trips or more each day, then get 7 day unlimited pass. Or get a daily unlimited pass, if doing 4 or more metro trips on any one day.
 Do the guided downtown tour from hostel for a great overview of NYC – but make sure have good footwear – as your feet will ache even more!!
 Various tourist places require bag searches or airport terminal style checking (bags scanned and going through detectors), so allow time for these, they vary in length of time, depending on number of visitors etc
 At various tourist places, they take you picture in front of a green screen, and then when you leave, you can buy your picture, with the tourist attraction in the background...but be aware, the prices are $20 or more!!!!
 Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty Island – if you book in advance online, you may be fortunate to get a specified time slot to go into the pedestal of the Statue – but be prepared if you choose a busy time around midday it could be an hour queue for that bit alone! You also may be fortunate, as they have now reopened the Crown, to be one of the lucky few that each day get a time slot for the crown. But getting the tickets on the day, especially during holidays and weekends, you are unlikely to get anything.

Another day and another move. It’s pack up time, make sure everything is out of the room that’s mine, give plenty of time to get to the Bus Station, so can get to the front of the queue to be sure of a seat. The next part of the adventure, is always the other end...the process of getting a metro ticket (the right one) find the line you need, and to make sure going in the right direction. Having arrived at the station where you get off, it’s then making sure that you are going in the right direction – this helped by locals who are used to seeing travellers looking for the hostel, stop you when you’re going the wrong way and point you in the right direction.
Having got settled into my room (with 11 other people – and a squeaky bed) it was time for food. Following the recommendation of the staff, i found the little bar that did food. They were doing sangria at half price. It was early and not many people around. I got a bargain on the food as well as my drink(s). I also got chatting to a couple of guys...a New Zealander (who was an opera singer), and a New Yorker who was a music lawyer...interesting chaps, who had both visited the uk. But then they had homes/families to go back to....and i was a little light headed. So the day was done, and time for bed.
The hostel offers several trips/outings some free and some to pay for. I had decided i was not up for a really long walk on my first day, so took the free guided tour around Central Park(50 blocks North/South and 3 blocks East/West). It is interesting doing tours with local people as they not only tell you what it is your looking at, but local stories or reasons why things are that way. When New York was growing, the decision was made that a large space would be set aside for a park, so a competition was held for plans, and then to create the park. The two guys who won, were actually unknown at the time, but their desire and passion, and dream of what they thought should be there was obvious in the plans. Everything in the park, is an illusion, a creation, nothing existed before...the woods, the ponds/lakes, the water falls, bridges, park gardens, etc are all a creation, although looking at them now 130 years on you wouldn’t know. Parts of the park have been sunk, which with all the trees, helps to decrease the noise from the traffic / city as well as blocking the views of the buildings surrounding the park.
Starting at the 103rd entrance, we wandered by the pool and waterfall, passed the Loch (oh yes, they also liked English and Scottish names for things), under the bridges (based on decisions of bridges over canals in England), through North Woods to Lasker Rink & Pool.
One of the conditions of the park is that the services provided are free, so the pool is free – paid for by the City – and in winter the pool becomes the ice rink. Also all the paths in the park are not straight, they all meander. Then to Harlem Meer (so named as it is on the North End of the Park by Harlem). The Meer (before the park) was the site where George Washington and his troops camped during the American Revolution. Then onto the Conservatory Gardens....where there are 3 gardens – Italian, French and English – we had to guess which was which, got the French and Italian the wrong way round, but there was no mistaking the English Country Garden – wild flowers.
We then took a bus down 15 blocks to the Reservoir, which has a jogging track around it, so make sure if you want to walk around this jogging track, stay by the rails. The rails were given by Jackie Onassis, who regularly ran around the Reservoir. Onto The Great Lawn, which has Ball fields on it, which you need a permit to use, and then to see the Obelisk by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which when the park was first being built was outside of the Park, but when the Marsh (that is now The Great Lawn) was drained and cleared up, became within it. Meandering round, we then saw the Belvedere Castle, which has a high tower (just like a Scottish Castle), was originally the Fire Station for the Park, but is now the Weather Station for New York (except for snow falls is at the Zoo!) – when temperatures are given for New York, they are based on the readings from here. Then we got to see a couple of statues by the Model Boat Lake (yes there are model boats to play with here), Alice in Wonderland, and Hans Christian Andersen with the Ugly Duckling. Within the group, there were a couple of German guys who made some interesting poses for their photos.
- A fountain, one of the posed at some distance with his mouth open so the fountain looked like he was coming out of his mouth
- Alice in Wonderland, they both stood on the mushroom and kissed Alice
- Hans was reading a book to the duckling, so they did exactly the same pose (one was a duck)
It became part of the enjoyment of the walk, wondering what they would do next.
At the Model Boat Lake, we got the chance to get a close look at a $1m home (the residents were not there) that was paid for by the Apartment Management Group. A couple, who were in love, decided that they would like a place to live, so they found a place and built their love nest looking over the park. The apartment people were not happy with this and evicted them. They were a pair of hawks, and there nest was built over the window on the penthouse apartment. There was such an uproar, that the apartment management had to spend $1m to build a nest for the hawks. It is built in such a way that no bird droppings will fall on the block. The hawks are now happy back at their new home, and lived there for several years. A twitter who is passionate about them, has 2 pairs of binoculars trained on their nest, and everyone is welcome to have a look (as long as they don’t adjust or move them) for free.
After lunch we then walked from the Boat House to the Bethesda Fountain and Terrace. These have been in many films...several of us females were recalling 27 dresses...as well as many places in Central Park. From here it was around to Strawberry Fields...yes it is a memorial area for John Lennon, who was shot outside The Dakota Apartment Block just by that part of the Park. It’s area is the shape of a tear drop, and this is the place where the City agreed for flowers to be laid, after John’s murder, as they could not be left outside the apartment block. Yoko Ono still lives in the apartment, overlooking that area. There is a stone memorial, with Imagine written at its centre, and there is a man who everyday watches over it and makes sure there is a display, in the shape of the peace symbol, from either roses or rose petals. This was the end of the walk, it had been a relaxed, casual affair, but great, so back to the hostel to relax before doing another trip that evening.
This evening’s trip was to catch a boat to Staten Island, and then back seeing Manhattan in the dark and Times Square. There were time restrictions on this trip so we had to be prompt and quick. So catching the Metro – and learning about local and express trains – we headed south to the Financial District. We came out at Rectory St, and walked towards where Broadway meets Wall Street. Broadway is the longest road in New York, it starts at Battery Park (southern part of Manhattan), into Harlem (going near the Hostel). We walked from Wall street down Broadway, past the Bull Statue (representative of a good Stock Market) – anatomically correct – and the Old Customs house (which is now the Bankruptcy Court), and to the Staten Island Ferry. This ferry journey takes about 20 mins, and runs 24 hours, 7 days a week – but after 9pm it only has 1 ferry running once an hour – and is totally FREE. Yep no cost. We watched a retreating Manhattan, saw New Jersey, Ellis Island, Statue of Liberty, and the Bridge which goes from Brooklyn to Staten Island (and is the longest suspension bridge – even longer than the Golden Gate in San Francisco). We arrived at Staten Island, grabbed a quick bite to eat, and then saw the memorial statue for people of Staten who were killed in 9/11. Each person is named, and on their name plate (which is in marble) has the silhouette of the person. The statue is built such that in the middle of it the view is where the two Towers would have been. Catching the ferry back after the sun had set; we got some amazing views of the Statue, and Manhattan at night. Then back on the Metro and off to see Times Square, which is another amazing site, being in a place so lit up that it is almost like being there in the day. Times Square is where Broadway and 7th Avenue cross, and the City have made a temporary decision to close Broadway off around this part (and also part at Herald Square where it crosses 6th Avenue), and to provide chairs where people can sit on the road. It is an experiment, but it was great for people to have a place to stop and just look, without blocking up the pavement, it certainly eases pedestrian traffic, but vehicle drivers are not so happy. So after a wander around we headed up to catch the metro from 50th, and wandered past a Herschel store and an M&M store (3 floors of M&M merchandise – including a wall of tubes of M&M’s in loads of colours and different shades, and different flavours, including peanut butter and coconut!) and back to the Hostel – a late night of 11.30pm by the time we were back, so quietly into the room, to not wake my roommates (although less than half of them were in).
The next day i had booked to go on Gerry’s City Tour, i had been pre-warned that Gerry’s trip would probably be about 12 hours, and would involve a lot of walking. The charge for this tour is $10 and a day’s metro card ($8.25 – a single trip is $2.25!). The information learnt about New York is in a separate blog, but here is the itinerary, leaving at 11am returning at 1am.
Metro to Brooklyn Heights – walk to the Promenade to look at Manhattan whilst having lunch – walk to and across Brooklyn Bridge – walk to City Hall, down Broadway to Wall Street – walk to St Paul’s Chapel and Ground Zero – walk back to Broadway, and down to Battery Park – catch ferry to Staten Island and back – metro to China Town, walk through to Little Italy, onto Soho – metro to East Village for dinner- metro to 23rd St, the Flat Iron District, to see Madison Square Park and the Flat Iron building - metro to 42nd St & Shuttle metro to Grand Central Station – metro back to 42rd St to Times Square – metro back to Hostel.
This is a brief overview of where we went, but it was a long day, with loads of sights, information, emotions....Gerry’s aim is that all who go on the tour get a brief overview of the city. Not all who started the day were there at the end, a lady and her son went to see Stomp, and another lady and her mum headed off to meet a friend. Our group was only ten + Gerry at the start, a small group but we got to know each other. One lad, from New York State, had recently finished at a famous catering college, but was on a visit to the city to find a job, or at least get his cv in...get some contacts..from chatting to Gerry, he ended up with a job for providing the evening meal for 5 nights for 35+ people..amazing how this all works.
Having now been on a couple of tours, it was time to go off by myself. I needed cash and had seen a HSBC down in the financial district so off i went, catching the metro with much confidence, and people would have thought i had been doing it for ages! Then out of the station i wanted, but then was not as confident how far away it was, but heading in the right direction (i hoped), i was checking all the buildings, just as i was about to give up (it was further than i thought) i was right by it. So with some cash in my pocket i thought i grabbed a bite to eat and check out the ferries from Battery Park to Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty island. It was around 2 ish, and the guy at the booth said there wouldn’t be enough time to get through security (just like the airport!) and see both islands, and as it was the same price to see 1 or both, i decided to not bother, and get there earlier tomorrow. So round to the metro by Staten Island Ferry, and off up to Times Square, to check out the queues for tickets for one of the shows. No problems getting to the right station, but it was getting out of the right exit and heading in the right direction! At the north end of Times Square at 47th St, there is TKTS, where you can buy tickets cheap for the shows for that day. For the evening performances the tickets are on sale from 3pm, but you really need to be there by 2 to get to the front of the queue! Arriving around 3.30 there was a long queue and as there was plenty of other nights i decided to not bother and go to see the empire state building instead. The best time is to go about 7pm get your ticket (well at this time of year), go up and get a good look when it’s light, then hang around see the sun set, and stay a bit longer and see the scenery when the sun has gone down. But that was a few hours away.....back onto the metro and off down to 34th Street. The fun thing about metro stations is that there is sometimes several exits/entrances, so finding an exit, it’s then checking where you are on the map. Having got my bearings, i found i was near Macy’s, so what is a girl to do, but go in for a wander.....and being conscious that i have no real space in my luggage, i shouldn’t really go shopping. In and out of the different sections, and a wander up to the children’s section – having a niece (18 months) and nephew (5 yrs), is an excuse to go looking at these things, and being an aunt you can spoil them. I found a cute little body suit for my niece saying “my aunt ‘s me”, i couldn’t resist..only $9.95 (plus tax). Although i got a nice surprise at the till, it was only $5.46 including tax..Bonus (and when i posted it, the postage meant it was still less than $10 – double Bonus)
Thinking i better leave before i start spending too much, i went out and wandered around a few blocks south, east, north, still leaving loads of time before i needed to go up. I found a Brewery Restaurant just at the entrance to empire state, so i had a bite to eat, and tried a couple of the own brand beers – wheat beer and a pale ale. Then off and up i went. Time to go through security before you get your ticket, queuing for both of these was fortunately not too long, only about 10 mins each. Then onto the next queue, and your ticket is scanned, then queue for the lift to 80th floor, then out and go round half the building and join another queue for the lift to the 86th floor (which is next to the lift you just came from!). I was eventually up in about 40 mins of buying my ticket, but the sun was not due to set until 8.20pm, so a little time to wait. Also to try and get pictures, you need to be patient and wait for others to move, so you can get the pictures you want. I waited, and got my shots, and then waited and was rewarded by seeing the sun set (amongst the crowds)- getting some good shots – and then waiting again for it to go dark, and be able to get the night shots. By 9pm i decided that i had been there long enough and had got my money’s worth, so back down...aargh queues! You can skip the queue for the lift to the 80th floor if you are prepared to take the stairs down the 6 floors, and when you get out on the 80th floor, you have no option but to go through the gift store, before queuing for the lift down. I decided that i really needed some exercise so i walked up 5th Avenue to 42nd Street then west to 7th Avenue and caught the metro from Times Square. Beware, as previously mentioned there are several entrances and exits. Some of these close at a certain time! I hadn’t realised that the one i was going down was closed, and swiped my card through the machine before i realised there was a locked gate on the other side turnstile, i afterwards learned that the “balls” at the top of the stairs that had a reddish glow to them meant that the entrance was closed. So i went to the next entrance, and because i had just swiped my card, it wouldn’t let me through, but going to the attendant and explaining he let me through (they must get used to these silly tourists!). Eventually back to the hostel, i wasn’t tired so i grabbed the computer and went down for an hour or so....met Jenny (one of the people i had done the park tour with), who had an unpleasant room-mate, and there were no other beds in the hostel, so was going to sleep in the lounge (long story – got a refund on the night), i stopped up for an hour or so to chat, but then my bed was calling.
The next day i was up and moving a bit earlier, and trying to avoid all the French kids, i managed to get a peaceful breakfast. Then off again on the metro down to battery park, today i was going to do ellis island and statue of liberty. I was down there around 11.30, and got my ticket ($12 for the boat trip) after queuing for about 20 mins, but then it was the queue for security......aaarrgghh, it took an hour or so.....make sure you get here early to avoid this. Once through, it was a short wait for the next boat, and alot of people can get on, but there is only a narrow gangway! And there was only 20 mins to get everyone off and the boat reloaded. First to Statue of Liberty Island, there are various information points around giving you details, about the statue and also about the places you can see. I did a reasonable quick wander round, but wanted to head off to Ellis Island. Queues again for the ferry, but only needed to wait til the next boat was in and quickly on, with a short journey to Ellis Island.
It was really interesting, learning the history, the process, the cultures of people who came. I didn’t see everything, as decided i wanted to see a show, and although i was not going to get the cheapest/best deals, i would still get something. A short queue, and only a couple of minutes til the boat arrived. It was gone 4 by the time that i got to the TKTS place, and the queue was not too long. Of the choices i fancied either Phantom of the Opera or Chicago – whichever was going to be the best deal. As i suspected neither seat was cheap as it was the orchestra, and not much difference in price, i decided on Phantom, if i was paying that much i wanted something i felt was going to be worth it and i’d not seen the film of. So a couple of hours to kill. Around Times Square you can find a few places to eat, so i went to Hard Rock Cafe, there was loads of space, and service was all very quick, so i was soon out...when you’re on your own, it’s not so easy to hang around after eating...no-one to chat to! As there was time, i wander around a few blocks to see what’s there and found myself up on the corner of 48th and Broadway....and the M&M’s store....it’s a must to go in....and i bought my “snack” for the show (be careful as it is a steep price per lb and the weight soon mounts up). Then off to the show. I loved, worth the money, and it was good knowing some of the music. Metro back to the hostel, and make sure that am quiet getting into the room, as some of them were already in bed.
The next couple of days, i really was crashed...needed a break....got my computer out, and spent time on it, catching up with paperwork, blog, facebook, games......
Friday evening was Jenny’s last night, and she had hoped to go out for a meal with another lady...but after sometime and she had not arrived back at the hostel, i said that i would go out with her, so she was not alone. We found a very nice (not cheap) French bistro, and had a rather nice bottle of wine with a very nice meal. Why not have treats when you’re on holiday.
Sunday i met up with Rachel, a friend of Gem’s (friend in Manchester),who had been in New York for 6 weeks, it was nice meeting up with someone, who was connected to home, we had lunch and a chat, before Rachel had to get back to a team debrief as their time in NYC was almost up.
Then my last full day in NYC was here, not wanting to waste it, i decided to go shopping for a couple of things (was unsuccessful in both things i wanted), so took the Metro down to City Hall, to the place where i thought i would be able to get the things. After no success, i decided i would take a walk up Broadway....previously i had walked down Broadway from city hall to battery park, so what about north. Broadway is the longest road, so see how far i could go before i gave up. City Hall is 18 blocks south of Houston, after which the streets are then numbered. I got as far as Herald Square, on 36th Street, by the time i stopped for something to eat, then carried on. From 14th Street to up to 79th Street, Broadway runs at a diagonal from Park Ave (or 3rd Ave) crossing Madison (or 4th Ave) at Union Square, then 5th Ave at 23rd Ave (Flat Iron building), then 6th (or Ave of the Americas) at 34th, then 7th at 42nd (Times Square), 8th at 59th (Columbus Circle – corner of Central Park), 9th (Columbus Ave) at 66th, and finally 10th (or Amsterdam) at 72nd.
When i was on 49th someone asked me for directions to Rockefeller Centre and was surprised when i got my map out! At 59th – Columbus Circle – i decided that it would be rather nice to walk through the park. So i took various wandering paths on the west side (checking the lampposts as the let you know which street you are on and whether you are on East or West of the park). I stopped at The Lake (about 77th Street) for a break and to write my postcards. Having rested it was continuing along the meandering path north until 103rd, then out of the park and west to Amsterdam. A few hours walking, with a slight ache to the feet, but good. Dinner was Chinese from across the road, then bags sorted and packed, as needed to be down at Port Authority Bus Terminal to pick up my ticket for the trip to Washington by 10 the next morning.