Our first day in New York City was glorious. Yesterday when we arrived, it was 93 degrees and you couldn't even see Manhattan from the bridge we crossed at the southern end of the island on our way into Brooklyn. I couldn't imagine going to the top of the Empire State Building to see smog. It was muggy and miserable. However, the place we rented for the month is really lovely. Everything is comfortable, and we are so close to a great subway line. We felt really, really triumphant to have driven here. All I'm saying is that driving the freeways/tollways isn't really that different from any big city experience, but the city streets are something else entirely.
Today we got up raring to go. We decided last night our first stop would be Times Square. It's just as iconic as it looks in the the pictures. Even better, a weather front blew through in the middle of the night, and we woke up to bright blue skies without a hint of smog, and the temperature was almost 30 degrees cooler - thank heaven! We decided our first event would be a Grayline Tour of "downtown". This was 3 hours on the top of an open air double decker bus while a cute native New Yorker tour agent entertained us with his 'patter', and we got to see all of the famous uptown sites. I won't bore you with the list. You can just look at the pictures.
When we finished the tour, it was obvious that we should take advantage of the smog free skies and go to the Empire State Building. We were warned of the horrendous lines - which didn't exist. The Empire State Building does not disappoint. It's a first class attraction. The building itself is a gorgeous example of art deco architecture and looks as fresh today as when it was built in 1933. The views today were absolutely calendar picture quality. Of course, on one side of the building, the wind was blowing about 40 mph - literally. Small children could have been picked up and wafted over the railing it was so strong. It was worth the wind to see the views. The pictures speak for themselves.
My observation about our first day: New Yorkers are friendly. They go out of their way to help you. The subway is safe, unbelievably clean considering the number of people who use it,and an amazing transportation triumph. 9/11 is still on every one's mind. Ten years later, this is still very, very personal to New Yorkers. They are no where near being finished with this. I don't think anyone has 'moved on'. There's a new tower being constructed - it's going to be 1776 feet high, and you can watch everyone checking out the progress of the construction. The variety in New York must be seen to be believed. I'm talking nationalities, language, design styles, merchandise, and building styles. You hear about it all the time: New York - one of a kind. Well, it really is.
Check out the pictures. Tomorrow we've decided the Statue of Liberty is calling us.
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/DayOneGraylineTourAndEmpireStateBldg?authkey=Gv1sRgCIG6gLHvoK2SlgE#
4 comments:
Jan, there used to be a little bistro called "La bonne soup" on 55th that was quaint,small, good and relatively inexpensive that Joey loved. It is close to Moma. Try it if you get a chance.
Rick
How cool! My cousin and his family are in NYC now too! They went to see Carlos' Bakery yesterday. It's the one on the show Cake Boss. Their cakes are amazing...you gotta go there and check it our! They had their canoli's and they looked absolutely yummy!!! I can't wait to see more pictures!!
Take pictures of where you are staying too!
Jan, I remember going to a Broadway show and noticing how small and tall the theater was. We went to the Ticketz Kiosk, (is it gone too?( and got half price) All we could find was "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum". Whoopie Goldberg was starring (as the main male character) but we saw her understudy. Anyway, the theater was so tall, we could look down on the actors heads. I remember always watching a guy's bald spot on top of his head. Good show though. Also saw Lily Tomlin's one woman show. (Not the famous one)She was awesome to watch; her hands, mannerisms, even when she moved her head. Live actors are awesome!!!
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