Astrid
<font color=9933CC>Shoot for the moon. Even if you
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2000
- Messages
- 1,232
Wasn't sure where to put my mini New York report so if any Mod wants to move this just go ahead! 
After dreaming of a New York trip for years I finally persuaded Wendy (my best mate - who some of you know) to join me this December. We did wonder whether going so near to Christmas would be a problem but managed to get everything organised before leaving at some unearthly hour of the morning to head for Heathrow and our United Airlines flight to Newark on the 18th.
It was clear flying in and the land so flat then suddenly we spied the skyscrapers of New York - an amazing site, bit like an oasis in the desert. We quickly got through the airport (no long queues) and caught a cab to the Grand Hyatt Hotel with was perfectly situated on 42nd Street between Grand Central Station and the Chrysler Building (wow, what a building!). It was a lovely hotel that I'd thoroughly recommend.
Unpacked and out on the street by 2pm. What a truly awesome city, difficult to describe it all, skyscrapers that made me realise how huge the Twin Towers must have been, yellow cabs, bustle and noise - it was fantastic, and quite different from the other parts of the USA I have already seen. The weather was perfect, very cold and bright, and we walked to Macy's taking in the sights and sounds and getting our first glimpse of the Empire State Building - wow, we were finally here!!
I won't bore you with hour by hour detail of our stay just mention the highlights .....
We caught the subway on Thursday (after getting a trifle confused with uptown and downtown and local and express trains but got the hang of it all quickly, plus it was a really cheap way of getting around - $4 for an all day ticket) and went over to Brooklyn Heights where we walked down to the promenade for the most amazing views of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty in the distance. We walked back over the Brooklyn Bridge and just stood midway (freezing cold!) in awe of the city - I'd thoroughly recommend walking the bridge. From there we walked through Chinatown and Little Italy, where it was so different we could have been in another place altogether and then caught the subway to 5th Avenue and toured that area and back down to Times Square - saying we were on our knees and had aching feet would be an understatement!! We didn't realise how much we'd walked until we looked at a map!
Friday we shopped till we dropped - Bloomingdales, Bergdorf Goodman, 5th Avenue (including Tiffanys - but we didn't buy anything!), FAO Schwartz, Victorias Secret, Saks, Barnes & Noble etc etc. all those stores we'd heard about we finally got to spend money in!! Wendy bought some bargain red leather boots for $20 at an Egyptian run shop, the owner of which tried to persuade us to go to a belly dancing club with him - but we refused!!
The Rockefeller Centre with its skating rink and Christmas tree was a bit of a disappointment, the rink was much smaller than Id imagined but Im glad weve seen it, and we went via a look at Radio City to eat at a great diner (Ellen's) where the waiters and waitresses sang (they had excellent voices!). We loved Grand Central Station where they had a brilliant foodcourt and loads of lovely restaurants, the Station itself is a must see, amazing architecture and ceiling and a small town all by itself, we ate at a Mexican restaurant and it was fascinating watching all the people and imagining where they were going to. We had a look in the New York Public Library too, which was lovely, but a bit too highbrow for me!
On Friday night I levered Wendy off her bed (no stamina that girl!) and we went up the Empire State Building - I was terribly nervous as I suffer badly from a fear of heights but going late at night certainly helped - though I still clung to the rail on the inside of the outside balcony like a complete wuss!! I'm so glad we went and the queues at the time were non existent. We laughed at the number of people who were ringing from their mobiles saying 'Hi, you'll never guess where I'm ringing you from'!! Again, it hit us as we looked out, how high the Twin Tower must have been as we were towering over everything and yet they were even taller.
The tightest security we came across was getting the boat to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Everyone was made to take off their coats, hats, scarves etc also all belts and watches, all shoes were also closely examined before going through the scanners. They had it down to a fine art though so the queuing wasnt horrendous. We sat on the outside of the boat where it was bitterly cold but worth it for the views, the Statue is closed to visitors but you can still get off and look at the outside, it was smaller than Id imagined but an amazing sight nonetheless, we opted to stay on the boat and also stayed put for Ellis Island (where the immigrants were processed) where the tour would have been too long. At Battery Park, where we caught the boat they had a huge bronze sculpted sphere that used to stand in the World Trade Center forecourt. Its badly damaged and is a moving monument with an eternal flame and simple plaque alongside.
On our final morning we walked up 5th Avenue again and went into Central Park - Id never realised it was so huge!! Again, it was amazing to be somewhere that we had seen so often on films and heard so much about - it all seemed very familiar in an odd way! The Christmas lights, trees and decorations throughout Manhattan were magical, they certainly know how to put on a show!
So, there you go, I could have written reams but fear Ive written more than enough as it is, we had a fantastic trip, loads of great food, bags of shopping and seeing all those amazing sights. Weve already decided to go back in December 2004!!!
Here's me on Brooklyn Bridge:
Astrid x
After dreaming of a New York trip for years I finally persuaded Wendy (my best mate - who some of you know) to join me this December. We did wonder whether going so near to Christmas would be a problem but managed to get everything organised before leaving at some unearthly hour of the morning to head for Heathrow and our United Airlines flight to Newark on the 18th.
It was clear flying in and the land so flat then suddenly we spied the skyscrapers of New York - an amazing site, bit like an oasis in the desert. We quickly got through the airport (no long queues) and caught a cab to the Grand Hyatt Hotel with was perfectly situated on 42nd Street between Grand Central Station and the Chrysler Building (wow, what a building!). It was a lovely hotel that I'd thoroughly recommend.
Unpacked and out on the street by 2pm. What a truly awesome city, difficult to describe it all, skyscrapers that made me realise how huge the Twin Towers must have been, yellow cabs, bustle and noise - it was fantastic, and quite different from the other parts of the USA I have already seen. The weather was perfect, very cold and bright, and we walked to Macy's taking in the sights and sounds and getting our first glimpse of the Empire State Building - wow, we were finally here!!
I won't bore you with hour by hour detail of our stay just mention the highlights .....
We caught the subway on Thursday (after getting a trifle confused with uptown and downtown and local and express trains but got the hang of it all quickly, plus it was a really cheap way of getting around - $4 for an all day ticket) and went over to Brooklyn Heights where we walked down to the promenade for the most amazing views of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty in the distance. We walked back over the Brooklyn Bridge and just stood midway (freezing cold!) in awe of the city - I'd thoroughly recommend walking the bridge. From there we walked through Chinatown and Little Italy, where it was so different we could have been in another place altogether and then caught the subway to 5th Avenue and toured that area and back down to Times Square - saying we were on our knees and had aching feet would be an understatement!! We didn't realise how much we'd walked until we looked at a map!
Friday we shopped till we dropped - Bloomingdales, Bergdorf Goodman, 5th Avenue (including Tiffanys - but we didn't buy anything!), FAO Schwartz, Victorias Secret, Saks, Barnes & Noble etc etc. all those stores we'd heard about we finally got to spend money in!! Wendy bought some bargain red leather boots for $20 at an Egyptian run shop, the owner of which tried to persuade us to go to a belly dancing club with him - but we refused!!
The Rockefeller Centre with its skating rink and Christmas tree was a bit of a disappointment, the rink was much smaller than Id imagined but Im glad weve seen it, and we went via a look at Radio City to eat at a great diner (Ellen's) where the waiters and waitresses sang (they had excellent voices!). We loved Grand Central Station where they had a brilliant foodcourt and loads of lovely restaurants, the Station itself is a must see, amazing architecture and ceiling and a small town all by itself, we ate at a Mexican restaurant and it was fascinating watching all the people and imagining where they were going to. We had a look in the New York Public Library too, which was lovely, but a bit too highbrow for me!
On Friday night I levered Wendy off her bed (no stamina that girl!) and we went up the Empire State Building - I was terribly nervous as I suffer badly from a fear of heights but going late at night certainly helped - though I still clung to the rail on the inside of the outside balcony like a complete wuss!! I'm so glad we went and the queues at the time were non existent. We laughed at the number of people who were ringing from their mobiles saying 'Hi, you'll never guess where I'm ringing you from'!! Again, it hit us as we looked out, how high the Twin Tower must have been as we were towering over everything and yet they were even taller.
The tightest security we came across was getting the boat to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Everyone was made to take off their coats, hats, scarves etc also all belts and watches, all shoes were also closely examined before going through the scanners. They had it down to a fine art though so the queuing wasnt horrendous. We sat on the outside of the boat where it was bitterly cold but worth it for the views, the Statue is closed to visitors but you can still get off and look at the outside, it was smaller than Id imagined but an amazing sight nonetheless, we opted to stay on the boat and also stayed put for Ellis Island (where the immigrants were processed) where the tour would have been too long. At Battery Park, where we caught the boat they had a huge bronze sculpted sphere that used to stand in the World Trade Center forecourt. Its badly damaged and is a moving monument with an eternal flame and simple plaque alongside.
On our final morning we walked up 5th Avenue again and went into Central Park - Id never realised it was so huge!! Again, it was amazing to be somewhere that we had seen so often on films and heard so much about - it all seemed very familiar in an odd way! The Christmas lights, trees and decorations throughout Manhattan were magical, they certainly know how to put on a show!
So, there you go, I could have written reams but fear Ive written more than enough as it is, we had a fantastic trip, loads of great food, bags of shopping and seeing all those amazing sights. Weve already decided to go back in December 2004!!!
Here's me on Brooklyn Bridge:
Astrid x
LOL!)
