Taking the Heathrow Express from Paddington we caught our flight to New York via Zurich. Not too sure what happened but we had the most amazing seats on the longer flight from Zurich to New York just behind Business Class at the bulkhead. Plenty of leg room and no "chair in your face" from the person in front. The flight went quickly and was very comfortable.
Landing at Newark airport we took a yellow cab to our hotel in Jersey City.......very expensive!!!!!! The hotel was ok, the bed huge, the complimentary breakfast satisfactory but the best part was that it was in a relatively quiet area and close to the Path railway line which would take us to the World Trade Centre - the gateway to New York City. This we did most days.
The World Trade Centre is mind blowing - such an incredible building representing a dove in flight, wings spread wide. This building is huge as most things seem to be in America.
Ground zero where the twin towers once stood is beautiful. Each towers footprint is now a waterfall pond with the names of each person who lost their lives printed around the edges. It is a very moving and fitting memorial and it was pleasing to see that the land has been used in this way and not just rebuilt on.
Close by is St. Pauls Chapel which served as a place of rest and refuge for recovery workers after 9/11. It survived the devastation without even a broken window. Dust, dirt and smoke damaged the organ but that has since been refurbished.
This route took us onto Broadway, where we booked tickets for Paramour Cirque de Soliel, and into Chinatown......always a great area to explore and eat. Walking back along the other side of this section of Broadway we finally ended up in Battery Park then took the Staten Island Ferry past the statue of Liberty and back. Arriving back in Battery Park with beautiful views to take in we settled at a table and enjoyed a really cold beer. The day had been very hot, a lot of walking had been done and we definitely deserved it. Continuing on we found Wall Street and the financial section of NYC and absolutely exhausted we made our way back to our hotel. The sun went down on day 1.
Day 2 saw us taking the Path train again to WTC - we were getting good at this now - and a bus to 7th Avenue. Times Square was so much smaller than we had imagined but just as bright and magical as portrayed on TV. Spent a while there just looking and taking in the atmosphere then walked on to Central Park......once again HUGE. They were preparing for the NY marathon and the pavilion had just been opened but we wandered around happily in the sunshine. There are so many interesting things to see here. You can hire a bike to get around or take a horse and cart.......you could even skate if so desired!!!! We did none of these........shanks pony is our preferred choice of transport. The Natural History Museum was next on the list - very busy with heaps of children as this was a Saturday - but was a good experience. Tackling the metro system was our next challenge - very different to the London Underground and Paris Metro - and definitely lacking in helpful maps and directions..........but we made it to our destination ok and finally into Bryant Park. This was a great area which had been converted into a Winter Wonderland with Christmas Chalets filled with Christmas gifts and in the middle an ice skating rink filled with capable people skating, from very small to quite old. We watched spellbound and envious, it was a fabulous place, all lit up, but it suddenly became extremely dark and the heavens decided to open. Anticipating this we headed for a bar and restaurant in the park where we stayed for a couple of hours eating glorious Asian food and drinking New Zealand Sav.......perfect.
The rain began to ease fortunately and just in time for us to walk to the Lyric theatre on Broadway to see our show which was awesome. Cirque de Soliel wrapped inside a Broadway show - difficult to imagine but perfect, edge of the seat stuff.
Getting home was a mission.....walk, bus, walk, Path train, walk. So much walking!!!!! Exhausted.
Day 3 we took the Path train all the way to 23rd Street as full service had resumed after the weekend (strikes and closures for service seem to be the bane of our travelling life unfortunately). 23rd street took us close to Chelsea and of course the Chelsea Market which we wanted to explore. We were here at the height of Halloween and the market was totally decked out like a gruesome, Halloween cavern. This is in itself a very interesting market to visit - very eclectic, very artisan, very different. We actually managed to buy ourselves a pie here from an Ozzie pie stand - we were hanging out for one surprisingly. We were also hanging out for a juicy steak but were not prepared to pay NY prices - $US 54????
From Chelsea market we stepped up to walk the Highline. This is a walkway that has been established by using the old Railway line route. As defined it is high and runs between skyscrapers giving excellent views over NYC. We caught a glimpse - our second one - of The Empire State Building but unfortunately our day was cut short unexpectedly when I began to feel a "back attack" coming on. Getting home was a nightmare, stopping for a beer and a "Gary massage" on the way to try to relax the muscle spasm, we finally made it. Knock out medication taken by next morning I was back on track.
Day 4 we had to move hotels and chose to hire a private car for this. Hauling luggage from Jersey City to JFK was not an option under the circumstances and the price was reasonable and worth it.
We had one night in this hotel at the airport, not a place we would recommend, and next morning flew out to Vegas.
Not sure we allowed enough time in New York but packed in heaps and traveled miles in the time we had. Think we saw most of what we set out to see.
Next stop Vegas.
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