New York, New York

Our New York hotel is well placed, right near Grand Central Station, which is a marvellous structure. It is clean and warm, and has a vast array of food shops, including supermarkets and a fresh food hall which is really good. The trains are pretty well hidden from view (unlike Paris stations), which is probably another good idea. From our hotel window we can see the Empire State Building, lit up at night in silver. On the weekend it was lit in red, white and blue for the President's Day holiday [photo]. Right next door is a great place for breakfast, and they have good wraps and salads. A short walk takes you right to Times Square, and we are adjacent to the well known streets, Lexington Ave, Park Ave, Madison Ave, and 5th Ave. New York is great city for walking!

Our week in New York has been very interesting, it certainly is a different city, and the people watching here is most interesting. Foreigners abound - the city is packed with tourists. The decline in the US Dollar seems to bring Europeans here en masses, and they seem to be buying up brand name luggage in bulk, maybe to sell on their return. English visitors swagger around as if they own the place, and maybe they do, what with over two dollars to the pound!

The weather has been below freezing every day, some days have been bright and sunny, and we have also seen the snow fall, which has been great. Just like home the fashions in the stores are all summer, even though it is snowing outside and every one is wearing big coats, and it will be some time before the little flimsy numbers will be able to be worn.

We have done the touristy things, and just walked as we usually do, gazing upwards as the buildings here are so interesting, especially the tops of them. The photo shows an interesting brick building in Soho, incredibly intricate detail at the top levels, and those amazing NY fire escapes. There were trips to Macy's and Bloomingdales, and Century 21 the great discount store. In fairly dismal weather, we walked thru some of the "village" precincts of NYC, looking at the quirky shops and cafes.

We're big walkers, but NYC is also very big, so we use the Subway to move uptown and downtown in big hops. There is a convenient 1 week Metrocard which gives you unlimited travel for about $25, very good value. For some reason, we were able to buy the first one on a credit card, but had to use cash to buy the second Metrocard. The underground trains are clean, frequent, crowded and feel safe. The sounds of live music and buskers permeate the system. The network structure is not as straightforward as it is in Paris and London, but you get the hang of it quickly.

In perfect sunshine, we took the Staten Island Ferry, and gazed back at the familiar skyline of the NY skyscrapers, a sad sight now of course, and passed by the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, where the early immigrants were processed. We took a trip to the top of the Empire State Building, mostly because Clare, as a little girl, remembers her Nana going there. It was crowded and freezing at the top, but the visibility was perfect. It's amazing to realise this building is 1931 vintage.

The Frick collection is very interesting, thanks Elaine for that tip, and the Guggenheim Museum in that wonderful building, although now covered in scaffolding for a massive external renovation, was amazing to see. Unfortunately on the day we went there, a new and very popular exhibition was opening, and it was also snowing heavily, therefore the cloackroom was suffering a huge overload and we decided not to stand in line to check our coats, but instead we spent the day over 5th Ave in Central Park.

This was a good decision, as it was very beautiful, covered in snow, with lots of cross country skiers, and children with sleds having a great time. All the wonderful buildings around the park had snow on the tops of them, and there were no cars in the park. The fresh snow in the park gives it a wonderful aspect [photo]

On a sunny day, we visited September 11's Ground Zero. It was very moving, we thought of the terrible events of that day, and looked up into the sky where the buildings used to be. It's really just a hole in the ground now. The design seems to be settled, and new foundations are well under way, and the streets around are full of construction workers and cement trucks. The pedestrians are very forgiving, and everyone gives way to the trucks as they turn and weave in the street. Noone can be offended by the minor inconveniences in moving around this place. We also looked at the sculpture, now temporarily housed in Battery Park, which once sat in the plaza of the World Trade Centre. It is badly bruised and battered, but is a fitting memorial to that terrible day [photo].