World Trade Center Memorial & Brooklyn Bridge

     Wednesday. Our last FULL day in NYC. We left the apartment earlier than usual, grabbed a bagel, and took the subway downtown to the Brooklyn Bridge. We sat and ate outside NYC City Hall before beginning our walk across the bridge. The walk was shorter than I thought it would be, but beautiful! I've gotten GREAT views of the bridge from rooftops and the water, and now I finally got to see it going across. Thankfully, it wasn't too hot yet since it was earlier in the day. We got some more great photos of the bridge! It's been my favorite thing to capture so far ;) When we got to Brooklyn, we considered going to the famous Grimaldi's for a slice of pizza... we had read online and there were a couple of articles that suggested it might have closed or moved locations, so we weren't even sure if it'd be worth it. Plus, we had to be back by 1pm for our World Trade Center Memorial Tour. So instead, we went to get ice cream from the Old Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory right at the base of the bridge (thanks for the suggestion, Mrs. Gomez!). As it happened, to get to the ice cream place, we walked right past Grimaldi's! It wasn't open, but there were people outside in line, so I'm assuming it was just too early for pizza. Anyway, the ice cream was delicious! We ate it as we rushed to catch a subway back to Manhattan. We were running late for our tour, so we were seriously booking it! Our feet were killing us!

     Eventually, we picked up our tickets and made it the World Trade Center Memorial Site Entrance. Once inside the Memorial, we walked around the 2 reflection pools, saw the Survivor Tree, and just sat and watched as they worked on building WTC 1 & WTC 4. It was a very somber atmosphere. Words can't describe it... I just sat on one of their benches and teared up thinking about what the city went through on 9/11. Being there in the shadows of the towers and knowing how devastating it was, how it changed so many things in the US...I just can't begin to fathom how such a bustling, loud city could just shut down and be so disconnected from everything for the next few days... The Reflection Pools --the twin towers footsteps--were big and beautiful with the waterfalls and inscribed names. I wish the Trident Museum was already open, and that the rest of the new towers were finished so that I could get the complete view. It's going to be AMAZING!!!!! 7 buildings, 4 of them taller, with WTC1 being the tallest at 1776 feet-- the tallest building in NYC and the United States. Seeing the elaborate plans for it made me feel proud to be an American-- we are resilient people! It's like the lyrics in Lee Greenwood's song, "Proud to be an American." He sings, "I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free/And I won't forget the men who died, who gave that right to me/And I gladly stand up, next to you, and defend her still today/'Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land, God Bless the USA!"

     We left there, mostly because the trees they planted aren't full-grown and the sun was beating down on us! Jeff was feeling very dehydrated so we went in search of water. Then, we stopped by St. Paul's Church-- the subject of the book The Little Chapel that Stood (Remember it? I read it every year on 9/11!). Jeff rested as I walked around the chapel-- now a memorial site. The church opened in the 1700's and George Washington even came for service after his inauguration. It's stayed standing since then, and somehow survived the attack on the Twin Towers, even though it was right at their base. Immediately following 9/11, it was used as a gathering point/home base for volunteers, firemen, police. Police would work 12 hours, then come to the chapel to eat, change, and pass out on its pews before going back to work. Knowing the church's history and role from reading the book, and then seeing it in person, left me in awe. I had teared up at the Memorial, but I was full on CRYING as I walked around the chapel and read the letters that people had sent from around the world. It is inspiring and made me proud to know how people can truly come together in times of crisis. It was one of my favorite things I saw in NY!!!

     We both needed a physical and emotional break after the morning, so we decided to take a subway back uptown and catch another double-decker tour bus. We had been trying to eat at places that we didn't have in California, but I cheated and got a Jamba Juice! ;) I had to get my last fix before Spain!!! With Jamba Juices in hand, we got on another bus and did a tour of Uptown Manhattan-- starting at Central Park Southwest, seeing Yoko Ono & John Lennon's apartment, touring Columbia University, passing by Ulysses S. Grant's grave & the church Rockefeller Jr. dedicated to his parents, before reaching Harlem. In Harlem, we could see the difference in parks/playgrounds and apartment buildings. But it was daytime, and we were perfectly safe. We even got to pass by the Apollo Theater and Harlem Market that Malcolm X started. Finally, we reached Museum Mile on Central Park's Upper East Side, and we saw the Met & Guggenheim. It felt soooo good to just sit for almost 2 hours :) Except that it was still hot! 

Beautiful Brooklyn Bridge 

On our way to Brooklyn to get some ice cream!

WTC 1 from the Reflection Pools

The names were organized, and families of the victims could request that certain names be put together 

So sad to see all the names of people who died inscribed along the 2 large pools... this one even said, "...and her unborn child."

The Survivor Tree! It survived 9/11! 

The 2 Reflection Pools had 30 feet waterfalls on every side that cascaded down into a big black hole in the center of the pool...seemingly, into emptiness.

I would NOT want to be a worker having to go up/down that elevator to work on the building! They somehow even got a big crane to the top of it! Not my cup of tea.

St. Paul's Chapel!

One of the pews where the police or firemen came to rest/sleep after a 10-12 hour shift of trying to recover bodies. The scuff marks are from their boots that they were too tired to take off. 

I left a message on behalf of Randall, thanking everyone who helped after the 9/11 tragedy.

They replaced the pews with cots, and people from all over mailed teddy bears to provide the volunteers comfort at this horrible time; it worked.

People sent letters and mementos to the church; it became the unofficial memorial site for the rescuers. They saved over 250 boxes worth of stuff! 

343 symbolizes the number of firemen who died on 9/11

Police and firemen from all over the world bring their patch and leave it in this big collection to offer their support for NYPD and NYFD

I even found CHP! 

George Washington's Pew-- he sat here after his inauguration as the first President of the United States! The church was built in 1766!

Back on the double decker bus, this was the original subway station in NY

A Gothic Cathedral in NYC... there will be LOTS more in Europe!!!

Ulysses S. Grant's tomb-- he was the Northern General in the Civil War. President Abe Lincoln chose him to lead the troops, and he helped defeat the Confederate Army. General Robert E. Lee surrendered to him to end the war that ended slavery. 

The famous Apollo Theater in Harlem: one of the oldest (built in 1913) and most famous music halls in US history, especially known for its African American performers. Their famous amateur nights' motto is, "Where stars are born and legends are made!" People like Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, James Brown, Diana Ross & the Supremes, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Marvin Gaye, Luther Vandross, the Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Mariah Carey, Lauryn Hill, and Jimi Hendrix have all launched their careers there. 

Duke Ellington statue in the Harlem side of Central Park-- Harlem is known for its Jazz! 

The MET Museum steps in the Upper East Side (a fancy neighborhood where Jackie Kennedy Onassis lived, and where the tv show Gossip Girl takes place)

NY Mets Game & Brooklyn Bridge

Jeff & I arrived in New York!!! We are spending a week here before we travel across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. We wanted to visit one of my old roommates from when I lived in Spain before. Her name is Marissa, and she is from New York. I only get to see her every few years, and this is my first time visiting NY since I was in 8th grade! Jeff has never been here before, so we're both really excited! It's the biggest city in America, and world famous. It's incredible! It's a 3 hour time difference from California-- here, we're 3 hours ahead. So if it's 10 am in NY, it's only 7 am in Milpitas. Likewise, if it's 7pm in NY, it's only 4pm in Milpitas. 


On our first full day in New York, Sunday, we slept in before walking a few blocks to get bagels for breakfast. New York is supposed to be well-known for its bagels! I noticed the different types of bagels and wasn't too impressed-- they have the same ones here at Noah's. But then I noticed all the different spreads-- I've never seen so many different kinds of cream cheese! But of course, being the plain Jane that I am, I stuck with my usual. Then, we were off to Queens! Queens is east of Manhattan (where we were staying), and is one of the "boroughs" of New York. It's across the East River. 


We bought our first subway Metro Card and took the 7 to Queens, along with a throng of other Mets fans. The subway was PACKED! Luckily we had seats, and it dropped us off right in front of Citi Field (where the Mets play). We were running late, but stopped to take a few photos outside the stadium. Once inside, we found our seats: Section 109, Row 8, Seats 1-4. They were awesome! Right on the first baseline, just past first base. Unfortunately, it was SUPER HOT and the seats burned our legs. We were all melting in the sun, and our clothes were dripping with sweat. So we gave up our awesome seats and moved back to the rows in the shade. The Cubs killed the Mets, 7-0. I thought that was bad, until I looked up at the out-of-town scoreboard and saw the Giants (led by Tim Lincecum) lost 2-13. We walked a lap of the year-old ballpark... it was nice, but obviously not AT&T Park! ;) It didn't have a beautiful view/backdrop, but it did have a Fan Fest area like San Fran, except that they also had a dunk tank. It also had a lot of different food options from local restaurants. I'm glad they were in town and that I got to visit at least one of the NY ballparks! 

After we were back in Manhattan, we picked up some food at the neighborhood grocery store and took a cab to our friend, Andrew's place. He lives in downtown (the Financial District-- by Wall Street & the New York Stock Exchange), and his rooftop has the most amazing views of the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, and the new World Trade Center. We BBQed and enjoyed the sunset views of the City... it was incredible!

Finally, we left and had to be real New Yorkers and maneuver our way back to Marissa's apartment using the subway on our own. We did it! We're tired and sweaty and are looking forward to a good night's rest before we go into full Tourist Mode and make our way around Manhattan while Marissa works (she's a lawyer and works lots of hours)... wish us luck!

Citi Field, in the Borough of Queens, where the Mets play baseball. It's a new stadium, only about a year old. The Mets are New York's 2nd baseball team (besides the Yankees). They are orange and blue because New York used to have 2 other teams-- the Giants & Dodgers. But both of those teams moved to California! So the Mets started playing in NY instead, and took the orange from the Giants and the blue from the Dodgers!

Jeff and I posed in front of the Mets logo on the Big Apple... that's New York City's nickname! The Mets are actually a shortened name. Their full name is the New York Metropolitans.

One of their concession stands... I liked the picture of old players above it. They are old baseball card photos!

The big scoreboard in center field

Our view from our seats (before we moved to the shade!)

They had a dunk tank behind the center field bleachers!

This is the view from the roof of Andrew's apartment. His building is 30 floors. It was a bright, clear, hot, humid, summer day! Far away, in the center of the picture in the very back, you can see the Empire State Building!

The Brooklyn Bridge is in front, and the Manhattan Bridge is behind it

This is the new World Trade Center building. Remember, the last one was the Twin Towers and they were taken down by the planes on 9/11 back in 2001. They are finally rebuilding the towers-- this will be the highest one. They started building it in 2006 and will finish in 2013. When it's done, it will be 1,776 feet high and will be the tallest building in all of the United States. It's going to be awesome! They are building it with a bunch of features that will make it safer for people to work there. The windows will have blast-proof plastic to protect it from explosions. They are also building other shorter buildings around it so that it looks like steps. For more information on the new tower, you can read about it on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_World_Trade_Center

The bridges at dusk

Can you see the Empire State Building? It's lit up in the center!

The Brooklyn Bridge connects Brooklyn to Manhattan. It's one of the oldest bridges in the United States! It was built in 1883, which makes it 129 years old!!! You can walk across the bridge and visit Brooklyn-- Jeff & I are going to try it out later this week.

Notice the traffic? It's cars waiting to get on the bridge and go to Brooklyn!

The Empire State Building, one of NYC's most famous landmarks
 Google it (or use Wikipedia) to get more information
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_State_Building

This is just an apartment building. People actually live here! Besides Trump Tower, it's the tallest residential building in NYC. Just looking up at it from the street made me dizzy! I don't think I could live that high up, but it probably has AMAZING views from the windows!