Our whistle stop visit to New York prior to our cruise to Nova Scotia was for two days. We have been before to New York and done a lot of the famous sites; Emprire State Building; Rockefeller Centre; Macey's and others but it was good to be back, in a strange sort of way. New York is one on its own, dirty streets, old buildings; strange people; packed full of people from all over the world, but it does have a "buzz" about it,
We stayed at the Inter Continental in Times Square, not my favorite place Times Square. It is the 'cross roads of the world' it is brash and busy with a bustle that I have now come to not enjoy, but that said it is the centre of Theatre Land and has restaurants of every nationality, It is a place where I feel out of my comfort zone – but with the police on every corner it does feel safe, although as in any large city, take care of your wallet or purse. The Intercontinental Hotel is excellent, good bedrooms, excellent bar and restaurant and a concierge department that has everything at their finger tips.
We decided to revisit the Statue of Liberty the concierge organised all our tickets, which is a queuing time saver – it does help you jump the queues – remember to ask for a Senior ticket, the cost is $17 for adults and 14$ for Seniors. The trip to see the Statue of Liberty is well worth seeing and has interesting shops etc around its base, if you wish to go up into the statue, it has to be arranged earlier, online or through the concierge, you can visit the Crown or the Pedestal areas, for extra cost. The area is disabled friendly and on the ferry there are many ferry workers to help with any wheelchairs etc.
We visited Ground Zero a sad reflection of what happened on 9/11, the Americans however have made a fitting tribute to the many people who died there with two water features, each on the footprint of the two towers. They are like a large wells with names of the dead inscribed around the base and water in a continuous flow going down and down into a black hole, you can not see the bottom. It is a powerful reminder of the devastation that was caused on that site, people are respectful and sombre but it is a place of reflection of what happened on that dreadful day.
For anyone going to New York for the first time the Red Bus tour is a must, you can take a 48 hour or a 72 hour tour whichvisits all the famous places, and it even has a night tour of New York going over the Brooklyn Bridge the cost vary from $54 to $115 (plus if you want the VIP treatment), depending on your stamina, it is worth every dollar.
We took the Subway, which is quick and clean, but beware if you get off at Times Square and feel totally bewildered by where you are – there are a lot of stations that go to different parts of the Square – just ask, in a shop or a street trader, our experience is that they are friendly and helpful. The Subway took us to Central Park and we visited the site of 'Imagine' the memorial to John Lennon, it is a ring of stone with the word Imagine written in the centre. The park is a lovley place to relax from the bustle. Horse drawn carriges, people jogging, cycling and just strolling around this iconic park.
Our visit was too short but our next stop was Brooklyn to get on the Cruise Ship to take us north to Nova Scotia, but like the song New York New York I love being 'a part of it' when we are there, so we will be back for another 'bite' of the Big Apple.
Silver Travel Advisor recommends Kirker Holidays for short breaks and longer stays in New York
