A Weekend at New York City

During my visit to USA to spend some time with my children, I had a chance to visit New York. It was my first visit to the most happening city which I had only seen on television. When my children suggested visiting New York I jumped at the idea, and looked forward to visiting the much heard about city with them.

Once the date was confirmed we started browsing the web to find out more about the place and the attractions there through various websites. New York City is comprised of five boroughs- The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island.

Finally we booked the New York Pass and hotel online well in advance, to avoid any unnecessary confusion during our trip.

We decided to drive all the way to New York so that we could see more places on the way, and even stop wherever necessary. Since it was the holiday season we could save the high flight charges too. Nevertheless, we thoroughly enjoyed our long journey.

As advised by a friend, we booked the hotel (Hotel Sheraton) in Newark, about 25 kms from New York city. We reached there about 2 hrs earlier, but the front office staff was very courteous and accommodated us without making us wait for long. We were already very tired after the long journey and were badly in need of a room to rest.

After a good rest and the complimentary late breakfast we set out to experience the amazing New York city. We called a cab which charged us $25 to take us to Penn. Railway Station. The friendly American driver told us that there are lots of Indian stores in that area. At the railway station, we had to take the ticket for Armtrack. The charges were $7.50 for each, inclusive of up and down journey. We took the local train (Amtrack) from one city to another city. Metro card is used for local trains inside the city priced at $2 each. Just swipe the card and enter through the gate.

With the help of a map, we walked through Broadway, Times square, Rockfeller Center, Madison Avenue, etc looking around and enjoying the marvelous beauty of the city.

I came to know that the city is known by several nicknames such as The Big Apple, Gotham, The City that never sleeps, the Capital of the World, The Empire City etc.

It was delightful to see the digitally animated advertisements that adorn the sides of buildings in the main area of Times Square.

Rockfeller Center, a complex of many buildings, is located between 48th and 51st Streets in the middle of Manhattan. There are many things to see here and too many options for eating and shopping.

On the way, we bought large cups of ice cream and though we were tired by the continuous walking , yet we were too enthusiastic to see more things within our limited time.

We also had a close look at the Brooklyn Bridge, one of the oldest suspension bridges in the country. It spans the East River connecting Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan. We were planning to take the water taxi to reach there, but since we were too tired we gave up the idea.

Later, we had our lunch in one of the many hotels there, and enjoyed window shopping in the breathtaking city. By then we were completely worn out, and had a fabulous dinner at a Mexican Hotel. Luckily on the way we got a cycle rickshaw which brought us to the subway (railway station.). and we reached back the hotel room.

The next day we collected our New York Pass at Times Square, which was booked earlier online. ($100 each). We had to produce the collection voucher received through email.

Our first visit was towards Madam Tussad Museum, located on 42nd Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues. It was fun watching the life-like wax figures of famous stars and historical figures, and the young and old alike posing for a picture with them.

After lunch, we preferred to walk down the streets to see the bustling city along with many other tourists.

Later, we headed towards Empire State Building, the tallest building in NYC. Every visitor to ESB is required to undergo security screening. It is one of the grandest and most spectacular samples of Art-deco architecture I've seen. We went into the observation deck and the views of the city from all corners were great. Admission was allowed until 86 floors. The sun setting from the 86th floor was spectacular view. There was a mad rush of people who wanted to watch the spectacular view from there. We also had the opportunity to experience the breathtaking simulated sky ride. There was also Helicopter tour for 5 minutes for a cost of $70, but we didn't go for it.

From there we moved towards the Ground Zero, the memorial site of the WTC towers, where the construction work was going on. The place brought us back to the painful memories of the day. We saw many visitors praying silently there. We walked around there for sometime.

Our next day was reserved for touring Statue of Liberty. The place was crowded with tourists from all over the globe.

There was long queue for security check to get into the ferry. We went in the ferry from Manhatten to Staten Island viewing the 5 mile stretch of New York Harbor, which took about 25 minutes. When we reached ashore we went to the information and walked around the Island and clicked many photos.

It was amazing to see the majestic Statue of Liberty, which was a gift of friendship from the people of France to United States. I learnt some basic information about the statue, such as

- The majestic statue was brought in many segments from France
- The 7 rays of the statue represents the 7 seas and 7 continents.
- The statue was officially dedicated in 1886 and made a national monument in 1924.

We had a fabulous time there.

We saw many parents there with their kids. It is a great place to expose the kids to such places.

On our return in the ferry, we had the opportunity to visit Ellis Island, lying at the mouth of the Hudson River in New York Harbor.

With the New York Pass, we could have enjoyed free entries to more attractions, like Museums, Parks and Gardens, but after visiting the Staten Island Botanical Garden we decided to begin our return journey for lack of time..

Please also have a look at my website about the Memorable Family Vacations, where New York Trip is also included.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my lens. I hope you enjoyed reading it. Please don't forget to leave your comment.