Friday, September 5, 2008

i want to be a part of it... new york, new york

new york has always been a fascisation of mine and is probably my second favorite city, next to paris of course! so on most of my days off i stay with resalin and explore the city...


one afternoon, sunny and simply gorgeous outside, i decided to take the staten island ferry to get a closer view of lady liberty. why the staten island ferry? because it's a free ride that goes right by liberty herself and then comes back!


(the staten island ferry, view of the city from the ferry, view of lady liberty from the ferry)





after this little excursion i took a walk through battery park, which is one of my favorite parks in nyc. i fell in love with it back in 2000 when kathy and i took a harbor cruise tour and walked all through the park. the light shines through the trees just right to make playful shadows on the ground. the park is located at the very tip of manhattan and encompasses 25 acres. there are many statues and memorials throughout the park, some of which i have pictures of below. the sphere was a sculpture that was located in the area between the twin towers. it was recovered from the rubble, but did suffer some damage. the sphere was placed in battery park along with the eternal flame, which was lit 9/11/2002 as a tribute to all 9/11 victims. the eagle statue is part of the world war ii memorial in the park.









(the sphere and eternal flame 9/11 memorial, park fountains and harbor view, wwii memorial)



earlier this same day i was exploring resalin's new neighborhood, the financial district. i found bowling green park, the alexander hamilton u.s. custom house, and best of all, the charging bull! the park is circular with benches, a fountain, and beautiful flowers. it right in the middle of whitehall and state, the two streets formed by the splitting of broadway. the park actually has free wi-fi and a lot of people eat lunch there on their breaks. the alexander hamilton custom house is a beautiful building at the south end of the park, currently housing the national museum of the american indian and the ny bankruptcy court. the charging bull is found at the north end of the park and is iconic of the financial district. according to wikipedia, the bull symblizes aggressive financial optimism and prosperity. it is said that rubbing it's nose, horns, and testicles brings good luck. if you notice in the picture, the testicles are rather shiny... hmm






(bowling green park fountain, alexander hamilton custom house, me by the charging bull)


another sight i really enjoyed visiting was the united nations building. i didn't actually go inside, but i did get a great view of the secretariat building from the park across the street. i love the reflection of the city in the buildings windows and the flags lining the street. i randomly found the quotes below as i was exploring the turtle bay neighborhood. the stone in the ground is in memory of ralph johnson bunche, an american politican scientist and diplomat active in planning for the un, which says, "peace, to have meaning for many who have only known suffering in both peace and war, must be translated into bread or rice, shelter, health and education, as well as freedom and human dignity." the large stone wall presents a quote from isaiah 2:4, "they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." someday i hope to work for the un or to someway be affiliated with the organization.



(secretariat building, ralph bunche quote, isaiah quote)

as i left the turtle bay area, looking for the new york public library, i found goodburger. first of all i didn't even know these existed anymore, and second, this neighborhood was the last place i would expect to see one. too bad i wasn't hungry because it would have been a first in a lifetime experience for me!



after some wrong turns, i found the ny public library. i sat out front of the massive building, enjoying the beautiful day and talking to keely on the phone. she was a little curious as to why i was spending my day going to the library, which is odd because she too loves the library... but i didn't go there for books. i really just wanted to admire the architecture both outside and in. once inside, i didn't have much time to explore the building because i found a temporary photography exhibit entitled "eminent domain." the works of various artists were featured to highlight contemporary photography and new york city. to read more about the exhibit go to this link: http://www.nypl.org/research/calendar/exhib/hssl/hsslexhibdesc.cfm?id=462. my favorite piece was by reiner leist, "window/eleven septembers." leist took a picture of the ny skyline from his apartment window everyday he was in the city. the piece included the photos from september 1995 - september 2005. on the days he was not in his apartment there is a blank slide. it is eerie to see the differences of the city from the same view both before and after 9/11.


(view of the ny public library from across 5th avenue, map division, cross view of the entrance, entrance to the public catalog room, rose main reading room)



these last two photos were taken on different days from my cell phone. i'm really surprised at the quality, and even though they aren't from this same day i wanted to include them in this entry.

this is a view of new york from sophie's queens apartment at night. for those of you who don't know, sophie is now one of resalin's roommates in the wall street apartment. she's from the uk and is absolutely amazing! i'm so glad resalin has made friends like sophie because i get to be friends with her too :)



this photo is from the strawberry fields memorial area of central park, a tribute to john lennon. even though i've been to central park many times, i never knew about this area. i was shopping and walking the city with ryan's mom and sister when they were in town and we stopped by the memorial before dinner. the mosaic is always covered in fresh flowers or candles, left by john lennon fans. around this area there are benches donated by various people, trees, and shrubs. it is a really peaceful area and i hope to make it back on john lennon's birthday or death anniversary so i can experience the tribute paid to him.




so that's all for now... i'll have more updates soon. i hope you enjoy this little piece of new york at least almost as much as i did. it's much better in person!

PS - you can click on the photos for a larger view!

4 comments:

  1. wow, Lanie, the memories of my trip to nyc came back with much gusto....although most of what I saw was decorated with snow, there are so many things that you have shown me that are bringing all the images back in my memory!

    love you gal...miss you!

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  2. anonymous is Desha, by the way....got a bit confused in the publishing section....sorry!

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  3. Mel,
    I loved your latest entry on New York. I too love the UN, the art and the quotes. Would you send me your email address so I can send you our travel blog address.

    Gloria and Perry were at our house last weekend for a night and a couple of meals. They were on their way home from Burning Man.
    Love, Aunt Bev

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  4. I think I once took a picture with that bull's balls too

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