New York, New York
Okay... here's the first series of pictures... New York. Now, for the benefit of ppl who don't know that much abt U.S... It's New York, New York because there's a New York City in New York state. Mahattan is part of New York City, the center penisular/island of NYC. It's where you find most of the famous sites and must dos when visiting NYC. NYC is also made up of 3 other boroughs - Brooklyn, Queens and Bronx.
Reached NYC on 24th Dec late afternoon, thinking many stores would be closed since it's Christmas Eve.. But NY being NY - the city that never sleeps, stores are open late even on Christmas Eve. Head out to the crowds after I dropped my bag. I am not kidding about the crowds either, there's people everywhere in Times Square and Fifth Ave. Guess it's probably one of the best place you want to be in US to soak up the Xmas festive spirit. The window decorations by the major stores along 5th Ave is amazing. Saks & Co. have snowflakes deco that 'dances' to music every 30 mins.. See it on Youtube!
My favourite Christmas window deco series .. Saks and Co. 
The traditional Christmas Tree of Rockefeller. It is really big and supposingly a real tree! It's like 3 stories high?!?
Angel decorations in front of the big tree, with the snowflake lights of Saks & Co. A friend of mine says it's the same deco as last year.. No matter to me! It's beautiful! 
St Regis Hotel. So cute!
Central Park is a must go.. a great piece of oasis in the middle of busy NY. NYorkers should be thankful for it.. You will see people jogging or walking their dogs and also skating in the rink during winter. Took me over 2 hrs to stroll from one end to the other.. taking pictures and admiring the scenery.. that's without even visiting some of the sights in Central Park. Guess I'm just a nature kind of person.. give me the trees over the streets anyday.. and I can linger forever.
Riding the horse carridge around Central Park. So romantic... 
Buildings of NY from lake in Central Park.
NYC's public transport is amazing.. it operates 24/7 and you can get to pretty much anywhere within Mahattan by subway without having to walk more than 10 blocks.. that's like 500m and often lesser than that! With a week's pass for $24, you can get on all the local buses and subway.. Pretty cheap considering you can take like 4/5 rides a day getting from one place to another. Mahattan is also laid out in a very orderly pattern.. Streets are numbered from downtown to uptown and divded East, West by 5th Ave. It's really hard to get lost in the grid system... Even if u take a wrong turn, one block later you will realise the error and just make and about turn.
Whenever I'm travelling alone, I tend to scrimp on meals especially in a big city like NY where everything is pricey. For this trip, I was pretty much living on my box of biscuits for 2 out of 3 meals most of the days. I would give myself a little treat like a bowl of hot hearty soup (especially when I'm cold in the evenings) or a nice dim sum lunch in Chinatown. Now, NY Chinatown has grown a lot over the years (like every other Chinatown) and started to encroached on Little Italy which is right next street. There really isn't much of Little Italy left except for a couple of streets of Italian restaurants and cafes. While having my vegetarian dim sum lunch in Chinatown, I got to know a local couple - Marc and Lynda. They are quite an interesting pair.. Marc's really into history and Lynda is always chastising him! But they were really nice and even treated me to dessert at an Italian cafe.
There's a park in Chinatown called Columbia park. There you will see groups of elderly Chinese men playing Chess. They found me really odd taking pictures of them. And oh.. among all the Chinese men, I saw a White lady in the midst playing chess together! So funny!
Of course, only in Chinatown will you find fresh fruits lining the streets on Christmas Day!
A really queer car! See all the people staring at it! 
One of the places I really enjoyed touring was the UN headquarters. For USD8 (by being below 30 and having a student ID - I'm still holding on to my matric card!), you will be led through the different assembly halls of UN - like the security council etc. Now, you would think tt UN being such a huge organisation would have nice furnishings with beautiful and expensive decorations.. Nope! The building was built back in 1950s.. I think they haven't really updated it that much since then. The seats and listening equipment for the media in the assembly halls are ancient! I guess in a way it's comforting to know that the UN ain't lavishing all the money donated by the countries on furnitures and decorations.. but that money actually goes into improving the world (I hope). Nonetheless, the place is still beautiful with lots of brillant art pieces donated by different countries of the world. The land that it occupies (right on the banks of the hudson river from 44th to 48th street) is international property, it even has it's own postal system where stamps bought from within the UN is useless outside! I.e. got to mail out your letters/postcards from the UN building - which I did obviously!
One of the aims of UN is disarmament. So I guess this sculpture speaks it all. Note: see how it's placed in front of Iraq, Israel and Iran's flags! Haa.. Just kidding! It's just because flags of the 192 countries of UN are placed in alphabetical order.
Of course, must take one of my homeland flying high!
One of the countless beautiful artworks in UN.
And of cos.. the maiden of NY is a must see. I opted to see her from afar and not do the actual tour. Too expensive and too long a wait. Also, with 911, no one's allowed to go up to her crown anymore, can only see her upclose from down below. Anyway, being a poor backpacker, I saw her for free by taking the Staten Island Ferry back and forth. I'm not a history buff.. don't know that much about American history.. It really didn't make an impression on me.. It's just another huge statue that's really famous I guess.
There she is!
View of downtown from the ferry. Beautiful clear day!
Oh.. about 911.. yaa.. went to ground zero. It's now a big area of construction boarded up with cranes and machinery in there. But there's a series of pictures at the entrance of world trade center station where artists/photographers depicted WTC and 911. Some of the pictures are quite moving. Photographs are my favourite form of visual art. It take's a really keen artistic eye and technical expertise to capture a moment. N maybe becos they capture real events/objects etc.. I find them more moving for me. Anyway, needless to say 911 is a tragic and horrific event. Saw the movie world trade center after my trip too.. still can't quite imagine how the city coped on that fateful day...
One of the many moving pictures.
Another must see/do .. according to Marc and Lynda, is the Empire State Building. Now, to go up the Empire State Building during festive season, you got to either have lots of money or lots of patience. I didn't have money, so got to rely on my patience. If you can't even stand the thought of waiting in line for 3 hours, be prepared to fork out at least 3 times more for an express VIP treatment or you could just settle for the rockefeller center - slightly lower and not so famous (hence less of a queue) . I must say however, that the view on top is amazing.. Wind's frezzing cold but the lights of the city goes non-stop into the horizon.. Try and get up there by dusk to see the change in the city (I couldn't cos waited for too long) but still the nightsky is amazing...
Waiting in line inside: See the queue!
Looking down at 5th Ave from way up high...
Lights of NY . Beautiful!
NYC has beautiful architecture. If you are into buildings, you will love it here. Lots of the skyscrapers are designed in various style, so very beautiful - the spire of Chrysler building is a classic example for art deco. One of buildings I like is the NY public library. I actually went there for free internet (can get 45 mins free usage once you sign up - so I got my own NY library card! Haa). Besides tons of books, there's also a couple of art galleries. It was also becos of the opportunity to use the internet, I manage to get half price tickets to The Phantom of Opera musical! I went to NY hoping to watch at least one broadway of my choice, but being the festive season, many are sold out! I couldn't get anything from TKTS - the half price ticket store where you have to queue early for the day's tickets! Anyhow, I was really lucky online and got a great seat for only half the original price. Had a really great time watching Phantom - the theatrics are so amazing, and of cos the singing...
NY has lots of museums.. I unfortunately only had time to go to one - Metropolitan Museum of Art. This museum is HUGE! Took me 3 hours to go through 3 galleries.. and there were like >30 of them I think! Of the few I toured, I particular liked one on a mansion owned by the founder of Tiffany and Co. Yes, the jewellery store with the famous blue box. Interestingly, the company didn't started out making jewellery.. It was once more famous for coloured glass works! And the glass pieces are amazingly beautiful. Anyway, this mansion got destroyed in a fire many years ago. On display were pieces saved and once thought lost cos they were kept away unknown for years. Of the pieces, there were many stained glass windows with mesmerizing colours. It's so beautiful that I bought a whole booklet of postcards of the stained glass. But of cos, looking at the pictures is nothing as compared to seeing the actual stain glass! Oh well.. One thing interesting abt this museum, along with a few others in NY like Museum of Natural History, is the entrance fee. What they have, is a suggested admission fee (which is USD2o for MetMuseum!!)! But of cos, it's suggested, so you don't actually need to give 20, you just give anything you like! As long as you give something! Haa.. I paid one dollar!! Haa. (Lynda said that Marc once paid one dollar for a group of five when he brought his friends there!!) But I'm glad that at least admission prices are low.. Being poor should not deprieve you from appreciating art. If only all musuems are like tt! Haa...
A view of downtown from the bridge.
Okay, that's pretty much it about NY... Left on 29th morning for Boston. Wanted to hang around for New Year but couldn't find accommodation. Anyway, had a really good time in NY. Guess I still enjoy the feeling of travelling alone.. Though in NY, you are never alone!!!
One of the amazing window displays of Bergdorf Goodman. So drama.. haa
My favourite Christmas window deco series .. Saks and Co. 
The traditional Christmas Tree of Rockefeller. It is really big and supposingly a real tree! It's like 3 stories high?!?
Angel decorations in front of the big tree, with the snowflake lights of Saks & Co. A friend of mine says it's the same deco as last year.. No matter to me! It's beautiful! 
St Regis Hotel. So cute!
Mandarin ducks of Central Park. Have you found your life-long mate? Hee.
Riding the horse carridge around Central Park. So romantic... 
Buildings of NY from lake in Central Park.
Whenever I'm travelling alone, I tend to scrimp on meals especially in a big city like NY where everything is pricey. For this trip, I was pretty much living on my box of biscuits for 2 out of 3 meals most of the days. I would give myself a little treat like a bowl of hot hearty soup (especially when I'm cold in the evenings) or a nice dim sum lunch in Chinatown. Now, NY Chinatown has grown a lot over the years (like every other Chinatown) and started to encroached on Little Italy which is right next street. There really isn't much of Little Italy left except for a couple of streets of Italian restaurants and cafes. While having my vegetarian dim sum lunch in Chinatown, I got to know a local couple - Marc and Lynda. They are quite an interesting pair.. Marc's really into history and Lynda is always chastising him! But they were really nice and even treated me to dessert at an Italian cafe.
One of my little treats to myself! This soup company is brillant! Soup spoon and others in SG can't compare!
There's a park in Chinatown called Columbia park. There you will see groups of elderly Chinese men playing Chess. They found me really odd taking pictures of them. And oh.. among all the Chinese men, I saw a White lady in the midst playing chess together! So funny!
Of course, only in Chinatown will you find fresh fruits lining the streets on Christmas Day!
A really queer car! See all the people staring at it! 
One of the places I really enjoyed touring was the UN headquarters. For USD8 (by being below 30 and having a student ID - I'm still holding on to my matric card!), you will be led through the different assembly halls of UN - like the security council etc. Now, you would think tt UN being such a huge organisation would have nice furnishings with beautiful and expensive decorations.. Nope! The building was built back in 1950s.. I think they haven't really updated it that much since then. The seats and listening equipment for the media in the assembly halls are ancient! I guess in a way it's comforting to know that the UN ain't lavishing all the money donated by the countries on furnitures and decorations.. but that money actually goes into improving the world (I hope). Nonetheless, the place is still beautiful with lots of brillant art pieces donated by different countries of the world. The land that it occupies (right on the banks of the hudson river from 44th to 48th street) is international property, it even has it's own postal system where stamps bought from within the UN is useless outside! I.e. got to mail out your letters/postcards from the UN building - which I did obviously!A very meaningful mural across the street from UN.
One of the aims of UN is disarmament. So I guess this sculpture speaks it all. Note: see how it's placed in front of Iraq, Israel and Iran's flags! Haa.. Just kidding! It's just because flags of the 192 countries of UN are placed in alphabetical order. 
Of course, must take one of my homeland flying high!
One of the countless beautiful artworks in UN.
And of cos.. the maiden of NY is a must see. I opted to see her from afar and not do the actual tour. Too expensive and too long a wait. Also, with 911, no one's allowed to go up to her crown anymore, can only see her upclose from down below. Anyway, being a poor backpacker, I saw her for free by taking the Staten Island Ferry back and forth. I'm not a history buff.. don't know that much about American history.. It really didn't make an impression on me.. It's just another huge statue that's really famous I guess.My free ride!
There she is!
View of downtown from the ferry. Beautiful clear day!
Oh.. about 911.. yaa.. went to ground zero. It's now a big area of construction boarded up with cranes and machinery in there. But there's a series of pictures at the entrance of world trade center station where artists/photographers depicted WTC and 911. Some of the pictures are quite moving. Photographs are my favourite form of visual art. It take's a really keen artistic eye and technical expertise to capture a moment. N maybe becos they capture real events/objects etc.. I find them more moving for me. Anyway, needless to say 911 is a tragic and horrific event. Saw the movie world trade center after my trip too.. still can't quite imagine how the city coped on that fateful day...A piece of what was before...
One of the many moving pictures.
Another must see/do .. according to Marc and Lynda, is the Empire State Building. Now, to go up the Empire State Building during festive season, you got to either have lots of money or lots of patience. I didn't have money, so got to rely on my patience. If you can't even stand the thought of waiting in line for 3 hours, be prepared to fork out at least 3 times more for an express VIP treatment or you could just settle for the rockefeller center - slightly lower and not so famous (hence less of a queue) . I must say however, that the view on top is amazing.. Wind's frezzing cold but the lights of the city goes non-stop into the horizon.. Try and get up there by dusk to see the change in the city (I couldn't cos waited for too long) but still the nightsky is amazing...Waiting in line outside: Looking up the Empire State Building.
Waiting in line inside: See the queue!
Looking down at 5th Ave from way up high...
Lights of NY . Beautiful!
NY Public Library.. This is the main building. There are many branches all over NY
A photo on exhibit. That's the Chrysler building (taller one) in the background.
Famous chandelier in Phantom. It really crashes down during the show!
A photo on exhibit. That's the Chrysler building (taller one) in the background.
Famous chandelier in Phantom. It really crashes down during the show!
NY has lots of museums.. I unfortunately only had time to go to one - Metropolitan Museum of Art. This museum is HUGE! Took me 3 hours to go through 3 galleries.. and there were like >30 of them I think! Of the few I toured, I particular liked one on a mansion owned by the founder of Tiffany and Co. Yes, the jewellery store with the famous blue box. Interestingly, the company didn't started out making jewellery.. It was once more famous for coloured glass works! And the glass pieces are amazingly beautiful. Anyway, this mansion got destroyed in a fire many years ago. On display were pieces saved and once thought lost cos they were kept away unknown for years. Of the pieces, there were many stained glass windows with mesmerizing colours. It's so beautiful that I bought a whole booklet of postcards of the stained glass. But of cos, looking at the pictures is nothing as compared to seeing the actual stain glass! Oh well.. One thing interesting abt this museum, along with a few others in NY like Museum of Natural History, is the entrance fee. What they have, is a suggested admission fee (which is USD2o for MetMuseum!!)! But of cos, it's suggested, so you don't actually need to give 20, you just give anything you like! As long as you give something! Haa.. I paid one dollar!! Haa. (Lynda said that Marc once paid one dollar for a group of five when he brought his friends there!!) But I'm glad that at least admission prices are low.. Being poor should not deprieve you from appreciating art. If only all musuems are like tt! Haa...One of the numerous beautiful stained glass
Another place that I particularly enjoyed touring was the Brooklyn bridge. It's so named cos it connects the Brooklyn to Mahattan. It's famous becos when it was built, it was the world's largest suspension bridge and first made of steel. That was back in 1883, and it's still doing mighty fine now! You get great views of the city skyline too! Too lazy to walk to and fro? Just catch the subway back!
One of the two towers of the bridge.
Another place that I particularly enjoyed touring was the Brooklyn bridge. It's so named cos it connects the Brooklyn to Mahattan. It's famous becos when it was built, it was the world's largest suspension bridge and first made of steel. That was back in 1883, and it's still doing mighty fine now! You get great views of the city skyline too! Too lazy to walk to and fro? Just catch the subway back!See how the pedestrian and cycling path is above the vehicle paths?
One of the two towers of the bridge. 
A view of downtown from the bridge.
Okay, that's pretty much it about NY... Left on 29th morning for Boston. Wanted to hang around for New Year but couldn't find accommodation. Anyway, had a really good time in NY. Guess I still enjoy the feeling of travelling alone.. Though in NY, you are never alone!!!Labels: New York
posted by Nia at
8:40 AM
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