NYC---Day 2

The morning was dedicated to seeing another major NYC (and American) highlight: the Statue of Liberty. We couldn't get the tickets to climb inside Lady Liberty, so we took a cruise over to Liberty Island and Ellis Island. Even though it was a bit of a cloudy day, we had amazing views of the City skyline and skyscrapers as well as great views of the Statue from the water. Once on Liberty island, we took a great audio tour describing the history (designed by the same engineer who designed the Eiffel Tower) and significance of this beautiful statue and had incredible views of both the Statue and the City---of course, I took numerous pictures of it with my lovely new friend, D90:)




Our next stop was Ellis Island, another very historical and significant place in the US history. Unfortunately, we had very little time there before having to be on our bus back to DC, but I managed to take a quick audio tour of the immigrants' route through the Ellis island facilities: first, the registry room, then health and mental inspection, and then off to various destinations in the US.
Ellis Island


After the quick tour, I took the boat back to Battery Park, then subway to Penn Station, and then the ride back home.

NYC---Day 1

Since I will be becoming a Midwestener come August, I'm trying to do as many fun East Coast things as possible. Even though I had been to New York many times, there were still things that I hadn't done on my previous trips. I also got to meet up with a friend from Russia whom I hadn't seen in many years and who now lives on the Upper West Side in the City.

After the DC metro let us down, once again, we finally got on the bus to New York and after a comfortable trip, took the subway down to our hotel in Lower Manhattan only to find out that because of the volcano eruption in Iceland and the subsequent flight cancellations all over Europe, our hotel was overbooked and we were being sent to....the Ritz Carleton in Central Park!!! After admiring our new digs, our little group split up, and I went to meet with my friend. After a delicious Thai lunch, we walked through the blooming Central Park to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We only had a few hours to look around, so we wandered through the Egyptian hall (where I learned that there were several female pharaohs---see below a statue of one of them, whose rule was quite prosperous), the Chinese and Japanese exhibits, and spent some time looking around the painting exhibits dedicated to the works of Impressionists, including my two favorites, Van Gogh and Monet.
Central Park

Female pharaoh Hatshepsut

A Japanese tapestry

After a quick Mexican dinner in Hell's Kitchen, we quickly walked to the Palace Theater in Times Square to catch the West Side Story---seeing a Broadway show was a longstanding wish, and it turned out to be a great experience. Even though the musical was quite sad, it was a great and unique experience that culminated in walking through the vibrant Times Square at night to my lovely dwellings at the Ritz.
Times Square at night