The non-edible side of New York! I got a chance to be more of a tourist this time and see some well-known places. Fortunately the weather was beautiful the entire trip without a cloud in the sky.
This is High Line Park which is built on an old freight rail line elevated above the streets on the West side of Manhattan. Something that has always surprised me about the city is just how much green space there is. People have worked very hard to create spaces and maintain them so each park I have seen is so beautiful. The Hudson River runs by and that is Hoboken, NJ on the other side. The top right is a beautiful piece that naturally fit into the landscape with feeding trays and bird houses. The surrounding vegetation climbs up the bars reaching for the sky. Snow was on the ground in Steamboat Springs when I left, but only the first signs of fall were coloring the pages of New York!
One of the things I love about the city, any city, is the architecture. I especially loved the way the sun was hitting these on such a beautiful day.
Even the cranes at ground zero struck me. The appear to be having a sort of gathering at the site. I especially like the random crane hanging off of the building on the right. I've jumped out of a plane but these are heights that I can't imagine being at.
On the outside, above are sculpured pylons along the river near Battery Park and the center is in the garden at Battery Park. I finally got to see the Statue of Liberty from here but it was a little smoggy over the water so she isn't very clear.
On the right is the arch at Battery Park from below. I really love this angle, if you couldn't tell, showcasing the greatness of objects standing alone. The sky helped me out that day!
Walking along the river and on our way to the WTC we accidentally found the Irish Hunger Memorial. The memorial represents the hundreds of thousands of Irish that immigrated to New York between 1847-1852 following The Great Hunger. The entry is through a ruined fieldstone cottage onto a pathway featuring rocks from each of Ireland's 32 counties and passing a pilgrim's standing stone. The pathway ends at the top with a view of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, symbols of America's welcome to the Irish and other immigrants. In the past when I have looked into my ancestry, Regan and O'Regan can be found in County Cork Ireland. There are various spellings of my last name, even in my family tree I believe, so I think this is correct. Anyway, I suppose if not the only damage is a photo of the wrong rock, right?
My trip was just shy of a month after the 10 year anniversary of the fall of the World Trade Center. In my two past trips to NYC I have wanted to see the site but it hasn't worked out for time. This time I put it high on the list. Redevelopment is an amazing thing because devastation was not the theme and I am sure this is a different feeling for those who lived there at the time and saw it in person. The site of One World Trade Center is surrounded by tall construction fence and filled with a new building, a bunch of cranes, and thousands of workers. The memorial nearby had just opened and had visitors wrapped around the block to get in, we didn't go so maybe next time.
This tiny 18th century church stands across the street from the new World Trade Center. St. Paul's Episcopal Church became a relief center after the towers fell. The back of the church looks out on an old cemetery where most of the stones are worn and illegible. Inside the church, while a service is held, visitors roam around the perimeter to view memorials, artifacts and stories of survivors or grown families ten years later.
Wall Street: Occupied
Maybe it's just me, but in person this is not as impressive as the media has made it seem. In reality I wouldn't have noticed if they weren't blocking me from seeing the bull. This is me: detached from current events.
Now..did somebody say something about the bull?!?! Why is everyone taking pictures from the front? The front is scary! He could take off and crush you at any moment...I'll stay back here! So there's a chance I took some funny altered perspective shots from this point of view, but to keep a little dignity I'll save those. Perhaps I will frame them and hang them in the bathroom someday.
G-dub keeping an eye on the NYSE from Federal Hall. He's very powerful, someday I will make him dribble a basketball with this pose. Yep, I'm 12.
Grand Central Station! I've still never travelled through here so we had to stop in and check it out. It is MASSIVE, and there are oysters downstairs!
So wandering through Wall Street, still searching for the bull, I found an eerie little stairway off the sidewalk. It let to this raised cemetery with reading benches and incredible light. Lucky find yet again! Trinity Cemetery is the resting place of those who not only shaped the history of New York but also that of the United States.
Oh yeah..and isn't it gorgeous!!
This funky artistic sculpture on the High Line was supposed to haunt me..I, however, think it would be great white noise to sleep in. 
I would shop here..particularly to make use of their "Sidekick Placement Services". Spectacular! 
Even the ceiling at Tiffany's is sparkly! 
The Red Cube by Isamu Noguchi. Noguchi said the cube, on its side, was like the roll of a dice: chance.
Oh yeah..the IMG NYC Marathon happened, right down the street! We were watching it on tv getting ready for breakfast and things started looking familiar. They were running on the next street so we went to check it out on our way to brunch! 50,000 people. Even the spectators had incredible energy for the runners! (and a little FDNY love)
Got to hang out with the brothers, E&A, and A's new wife one night at Union Hall in Park Slope. Giant, but cozy bar with fireplaces, candles, bookshelves, couches and bocce!
So, I'm not smart and got so excited to see my boys..that I never took any pictures with them! Instead we had a mini-fireplace-modelling session after they left.
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