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Is this a "big apple"? Not sure, but it is odd statuary at the front of 7 World Trade Center. This is just a few blocks from our apartment in Tribeca. 7 WTC was the first building to be rebuilt after 9/11. As we will see below, not all buildings fared so well.
All photos copyright (C) Bill Caid 2006As our time in Manhattan was drawing to a close, Kathleen and I went on a mission to do "tourist things". There is a near-infinity of things to see within a short distance of our apartment in Tribeca, so we have been doing daily forays to take in the sights before we change our status from resident to visitor. The Sunday before the 4th of July, we decided to take the water taxi again as the basis of our travels. We went from downtown, to mid-town, then back to the east side, then walked across the island to home. These photos are what we saw.
The water taxi docks near the Chelsea piers. Clearly, the park department is not doing a good job on lawn maintenance as this was growing on the lawn when we arrived. There are lots of locals sunbath on the grass on the pier.
A lot of the older piers on the west side in the Hudson River have been removed. Some of the pilings remain and later served as the basis for park-piers. These pilings await refurbishment while the Empire State Building (ESB) looks on.
Here is the harbor at Chelsea Piers. These boats are part of an old maritime museum. The tallest one labeled "Frying Pan" was a light house ship and saw duty in the Carolinas warning sailors and captains of the shoals off of Cape Hattaras. We did go inside the ship, but it was depressing and smelly. Being a sailor was a tough life. Visible on the skyline is the ESB, just to the left of the "Frying Pan's" light mast.
A view of one of the water taxis and the USS Intrepid, an aircraft carrier turned floating museum. Visible on the skyline is the odd shape of the Hearst Building.
Concrete canyons. Midtown, looking east at the Reuters building.
More concrete canyons. This is 35th street, looking east at the ESB.
A midtown church on the west side. After we finished our midtown chores, we went back to the west side and took the water taxi around to the lower east side.
En route to the lower east side, the water taxi always does a drive-by of the Statue of Liberty.
We did "chores" in midtown and then hiked back to the water taxi. From the west side, we went all the way around Manhattan island to the east side. Here is a of the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge and the Williamsburg Bridge.
One of the bridge towers of the Brooklyn Bridge on the Brooklyn side. Note the maze of guy wires. Note the other two bridges in the distance.
The objective of the journey to the lower east side was South Street Seaport Village. This is a tourist trap with restaurants, gift shops, etc. It is also very popular with locals and tourists alike and the place was a zoo. Here, folks wait to board the water taxi to go elsewhere on the island.
One of the street performers at South Street. I am not sure what her gig is, but it looks like a cross between Madame Butterfly and the Blue Man Group.
Tons of folks out on Sunday afternoon.
A good view of City Hall on a clear day. Early during our stay on Chambers Street, City Hall was visible from my living room window. Now that the construction is proceeding at 200 Chambers, the tower is no longer visible. This view is from the southwest along Park Row.
Another view of the odd statue outside of 7 WTC. This building was damaged during the collapse and fire on 9/11. For whatever reason, the building has not been torn down nor repaired. In my mind, it serves as a grim reminder that the US's mission overseas is not complete and will remain incomplete until appropriate retribution has been served on the responsible parties and those who espouse their views.
Another great day trip in Manhattan. Despite the somewhat depressing end to the day, we had a great time. There is much to do here and the city could hold anyone's attention for a long, long time.