Anyway, for Fall Break, IBCE took a group trip to New York City! Yes, this is a picture of a NYC taxi. This tacky tourist is officially back in full force.
All of our luggage lined up waiting for our chartered bus:
Here's some fun trivia. New York City's most famous nickname has disputed origins. However, the most popular belief is that the city's called "The Big Apple" because it used to literally smell like apples. It was a huge horse-racing destination and vendors brought in massive quantities of apples from all over to feed the horses. Too bad it doesn't smell like apples anymore. Here's our first glimpse from the bus:
Empire State Building:
The Statue of Liberty far off in the distance:
New Jersey (I had no idea it was literally that close):
Tacky tourist entourage:
Lady Liberty, Ellis Island, and some Chinese kids enjoying the view:
Wonder why all these police cars were there...Law and Order episode? I hope so.
John Lennon's old apartment is in this building, near the middle of the front-facing side. Apparently, Yoko Ono still lives there:
Central Park:
If you're like me, you probably imagined NYC sounding like a ton of honking car horns. It seems a $350 penalty quickly got rid of that problem:
Times Square:
And, finally, our hotel. The might-be-snazzy-but-is-currently-under-renovation Milford Plaza, right near the center of downtown Manhattan:
Grand Central Terminal:
That Saturday was a free day and, since everyone else wanted to go shopping, I hung out with the fantastic Ms. Wharton, who lived in NYC for a good 20-25 years. That morning, we took the Staten Island Ferry:
Ellis Island:
Get ready for more Statue of Liberty pictures than you ever wanted to see at one time. What can I say? She's a fine-looking lady:
Brooklyn Bridge:
After the ferry ride, we took a stroll over to Wall Street to see Trinity Church:
Of course, it's location may or may not have been a good thing:
If you've been keeping up with news in the USA lately, then you probably guessed where I was going with this. I say "Wall Street," you say...
That's right. Somehow, although it was completely unintentional, we ended up right smack in the middle of Occupy Wall Street.
OK, this one is a tough issue. Am I glad that we, as citizens of the USA, have the right to peaceable assembly (a.k.a. protest)? Without a doubt. Go for it, folks, exercise those rights...
...but please exercise your rights responsibly.
Unfortunately, in the words of Austrian economist, F.A. Hayek, "A claim for equality of material position can be met only by a government with totalitarian powers." Put simply, work hard and pull yourself up the way your parents and grandparents did, or cash in your freedom for free stuff. Your choice. If you chose free stuff, then here's your prize.
Sure, you've all heard of Occupy Wall Street, but what does it all mean?
As far as I can tell, either nothing or a million different things. For instance, what does this sign below actually mean?
Wait, wasn't this about war? Where did this anti-deportation stuff come from?
Oh, it's about congress. Now I get it...maybe?
My point is this: you have tons and tons of people with legitimate reasons to be angry. Should they have the right to voice it out? Of course. However, Occupy Wall Street isn't an actual movement because it isn't going anywhere.
Imagine a person walking a dog. The person pulls on the leash, and the dog follows. That's what happens when a force is applied in one direction. Now, imagine 20 people pulling on the leash in the same direction. The force will pull the dog very quickly in that direction. So, what happens when those 20 people all have different leashes and try to pull the same dog in 20 different directions? Nothing.
See this lovely newspaper? I read it thoroughly, and got absolutely nothing out of it.
Basically, folks, just keep our markets free and our government all checked and balanced, and we can save ourselves a lot of headaches. I need to cut myself off here, though, because otherwise I'll have to bring out my soapbox. I came, I saw, I listened, and none of it made sense.
For a change of pace, Ms. Wharton and I headed over for a glimpse at the unfinished 9/11 memorial.
Although it isn't finished, this memorial will really be something amazing. In the meantime, a new building is under construction. You see that tall one without all the outside paneling? That's it.
Ms. Wharton and I also met an unlikely stranger. She was a former police officer--a NYC native--with strong connections to the World Trade Center. She told us how she remembered riding in the elevator as a child, knowing people who worked there over the years, and about how frightening it was when the towers fell and her friends and coworkers were pulling people out of the rubble. This kind of feeling I can only imagine, and listening to her story really affected me. Afterwards, I felt that--even if only a little bit--I understood better than I did before what really happened, and how it really impacted the people of NYC. To all the men and women who lost their lives in the 9/11 attack, you're loved and your families miss you every day. To those who risked or even lost their lives in the rescue, your courage and selflessness is still unparalleled. Thank you.
Several beautiful historic buildings:
And, finally, made it to the Met itself:
I took photos (yes, it was OK) of some of my favorite exhibits, but really there is so much I didn't see:
Byzantine art:
Even an entire patio from Italy was transported to the Met:
Medieval religious art:
And the strangely modern rest area in the middle of the ancient art exhibits:
Knights' armor from the Renaissance:
Art from the Persian empires: Achaemenid, Parthian, and Sassanid. Persian is modern-day Iran:
Next, I moved to an exhibit of art from India. This large carved Buddha stood in the entryway:
After my visit to the Met, I took the bus down to the Empire State Building:
The line was incredibly long, but it didn't seem right to leave NYC without a visit to one of its most famous sites:
The wait was well worth it. Just look at that view!
Really, the Empire State Building was one of my favorite places from this trip. Yes, it is just a really tall building, but it gives you an exceptional view of what is arguably the world's most famous cityscape. It's truly remarkable and I recommend it highly if you're ever in NYC.
Also, ride one of these old-fashioned taxis if you get the chance. I should have, but I didn't.
From the Empire State Building, I decided to walk back to my hotel. The streets are almost all numbered, and so it's very easy to navigate. Once I was most of the way back, I found myself in Times Square. In all honesty, I find Times Square overrated, but it's still worth a look if you're in NYC for the first time. What cracks me up the most is that one of the big ads towards the middle is for Xinhua News Agency, which is Chinese.
Well, here it is: the panoramic of Times Square right in the middle of downtown Manhattan.
The next morning, we packed up and flew back to South Carolina, and that was that. To be honest, I didn't expect to like NYC nearly as much as I did. In fact, I loved it! Aside from there being so many things to do and see, the diversity of people is unbelievable. NYC really is a world city and, I suppose, the Big Apple. Do go if you ever have the chance--you won't be disappointed!
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