Click on a photo to enlarge it.
We spent four nights in a campground to try and catch up with our website. There is just so much to write and all the photos to work on. We also
needed to do some washing and cleaning up. No wonder we don't have time to do any planning!
We stopped at four different garages and finally found one who would look at our transmission leak the next morning. So we parked up on their
forecourt for the night and took Winnie in at 8am the following day. It was just a loose clamp but it cost us over $50!
Then we drove into Newark, New Jersey and found a parking place that cost $10 per day right next to Penn Station. From there we can get a train
across to Manhattan. We'd searched on the internet for parking places for Winnie and were thinking of one of the airports. But access to trains
was either too expensive or too far away. JFK's parking areas all have a 7ft 6 inch height barrier so they were all out of the question. Plus
there are two toll bridges to get across to that airport.
So we were really happy to find a convenient place that was within our budget and would allow us to park overnight. We stayed for three nights.
We got two one-way tickets to the World Trade Center for $1-75 each and had a look at the site of the worst terrorist act on US soil. A memorial
is being built which was due to be finished by 2012 but they haven't even finished the foundations yet. Unfortunately it is a large construction
site but it was still very moving and very sad to actually stand there.
There were various plaques and a wall memorial at the fire station right next to where the World Trade Center had been. We also went to St Paul's
chapel which is a very small building compared to the giants it is surrounded by. Somehow it survived when the twin towers collapsed and yet it was
so close.
After taking a look at Wall Street and the famous bull we walked down to see about a ferry to the Statue of Liberty. By the time we got there,
there were no more tours which cost $18 for the tour and ferry. So we got onto the free Staten Island ferry which goes right past the Statue. We
had to get off the ferry and wait for the next one 30 minutes later, but we couldn't complain about it seeing as it's free!
Then we walked to Brooklyn Bridge along with hoards of tourists even though it was already dark. There is a central footpath above the traffic
lanes and we walked along the whole length and back to take photos of the views and some night time shots.
We didn't get back until 11pm but at least we've done New York by night!
Kirsten had a migraine the next morning so we didn't set off until the afternoon. We got a train up to 23rd street and went to see the Flat Iron
building which is in the shape of an iron. The National Library was closed so we walked along Times Square and Broadway. It was extremely crowded.
We are not used to all the crowds and noise any more!
We went into Central Park but it is so big that we only went to the southern tip of it. Lots of rocky outcrops, cycle paths and walkways through
a very green area of New York. It isn't what you would expect in such a huge city.
Then we were even allowed into Tiffany's and Cartier despite looking like poor tourists. The staff didn't even bother asking us if we needed any
assistance! What an affront! So we went off to FAO Schwarz, a huge toy shop and took a look at the Harry Potter merchandise. More our style maybe
but still out of our price range!
At St. Patrick's Cathedral there was a service in Spanish taking place along with a wonderful soprano and a fabulous organist. Next stop was the
Empire State Building which cost $19 each. Kirsten had to hand in her tripod as it wasn't allowed for some reason and then we got bumped into the
express lane and avoided the 40 minute wait for the elevators!!
The elevator to the 80th floor only took one minute and then we walked up 6 floors to get out onto the observation deck for great views above the
Manhattan skyline. It costs a further $15 to go up another 16 floors but the views seemed good enough to us from where we were.
After 7 hours and about 5 miles of walking on concrete our feet and legs were aching so we got the train back to Winnie, arriving just after 8pm.
We had an early start the next morning to take more photos and video of the site of the World Trade Center. The Stock Exchange is closed to visitors.
We got onto the subway and went for lunch at a bagel place and then went to the National Library to see the reading room.
Grand Central Station is huge and very impressive with marble everywhere. The dining concourse has a large food court and some great seats! We walked
to take a look at the UN building and then got a bus up to the northern end of Manhattan through Harlem, to see the Cloisters. Unfortunately they're
closed on Mondays, so the tour guide got sacked!! It had taken us 1.5 hours to get there!
So we got the much faster subway back and went back to Brooklyn Bridge to walk across again so that Kirsten could take more photos - it's her favourite
bridge! Another 10 hours today and Kirsten crashed out on the bed whilst Helen made some soup. She had to wake Kirsten up to eat it!!!
