New York City - my personal Favorite…

26.8.2010 by Inken.

Being 1/4 German means that I like things to be in order. So let’s start with a count.

States in the US visited so far (and their nicknames used on the license plates):

Connecticut - Constitution State 

Massachusetts - Bay State

Maine - Vacationland

New Hampshire - Granite State (the license plate show “live free or die” though…)

Rhode Island - Ocean State

New York - Empire State

Louisiana - I prefer “Pelican State”, although the license plates show “Sportsman’s Paradise”

Illinois - Land of Lincoln

Florida - Sunshine State

Utah - Beehive State

California - Golden State

Arizona - Grand Canyon State

Nevada - Silver State

(See a complete list of the States nicknames at: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_Spitznamen_der_Bundesstaaten_der_Vereinigten_Staaten in German and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._state_nicknames in English)

13 aren’t bad for three years, ey?

Now the count will be continued on our roadtrip from coast to coast.

After visiting the MTU boat crew at the dragonboat race down in Hartford, we took off to spend our first night of the  vacation in New York City.

On our way there we passed a mammoth tree, which is actually an antenna mast.

I often complain about how the Americans manage to mutilate their landscape with huge malls, Dunkin Donuts, etc. But this is a bright idea to turn something inevitable into something, well, pretty.

We entered Manhattan over the Triboro Bridge with quite a view this time.

We even had a room with a view!

Because this was not our first visit to NYC, the following pictures won’t show the tourist hot spots, but rather images of things and buildings, I love, no matter how important they are for the city’s image. So don’t be disappointed. Rather take this as an invitation to see the rest yourself one day.

 

Staying in a hotel in the Financial District made it easy for us to walk down to Battery Park to board one of those double decker busses, which would carry us through Manhattan for a lot of money. But this was money well spent, because being on a bus keeps me from going into shops…

Show this picture to your kids and tell them, it was 95°F and humid that day. I bet they will be thankful that you send them back to school…

 

So we drove through the Financial District…

  

passed Pier 17 and the South Street Seaport, …

Had a short photo stop to take a picture of the Manhattan Bridge.

Chinatown followed. And we saw the Lower Eastside, where you definitely don’t want to live.

Crossing Houston Street along 1st Avenue we entered the East Village. And this is a totally different world. Here you can still feel the melting pot atmosphere New York is said to have. All kinds of alternative livestyles are found and accepted here. But the yuppies already found out about it and start to occupy this part of the city.

He will probably have to retire when his building is taken over by a real estate corporation.

See what I mean?

 

Katz’s Deli is the place where Sally proofed to Harry that he wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between a real and a fake orgasm.

This is for the girls, they know, whom I mean…

Should have taken a note of the address!

Following 1st Avenue to the North one passes Stuyvesant Town. Planned and built in the 1940s for returning veterans it also housed those families, who lived in the area before. See www.wikipedia.org and search for Stuyvesant Town—Peter Cooper Village.

Before the bus then headed towards 5th Avenue, it passed the big Medical Centers along the East River and the United Nations.

The favorite steakhouse of various Presidents.

It was time for a coffee break. So we got off the bus around the corner of the Rockefeller Center.

This is not the Rockefeller Center, but some mean looking skyscraper.

 

I just can’t stop taking pictures of the NYC taxis…

The Plaza.

Beyonce lives in one of these towers.

Times Square, one of the messiest, most stuffed and crowded places. I was glad that I was on the bus again.

Our tour guide, heavy NY accent, lovely!!!

For Dunia, the Target-ista.

We entered the Garment District. At Parsons this ridiculous fashion show is produced, you know the one in which Heidi tells designers, if they are talented or not…

   

More than any other building in New York City the Flatiron Building conquered my heart. Considered ugly when it was built it became an icon of Manhattan. If you take a closer look at the facade details you just cant help but loving it.

Through Greenwich Village and SoHo we went further South.

        

And then we were back at the former infamous Five Points and it was almost time for dinner.

The Bridge Cafe is a former brothel. The owner said, the “ladies” perfumed themselves and their rooms with so much lavender that it still smells like it in the upper floor.

The food was fine, we were tired, and so the night ended early for Manhattan standards…

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