Hey y’all, welcome back to NYC!
Before I begin, I would like to sincerely apologize for the lack of certain specific photos on this post. There was a mix-up of the photos, and a few of them got lost in the process.
Today, we explored much of Midtown Manhattan, as well as much of Central Park!
Though this day of our trip is more of a sight-seeing time than a “historical” one, but is nonetheless an exciting and fun-filled one, so let’s check it out!
Times Square
The streets of Manhattan run on without end… it is incredible that a city like this has multitudes upon multitudes of streets…
And this is us in Times Square! Possibly one of the most busiest places in the entire world, it serves as a junction for commercialism, tourism, and shopping all in one! The giant screens scattered around the place also provide much stimulation for a fresh eye, and hundres of people race around on their own agendas.
On top of the tower behind us is the Time Square Ball! This famous ball drops on every New Year’s Day at Midnight, heralding in the New Year for much of the United States (at least those in the Eastern Time Zome).
It’s a lot smaller than you would expect, but it changes color!
Central Park
Central Park cuts a massive swath of land through this urban landscape…823 acres of it to be precise.
Like this.
As such, we were not able to explore every single part of it, but we still explored most of the southern half of it. Here’s some of our highlights.
Central Park is a much needed respite from the constant traffic nearby… it’s still busy, but at least lush and welcoming.
Just one look through the trees at the nearby buildings. Though, there are some points in Central Park where skyscrapers can’t be seen.
Tons of horse-drawn carridges, that one can hire for a nice leisurely tour of Central Park.
Can you imagine playing baseball in the middle of this place? I’d imagine that a really far foul ball could be disastrous if it reaches outside the Park.
Unlike last year during Spring Break, this place was mostly in full bloom, with beautiful flowers to boot!
The Sheep Meadow is a wide expanse of land out in the open, offers terrific views of the surrounding area.
There were many animal “denizens” of the park that wandered about, including,
A very fat pidgeon,
Two ducks (probably a couple),
A squirrel, who isn’t too happy about me looking in at his buisness,
And an Albino Pidgeon.. i’ve never seen one before.
A Civil War Memorial Statue, likely dedicated to those who came from New York City. Statues and memorials like this dot the park.
See that crossroads ahead? This is a very special place.
This is none other than “Strawberry Fields”, which commemorates the memory and legacy of legendary musician John Lennon, who lived in the nearby Dakota Apartment Building.
Since Lennon’s cremated ashes were scattered through Central Park, it is perhaps here that there is the best resemblance to a Memorial Site for him.
The song that this word comes from is of course, titled “Imagine”, which was perhaps his most powerful song. He endeared the hearts of millions through his passion of music and peace.
The Dakota is where John Lennon lived with his wife Yoko Ono for the last years of his life. The arch you can see on the left is where he was gunned down in 1980 by Mark David Chapman. Yoko Ono currently still lives in the top floors of the Dakota, which has an estimated room price of several million dollars.
Scattered Midtown Sights
A neat little world statue near the entrance to Central Park. You might remember it from television shows and movies.
Some of these hotels are really pricy! The hotels and properties around Central Park are the ones that cost the most in all of New York City.
Carnegie Hall, the famed performance hall named after monopoly tycoon Andrew Carnegie, it’s benefactor. He was a thorough believer of the “Philosophy of Wealth”, which ensured that the role of the rich was to benefit the poor through various establishments and foundations.
A neat fountain. We eventually had to take cover from torrential rain in the nearby news building to wait for it to pass by.
Radio City Music Hall is another well-known establishment, especially for it’s reputation as a premier performance space. America’s Got Talent and the Rockettes have all performed in this space, among others. Unfortunetly, it is closed to those who don’t have tour tickets.
Rockefeller Center… what even happened to the flags!? Why do they all look decayed and burned? I think that it’s not a matter of the rain, but some other vandalist purpose…
Also, the famous skating rink located here has disappeared! It seems that during the warmer seasons, this place is an eatery.
This is what it would usually look like in the colder months.
And this famous golden statue of Prometheus has always rested here… overseeing a court and entire unground complex of shopping venues and eateries… it’s really quite impressive down there.
John D. Rockefeller Jr. also adhered to the “Philosophy of Wealth” idea, and donated this center to the people. The Rockefeller family has had long ties and influence in American History and Society.
The tallest building of Rockefeller Center Complex… don’t even ask me to count the amount of floors there…
No picture can do justice to the majesty of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, one of the largest Catholic Churches in the entire country!
I just wonder how long it took to build this… theres dozens of churches and synagogues all over the Big Apple.
The massive vaulted ceiling and pillars, while, not as big as Washington National Cathedral, are perhaps even more ornate and decorated. The grandeur of this place could perhaps be compared on a larger scale to Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris (to which I am sad that much of the latter Cathedral was greatly damaged in that fire…)
A couple of Popes have even visited this special place, including Pope Francis himself!
Grand Central Station (or Grand Central Terminal, depending on who you ask)! This is one of the most busiest hubs in the world, for as many as 700,000 people frequent this place PER DAY. Think about that.
No, I will not count how many individual people are in this picture, and no, I sincerely doubt that Waldo is in here.
It must have taken forever to build this place.. it’s an architectural wonder…
This starry ceiling depicts several mythological constellations. Back in the day, the massive smog of cigar smoke covered this piece of art with black soot. Thankfully, it was restored several decades ago.
Sigh.. sweet release…
This day hit me harder than most, especially in the legs. New York City is a place that you can’t fully explore in a single day, week, month, year, or even more… it’s just THAT big. And according to mom’s fitbit, we had taken over 19,000 steps today… we felt EVERY. STEP.
Next time, we will check out some of the most iconic landmarks of the city, including The Empire State Building, The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and who knows what else!?
Time will only tell what we do.. I can’t wait, and I’m sure you can’t either! Ill see you then for our next update on “Summer Trip 2019!”
Mark's Historical Roadtrips! 