World Cities Tour - Spring Break Edition - Day 3

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Day 3 – South and North

The subway took us all the way to Battery Park this morning. A quick round of standing in line and we were on our way to liberty island. The ferry ride was short and scenic. We didn’t have tickets to go up to the pedestal or into the crown but we were able to walk around and see the statue from several angles. We had lunch on the island and boarded the ferry to Ellis Island. There we walked through an interesting exhibit on the patterns of immigration in to the united states up to the mid-20^th century. We also went through the registration room. It was a great big hall that used to be filled with hundreds of wooden benches. Michelle and Tony took a moment to rest their weary legs and sit on the benches that were left before heading to the computers in the records room to see if we could find any Rotticcis, Rogges or Tjogas on the manifests. Most of the buildings on the island were still closed because of last year’s hurricane so we didn’t get to explore much of the island.

After returning to Battery Park, Michelle took a moment to get a hug from an albino Burmese Python who was hanging around the park. From there we took the subway back north to the Museum of Natural History. She really wanted to see their exhibit on Early Man. There was a hands-on lab where we compared the skeletons of various primates and figured out the ratio scientists use to determine if species of ancient primates were primarily bipedal or quadrupedal and arboreal or terrestrial. We had enough time afterwards to check out the hall of meteorites, the gift shop and the main entrance before they closed for the night. We could have spent all day there and still not have seen everything.

For dinner we met up with a high school friend of Anne’s who recently moved to New York. She took us off the tourist path to an area that felt much more like a neighborhood. After Indian food for dinner and crepes for dessert we all headed to the Lincoln center to see the fountain. It made for a great backdrop to some wonderful pictures.

It was another wonderful day in New York. Tomorrow we have the morning to explore a little more before we fly on to Seattle.

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Photos

Only In New York
Accordian Playing, High Heeled, Suited, Unicorn Headed musician in Columbus Square... and he/she/it was actually very good!

Lady Liberty
Would have loved to spend some time in your head.

Old and new
We are sitting on original benches from when Ellis Island was in operation, having deep discussions about what the journey was like, and what those immigrants were going through. Behind us are some very accurate replicas built by student volunteers for the NPS.

SNAKE in the park
Stepping off the Ellis Island ferry, Michelle notices.. not the candy cart, not the statues of liberty, not even the street performers break dancing... nope... she notices the giant Python!!!!

Them bones, Them bones, Them Primate Bones
We stumbled upon a hands-on lab in the early human exhibit. I never knew there was a magic ratio to determine who the knuckle draggers are... could come in handy.

Them Bones, Them bones, Them elevated Bones
The obligatory Big Ass Dinosaur bones shot.

Indian Food
After clarifying with Michelle this was food from India the country, we enjoyed every bite.

Crepes, in Silhouette
Neat fountain in the Lincoln Center plaza offers an amazing opportunity for great photography. (This one is Michelle eating a Honey Crepe).