Manhattan South

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Finally a nice sunny day – all the tulips and daffodils in the streets no longer look out of place! We planned to take the trip to Liberty Island to see the statue close up but couldn’t believe the queues snaking around every path leading to the terminal. There would have been at least 1000 people if not more so we flagged that and headed up the financial district. Wall St was prettier that I expected, a little curvy, and on a slight slope (compared to most streets which are dead flat and dead straight.)

We checked out the World Trade Centre site, which is a huge construction site now. But the St Pauls chapel right next to it was quite moving, both for the fact it survived intact – even the little tiny skinny gravestones in front, and how much of a refuge it was during the recovery phase, most of which is documented inside.

A walk along the Brooklyn bridge was pleasant in the sun. Jam packed with people on the walkway half, with only the odd cyclist on the cycle lane half.

We decided to have another go at getting to the Statue of Liberty but the queue was still a couple of hundred and everyone was being security scanned as thorough as the airports – ie shoes etc off, so we opted instead for the free Staten Island ferry to go past it. What a contrast in efficiency – hundreds were loaded on in a couple of minutes. We got a great view of the statue, surrounding waterways, and back at Manhattan and it was fun.

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Photos

Freedom tower & St Pauls
Freedom tower one of four under construction

Sculpture
Relocated from base of WTC to Battery Park. Although a bit battered, amazingly still in one piece

Battery Park
Statue of Liberty in background

The statue of Liberty
From the Staten Island Ferry