World Trade Centre

They say you can easily spot a tourist in New York City. They’re the ones wandering around with stiff necks because of looking up at all the skyscrapers instead of watching where they’re walking. Needless to say, we’d fallen into that category within minutes of arriving. And now it was time for even more neck straining.

Although the World Trade Centre complex was actually made up of seven buildings (including a hotel), to most people it simply meant the immense 110 storey, 1350-ft. high majestic Twin Towers. Built from 1966 to 1977, a lot of locals considered them a bit of an eyesore when first completed. To me they were the most amazing buildings I ever set my eyes on. Standing in front of them for the first time, I remember gawping (cartoon style), at the sheer size of them. Absolutely fantastic.

We were heading for the observation deck and entered tower one by mistake. Although we could have headed up to the famous Windows of the World restaurant on the 107^th floor, there was no need what with being full of burger and chips from earlier. We realised our mistake when a security guard approached us asking if he could be of any assistance. “Aye”, I said, “we want to get up to the roof.”

 “Well if you gentlemen would care to make your way across the concourse to tower two, you can do just that.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” And off we went.

It was clear to see how busy it got during peak tourist times with all the roped off areas to form queues to the front desk. Today, however, there were only half a dozen people in front of us, and after paying our entry fee we were whisked off in the elevator up 107 floors in 58 seconds! There were some excellent displays all around the 107^th floor, all showing the history and progress through the years of NYC.

 One model in particular caught my eye. It was a scale model of the whole city. Everything was there, the five boroughs, all the bridges, the water. Every building was an exact replica and I guess the whole model must have measured about 15 feet square. The twin towers were like a centrepiece, looking majestic while overseeing the whole city.

I had a stroll over to a window and got tingly feet while being able to look virtually straight down to the street below. We were stopped on our way to the roof by a guy offering to take our photo while standing in front of a big picture of the twin towers. The photo then got placed in a special display type folder named `Top of the World Trade Centre`.

 They printed the photos for you while you visited the roof and you bought them on your way out. All for about $20. Well being a total all in tourist it was a souvenir not to be missed.

It was an escalator that took you up to the roof. When standing at the bottom of it looking up, it seemed as though when you got to the top it just kept going and sent you straight off the side of the building.

 I’m pleased to say though, that that wasn’t the case! When you got to the top there was a big thick railing keeping you well away from the sides. The first thing that struck me was how windy it was up there!

Then again, 1350 feet straight up on top of a 110 storey building, there’s going to be a bit of a breeze. Makes you wonder what was going through the mind of Frenchman Philippe Petit when he tightrope walked between tower one and two in 1974. I have enough trouble on the top rung of a step ladder.

Getting as close to the safety rail as possible, I began taking in the views in front of me. The vistas from the top of the Empire State Building were impressive enough. But this. Well. Damn well amazing. It’s said that on a good clear day you could actually see the curvature of the Earth from here, you’re that high up. Looking over at tower one with its massive aerial, the immensity of these huge buildings really hit home. My camera once again went into overdrive. The whole city was spread out below us again, only this time in brilliant sunlight.

I could have stayed up there for the rest of the week, just looking, but we had to make tracks and still had a lot of other sights to check out. We picked our photos up on the way back down and once at ground level headed for the subway to get back to our hotel. And there was our next surprise. Beneath the towers, we were amazed to find a huge underground mall containing countless clothes shops, hair salons, cosmetic stores, and loads of eating establishments. All hidden away under here. A surprise on every corner!

It was here that the ‘Aftershave Incident’ happened. I had walked into one of the shops and picked up a bottle. I hadn’t realised that my finger was on the nozzle and accidentally sprayed myself right in the eyes. I dropped the bottle and held my face in agony. My eyes were burning. No amount of help from the staff could ease the pain and an ambulance was called. The upshot was I had to spend the rest of the week in hospital, and pay for the broken bottle of Aftershave.

Only joking. We actually grabbed a pretzel each and jumped on the tube.

Now. I can’t continue without mentioning the atrocities that occurred exactly six months after we had stood on the roof of tower two. 9/11. I vividly remember watching the images on television and being totally dumbstruck. Angry. Livid. Sad. Sick to the gut. Unbelieving. I simply could not believe what I was seeing. Could this really be happening? Yes it was, and like the rest of the civilised world, I was outraged. There has been plenty said and written (and actions taken of course), in reprisal. Suffice to say that the sorrow and grief felt worldwide involved me also.

*************

Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island

We’d been fore warned that it gets extremely busy down at the Statue of Liberty, so an early start was in order for our first full day. We were hoping to catch the first ferry across from south ferry, Quite a hike from 53^rd street first thing on a Sunday morning. We were nicely settled at the back of a subway train when I noticed a sign on the carriage stating that `You must be in one of the first five cars if you want to get off at South Ferry station’.  Thank you. Bugger. I took a photo of the sign,  then for the next few stations we carriage hopped our way down every time the train stopped until we were in the second from front, just in case! A few stops later some fellow Brits came dashing into the car doing exactly the same thing. You can’t take us anywhere!

We had time to have a look around Battery Park and took great interest in all the memorials there. The old circular fortress called `Castle Clinton` was built in 1811 to defend against British attacks. Thankfully it’s a lot friendlier these days and it’s from here you buy your tickets for the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ferry rides.  Its also from here you get your first sighting of Lady Liberty. Quite small from where we were standing of course, and even smaller through the lens of a camera!

 She was a gift from the French to the American people with one stipulation. The Americans had to provide the base and the pedestal. It took the Americans a long time to raise all the money to pay for these, but once it was all sorted the grand unveiling took place on October 28 1886 with President Grover Cleveland doing the honours. She stands 111 feet 6 inches from toe to crown and looks fantastic again now after being extensively restored in 1986 for her centenary (at a cost of $69.8 million!).

It was quite fitting that the ferry we got out to her was called `Miss Liberty`! The hot counter on the ferry looked very inviting, and it was here that I sampled my first NYC hotdog. (Never too early in the day I suppose). Very tasty! I couldn’t take my eyes off the statue as we sailed closer. Wow. After all this time, there she is. And here I am!

There was quite a drama when the ferry docked. We were making our way down the ramp (while staring over at the statue), when Malc lost his footing, slipped over, rolled/slipped under the safety ropes, and fell headfirst into the water. Two of the ferry staff jumped in after him and another one threw some lifebelts in after them. They were in the water twenty minutes before pulling Malc to safety, complete with a fish flapping around in his pocket.

Only joking. We were off the ferry the second it docked and spent a bit of time walking round the base reading (and snapping) the plaques and taking in the fantastic views of the Manhattan skyline. Camera (as always) at the ready! It’s a bugger trying to get the right angle so the statue looks like it’s coming out the top of your head.

 It’s on the base of the statue that the famous poem by Emma Lazarus reads “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore, send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me; I lift my lamp beside the golden door”. Great stuff. The poem was actually written to help raise funds for the pedestal construction.

There was quite a queue starting to form outside the main lobby of the statue by now. It was then I found out you could actually walk up inside all the way to the crown. What a massive bonus. I didn’t realise you could do that!

 It took us two and a half hours to wind our way up the twenty two storey high (354 steps) spiral stairs to the crown. You only get to spend a couple of minutes in the crown (which is fair enough really), but I was like a kid in a sweet shop. They very nearly had to prise my fingers off the railing to get me back down the staircase. 

We were told later that two and a half hours from queuing to getting back down wasn’t bad at all. If we’d come during peak tourist season it could have taken us 7-8 hours.

The original torch from the statue is on display in the main lobby, replaced during the restoration in 1986 because of corrosion. It’s all lit up in a cage-like surround. I suppose they don’t want anyone walking off with it as the ultimate souvenir. We had a bite to eat in the café (burger and chips), before one last walk around the base and another look at the Manhattan skyline just across the water. Then it was off to Ellis Island.

It was fascinating to walk through the very doors that millions of immigrants had walked and to see actual baggage from those very days. Some of it reminded me of my own tatty suitcases. Mental note to myself; must get some new ones. I tried to picture the scene that between 1892 and 1954 nearly 17 million immigrants landed and were `processed` here, in the registry room. A room measuring 200 feet long, 100 feet wide and 56 feet high. Not all immigrants had to pass through this great hall though. First and second class passengers actually got `processed` while still on their boats. One third of all the millions of immigrants who arrived here ventured no father than New York City.

Once Ellis Island was no longer needed as a mass processing station, it became a detention and deportation centre for `undesirable aliens`. Talk about the worm turning! The Island also acted as a hospital for wounded servicemen during both world wars. The Island facility closed in 1954 and lay in ruins for thirty years until restoration began in 1984. Six years later (and at a cost of around $160 million), the Ellis Island Museum of Immigration opened in 1990. The interior was restored using any surviving original fixtures. 

As well as retaining actual baggage once belonging to the arriving immigrants, there are also over two thousand other artefacts on display, as well as galleries filled with photos and posters. An audio tour is available where you can hear the voices of immigrants telling their stories. To put it bluntly, Ellis Island is a right little treasure trove as well as being a very important historic site. Well worth a visit in my humble opinion.  We hit lucky on our visit, it was relatively quiet. Loads of room to go snooping around, poking our noses in everywhere.

 When we went to leave it was the ferry Miss Liberty (again) that was waiting to take us back into Manhattan. I got my eye on the hot counter again and couldn’t resist sampling my first NYC Pretzel. Like the hot dog, very tasty. 

Once back on dry land we had a stroll around Battery Park, watching various performers at work. It must be a long day for the people that paint themselves green, dress up as the Statue of Liberty, and stand for hours on end, erm, pretending to be a statue.

Far better to be in one of the bands belting out Caribbean numbers and jumping around enjoying themselves.

Or one of the guys on the stalls selling deliciously smelling hot roasted nuts and snacks.  Maybe they all know each other and take it in turns to do each job. Short straw: Statue.

 “Aww c’mon, I was the Statue yesterday.”

 “Ok, just do it again today and you can be on the roasted nuts tomorrow.”

“Deal!” 

***************

Empire State Building

JFK Airport was doing a great job of impersonating a building site when we finally set foot on American soil. I think our delay in the airport was due to the sudden outbreak of Mad Cow Disease in the UK just prior to our departure. They stopped just short of making us dip our feet in a bucket of disinfectant before allowing us into the US. After jumping into a minibus with a load of strangers heading our way (German Dutch and French tourists), we were Manhattan bound.

Me being the saddo that I am, I had my camera out as soon as we pulled off. The first yellow cab I saw, SNAP! Got it. A sign post for Flushing Meadows, SNAP! Got it. Some signs for a federal auto auction SNAP! Got it. You get the idea. I even took a photo of the sign above our drivers head reading `Drivers tips not included in your fare or vouchers`. It wasn’t long before the magical Manhattan skyline was within sight. Oh my god, The Empire State Building! SNAP! SNAP! The Twin Towers! SNAP! SNAP! SNAP! Loads of other skyscrapers! SNAP etc…! It was at that very moment that I realised I had no film in my camera.

Only joking! I was snapping away like a hungry alligator with a prize catch in its mouth. We lost sight of the skyline briefly while going through a tunnel. Then BANG! HELLO NEW YORK CITY! It was suddenly all hustle and bustle and huge buildings all around us. I, of course, took photos of the first cops I saw standing on a street corner. Didn’t notice any donuts though. Or hot dogs. We were the last to be dropped off at our hotel (W55^th street).( I didn’t mind that though, it gave us a free tour of half of Manhattan). Well I say hotel. It was really just a reception desk that happened to have a few rooms above it. Not to worry. There was a nice diner just next door.

A quick look out of our room window revealed the Late Show with David Letterman just across the street. We really had arrived! It was starting to get dark when we hit the streets to get our bearings. We walked out of the hotel and straight on to Broadway. Walking down ten blocks took us right into the middle of Times Square, or as it’s often called `the Crossroads of the World`. Or even `The Great White Way`! Times Square is really just an elongated intersection where Broadway crosses 7^th avenue. But what an intersection! Originally called `Long Acre Square`, it was renamed when the New York Times moved to the site in 1904. (The NY Times is now on 43^rd St.).

They had a new years eve party to celebrate the opening of the Times Tower and that was the start of the now famous new years eve celebrations in Times Square, when half a million people pack it out to watch the lighted ball begin its countdown fall a minute before midnight.

 In the past, especially the 70s and 80s, Times Square was an area to be avoided at all costs. 42nd Street between seventh and eighth Avenues was known as `The Deuce`. A dangerous place of hustlers, pimps, prostitutes, run-down second rate x-movie theatres, peepshows, and sex shops. A real blot on the city’s image. Today it’s clean, policed, and very visitor friendly. What you have now is sports shops, music shops, loads of eateries, and of course the MTV studios! Not forgetting the famous NASDAQ market site, the electronic stock market with the 8 storey tall 9,800 square foot cylindrical video screen.  Or the TKTS Discount ticket booth for cut-price Broadway shows. And glancing around me I also saw hot dog stands dotted around the streets. So much hitting us so quickly! The hotel was at least in a great location.

The streets were bustling with crowds of people rushing around in every direction. The aromas wafting off the hot dog stands were delicious; the smell of onions mixed with the meat of the hot dogs, and the hot roasted nut stands were just as tempting.  We just stood and took it all in for a few minutes.

 “This is it mate, we’re here,” I said to Malc.

“Aye mate,” he said, “what do you fancy first?”

“Empire State Building, lets have a good look at things,” I replied, rubbing my hands together in excitement! Well you can’t really miss it can you? A quick walk along to 5^th Avenue, then down a few blocks and we were there.  

The Empire State Building. Just say it to yourself. To think that during construction there were on average 4 1/2 storeys added every week. Completed in only two years 1930-1931, it was the world’s tallest building for more than 40 years, standing at 1,453 feet, (until the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre were built). Stately indeed!

We joined the queues for the elevator up to the 86^th floor, (in record time!) where we paid an extra $12 to enjoy a flight simulator billed as the New York Skyride (which involved what must have been a midget flying around on a little plane in between peoples legs and around skyscrapers), which gave you a taste of the city. From there we got another elevator up to the giddy heights of the 102^nd floor and the viewing platform.

It was totally dark by now and the whole of Manhattan lay below and around us all lit up like I’d dreamed of seeing it. My camera went into overdrive. Another thing I remember about that moment; it was bloody cold up there! We stood for ages taking photos and just looking. This was really it, New York City literally under my feet.

 One thing I kept turning to look at again and again (well two things really), were the twin towers of the World Trade Centre, which we were visiting the next day. What a fabulous sight. My dreams were being realised!

The great thing about the Empire State Building is that it’s situated in the dead centre of midtown, which gives you brilliant views in all directions. What an introduction to NYC! When we got back down to the bottom we had a look in the souvenir shop. It was here I bought my first keepsake. A model Empire State Building with a little plastic King Kong attached to the top. (Come down, we know you’re up there!). A classy piece of tat.

I was feeling really hyper by now. The buzz of the city had got to me straight away and I stopped just short of climbing the nearest lamppost and bursting into `New York New York`.

We decided to celebrate the start of our week in NYC with a couple of beers and nice big steaks in a nearby restaurant. Tomorrow would be the day to get stuck into pretzels and hot dogs.

Trying to sort out how much to leave for a tip proved quite eventful. It was all “that’s not enough,” then “that’s too much,” then “how about this.” “They’ll chase us down the street with big knives if we don’t leave enough.” It all proved to be a waste of time because the tip turned out to be included in the bill! Another first after leaving the restaurant though, our first ride in a yellow cab back to the hotel, drivers tip included!

***************

                                                                                                                                      

Introduction

Kojak. The Streets of San Francisco. Cagney and Lacey. Hill Street Blues. Ironside. Quincey. Starskey and Hutch (and Huggy Bear). Roseanne. Married with Children. Taxi. Happy Days. Cheers. Mork and Mindy (na nu  na nu).

Growing up watching these shows on British TV in the 70s and 80s, gives your impression of America as a land of scandal and murder on every street corner, and of crimes that always seems to get solved within an hour. (And the baddies are useless shots who always leave a fatal flaw in their grand plans). Or of total manic family life when it’s a hoot a minute and everything ends up smelling of roses, complete with family hugs and a moral issue stuck in there somewhere. Actually, the scandal and murder on every street corner part was maybe not far from the truth in America in the 70s and 80s. Maybe a few more Steve Austin`s (The Six Million Dollar Man) could have helped keep the peace.     

To an impressionable kid like me it was all great stuff. Id be hooked on every episode, awe struck with the larger than life city streets and the strange things people were eating. What the hell were Bagels and Pretzels? Where could I find some? Not from the corner shop down the road that’s for sure. “What’s that your after, pretzels? Never heard of them.” Relaying that Starskey and Hutch were always eating them cut no ice either. “Ask them where they got them then.” Ok, thanks.

And of course the old chestnut; ‘World Series’ in American sports when no other country in the World can take part? That’s one way to guarantee that the trophies don’t leave American soil I suppose. But still.   

Everything seemed so much bigger in America. The streets, the cars, the buildings, (especially the buildings), the houses, the hot dogs. Growing up, it was always a place I wanted to visit but I had convinced myself it would always just be a pipedream. That was until I finally got my act together in my early thirties and decided that come hell or high water, I was going.

Up until then I’d spent all my time and money following the (mis)fortunes of my beloved Newcastle United FC all around our green and pleasant land, and then all around Europe. While that was really a labour of love, America was a different kettle of fish. Like I said, a supposed pipedream.

The fascination I had with the USA was twofold. It was basically America in general, New York City in particular (with Los Angeles not far behind). My first trip over there had to be focused on NYC though. I had to get in amongst it, to experience it all for myself.

I had to have a stroll up 5^th Avenue, have a look around Central Park, buy a hotdog off a street vendor, ride in a yellow cab, buy a ‘I love NY’ T-shirt, stuff like that.  I also fancied having a look at the corner of 53^rd and 3^rd, the spot Rod Stewarts `Georgie Boy` met an untimely end; `An ambulance screamed to a halt on 53<sup>rd</sup> and 3<sup>rd</sup>`. Damn those New Jersey gangs! I’d read countless guidebooks, and watched films and documentaries until I had square eyes. I felt I knew the city and streets before I even saw them for real.

As for L.A. That seemed a remarkable city to me. Or should that be a remarkable twenty thousand (or thereabouts) small cities rolled into one. So many places there jump out at you just by their name. Hollywood. Santa Monica (and Santa Monica Boulevard), Sunset Strip, Beverly Hills, Bell Air etc.

And then there were the other places I was just as keen to have a look at: New Orleans, Memphis, Houston (for the Space Centre), San Francisco.

I dare say I would also find trips to Illinois, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Missouri, Wisconsin (oh I could go on and on!), just as interesting. The funny thing is, the one state I have no real interest in is the one most Brits head to most often, Florida. 

 So we finally got round to booking a week over there. We being me and my mate Malc. After being advised to go off season (cheaper!), we were left with the choice between march10th and september10th 2001. Saying as March was only a few months away, that swung it. (As well as being only five days after my birthday!). I think I’d waited long enough without the extra six months added on. At long last a week in New York City awaited me.

Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave eh? Ok. Let’s go and have a look. I want a big bite of the `Big Apple`. Start spreading the news………..