Now that I was going to be moving
to Austin , TX Saratoga , back in 2000’s
Memorial Day weekend). Since the buildings Ellen and Gary lived in where
located too far from each other, I could see them both in a single trip.
It’s only about a three hour drive
to where Ellen lived, which was a section just north of Yonkers
(thus north of Manhattan ).
Pretty much once I’d crossed the Hudson River at the Tappan Zee Bridge Palisades
Interstate Park
across the river in New Jersey .
I timed my arrival for lunch, so
we’d gotten sandwiches at a local deli, and then spent some time swimming and
relaxing at the pool in her complex. A little bit later, Gary and his
spouse Kathy stopped by, as this was the customary Friday night hang-out spot.
Ellen had her own karaoke machine, and our small group made fools of
ourselves all night for fun. The following night, Ellen and I would be
joining Gary ’s family for dinner at their Manhattan condo, so this
would be the more relaxed of the two nights.
The main thrust of the weekend was
Ellen and I spending the day in Manhattan .
The only other times I’d been to New York City
(not counting flying in and out of LaGuardia for the 1984 France trip)
was day trips during high school (during the late 1980s). During those
times, New York City
was dank and overcast, the people rude and unfriendly, and generally not a
hospitable place. Obviously since I’d been there last, the city had been
cleaned up and revitalized, much in part to actions of Mayor Rudy Giuliani. It was a nice sunny day here, the streets
were clean and safe, and the people far more friendly than I’d seen before.
I could now understand why someone would actually want to live in this
“concrete jungle.” While I still knew that anything shown on Friends
and Mad About You was pure fantasy, there was a nugget of reality they’d
been built upon.
We’d driven to a place just south
of Central Park, and then took a taxi the rest of the way downtown towards
where the Twin Towers
of the World Trade Center
Now the taxi ride itself was pretty
wild, and is something which everyone should experience if they ever get to New York City . The
best way to describe it was like a billiards ball bouncing all over the table.
We were going a pretty decent speed, and never decelerated to make turns;
even when we were swapping lanes, it felt like we had moved sideways in a sharp
motion. Think of any roller coaster you’ve ever been on, where the forces
are pressing you against the seat, and you’ll get an idea of the ride we had.
One trick that Ellen told me was
not to give your exact destination to the cab driver, as they could “make a few
extra turns” to circle around a bit before delivering you (and thereby
increasing the fare). She’d simply give an intersection close to where
she wanted to be (“Fifth and Main ,” for
example), and then pay attention to the route the cabbie was taking. If
she was getting close to where she wanted to be, or saw the taxi was starting
to meander a bit, she’d let him know that was far enough, and exit there. While the driver might be annoyed he didn’t
get the fare he’d anticipated on, someone else would be hopping in the cab
within a few minutes (and thereby a chance to earn more).
We got dropped off in the vicinity
of the Empire State Building
The lobby for the Empire State
Building
The walls of the observation area
of the Main Deck were only about five feet high in most places, because that’s
where the gangplanks to the zeppelins would open up to. It was a few
decades later, after enough people tried to fly off the side, did the Empire
State Building construct metal grates (with a top that curved inward) to
prevent that from happening. For those
determined enough to scale the bars, guards stationed along the area would keep
that from happening.
I maneuvered myself in various
points along the way in order to take my panoramic shots. Since I didn’t
want the safety bars in the way, I positioned my camera between them as to not
have any obstructions.
One of the first pictures I took
was a southern exposure, so I could match that up with what the tour guide was
telling people. The most frequently asked question was where had the Twin Towers
I soaked up the views in all
directions, and noted how many of the buildings I recognized. And of
course, since I’m a comic book geek at heart, I tried to imagine Marvel
super-heroes flying around this skyline (as most of DC’s major heroes were
stationed in fictional cities). A nice, fun thing for you to do would be
to see what buildings you knew.
After I rejoined Ellen back on the
ground level, we walked a few blocks up as some of the streets were closed for
little festival. Local and national vendors were set up, and doing live
demonstrations of their products, just like you’d see on those late-night
infomercials. While some of the stuff was interesting, there was nothing
I needed (certainly as I’d be moving across country in a few short months).
One guy was hawking a hand-cranked
food processor, and telling us how well it chopped vegetables via his headset
microphone. He looked at us and asked who cooked in the house-hold.
Ellen commented that she only had a kitchen because it came with the
place, so I acknowledged the guy. My cooking skills are limited not
because I don’t know how, but because there’s not a lot of effort I chose to
put into making a meal for just myself (I do pretty decent when I’m putting
something on for someone, though). I had to admit, it looked pretty neat,
but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t live without.
We then went back to Ellen’s flat
to hang out before meeting Gary ’s
family for dinner. While not really travel information, I did find it
interesting to listen in on the major topic of conversation which was had (as
I’m someone who doesn’t live very close to NYC). The main discussion was
the emergency plans, what should they do, and where they’d rendezvous, should a
9/11-like situation happen again. There wasn’t any hysteria or concern
here, just some frank matter-of-fact planning to be prepared for the future.
After breakfast the next morning I
headed back to Glens Falls ,
as Ellen had to pack for a business trip she needed to go on. Had that
not been dropped in her lap the week before I came down, we would’ve had a few
more days for her to show me around the area. There’s so much to see, and
places which are within easy reach to go to. Even though I had no idea
when I’d be able to get back, I was still glad of the time I was able to spend
down there with friends.
For current information on the places visited:
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