And there is something even more meaningful about that picture when you are the photographer. The image above was snapped by yours truly in New York City's Central Park. December of 2013 I was a senior in high school and had the amazing opportunity to fly out with a group of students and stay in NYC for 4 days. The best part about it was that my grandma was interested in chaperoning and got to go with me; we stayed in our own hotel room and just took the tour bus schedule with the rest of the group. I also celebrated my 18th birthday on one of the days we were in the city and can say it truly was a trip of a lifetime. I took tons of pictures and today I want to post some of them with you and share some of the great sights and points of high interest. In all honesty though, these pictures can't even compare to the true beauty in New York.
Central Park is in Manhattan, New York and is the most visited urban park in the United States. There is a 2.5 acre section in Central Park by the name of Strawberry Fields that is dedicated to the former Beatle John Lennon and is where this "Imagine" memorial is located. I was there on December 8th, which happened to be the same day back in 1980 when John Lennon was murdered in NY. In honor of his passing there were strawberries outlining the "Imagine" and flowers and other sentimental objects towards Lennon were covering the memorial. A man was sitting next to it playing an acoustic guitar singing all of John Lennon's songs; it was absolutely beautiful.
The next phenomenal sight I captured happens to be the Empire State Building, which is a 102-story skyscraper in Manhattan and is thought of as an American cultural icon. It is currently the 5th tallest building in the world.
The picture above, I took at the National September 11 Memorial where the former location of the Twin Towers has been transformed into two pools with the largest man-made waterfalls in the United States. There is also a forest of trees and a lot of greenery; one tree in specific is fenced off from the public and is actually the only thing that survived the horrific incident on 9/11.
On one of the days, we took a ferry to see the lovely Lady Liberty and all of her wonder. We had a lot of things scheduled for that day so we were not able to stop on the island and climb/ explore her. However, the ferry ride was so amazing and the view was just breathtaking. Above is a picture of my grandma, girlfriends and I on the ferry. Next time I visit the city, I hope to actually touch The Statue of Liberty.
This photo was captured in Grand Central Terminal which is a well known train station in New York. It covers 48 acres and has 44 platforms, which is more than any other train station in the world.
The next two pictures I took are of the Rockefeller Center. This is actually a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering 22 acres in the city. The dark picture is a view from the top of the centerpiece building, which is also known as the Comcast building. We went to the very top and viewed the city from the observation deck. It was chilly and started to sprinkle on us while we were up there- it was so refreshing! Radio City music hall is an entertainment venue in the Rockefeller Center and hosts T.V shows, sports, music and more. We got to take a tour of the inside and see all of the behind the scenes which was really cool.
I took this picture while I was inside the tour bus. It just captured the chaos of all the traffic and taxi cabs there are in the heart of the city. If you travel to New York, you HAVE to visit Time Square. It is just so cool to look at all of the things and people around you, especially at night with all of the lights.
I was fortunate enough to go in December when the entire city was covered in Christmas decorations. There was Christmas music playing, hot chocolate being sold, holiday shops and seasonal smells all over the place. It was the best time of my life and I am so thankful for that opportunity. I know traveling is expensive but if you ever get the chance, I highly recommend making a trip to New York in your lifetime. I was fortunate enough to go with a tour group, so i was taught a lot of cool information and got to travel to a lot of difference sights and attractions in just a few days. When traveling to NY on your own without a group, it could be a lot harder to navigate through the city- especially when it's mostly walking or taxi. I am hoping to make another trip out there within the next few years and of course I will make sure to go around Christmas again because it was just too perfect. This was a trip for the books, that is for sure. :)
Whenever the topic of travel comes up I always shock people when I tell them I've been to more countries than states in my own country. There has always been a desire to visit the East Coast, and I really like all the photos you shared.
ReplyDeleteLexy--Your new entries are good. You have good visual appeal, interesting topics and points, and you are working to engage your audience with detail and discussion. Keep at it.
ReplyDeleteI constatnly see pictures of New York and other eastern atttaction sites and think, "that looks like a cool place to visit someday." Your discriptions of the city, however, have made me want to start planning a vacation for tomorrow if it were possible or not.
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