New York City

Actually, I've already left New York City.... the internet in the hostel was really inconvenient, and coupled with the late times I returned to the hostel, I decided not to do any blogging.

It's not my first time to New York. I think I've been here twice before, but the last time was probably about 10 yrs ago. New York isn't my favourite city. After this visit, it's a little better, but I still don't really like it.

It's entering into Winter time and the some trees are still yellow. Here's a pic of the path near the hostel where I was staying. Really like the yellow leaves on the tree and on the ground.


Let's start off with why I don't like it... it's kinda dirty. Yeah, the subways are really grimey. Our MRTs in Singapore and the trains in Japan are just leaps and bounds better in terms of cleanliness and organization. Secondly, weather. My arrival day and first day in New York was spoilt by rain. It was not pleasant having to struggle with an umbrella and cold weather. But luckily, the next two days were quite sunny, giving me some time to do some visits and shopping. Lastly, it's just too crowded. It's funny, coz I guess Rome, Tokyo, aren't exactly devoid of people. But somehow, the mass of people in NYC just seems more... congested? Anyway, here's a pic of the famous Time Square being smothered with rain.


OK, having said that, I must admit, I also like some stuff about NYC. First and foremost must be the musicals. I managed to get half-priced tickets to watch Tarzan (the new Disney muscial) and a quirky off-broadway muscial - The Evil Dead. Tarzan was not bad... not fantastic but still enjoyable. The Evil Dead was hilarious. It was like watching a B-grade musical. They actually had a splatter zone where the audience members were splattered with fake blood and body parts! lolz.

This time round, I decided to do the Empire State Building. I find it quite expensive to go up, but what the heck... I've never done it before. The view was pretty good. In the first pic, the building to the far left is the United Nations building. If I'm not wrong, the tall, black one belongs to Donald Trump. After the Empire State Building, I went on a cruise around New York City. Also quite enjoyable. The middle pic is of Wall Street and the World Trade Centre used to stand just behind the building with the pyramid on the top. I think it's about TWICE the height of the tallest buildings in that pic! And of course, the last pic is the famous Stature of Liberty. I was quite lucky to get a shot with the sun setting behind it. I heard they don't let people climb up inside the statue anymore. Made me glad that I did it 10 years ago when I first visited New York. Then, we could climb all the way to the top and peer out from a small window at the crown of the statue!










The pic below is the former site of the World Trade Centre. I think they are supposed to finish building the memorial by 2010. Don't think it's gonna happen. Heh.. maybe that will be the next time I visit NYC.










From New York, I took a train earlier today southwards. After about 2.5 hours, I'm now in Baltimore. Will be spending two days here before leaving for Atlanta.