Here are more details of our two-day one-night trip:
The bus journey took less than three hours; along the way we saw wilderness, fields of corns and rivers. We knew we were near NYC when we caught a glimpse of the Manhattan skyline from the New Jersey side (Top panel, left-hand side)! See the top building with the spike on the top? That is the Empire State Building, currently the 7th tallest building in the world. The odd photo on the right-hand side of the middle panel was taken inside Lincoln tunnel, one of the few tunnels going into NYC. And voila, NYC we have arrived! (Incidentally we dropped out right smack outside Old Navy, perfect to kick start my shopping)
Lunch consisted of White Castle burgers, and Gray Papaya hot dogs (Spot the lit-sign beneath the huge Hairspray signboard)! Why the burgers? All thanks to the movie "Harold and Kumar go to White Castle" in 2004, we decided we just had to try it for ourselves (Psst, Harold and Kumar 2 is coming out next year!). The burgers were about half the size of MacDonald's burgers, and the Husby could easily finish it in 3 mouthfuls. See the empty boxes? We had ten burgers in total, and I felt so guilty for eating 3! The hot dogs were said to be popular in NYC, and therefore we must try it right? My verdict: hot dog is still hot dog. But try the papaya drink if you go to Gray Papaya, they are nice!
Top left-hand side: On our way to Times Square, everywhere we go, there are tons of people and yellow cabs. Top right-hand side: Theatre district with the Broadway theatres and Phantom of Opera is playing! It is a real pity we did not have enough time to watch any musical.
Bottom left-hand side: View at Times Square area and the bunch of taxis zooming our way. It was a real city feel where everyone seems terribly impatient on the roads with tons of honking. Everywhere you look at 7th Ave Times Square, you see dazzling billboards with their high-wattage thunder. The energy of this place is simply unmatched to any other cities I have been to! Bottom right-hand side: The entry to the underground subway train near Times Square; I love the "Subway" sign which lights up like the billboards.
We then headed to Central park after checking into our hotel (Park Savory Hotel); instantly we felt like we had stepped into a different world, surrounded by all the greenery. There is even a castle and a zoo within these grounds; so much to see, so little time! Check out the crowds sprawled on the greens enjoying the sun. There were many people suntanning on the grass. Pretty views of the all the buildings from the park too. I especially love the stretch known as The Mall, where the main pathway is covered by the canopy of American elms. Click on the other photo to see the beautiful Bethesda Fountain.
The highlight of our Central Park walk was a ride at the Central Park Carousel which was built in 1908! This was my very first Carousel ride, and it was not as dizzy as I thought it would be. At $1.50 a ride, it was fun to feel like a kid again. =)
The highlight of our Central Park walk was a ride at the Central Park Carousel which was built in 1908! This was my very first Carousel ride, and it was not as dizzy as I thought it would be. At $1.50 a ride, it was fun to feel like a kid again. =)
We then headed out for some shopping. I read that there was a Takashimaya along 5th Ave (Top left-hand corner; home of refined stores like Tiffany & Co), and I was looking forward to buying some Japanese goodies. What a shock we had! Takashimaya was tiny, barely a fraction of the size of what we have in Singapore. The selection was really limited, and I left the store disappointed. Zara was right next door too, but the prices seemed more expensive than Singapore if memory serves me right. The top right-hand side photo is of the St. Patrick's Cathedral, very unique Gothic-style Roman Catholic Church. We then landed up at Columbus Circle, and was rewarded with more views of the long streets of NYC. Notice how all the traffic lights are all red!
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