Visiting New York City

New York City is one of the world’s largest and most famous cities, so it goes without saying that it’s impossible for me to cover everything on a single page. The city is divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. As a traveler, I spent most of my time exploring Manhattan, where many of New York’s most famous landmarks and attractions are concentrated. Above is New York City’s Financial District at the southern end of Manhattan.

Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island

For millions of immigrants arriving in New York during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the skyline of Lower Manhattan was one of their first impressions of America after spending weeks crossing the Atlantic. Another famous sight was the Statue of Liberty, seen above on the left. France presented the statue to the United States in the 1880s, and it eventually became one of the most recognizable symbols of the country.

On the right is Ellis Island, which served as the country’s busiest immigration inspection station from 1892 until 1954. More than 12 million immigrants passed through Ellis Island during those years.

World Trade Center

One of New York City’s most tragic events was the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack that destroyed the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. I visited the site in November 2007, when Ground Zero was still largely a construction site and the rebuilding of the World Trade Center complex was in its early stages.

These photos capture the area during that period. Since my visit, the site has been completely transformed. One World Trade Center now dominates the Lower Manhattan skyline, while the National September 11 Memorial occupies the footprints of the original Twin Towers.

Empire State Building

The Empire State Building was completed in 1931 and remained the tallest building in the world for more than four decades. It is still one of the most recognizable landmarks in New York City. On the right is the lobby as I prepared to head up to the observation deck on the 86th floor.

Here are some views of New York City from the Empire State Building. Most of what you see is Manhattan, although parts of the surrounding boroughs are visible across the rivers. I was impressed by how the enormous buildings seemed to continue for miles. Of all the cities I’ve visited around the world, Tokyo was probably the closest comparison I could make to the sheer scale of New York City.

Architecture

The Flatiron Building on the left was completed in 1902 and was one of New York’s most unusual early skyscrapers. Although it was an impressive engineering achievement at the time, today it is dwarfed by the much taller skyscrapers surrounding it. On the right is one of the classic exterior fire escapes that are such a familiar sight on older New York buildings.

Even in one of the most heavily developed cities in the world, you can still find some wildlife. Above is a pigeon perched high above the city and one of New York’s many squirrels.

Central Park

Central Park is an enormous green space right in the middle of Manhattan. If you can see it from one of the city’s skyscrapers, it’s pretty amazing to see such a large area of trees surrounded on every side by dense development.

Both of these photos are from Central Park, where people come to relax, jog, walk, cycle, and even ice skate during the winter. With millions of people living in New York City, I was actually surprised that parts of the park didn’t feel more crowded during my visit.

Times Square

Almost every major city around the world seems to have a famous central gathering place. New York has Times Square, where enormous illuminated signs, theaters, restaurants, shops, and crowds combine into one of the busiest places in the city. Even late at night the area remains bright and packed with people.

As one example of the over-the-top stores around Times Square, here’s M&M’s World. The multi-story store sells just about everything imaginable associated with M&M’s, along with huge displays of candy organized by color. Times Square can sometimes feel more like an amusement park than a normal city neighborhood.

Times Square has plenty of activity, but you’ll find street performers throughout Manhattan. Most were playing music, while others performed dances or stunts. Above are some of the musicians I came across while walking around the city.

New York Subway

Distances around Manhattan aren’t necessarily huge, but driving can be a hassle because of the traffic, intersections, and sheer number of people. For me, the easiest way to get around was New York’s subway system.

The subway also provided one of the stranger moments of my visit. I explored one of the darker corners of a station and heard something fall nearby. It was too dark to see clearly, so I took a picture expecting that I might catch a rat. Instead I photographed whatever this dead dog, pig, cow-looking thing was! Finding something like this so close to the passenger areas made me wonder what other strange things might be hiding deeper inside New York’s subway system.

Fifth Avenue & Rockefeller Center

Fifth Avenue is one of the best-known streets in New York and is especially famous for shopping and sightseeing. Above is Rockefeller Center on the left, while on the right people are ice skating at the famous Rockefeller Center rink, a New York tradition dating back to the 1930s.

Here are two churches I came across while exploring New York City. On the left is a large church along Fifth Avenue. On the right is the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Upper Manhattan. The cathedral was so large that I had trouble fitting the entire building into a single photograph. Part of it was under renovation when I visited, so I probably didn’t get to see it at its best.

And finally, some of the shopping along Fifth Avenue. I’m not particularly big on shopping, but New York is one of those places where just about anything you’re looking for can probably be found somewhere in the city.