Day two ends in an exhausting state of mind. Waking up early after a very short night’s sleep (thanks to some dude yelling “fuck” every two seconds until 4am), we decided to get an early start. Began our day by walking around the area where our hostel is located at (on Amsterdam Ave, off W something-something St.) Found ourselves at the west end of Central Park, near the 96th St subway station, where we bought a 7-day pass.
The New York Subway is nothing like the London Tube. It’s kinda dingy and a tad bit smelly. Also it’s incredibly metallic in appearance, quite unlike the Tube.
Speaking of London, for some strange reason, I seem to be perpetually stuck in the mindset that I’m in London. I’d look around and think, “Wow, London has yellow cabs too!” and then realize a couple seconds later that I’m actually in New York and not London.
Maybe I’m really lacking sleep.
Anyways. Stuff we did today:
1. Took a subway to the South Ferry Station, took the Circle Line Ferries for a not-so-up-close look at the Statue of Liberty. We got like a few minutes of Lady Liberty’s majestic front before the ship moved around to give us a fabulous view of her back. Very lovely. We spent about fifteen to twenty minutes gazing at that lovely back while waiting for people to get off and on from Liberty Island (where the Statue of Liberty is on, if you didn’t realize from the oh-so-subtle name). Circle Line moved on to Ellis Island, then back to the South Ferry stop/port/station/harbor/whatever. From there, we made our way to…
2. The famous New York Stock Exchange and Wall Street, the heart of New York’s financial district. Not much to do there, but I got a hot dog to eat. Such a New York-y thing to do. Heh. Following which, we went to…
3. Century 21, the biggest discount department store in New York. Not that discounts really mean the cost is a lot less. Plus it was kinda messy in the way things were arranged, so it was a little tiring to hunt for stuff. And since I'm here in the land of Broadway, I'm saving money for things to do instead of things to wear.
4. We then moved on to Ground Zero, where the twin towers of the World Trade Center once stood before being destroyed by planes crashing into it on that fateful day six ears ago. It didn’t feel really appropriate to take photos of the site, so we didn’t. Not that the rest of America (or the world, really) didn’t try to milk the disaster for all its worth. There was a tribute center set up right across the street, and a wall carved in memoriam of the FDNY that gave their lives and carried so many to safety. Didn’t feel as…affected by the whole picture though. Not as much as I’d expected to. Kind of makes me wonder if we’ve all more or less moved on from the disaster.
5. After Ground Zero, we ambitiously walked to the Brooklyn Bridge and halfway across it before we turned back and headed for the subway station at City Hall. While the structure of the bridge is really quite awesome, it was such a tiring walk that every step became incredibly excruciating as we made our way to the subway station. From there, we took the subway for all of one stop and got off at…
6. Canal Street, home of a very pathetic Chinatown. Shops there were so similar to the layout in Shanghai that it didn’t seem like anything new or interesting. Had lunch at some random Chinese restaurant that had utterly terrible wanton mee. After which, we attempted to find Tribeca, which really is the “Triangle Below Canal Street”. (I think.) We pretty much found, wandered and left Tribeca in a completely unknowing state of mind. We tried to find Soho in much the same way, and did so in pretty much the same way as well. Considering we had no clue what each area was famous for, we decided to go to somewhere more famous, like…
7. Times Square! Which we headed for initially, but ended up getting distracted by Rockefeller Centre which houses NBC Studios in New York!!! This was the site of the comedic talents that belong to Saturday Night Live. This was the place where six Friends had ten brilliant comedic years. This was the place with the famous Rainbow Room. This was the place where Peter Petrelli and many others discovered their special abilities. And, oh yeah, this was the place that cancelled Studio 60. Mutters.
8. Moving on, we decided to head to the Theatre District, where (as if you didn’t know, you smart dog you) the theatres of Broadway are. But, apparently, intentions do not meet reality at all since we ended up wandering through H&M, Macy’s Dept Store, Victoria’s Secret and Fifth Avenue. I can just hear all you shopaholics panting. Saw the cutest pair of black Converse sneakers at Macy's but the price was a little too steep. Sighs. Anyways. We were too exhausted (and Jing Yng & Alvina were rather underdressed) for shopping at Fifth Avenue, so we’re saving that for tomorrow.
And so, that marks the end of a very long day full of walking from start to end. My poor feet are aching. I feel sorry for them. *Pats*. Also, food is quite a pathetic state. I’m fervently hoping that somehow that will change soon. Hah.
Alrighty. I’m all knackered out. Wait. Wrong country. Hah. I meant I’m, like, just so totally exhausted.
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