Our next place to visit was Times Square, famous for the hustle and bustle of uptown Manhattan. When we got there it was dusk and the dark night sky was beginning to fall on us like a dark blanket. It had been raining earlier so there was a wet look to all the bright yellow taxis, beeping their horns incessantly at anyone they cared to. The huge buildings around us swamped us as we felt like little ants mingling in with the crowds. The bright neon lights all around us advertising everything from Pot noodle to all the latest shows on Broadway. As we walked along the Avenues, on every corner we were met by the infamous hot dog vendors. Mixed smells of frankfurters, onions and hot pretzels hanging in the air.
As we walked along we noticed the haunting sound of a man playing pan pipes to the side of the street and watched as passers by threw him a couple of dollars. Another crowd up ahead we watching three young men break-dancing under the canopy of the MTV building. They had a stereo with them and were spinning on their heads and cart wheeling around, until the siren of a police car passed and they fled merging into the crowds. Only to reappear when the coast was clear again.
Our visit the following day was to the tragic Ground Zero site, where the magnificent Twin Towers had once stood. As we left the subway and joined the crowds heading towards the site, there are lots of men by the side of the street selling their wares, all sorts of souvenirs from post cards and t-shirts to grisly pictures of the Twin Towers as they collapsed. As we arrived at the site images from our memories immediately are brought to mind and we can see the twin towers standing there in their glory being hit by those planes and then crumbling to the ground, leaving miles and miles of dust and debris with them. Waves of emotion hit hard, and as I look around tears were in everyones eyes.
It is a dark grey day with storm clouds looming overhead and the Ground Zero site is all lit up by flood lights. There are big steel gates all around, with memorial boards listing the names of most of those who perished that fateful 9/11 day. As I look into the site, I noticed a solitary cross standing on its own, it is the only part of the Twin Towers that did not crumble below. It is made of two rusty looking steel girders and is set in a concrete base. It is eerie as it stands on its own and was lit up the floodlights around. All is silent around us, despite the crowds and as we feel the first cold drops of rain we decide to head home for the evening.
We visited many more enthralling places on our trip including Central Park and the Statue of Liberty but felt most drawn to the places mentioned.
