New York - Ground Zero

The news has been all talking about Sep 11 event for a few days. It has been 10 years, which I feel like a blink of eyes. Time flies so fast that when I turn around, I have been away from my hometown for 10 years.

I still remember the day the destruction had struck Manhattan. I was at the common lounge in my university dorm and the TV was on. As it was a common dorm, the best channel to be watched was news. But no one seemed to care about that. Sometimes you could feel amazed at how much noise a few students could make. Suddenly, someone shouted "World Trade Center in NY was just attacked!" And every eye turned to the TV screen. There it was, the news flash with an image of a plane crashing into one of the towers. It was the first plane. We were buzzed with surprise and soon, anger. As a business student myself, I used to dream of going to Manhattan and working in a financial company located at WTC. Yeah, I was idealist.

A few minutes later, the news flashed again. The second plane had collided with the other tower, and what once-a-financial-symbol had become a pile of scrap. A breaking news soon became a development story and world headline. When I went back to my room and checked the Internet, the number of dead victims was counting. And the culprits were speculated. But one thing for sure, this despicable act was done under the name of religion. That was so wrong in many levels. Personally, I do not dislike any religion. Even though I am a free thinker, I am considered myself as Buddhist in heart. And I used to read Buddhist texts when I was in Vietnam which taught us how to be a better person by getting rid of anger and hate towards other beings. And I think other religions are preaching the same ideals. I do not think any god (or whoever the higher being in that religion) would like you to kill thousands of people for his name. So why in the seventh hell is that some group of people could something that vile?

Even if they blamed a country's government on what it was doing in their country and religion, it was so cruel to take revenge on its innocent citizens. That was why they were called terrorists. And I still do not understand why they would want to resort to such a violent method. If they had that kind of money, why did they not focus on improve their economy? Fighting by economy is the best way to get back on a country.

Anyway, the past had happened. Anniversary is for people to remember and mourn for their loved ones. And going forward in life. That is what those victims probably want for their livings.

I visited Ground Zero in a cold winter day in 2009, during my trip to New York city. It was not like what we are seeing in the news these days. The memorial was still being re-built and the new building was just an empty land. I was advised to go to One World Financial Center to have a better view, which I did. The feeling was hard to describe. Seeing one of the world's most famous buildings demolished into nothing was emotional for me. My dream would be forever a dream. Even if it was a silly dream but if Sep 11 did not happen, I would have a much better chance to make my dream come true.

New York attractions - St. Patrick's Cathedral

There is one established fact that I am a city gal. There, I've said that. When talking about travelling, I always think about big cities with interesting architecture. Natural scenery doesn't appeal much to me. I like my trip well-planned, even down to which directions to take. I don't like the surprised elements, especially when I travel alone. You might think this is not a right way to travel, but I prefer being safe and knowing what might happen.

As a result, I love visiting buildings, i.e. castles, churches, skyscrapers, etc. That was why Chicago really fascinated me with its old but charming buildings. New York was no difference. Even the atmosphere seemed colder than Chicago, I love walking along Fifth Avenue, not shopping (I know what you are thinking), but looking at different architectures. Very lovely and also vibrant.

St. Patrick's Cathedral captivated me with its beautiful design and old charms. I'm not a church goer but I used to dream to get married in a church. And St. Patrick's Cathedral is exactly where I wish my wedding would be. However, that dream is still very far away, at the moment (at least).

One thing I really regretted was I didn't have time to go inside the church. Just to sit down and listen to the choir would be a great experience.

New York eats - Bouchon Bakery

After an interesting but tiring city tour around Manhattan, it was time for us to fill our stomach. We didn't even have lunch, just a big breakfast at Kitchenette. I was amazed that I could still manage to fool around in Columbus Circle. Cold and hungry but we still tried to take as many photos as we could. Oh... the length we could go for our passion/obsession.

Talking about breakfast, I always try to have a good meal to start a day when travelling. Experience has proven that it is a very good strategy. Good breakfast means you have plenty of energy to spend on exploring new places. You cannot always manage to eat lunch on time, sometimes your next meal after breakfast is served as half lunch and half dinner. That is why breakfast is very important.

Back to Bouchon Bakery. This is a small coffee house located inside Time Warner Center. I chose to come here for lunch/dinner for one reason, there is a Borders bookstore within the building. And why Borders? Because I need to buy a book which I have been pinning for a few months. Which book, you might ask? I will show you at the end of this post.

Time Warner Center is located on Columbus Circle and was decorated beautifully during Christmas. A lot of people were enchanted by the mirage of lights when stepping into the building. I was glad to come here, after all!



Bouchon Bakery has an open-space concept. Even there were not many choices, the cafe was still very crowded when I was there. Tracy and I had to wait for more than half an hour to be seated. In the meanwhile, we went to Borders, for Tracy to surf around, and for me to buy my book.

After a good 40 minutes of waiting, we were finally seated. Here is the only picture I have of the cafe:



And the meals we had there:











And here is the book I had to cross half the globe to get my hands on it. Especially on its paperback release date. Yay!!!

New York attractions - Staten Island Ferry

It is said that Staten Island Ferry is one of the must-do when you visit in New York. Part of the reason is that the ferry is free of charge. So instead of paying for some cruise tours, you could just take the ferry. You could get a glimpse of Statue of Liberty and Manhattan skyline. Not bad at all!

To take this ferry, you just need to get to Staten Island Ferry Terminal at Lower Manhattan (if you get off from Manhattan). This terminal is very near to Battery Park, where you take a cruise to Statue of Liberty Island. Here is the terminal building:



The building has a very big signboard. You can't miss it.



I took the "Spirit of America" ferry:



I also saw another Staten Island Ferry when I was on board one.



You could see Statue of Liberty from the ferry:



And here was I, with Statue of Liberty and Brooklyn Bridge (not sure) in the back:

Winter 2009 - Upper West Side Manhattan

I really need to finish writing about New York trip before embarking on a trip to France. That gives me less than 2 months.

Here was I, in Upper West Side Manhattan, in a sunny winter day. There was something very interesting about beautiful old buildings and leafless trees.

Riding a New York subway

Living in Singapore for the past 9 years, I have learnt to appreciate public transport. If you plan carefully enough, you could get to anywhere. That applies to San Francisco, Chicago and apparently Manhattan.

However, I hadn't had a right appreciation for Singapore public transportation system until I rode New York subway. And I've realized that those who are living in Singapore are really pampered (not only the locals). The system has been designed to bring the most convenience to its people which a big percentage of these people don't really understand. Try New York subway for a day and you learn how wonderful the MRT in Singapore is.

Anyway, once you learn how to navigate around Manhattan, subway is a cheap but excellent method to explore this interesting city.


7-day MetroCard


Chambers St. Station






Inside a subway train

New York eats - Kitchenette, Tribeca

After a good rest, we were ready for a full-day city exploration. However, sleep wasn't enough, I need to take in more energy, which meant a good breakfast. And I found this restaurant on the Internet when planning for the trip. About 5 minutes from our hotel, it seemed to be a good place.

It has a cozy and homey ambiance. Once you step in, you could feel the warmth which is a god-sent if you are in the middle of a winter. There is not much to choose from, just very essential American breakfast. As I didn't like bacon and sausages for morning, I had chosen blueberry pancakes and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. Luckily I had finished both cos the next meal was actually lunch cum dinner in Columbus Circle.










A huge glass of OJ


A big plate of blueberry pancakes


Looking fresh after a good night of sleep

New York eats - Viet Cafe, Lower Manhattan

After our disastrous shopping trip at Century 21, which Tracy had managed to buy something (amazingly), we couldn't wait any longer to head for dinner. We got lost for a while, but somehow we regained our direction and landed to the right area. But if you ask me for one advice, dun ever plan your dinner around Financial District. The whole place looked like a ghost town to me. Quite scary for 2 girls.

Anyway, we chose a Vietnamese restaurant cos I thought after 2 weeks in North America, Tracy and I might miss our food. And yes, I was right. We were glad to have some cabbage salad and some hot noodle soups for dinner. Even though the price was steep, I dun think I could have chosen otherwise.






Cabbage salad with chicken


Pho Nam Dinh


And of course, a photo of myself on my first night in Manhattan

New York shopping - Century 21

Technically it was my second day in New York, the first day being the day I landed to JFK, aka two week before. But who cares, it was my first day in Manhattan and NYC. And managing to get here on schedule was another miracle (I hate terrorists, but that will be another story of another blog post).

After catching some much needed sleep (I think I didn't sleep a wink the night before in Canada) in the hotel room for about 2 hours and waiting for Tracy to arrive from San Francisco, we went out for some much needed retail therapy and of course, dinner. As we stayed in Tribeca which is quite near to Ground Zero, our logical shopping choice was Century 21.


(sorry, the photo was a bit blurry. I was cold and hungry.)

I'd had high hope for this department store after all the raves from other travelers, and even some New Yorkers. And yet, I was disappointed. The brands the store carried were just blah and the selection was bad. After 5 or 10 minutes in the store, I was bored even others were digging furiously. Its only saving grace was shoes, but I couldn't choose anything as there was no size for me. Really, I had had better luck at Neiman Marcus Last Call in Chicago. I'd managed to score a pair of Brian Atwood heels there.

Anyway, that might be just me. You may find the store interesting if you like those brands. But I won't recommend this for any of my friends' shopping list.

Magnificent Mile at night

If you are a shopaholic, you must visit this part of Michigan Ave. Even if you are not, you should come here as well. Especially at night. The street looks magical and beautiful. I enjoyed shopping at Saks Fifth Ave. The service was warm but not too overwhelmed.

Christkindlmarket, Chicago

Christkindlmarket is a Christmas market held annually at Daley Plaza in Chicago. It was inspired by the Christkindlesmarkt in Germany. And it has become the largest Christmas market in the United States, hosting well over 1 million visitors annually.

That is the info I have gathered from Wikipedia. Well, largest or not, I had gone there cos I love Christmas and market. The coldness didn't deter me at all. Tracy and I had a lovely time there, exploring, squeezing, eating and laughing. It's a must-go if you are in Chicago around Christmas time.






Christkindlmarket


Big Christmas tree and yes, it was a real pine tree!


In front of one of the stores








Yummy German lunch