nycguy10002

Ah yes, the United Nations complex - haven't been there in ages. Still as nice as I remembered it. Be careful when you deal with marketing people (even at the UN). They don't like being told that they are UNimaginative, if you worked there you might feel UNappreciated and possibly wind up UNemployed. Nevertheless you should remain UNdeterred.

"Why does the top floors of the Bloomberg Building get lit up in Red, White and Blue? Well, they are the colors of the United States - need I say more?" - while I obviously cannot deny this, the same applies to so many other countries in the world, from Taiwan via France to Chile. arranging the colours in stripes just does not make an obvious connection to me, the LEDs ought to be able to show a more distinct display, shouldn't they?

I don't disagree but most buildings tone down their light displays in favor of the Empire State Building which has multi-color LEDs that they use to commemorate any special occasion or event that comes along.

Madam397

The UN used to be a favorite destination for school trips. Have been there as a child on school trips as well as more recently as a parent volunteer on a school trip. For years we had a poster of member country flags that one of my daughters had bought as a souvenir hanging up in our basement. I don't know if post 9/11 and post pandemic, school trips have resumed.

Nautiker

sadly I did not realise until after the trip, when I looked up that building, what a gem it is. I am normally not too much into opulent decoration, but there's something about the elaborateness of art-déco that makes me stop. so, well, this too goes onto the list for the next visit then (laughs/shrugs)

here in Germany, the 'obvious' Israeli establishments like synagogues always come with a police-car near the front door, while the less obvious like kindergartens usually go unmarked. all of them have very good doors, though, I understand...

- but then I just thought of another brand: UNhealthy, though still undecided what products those should be - maybe superfoods with a heavy sugar icing?

I have given this some more thought and while I can imagine that if I saw a building e.g. chequered black, red and gold i would say 'hey, this is meant as a tribute to the flag of Germany', those stripes just don't evoke anything similar imo. and so while I cannot disprove you, I remain open to other suggestions ;-)

you mean like the Helmsley Building, which comes in a bright pink at night that doesn't do a favour to anyone, including itself? admittedly, it's not that tall, but then the Bloomberg is nowhere near the Empire State at all... *ponders*

while we did not encounter school trips, there were tours every 15mins and I see no reason why there shouldn't be lots of groups from schools nowadays. should be an obvious daytrip destination.

nycguy10002

" - but then I just thought of another brand: UNhealthy, though still undecided what products those should be - maybe superfoods with a heavy sugar icing?"

Superfoods with a heavy sugar icing? I might have to UNdo my belt for that but for now I am UNdecided.

The Helmsley Building, I haven't thought of that building under that name for a long time (to me it is 230 park Avenue). Just a bit of history - that building was built by 1929 was originally "The New York Central Building" built for the NY Central Railroad. In 1958 it became "The General Building" and in 1978 Helmsley-Spear Real Estate bought the building and gave it the name that it still bears today although it has changed hands a number times. [Harry Helmsley was a big real estate man and better known and better respected than Donald Trump. Helmsley bought and or invested in a lot of buildings in NYC. In his later years he was better known for his 2nd wife - Leona "The Queen of Mean" who wanted to live a luxurious lifestyle who had tyrannical behavior and who never paid bills and was even in trouble for tax evasion (sort of a female Donald Trump).] According to an article I read the pink appearance is so it can be seen from miles away (not that anyone wants to).

Nautiker

"to me it is 230 park Avenue" - I fail to think of the postal address of _any_ commercial building in Germany, yet it seems quite common in the US. but then I understand you keep switching the building's names quite frequently and confusingly (how many Trump Towers are there? how many Met Life buildings?), so I realise the postal address is more lasting and therefore more gentle to the brain...

looked up the Helmsley's - oh my, so many stereotypes under one roof! does money spoil character or is it just more apparant then?

I need to speed up a little, otherwise we will still be around here by Christmas.

so, then we had our first small boat trip. as I wrote before, since NYC ferry the 10-ride tickets can be shared without restrictions, at $2.95 per person/ride, this easily came down the best value touristical thing of our trip.


well, while I personally cannot comapre to yesteryear's, I admit that for a local citizen, this skyline must have changed dramatically during the last decasde.




ride was swift, almost too swift, but then catamarans don't idle..




and while there was a small crowd of tourists, it wasn't that touristy at all. sole downside when travelling south around noon: going against the light...




I cannot get my head around this one: of course it is illegal to attack _anyone_ . this sign is an indicator that this actually _is_ a topic on board of these boats?!? is it believed to have any effect?

Nautiker

like many tourists, we spent too little time in Brooklyn. like many tourists, we dropped by the Manhattan Bridge view corner, which we were rather surprised to discover as one of the most touristy spots in NYC. sure, Times Square is busier, but it feels more in line with the overall bustle there.






Brooklyn Bridge, on the other hand, felt much more relaxed, even though we visited at a peak time.




typical tourist shot, sorry




8 Spruce Street. Gehry usually fails to excite me: lots of money for an undulated facade, but not much in terms of 'real' architecture happening here.






I liked the bit of Broadway from City Hall towards the Financial District. our guidebboks didn't mention it but, it has been designed into a sort of 'walk of fame' of the city's history, right? I found it neat, same goes for the small details like this kerbstone.




nowhere in the world a 'small fries' is a lot, but we all had to laugh very hard when we discovered that in the city with the biggest buildings on this planet, it will get you a doll's house version of a 'small fries'...





we were a bit stuck now, hadn't planned much beyond the crossing of Brooklyn Bridge. I suggested Tribeca, but in the end we decided on Washington Square Park. due to the fantastic weather, the square was packed with people, yet a very pleasant atmosphere. we strolled some further and came past the Deutsche Haus at the end of Washington Mews and: oh my! they are teaching German low puns! (technical term in German: 'Kalauer' )



it wasn't really late, a quarter to five, but the low sun left the streets with their nice residential buildings in the shadows, with a rare exception here:





dropped by a supermarket on our way to the hotel. I'm not good at economics, so can someone explain: a Ritter-Sport like this one costs roughly $1.30 here in Germany. shipping nowadays costs almost nought, I am told (we get apples from New Zealand, after all!). so why does this chocolate bar cost 3x compared to over here?




finally, boy gets spoiled, part III: the next Cybertruck, right in front of our hotel. 60 seconds later it was gone - boy very much delighted. (I spare you the picture, you know what that car looks like).

a long day was coming to an end. kids were spent (reportedly another 20,000+ steps for today: not that much for me, but for them)...

Nautiker

well, there's an addendum to this day: initially, I had made plans for every single evening of our trip, only to see almost all scratched by our tiredness. at the same time, I could already forsee that there would be areas we would not cover during our stay, however which were important to me. since I wasn't feeling completely worn out, I agreed with my wife that I would do a quick stroll on my own to explore some spots along Park and Lexington Aves...

still on 6th


the air was cool and refreshing as I walked briskly down the streets. time was about 8-9pm and everything had quieted down a lot, though there were still quite a few people on the street.

just an impression




had written down a long list of movie locations, yet only managed to get a handful of those




steam funnel!




on behalf of my boy, I did some window-shopping of both the Aston Martin and the Ferrari showrooms, only to be told the next morning that both brands are totally out-of-fashion with him and his friends - what's wrong with the kids today? I may not be a car enthusiast today, but at age 10 I definitely was!




my main objectives had been a number of skyscrapers in this area, e.g. the Citigroup Center, GE Building, 425 Park Avenue etc., most importantly however Lever House and Seagram Building, right next to each other, those fifties icons... now what's the point of visiting a black skyscraper at night you ask me and I can only say - damn, you are right! (but I was right, though, I never managed to return during this trip)




came past the new JP Morgan Chase building site (270 Park Avenue) - base looks impressive at close quarters, yet somehow it looks a bit like the building is standing on tiptoe, too, haven't come to a conclusion what to make of it...




Helmsley Building (230 Park Ave...) looked trashy in pink - they want to make it an eyesore on purpose? refrained from taking a single picture. made a short hop into Grand Central only to find the big hall busy with tourists almost as much as during the day. in the end, my short stroll took just a bit over two hours end despite the darkness, it had been a very fulfilling undertaking *smiles*

nycguy10002

Lots of great photos.

I want to first address one of your questions: "I cannot get my head around this one: of course it is illegal to attack _anyone_ . this sign is an indicator that this actually _is_ a topic on board of these boats?!? is it believed to have any effect?"
- This actually dates back quite a while and began on the subway and bus system. I don't know if you experienced any delays while you took the subway but it does happen often enough and in some cases be quite lengthy (I was on a train last week and was stuck in a station for 45 minutes - luckily I wasn't in a rush). Delays can be rather frustrating and different people show their frustration in different ways: Some just sit and wait it out (or leave the station and walk or take a bus), if it is at at station where they can transfer to another train line they will do that. Others prefer to express their frustration verbally at the conductor (located in a cab in the middle of the train) as if that is going to move things along. Still there are others who are of a mind (or out of their mind) and get physical toward the conductor and spit at them through the little window of the cab or actually throw punches or objects at the conductor (the window must be open in a station so the conductor can stick his or her head out to observe the platform). There have been a number of serious injuries to conductors. As a result of this (and complaints from the Transit Workers Union), the NY State Legislature enacted a law stating that injuring a public transit employee can result in legal action and up to 7 years in prison. Attacks have gone down but have not completely stopped. The Transit Authority is trying to make it harder to get near the conductor's window by installing barriers on the platform in a few stations (I have seen these barriers and they don't work).

In regard to NY Waterways - they are a private entity licensed by NY and NJ to provide ferry service and are not covered under the laws protecting public transit employees. If a NY waterways crew member gets attacked, the basic law applies where the attacker can be arrested and NY Waterways can press charges. (I will point out that some of attackers while frustrated might also be drunk).

In regard to the "small size" french fries - that is McDonalds for you. Burger King and Wendy's are a bit more generous. One thing most people don't realize is what I call "The Great drink Rip-off" practiced by almost all the stores of these fast food franchises. That is where a cup of a drink is filled to the top with ice and you get only a few ounces of drink (yet you are paying the price for the full cup), This has been challenged in court but never gets anywhere. They best way to combat this is to when ordering say "very little ice" so you will get a bit more liquid. Some of these places have out the drink machines in the customer area and give the customer the cup (after it is paid for) so the customer can do their own filling (and put as little or no ice as as desired since the machines are refrigerated).

Broadway from City Hall down to the Financial District - it is not so much as a 'walk of fame" but is called the "Canyon of Heroes". Each one of the descriptive plaques embedded in the sidewalks represents a ticker tape parade given to the person/persons for some important event. There have been 206 of these dating back to 1886. The latest being last October 24, 2024 for the members of the NY Liberty women's basketball team for their championship season of the Woman's National Basketball Association.
A list is provided here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o..._New_York_City