Day 7: Yatta! New York Time Square

Flew Southwest again to New York. We arrived at LaGuardia Airport around 1am, took a bus, then the subway, before reaching Time Square. It's so surreal when you see New York in the early morning with so few people on the streets.

Big Apple Hostel
Big Apple Hostel
This is the room at Big Apple Hostel. For US$40 a night, you get a bed in a 4-bed dormitary. There are 4 toilets shared be 32. They are very clean since they are washed everyday. Noticed the small cupboard at the right on the first photo? I think it used to be an old apartment that was knocked down to become the hostel it is today.

It's a great bargain considering that the hostel is just a few minutes walk away from Time Square. Note that is however not the only hostel in Manhatten. Check Google Maps.

Time Square, New York
Yatta!!!

If you watched Heroes, which is currently the best tv show right now, you'll notice that this is the place where Hiro was transported to.

New York is as real and genuine as it can get, unlike Vegas.

More Than Meets Your Eyes
They have Transformers on display in one of their very big toy stores.

Taxi fare New York
Checking out how much taking a cab would cost. I did hear someone shouted to stop a taxi. How would the driver heard if the side window is wind up?

Time Square, New York
Did the movie come out first or this company?

Time Square, New York
This is New York's Finest station at Time Square. You can't help but notice that there are a lot of policemen on patrol in Manhatten.

Nitrogen new york
I guess this is for the steam pipes.

Long Straight new york Streets
The streets are very straight. Sometimes it's impossible to see what's at the end. The main avenues run vertically down Manhatten, with the streets running horizontally across.

Here's a trick to get yourself walking towards the correct direction easily. Most of the roads are one way. The important thing is to remember which avenues, not streets, are running in which direction. For example, cars on 5th avenue runs downtown and cars on the 6 avenue runs uptown. With that, you have the "north of the compass". It makes navigating on foot more effortlessly.

Time Square Subway
This is the subway at Time Square. Busy with tourists and New Yorkers.

Time Square Subway
Taking the subway can be a bit tricky for first timers. The trains are either named after a letter or number. And they either uptown or downtown. Not all trains run 24 hours or on every day. It helps to read the sign carefully. You'll need a metro card, which you can buy with a credit card or dollar bills, to go through the subway gates.

Big Bird
Monument For WW2 Soldiers
This is the monument for soldiers who died during World War II. If you're a photographer, you'll realised that I've highlight clipping on the eagle. It was that sunny in the afternoon.

Battery Park
This is Battery Park which was at the southern tip of Manhatten.

Castle Clinton
If you have the New York Pass, you'll get the tickets for the Circle Line ferry here at the bookstore.

Castle Clinton
If you don't have the pass, you'll have to join the queue. The rest of the queue, not in the photo, is outside Castle Clinton.

Ellis Island
That is the Immigration Museum on Ellis Island, as seen from the ferry, or from the movie Hitch.

Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty was just about the right size I was expecting. The statue was't green in colour in the past. Over the years, through oxidation, the bronze turned green.

Pier on Liberty Island
Pier on Liberty Island
This is the pier on Liberty Island. It's more crowded than a fish market.

Ranger on Liberty Island
This is the ranger giving a guided tour to visitors.

Ellis Island Exhibits
This is the Immigration Musuem, restored.

Ellis Island Exhibits
There are lots of great exhibits in the museum.

Liberty Island Old Buildings
There were several buildings on the island. Not all the buildings were restored.

Immigration Museum's Amazing Architecture
Immigration Museum's Amazing Architecture
Look at the details in the architecture.

Visitors on the green on Ellis Island
Sitting on the greens seems to be very popular.

Sailboats From Manhattan
These are some sailboats that were sailing south of Manhattan.

Rest of the photos from the day can be found in my New York Flickr set.



Thought of the day:
New York City is as real as it can get! It's a few notches up from Las Vegas. This place is bursting with energy, life and history. It's no wonder why it's always the perfered backdrop for movies and tv series. There are just so much things to do and see.

If you can only go to one place in America, New York should be the place to go.

All the days in New York City:
Day 7: Yatta! New York Time Square
Day 8: Getting To The Top of the Empire State Building
Day 9: A Day At The Museum
Day 10: Gold at Radio City
Day 11: New York Public Library is Grand