Year in Review : 2004 US Northeast US Part 3

[hkskyline]

Ground Zero

I walked around the perimeter of Ground Zero and visited the WFC complex one cloudy morning. I decided to take photos in cloudy weather because I don't think a bright blue background would've fitted the solemness of the scene. I remember on 9/11, I was checking my email at the university and I thought I had stumbled across a movie review when I saw a short blurb : World Trade Centre destroyed.

United Nations

The UN offers tours regularly throughout the day. As a student, I got a special discount, and with the coupon I picked up from my free guidebook, I saved an extra $1. As with my previous visits to the UN, I stocked up on stamps and souvenirs at the gift shop. I didn't expect to see the General Assembly hall. I was quite surprised and delighted it was part of the tour!

Cruise Around Manhattan

My friend and I bought a New York pass, and one of the tickets included in the package price was a 3-hour cruise around Manhattan. I actually had taken the 2-hour version before, but it was during the windiest and coldest day in December and I opted to stay indoors than to venture out for some phototaking.

I thought I saw you in Hong Kong!

.. and we quickly hopped over to the USS Intrepid to see the Concorde and all those planes!

USS Intrepid

New York is an incredible city. There are skyscrapers everywhere, yet at the same time, a lot of the residential areas are very pleasant. There are lots of trees and the heights don't range too much, so the view from the street is very good. I regret not having taken more photos on Park Avenue looking towards Grand Central. The view from the bus was very good but I was too lazy to hop off and snap a picture. My friend and I did a lot of walking for those 5 days. We were shuttling back and forth throughout Lower Manhattan and Midtown. By now I think I can navigate the New York subway system pretty well.

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is western New York State's largest city. It is across the border from Canada and home of HSBC USA's headquarters (formerly the Marine Midland Bank). Interestingly, their skyscraper dominates the city's skyline. 2 hours away in Toronto, HSBC's skyscraper is hidden somewhere downtown.

Buffalo's downtown is pretty quiet, but I like how they pedestrianized the main thoroughfare and put a transit line in it.

City Hall has an observation deck near the top that is free. The view is great. Strangely, it is quite deserted. I went twice on two different days and I didn't see many people there at all.

[monsoon]

[BrandonTO416]

The only *city* in the US.