A New York Story
Day 12 of our virtual road trip takes us northeast from Pennsylvania to New York.
In 1991 when Lyle and I made a trip from Kansas to Pennsylvania we took one day to visit New York City. Here is my scrapbook and journal from that experience.
May 29, 1991
We set out to see the Statue of Liberty today, leaving Easleys’ about 9:30 a.m. and arriving at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, New Jersey about 11:00.
We purchased tickets for the ferry and stood in line waiting for the ferry about 15 minutes. The ferry ride across New York Harbor was interesting, giving us a good view of different areas of the city. We first docked on Ellis Island but we decided not to get off there.
After we disembarked on Liberty Island we made a quick stop in the restrooms, then headed directly for the base of the statue. As we got in line we noticed a sign informing us “2 hours from here to the crown.” That didn’t sound like much fun but we wanted to do it anyway. As we made our way up, the stairs were packed with people and the line was moving very slowly. So by the time we reached the top of the pedestal we decided we didn’t need to go the rest of the way to the crown. The top of the pedestal is about halfway up so we still had a good view of the harbor and city.
We took the elevator back down to the museum in the bottom of the pedestal. There were exhibits showing how the Statue of Liberty was built and other interesting information about her. Then we ate lunch on the patio of the little restaurant in the visitor’s center while we waited for the next ferry which would take us back to our car in New Jersey.
Lyle wanted the experience of driving in New York City, so we headed for Holland Tunnel as we left Liberty State Park. The toll to go through the tunnel was $4.00–a ridiculous price we thought. As we entered the city we noticed hundreds of bright yellow taxi-cabs. It seemed like every other car was a cab. And boy, were they aggressive drivers! One tried to nose in front of Lyle but he wouldn’t let it.
We had a hard time finding our way around even with the help of a map. Several times we ended up on a street we didn’t mean to be on. Once we even turned the wrong way on a one-way street. And it seemed like we got honked at at every intersection. We drove through Central Park. It reminded us a lot of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
Finally, we’d had enough and headed out of the city via the Queensboro Bridge. The traffic wasn’t quite so bad on the freeway, but we saw a wreck happen just one or two car lengths in front of us. We were glad to get out of New York City safely!
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Have you been to New York? If so, please share a memory in the comments! That will make this series even more fun!
8 Comments
rachelgoingcreative
We drove through New York city in the middle of the night and you would have thought that it was broad daylight. There were people and cars everywhere. I see why they say it’s a city that never stops.
Karla Ezell Cook
I wouldn’t mind visiting it again sometime, just to see more of it. Maybe.
MaryHill
I have only been to NYC once. Would love to go back. Sounds like you had a great trip.
Karla Ezell Cook
It was quick and we didn’t see much, obviously, but it was a neat experience.
Patti
Oh, wow, I would love to go to NYC someday! I’ve never even been to the state of New York, let alone the city. A trip there is definitely on my bucket list. I can’t imagine wanting to drive there, though.
Ah, your top scrapbook page looks like many of mine—those letters and that apple…they say Creative Memories!
Blessings,
Patti
Karla Ezell Cook
Later on that trip we drove through upstate New York to Niagara Falls. It was very pretty. Would be fun to visit again.
And yes, those are probably Creative Memories scrapbook elements from back in the day!
Sheila @ Making the Most of Every Day
I have only been once, for a wedding but we went with my brother and his wife and another couple. We had so much fun! My daughter wants to go so I may plan a trip with her.
Karla Ezell Cook
So many places to go and sights to see… so little time and money, right?