The International Writers Magazine: A Walk in New York City

A Walk Through New York City • Ericka Demberg Of the 47 million people that visit the big apple each year, I'm sure that all of them would tell you to bring along a camera. There is so much to see and do in New York City, that it's hard to take it all in while your there.

Follow me as I take you on a day trip through NYC, we'll start our journey in Central Park, exiting the park on the west corner and moving south along Broadway to finish up our trip with a ferry ride to Ellis Island.

First, we head in to Central Park, which is the 5th largest park in NYC, containing 843 acres or 6% of Manhattan’s acreage. Even though Central Park is not the largest park in NYC, Annually visitors have gained Central Park the record of most visitors. At 25 million it is one of the most visited parks in the United States; making it the perfect place to begin our journey through NYC.

Central Park has been around since 1859 and became a national historic landmark in 1963. As we travel trough Central Park you may recognize different sights as being familiar, Central Park has been used in movies and T.V. shows for as long as anyone can remember. Within the park there is extensive walking trails, two ice rinks, a swimming pool, the Central Park zoo, and an outdoor theater company. There are 36 bridges and arches, 21 playgrounds, over 9,000 benches, seven ornamental fountains and 125 drinking fountains. If we were to journey through the entire park, we would have walked 58 miles. Now that's what I call a workout!

As we make our way out the west corner of Central Park we move on to Broadway, by following Broadway for about 5 minutes will bring us to the Entrance of Times Square; just a few more minutes of driving will bring you to the Times Square tower. Each year on New Year’s, people from all over the world watch as the ball drops from the top of the tower. The first time New Year’s Eve was celebrated in Time Square was in 1907. 

Though out Times Square the streets are lined with stores, restaurants, and hotels, such as the world largest Toys ‘R’ Us, Bubba Gump Shrimp, The Marriot Marquis, and Triomphe New York. Times Square is the best place to take care of all souvenir needs and remember to keep the camera handy through out the entire time in the square. There are several interesting things to see.

Circling around Times Square is the theater district, where currently there are 39 theaters in use. Some of the most popular shows that are currently Broadway are Chicago, Mamma Mia, The Lion King, Phantom of the Opera, Wicked, and West Side Story.

Here is a map, that is useful in finding out what theater your favorite Broadway show is in, http://www.theatermania.com/broadway/theater-map/ and this site will allow you to buy tickets and fulfill any of your other Broadway based needs, http://www.broadway.com/ .

One stop that is critical for any trip down Broadway is to eat at Ellen’s Star Dust Diner, (which is very close to the Gershwin Theater, where Wicked is preformed.) where they employ out of work actors to wait tables, through out the meal different servers perform Broadway songs, showing off their talent to customers. The prices are very reasonable compared to some of the other food choices in NYC.

Next we’ll head into Greenwich Village, which for the past 100 years has been a gathering place for the rebellious, the creative and the bohemian. The Village was once known for the starving artists, but is now known for its great innovators and musicians that dwell there. Located in Greenwich Village is the Stone Wall Inn where the 1969 riots on June 28th took place. The Stonewall riots were the first uprising by the gay community, to this day the Inn stands as a point of remembrance and fame to the gay community. 2009 marked the 40th anniversary of the riots. 

The Village is also known for its wild side and night life, there are several tattoo parlors, salons, body piercing shops, several clubs and bars. The Village is always an exciting place to visit.

After Greenwich Village, We’ll head down to Battery Park, which encompass 25 acres at the southern tip of Manhattan, and faces the New York harbor. The Battery was given its name for the artillery battery that was put there by the British and the Dutch, in order to protect their settlements that were located in Manhattan. Battery Park is home to the Hope Garden, a memorial dedicated to AIDS victims, The Battery gardens Restaurant as well as ferry rides to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. Another memorial that stands in Battery Park is the Sphere, which once stood outside the Austin Tobin Plaza, the area between the world trade centers and Manhattan.

The Sphere stayed intact but there was significant damages done to the statute. It now stands in Battery Park as a memorial to those that lost their lives in the attacks. On a happier note, if you head down close to the water you’ll find yourself suddenly surrounded by living talking Statues of Liberty.

It may not be the best or most rewarding job for the people who have to be the statues but for   three dollars you can talk a picture with a living sunglass- wearing Statue of Liberty. After some fun with the statues, we can head down and buy our tickets to get on to the ferry to take us to Ellis Island.

Once on the ferry, headed towards either Ellis Island or the Statue of Liberty; (With the ferry ticket, you are able to go to both.)We’ll begin to see the two destinations materializing in the distance. Ellis Island is where the immigrants that came in from Europe would be checked in to.

While at Ellis Island you can view the immigrants living conditions, search to find out if relatives of yours came through, shop in the gift shop or check out some of the things that the immigrants left behind.There is a lot that you can learn about yourself on Ellis Island. At the Statue of liberty you can take pictures, or you can go inside but I have to warn you that taking pictures of lady liberty is a lot harder then it seems. Her height and weather conditions make it difficult but every once in a while you can capture a good one. A helpful tip is to try lying down on your back on the ground and taking the picture.

New York City is an extremely difficult location to express in words. The only way to gain the full experience of this amazing city is to travel there on your own. Beyond what I’ve described here there are several other things to see and do in NYC. I truly hope that you have gained some useful and fun information from my article and I hope that you have enjoyed our tip together through New York City.
© Ericka Demberg May 2010
11260 at minisink.com

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