New York
"New York is one of America’s most exciting states. With charming upstate scenery, world-class cuisine and culture and more things to do than you could fit in one lifetime. The city’s five boroughs all have special features; it’s almost impossible to narrow it down"
1. The Statue of Liberty
5. On October 28, 1886, President ‘Grover Cleveland’ oversaw the dedication of the Statue of Liberty in front of thousands of spectators.
6. Its height from the base of the pedestal foundation to the torch is 305 feet, 6 inches.
7. Height of the Statue from her heel to the top of her head is 111 feet, 6 inches.
8. The Statue of Liberty weighted around 225 tons.
9. During the restoration completed in 1986, the new torch was carefully covered with thin sheets of 24k gold.
10. There are 7 rays on her crown, representing the 7 continents of the world. The length of each ray is 9 feet and weight around150 pounds.
11. A person has to walk 354 steps from the pedestal to the head of the Statue of Liberty. There is way inside the statue to reach upto its head.
12. A tablet held by the statue in her left hand measures 23' 7" tall and 13' 7" wide inscribed with the date JULY IV MDCCLXXVI (July 4, 1776).
13. At the feet of the Statue lie broken shackles of oppression and tyranny.
14. French and American people collected 2,250,000 francs ($250,000 U.S. dollars) to arrange fund for the construction of this statue.
15. UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site in 1984.
2. Times Square
Even if you’re not specifically planning to visit Times Square, you may find it’s impossible to avoid this bustling thoroughfare, which is not just the convergence of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street but also the cultural confluence of New York City.
Here, at this frenetic intersection — known to some as The Crossroads of the World — travels will find some of the greatest theater productions on Earth, as well as many of the most prominent buildings and cultural attractions in the Big Apple.
IT WASN’T ALWAYS CALLED TIMES SQUARE
Times Square got its name when the namesake newspaper, The New York Times, took up residence in the building (now known as One Times Square) in 1904. That was the year the mayor of New York renamed Longacre Square after the paper, though it took less than a decade for the Times to relocate again. Fortunately, the name stuck.
THE NYE CELEBRATION HAS HAD A BALL DROP FOR OVER A CENTURY
Records show New Yorkers have been celebrating the New Year in Times Square since The New York Times took up residence in the neighborhood. But the ball drop dates back to 1907, wood-and-iron globe decorated with 100 light bulbs was lowered from the top of a flagpole. Now, the Times Square Ball weighs nearly six tons and is illuminated by 32,256 LEDs.
THERE ONCE WAS A PASSAGE FROM THE 42ND STREET SUBWAY STATION TO THE KNICKERBOCKER
In the Knickerbocker Hotel’s former life, there was a stairwell that linked its lower-level restaurants and bars directly with the subway. Today, vestiges of this passageway can still be found near Platform 1, where you can catch the shuttle connecting Times Square and Grand Central Station. Sadly, you can no longer pass through this doorway to the Knickerbocker — but you can see proof of the passage, eternalized in a plaque above the sealed white door.
YOU CAN SEE IT FROM OUTER SPACE
It’s not called the Great White Way for anything. Times Square is home to a dizzying number of brightly-lit digital billboards and signs, and it’s so bright that, at night, astronauts on the International Space Station can easily see the neighborhood from outer space. In fact, buildings here must have aminimumamount of display lighting. The area has a reputation to uphold, after all.
ART IS HIDDEN EVERYWHERE
Enter Times Square, and you’ll be surrounded by hidden artworks. At the pedestrian corner where Broadway meets 7th Avenue, between 45th and 46th streets, visitors might hear a strange “hum”—you’ll have to be alert to hear the sound emanating over the cacophony of visitors and street vendors. This is a work by sound designer Max Neuhaus, originally installed in 1977 and revived in 2002. And if you’re in Times Square in the minutes before midnight, you might notice a synchronized art display on the district’s billboards. Called Midnight Moment, the digital exhibits change every month. In March, Jeffrey Gibson’s “She Never Dances Alone” will fill the screens of Times Square with a celebration of indigenous culture.
CARS DROVE THROUGH HERE UNTIL 2009
In May of 2009, Broadway closed to vehicles between 47th and 42nd Street in an effort to improve traffic in the neighborhood. The result? Some over 400,000 people walk through here, including the so-called Broadway plaza, every day. And it inspired additional pedestrian plazas that opened in the ensuing decade, including Union Square.
YOU CAN TAKE AN ACTOR-LED WALKING TOUR
For an intimate introduction to the theater district, you can join a designated Broadway Up Close walking tour led by actors and stage crew. Join the Broadway’s Beginnings tour every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday morning at 11 a.m.
ONE TIMES SQUARE IS MOSTLY EMPTY
Despite being one of the most expensive pieces of real estate in the country — and being the landmark skyscraper that gave Times Square its name — the building is currently home only to a ground-floor Walgreens and the iconic New Year’s Eve Ball and the event’s headquarters. It makes enough revenue from the advertisements on its facade to pay for it to remain otherwise largely unoccupied.
3. Coney Island
Up to a million people would visit the beach each day.The 80-foot wide boardwalk was nicknamed“Coney Island’s Fifth Avenue,” and opened on May 15, 1923.
4. The Empire State Building
The Empire State Building located at Fifth Avenue at 34th Street in Manhattan. Ever since it was built, the Empire State Building has captured the attention of young and old alike, every year, millions of tourists flock to the Empire State Building to get a glimpse from its 86th and 102nd floor observatories; the image of the Empire State Building has appeared in hundreds of ads and movies.
The Building Materials on the exterior is Indiana limestone and granite, trimmed with aluminium and chrome nickel steel from the 6th floor to the top, the interior the lobby was made by Ceiling high marble, imported from France, Italy, Belgium and Germany. The facade is composed of more than 200,000 cubic feet of Indiana limestone and granite, and utilizes several setbacks to offset the optical distortion.
It has height 448 meters to top of antenna, 391 meters to 102nd floor observatory, 320 meters to 86th floor observatory. And cover an area of 83,860 square feet. The top of the Empire State Building is lit up at night in different colours to celebrate various holidays.
For a long time after Sept. 11, 2001, it was continuously lit red, white, and blue. The height of the antenna has been increased from 443.2 meters to 448.7 meters.
The Empire State Building Observatory on the 86th and 102nd floors provides incredible views of Manhattan. It's one of the most popular tourist destinations in New York City on a clear day you can see up to 80 miles in any direction.
The observatory is open daily from 9:30am to midnight. All visitors must enter through the Fifth Avenue entrance and security is strict so expect a wait. You'll want to bring some quarters for the coin operated telephoto viewers on the observation deck.
Comments
Post a Comment