tigerente on the road: New York New York

A synonym of New York seen in many Movies. Not the best known landmark but my first impression as I start my first day in Big Apple with a stroll on a Saturday morning.

New York City, which is geographically the largest city in the state and most populous in the United States, is known for its history as a gateway for immigration to the United States and its status as a financial, cultural, transportation, and manufacturing center.

Both state and city were named for the 17th century Duke of York, James Stuart, future James II and VII of England and Scotland.

The Statue of Liberty, officially titled Liberty Enlightening the World, dedicated on October 28, 1886, is a monument commemorating the centennial of the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence, given to the United States by the people of France to represent the friendship between the two countries established during the American Revolution. It represents a woman wearing a stola, a radiant crown and sandals, trampling a broken chain, carrying a torch in her raised right hand and a tabula ansata, where the date of the Declaration of Independence JULY IV MDCCLXXVI is inscribed, in her left arm.

Standing on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, it welcomes visitors, immigrants, and returning Americans traveling by ship. Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi sculpted the statue and obtained a U.S. patent for its structure. Maurice Koechlin—chief engineer of Gustave Eiffel's engineering company and designer of the Eiffel Tower—engineered the internal structure. The pedestal was designed by architect Richard Morris Hunt. Eugène Viollet-le-Duc was responsible for the choice of copper in the statue's construction, and for the adoption of the repoussé technique, where a malleable metal is hammered on the reverse side.

The statue is made of a sheathing of pure copper, hung on a framework of steel (originally puddled iron) with the exception of the flame of the torch, which is coated in gold leaf (originally made of copper and later altered to hold glass panes). It stands atop a rectangular stonework pedestal with a foundation in the shape of an irregular eleven-pointed star. The statue is 151 ft (46 m) tall, but with the pedestal and foundation, it is 305 ft (93 m) tall.

Worldwide, the Statue of Liberty is one of the most recognizable icons of the United States. For many years it was one of the first glimpses of the United States for millions of immigrants and visitors after ocean voyages from around the world.

A bridge I am not to sure connecting what to what.

Took the Staten Island Ferry. Nice ride even though the weather is cold the wind strong and I am not prepared after the warmth down south.

An unexpected glimpse of green.

Start spreading the news,

I'm leaving today.

I want to be a part of it -

New York, New York.

These vagabond shoes

Are longing to stray

And step around the heart of it

New York, New York.

I want to wake up in a city,

That doesn't sleep,

To find I'm king of the hill

- ah-Top of the heap.

My little town blues

Are melting away

I'm gonna make a brand new start of it

In old New York.

If I can make it there, I'd make it anywhere

It's up to you,

New York, New York.

I want to wake up in a city,

That doesn't sleep,

To find I'm king of the hill,

Head of the list,

Cream of the crop

At top of the heap.

My little town blues

Are melting away

I'm gonna make a brand new start of it

In old New York.

If I can make it there, I'd make it anywhere

Come on, come through,

New York, New York.

To have arrived here by ship. The relive to escape the confinement. The dread to leave the known behind. The anxiety and hopes for the future...

Tower of buildings closing in on one.

Walking the financial district from ferry gate to Wall Street.

Art - unknown to me.

NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE

Fortunes made and lost. World economie changed on a daily basis.
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at US$28.5 trillion as of May 2008.

Tight security. Has not been open to the public since 9 years. Well a secure job for security...
It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1978.

Side doors.

J.Q.A. Ward's 1882 statue of George Washington in front of Federal Hall, on the site where he was inaugurated as the first U.S. President.

A church swallowed by the high rises around. Or amazingly still holding its ground? Isn't it a symbol - churches being in place for centuries however the area around them changes. If the building perishes another is being put in its place - still a church...

Donald is it you?

A replica of the Charging Bull (sometimes called the Wall Street Bull or the Bowling Green Bull) is a 3,200 kg sculpture by Arturo Di Modica that stands in Bowling Green park near Wall Street in New York City.

A bull, the symbol of aggressive financial optimism and prosperity, leaning back on its haunches and with its head lowered as if ready to charge. Very lively I do think.

120 Wall Street is a skyscraper in Wall Street, which was completed in 1930. The building is 399 ft (122 m) tall, has 34 floors, and is located along Wall Street, Pine Street and South Street.