We still have a lot of ground (and sea!) to cover in this post, so let's jump in. The third item on our Top 3 list for this trip was to ride the Staten Island Ferry and get a view of the New York icon itself: the Statue of Liberty! And what makes this excursion different than the others on our list was that it is absolutely free. You just make your way down to the tip of Manhattan (in our last post you learned that we rode the subway to the lower side), go to the ferry terminal and catch the next one.
During the day they run frequently, so the wait is not long at all. Plus, you get two chances to ride--and therefore to see Lady Liberty--coming and going. Just exit the ferry and make a quick turnabout to go back through the entrance line for a quick round trip if your plans aren't taking you to Staten Island for a while.
Petunia was duly inspired by seeing the statue, as we had done some pre-trip preparation by talking about it and even checking a couple books out at our local library. She knew a few of the facts that went into its planning and construction and that gave her a sense of the history when she got to actually see it!
When we got back, we said goodbye to our second day while paying our respects at Ground Zero and visiting The Sphere - Eternal Flame. The wreckage of this piece of art was recovered in the days after 9/11 and was lit with it's flame as a memorial to the victims of that tragic day.
The next morning, in our last few hours, we managed to squeeze in quite a bit more fun. Right across from our hotel (and I'll be coming back to that as promised in an earlier post) we had spotted the FDNY Fire Zone and our little heroine had been asking to go all weekend.
In addition to talking to a very nice fireman and the fun seen above, we also got to go into a room where fire and smoke safety training takes place with very realistic simulations. It was an interesting and unexpected stop!
We had just a little bit more time before we had to check out and head to the airport.
{Ok, let me tell you about the "secret" deal I found in New York! I always am looking for deals and definitely thought I would meet my match in the search for a hotel deal in NYC. But I didn't! I managed to find a charming, extremely reasonable, well-located, clean and safe hotel: The 3 West Club. If you're headed to the Big Apple, book there and go ahead and send me $10 for the tip, which is only a fraction of what you're going to save per night.}
So with our last few hours we wandered into Central Park! I just love this Park. I've been several times now and don't feel like I've hardly seen a fraction of it. More to explore all the time. Since we did not have time to go far, we let ourselves be entertained by the performers we ran into. These aren't experiences you can have just anywhere!
Well, that was a wrap on our first family visit to NYC! I know it was successful because we ALL couldn't wait to go back. NYC, The Second Family Quick Trip happened about two years later. One of these days, I'll share all about it!