Leaving NYC behind

Haven't had time to blog, and certainly haven't had time to post any pics! We had a jam packed day yesterday. Up at 6h30 and slept around 2h00! We tried to fit in all the stuff we hadn't done yet, but since we're not seasoned New Yorkers, we wasted some time with getting lost and taking the wrong subway. All in all it was a good day though, with perfect weather!!

We started off at the Statue of Liberty and the ferry trip was beautiful with the perfect blue sky above and the New York City line behind us. Then we went off to Ellis Island which was interesting, it's where all the immigrants passed through before being allowed access into America between 1892 and 1954 when it closed. We had a good lunch from the Ellis Island Cafe under the trees.

We then made our way to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) where great works like Starry Night by Van Gogh and The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali are housed. There's also The Three Musicians by Pablo Picasso and some of his cubism and abstract style works for which he is so famous. It was so difficult to pick a favourite, but I think I liked The Dream by Henri Rosseau. He was a self taught artist, and many of his works featured jungle like surroundings, even though he had never left Paris! Another one I liked was Study of luxe, calme et volupte by Henri Matisse.

After the MoMA we went off to try to squeeze in a bit more shopping, but ended up getting lost in the financial district. We landed on Wall Street in front of the New York Stock Exchange!

We finally found the shop we were looking for after passing by the former site of the Twin Towers.

After the shopping we decided to go to the top of the Empire State Building. We underestimated the crowd that would be there! We had wanted to go up around sunset and stay until after dark to appreciate New York at night. We waited in line for about 90 minutes before finally getting to the 86th floor where the observation deck is located. When we got out to the observation desk it was so crowded we had to wait behind someone then gap in as soon as they moved. I'm not sure if it was worth it, although the view was absolutely spectacular!! Maybe it's better to do the Empire State Building during the middle of winter when there are not so many crowds.

For our last night in New York we decided to walk around Times Square. So we found our way there and bought some ice cream (gelato to be exact) and walked around, then found a place to sit and just take it all in. It's amazing! We only left Times Square after midnight, but it was still bustling and bright! Amazing! You have to see it to believe it.

Today we've been quite productive too. We went for our last run through Central Park, had breakfast with Hash's aunt, went into town to do some last minute shopping. Now we're all packed and getting ready to leave.

So long NYC!