By 3:00 PM, I got tired of resting.
I asked Shilpa if she wanted to learn to drive a manual transmission car. Sachin offered to teach her!!! Sachin drove to a nearby empty parking lot, and I came along for the ride.
Sachin took both of us to an empty parking lot in front of a church. First, I taught Sachin some more, and then Sachin taught Shilpa! By now, Sachin had become a master at driving a manual transmission car. Sachin told Shilpa that she belonged to a very exclusive club -- the people who have driven my car. With the exception of car mechanics and the previous owner, Sachin told her that the only other people who had ever driven my car were my Dad, Parixit and Sachin!
Shilpa's first exercise was driving in reverse (Sachin had parked in a parking space, and she had to back out of there). This was easy. I told her all she had to do was release the clutch slowly. She had no problems with that. Going forward, however, presented its problems. The car stalled several times. After a while, Sachin took over and we went back home.
The car drove a total of 14 miles today, of which I drove less than one mile.
Later at night, Ananda Uncle told me a few things about getting around in New York City and gave me subway maps, bus maps, etc. Tomorrow would be the day!
Miscellaneous:
| Bumper Sticker: | "Support wildlife. Throw a party." |
| $13.25 | CB | Gas -- Mobil | Succasunna, NJ |
I would be taking an express commuter bus, since driving into the city was out of the question[31]. Sachin, Shilpa and I left Succasunna at 9:00 AM. Sachin was driving my car. Neither one of them wanted to go to New York, since they had been there so many times. I would be alone again.
After a quick stop at the bank to withdraw some spending money, we arrived at the Dover bus station at 9:35 AM. The 9:30 AM bus was boarding when we came there. I ran inside and bought a round-trip ticket, then ran back out and got on the bus. It left immediately after I boarded, and Sachin and Shilpa went back home. For the first time since I left home, somebody else was driving my car without me in it!
After a few stops in the immediate vicinity, the bus was soon on I-80 going towards the largest city in the world.
10:50 AM Arrived at Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan. Just before getting there, I had my first head-on view of the Empire State Building. It looked impressive, since it towers above all other buildings around it. I decided to make that my first stop.
The Manhattan island maps, Subway maps and bus maps that Ananda Uncle had given me the previous night were out of date. I picked up some new maps at the bus terminal before heading out to experience the city.
The Empire State Building is a relatively short walk from the bus terminal (about 11/2 miles). I could have taken the Subway (directly from the bus terminal), but I decided to walk instead.
Immediately after exiting the bus terminal building, I saw the worst of New York City, and the worst of human nature. The bus terminal is at Times Square, and Times Square is the worst city block I have ever been to. It was worse than Dallas. It was worse than New Orleans on Mardi Gras day (unimaginable, but true)! There were a lot of shops that sold "unusual" items. There were a lot of people on the sidewalks, and they were not walking. They had little, rolled-up, white pieces of paper in their mouths, and they were not eating them. And these were just the men...
I started walking towards Empire State Building. The most direct route went through the kind of neighborhood described above. Along the way, I passed by the New York Public Library, and thought that the library would be a nice place to visit, and I should come back here some time. Right now, I had already decided where I wanted to go.
Walking in downtown New York was more nerve-wracking than driving in Dallas or New Orleans. For the entire walk, I tried not to be too conspicuous and tried to "fit in" with the crowd. I had a nagging feeling that somebody was following me. I guess I was just too nervous!
After a while, I started wondering, "Where IS this building? I should have seen it by now!". You would think a building as tall as the Empire State Building would be clearly visible from anywhere in the city. That's what I thought! I couldn't find it, and just kept walking on the same road (34th Street). I had seen in the map the previous night that the building is on the corner of 34th Street and 5th Avenue, and I also knew the general layout of Manhattan Island. Ananda Uncle had told me that "Streets" go East-West and "Avenues" go North-South. I crossed 6th Avenue, knowing 5th Avenue would be the next road. "Before 5th Avenue, I should see the building on the right".
I did not see the building. What I saw was a sign that said "Empire State Building". For the entire walk, it never occurred to me that there would be sign! I was expecting to see a building whose shape I had seen so many times in photographs and movies! When I realized that this was it, I wanted to take a picture. I crossed the street and looked up. It was THEN that I finally saw the building! There were other tourists taking pictures there, and I considered asking one of them to take my photo. When I realized I was in NEW YORK CITY, I quickly dismissed that idea[32]. I bent down on the sidewalk and took a (dramatic) picture of the building, then went inside.
11:20 AM Lobby of Empire State Building. Another picture spot. Two more pictures there, one of me.
I followed the signs for "Observation Deck" and came to a long line inside a small room. I found out about another attraction in the building -- "New York City Skyride". The Skyride is a stationary-roller-coaster type ride (very similar to "Star Tours" in Disneyland or "Back To The Future" ride in Universal Studios) that gives an overview of New York City sights. The Guinness Book of World Records Museum tickets were also available, but I did not buy one of those... yet. I bought the combination ticket for the observation deck and Skyride, then got in another long line for the Skyride.
Rating for Skyride = 
.
Another long line for the elevator to the top.
12:40 PM Got in an express elevator to the 66th floor (not the top). My ears were popping during the elevator ride up. There was one lady in the elevator who was wearing long earrings. About ten seconds into the ride, she took her earrings off because they were pulling on her ears and hurting too much!
I looked up to see how fast the floor numbers were changing. 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 were like any normal elevator. After 10, the numbers were 20-30-40-50-60-66 -- spaced half second apart. That was when most of the people in the elevator (including me) experienced an extremely strong downward pull and an irritation in our ears. On the sixty-sixth floor, we had to change elevators. Another line. This time, however, we had an exceptional view of the Chrysler Building and the Northern Manhattan island skyline while waiting in line. This line did not take a long time -- about two minutes wait.
67-70-80-86.
WOW! The G-Forces!!!
12:43 PM 86th Floor of the Empire State Building. There is an outdoor observation deck on this floor. Here we were given a choice of going further to the 102nd floor or spending some time here before going up. Most of the people in my elevator got in the line for another elevator to the 102nd floor. This line was very long, so I decided to go outside.
After a while, I got in the line for the elevator to Floor #102. It was a long line, and I could see some more views while waiting.
The 102nd floor was a small, all-indoor viewing area. The windows were extremely tiny and dirty. I did not like it at all! The 86th floor was a lot better. I spent about 5 minutes on the 102nd floor, then came back to the 86th floor and spent some more time there, before heading back down again.
The ride down was even more interesting than coming up. If any of you have been on the "Freefall" ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain, THAT's what it felt like!
After coming down, I started to feel hungry. There are a few restaurants on the 1st floor of the Empire State Building, but they were too costly for me. I walked across the street to a McDonalds and had lunch there.
3:00 PM My first New York City subway ride from the Empire State Building to Central Park.
5:30 PM After my second NYC subway ride to Port Authority Bus Terminal, I boarded the bus to Dover, NJ station.
In the morning, it had taken the bus just over an hour to go from Dover to New York. This evening, it took two hours to go back (New York City rush hour traffic)!
7:30 PM Back to Dover station; called Sachin from station to come and pick me up. He and Shilpa were there within minutes. They told me they had been invited to a party that evening and that their parents were already there. They asked me if I was interested in going (the hosts had "heard about me" and wanted to ask me about my trip, so I was also invited). I told Sachin and Shilpa I was in no mood to answer more questions about my trip, and would rather just go back home and rest. On the way, we stopped at a Burger King to pick up my dinner, then came back to the house at 8:30 PM. Sachin and Shilpa went to the party.
Miscellaneous:
The view was incredible! [33]. There is not a lot to see in the North, but the Southern side had views of several of my New York City attractions. I took out the binoculars from my handbag, and I could see everything except the visitors on top of the World Trade Center buildings (I actually looked for them, but couldn't see them)! I saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time ever, and was amazed that I could actually see that far out! The familiar smog and pollution of other big cities was nonexistent here (today)! Remarkable!
3:20 PM Arrived at Central Park, and walked around there. Also went to the New York City Visitor Center at Columbus Circle (Southwest corner of Central Park). I was walking through Central Park for the next two hours. There were some people in the park who were doing acrobatics on roller skates, stakeboards, or bicycles. A large crowd had gathered, and I joined it and watched their "circus act" for a while! Rating for Central Park = .
Town:
Sparta, NJ
License Plates:
MD BOB
NJ
Ford Escort
BRUIT
NJ
Acura Vigor
Expenses:
$80
Discover
Cash withdrawal -- First Fidelity Bank
Succasunna, NJ
$12
Cash
Round trip ticket to NYC -- Dover bus station
Dover, NJ
$10
Cash
Combo ticket for "Skyride" and observation deck -- Empire State Building
New York City, NY
$6
Cash
Postcards -- Empire State Building [but lost them somewhere!]
New York City, NY
$6
Cash
Lunch -- McDonalds
New York City, NY
$4
Cash
Three subway tokens -- 34th Street station
New York City, NY
$1
Cash
Postcards -- Central Park vendor
New York City, NY
$3
Cash
Dinner -- Burger King
Succasunna, NJ
Go to start of this date
Go to start of this section
License Plates:
| R CARR-2 | NJ | Cadillac |
| $25.38 | CB | Oil change -- Sunoco | Succasunna, NJ |
11:25 AM I spent a little more time at Times Square. Actually took a few pictures this time. Rating = [already decided before going there today].
I walked to Rockerfeller Center Plaza and bought a ticket for the NBC Studio tour. It was all right. . I had liked the CNN tour at Atlanta better.
After the tour was over, I walked around Rockerfeller Center and spent some time there, then went to Radio City Music Hall and took their tour. Slightly better than NBC, but not as good as CNN. .
Next, I went to lunch at Pizza Hut.
This was a take-out only Pizza Hut restaurant (no dine-in). I ordered a personal pan pizza and a COKE.
You read that right. COKE. Not PEPSI. I thought this was very strange, since the Pepsi Corporation owns Pizza Hut. I had never been to a Pizza Hut and ordered a Coke, and unless I go back to that same restaurant, I don't think I will ever find a Coca-Cola on the menu at any Pizza Hut restaurant anywhere in the world!
After lunch, I took the subway to the World Trade Center. I had to change trains along the way. At the transfer point, I took the train for the wrong direction! I had navigated myself from one end of the country to another, yet could not get on the right train to World Trade Center! When I realized my mistake, I got out at the next station, then had to back-"track".
5:10 PM Entered World Trade Center. I did not see any signs of the recent bombing here.
5:15 PM Got in a "One Hour Wait" line for the elevator to the top.
5:36 PM Twenty minutes after getting in line, entered elevator for the 107th floor.
1-2-3-4-10-20-30-40-50-60-70-80-90-100-104-105-106-107.
5:36 PM 107th Floor of the World Trade Center. Unlike the Empire State Building, there were no stops on any of the intermediate floors -- this elevator climbed more than 1400 feet straight to the top in under a minute.
Almost the top.
The 107th floor was not the top. The real top -- the 110th floor -- was closed. The 110th floor is the roof and an open-air deck. That is where I wanted to go. The 107th floor was enclosed, and that's where I ended up. The 110th floor was closed because of "high winds" -- that was the official reason. Apparently, there was a danger of people slipping and the "high winds" making them fall to the ground 1400 feet below. That was what the security guard at the escalator to the top told me. We were not allowed to go to the roof because of "high winds"! I was disappointed, but the thought of going to the top of Sears Tower in Chicago comforted me somewhat.
Unlike Friday afternoon, there was a lot of smog today. When I was at the Empire State Building on Friday, I could see the World Trade Center buildings very clearly. Today, I could just barely make out the outline of the Empire State Building. On the other side, the Statue of Liberty was more visible. Surprisingly, the East River bridges (Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge) were very clear. There was no smog in the East!
In Washington, I had gone to the top of the Washington Monument at sunset. The view then was spectacular. Because of that, I decided to stay at the top of the World Trade Center until the sun went down -- this way I could see the night lights of the city that never sleeps!
Again, I remembered where I was, and that it was unwise to stay there after dark.
Just before sunset, I came back down. This time, I timed the ride. It took exactly 58 seconds for the elevator to descend the height of the building -- more than 1/4 vertical mile.
7:20 PM - 8:00 PM It was still daylight when I came down, and I walked from the World Trade Center to Battery Park. Saw the Statue of Liberty again, then walked back to the subway station underneath the World Trade Center.
Rating for World Trade Center =
8:00 PM - 8:20 PM Subway ride (after sunset; but not completely dark) from World Trade Center to Port Authority Bus Terminal.
8:30 PM Boarded an over-crowded bus to Dover. I was standing for the first half hour.
9:45 PM Dover Station; called Sachin.
License Plates:
| LIL I AM | NY | Acura |
| $12 | Cash | Round-trip ticket to NYC -- Dover bus station | Dover, NJ |
| $9 | Cash | NBC Studios tour | New York City, NY |
| $12 | Cash | Radio City Music Hall tour | New York City, NY |
| $6 | Cash | Lunch -- Pizza Hut | New York City, NY |
| $5 | Cash | Four subway tokens -- Rockerfeller Center Station | New York City, NY |
| $6 | Cash | Admission -- Observation deck, World Trade Center | New York City, NY |
| $1 | Cash | Change machine -- to make phone call! | Dover, NJ |
10:50 AM I left Succasunna by car -- headed for Jersey City, NJ; and eventually to Liberty Island.
12:50 PM After getting lost in Jersey City, I parked in "Liberty State Park" on the banks of the Hudson River.
1:30 PM Took the next available ferry for Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty. When I had bought the ticket, I was told that since the Statue closes at 5:30 PM and the lines are extremely long, I may not have time to visit the crown.
The ferry stopped at Ellis Island, and although I had wanted to go here, I decided to stay on the ferry and go directly to the Statue of Liberty. I have saved Ellis Island for a future trip!
2:00 PM Arrived at Statue of Liberty. . I climbed to the third floor of the pedestal, but no further (the line was too long). Maybe some other time.
5:25 PM Took the last ferry back to Liberty State Park.
7:35 PM Back to Succasunna, NJ.
Miscellaneous:
| Street: | Vroom Street, Jersey City, NJ |
| SNAKE L | NJ | Jeep |
| STEWS | NY | Infinity -- License Plate #300 |
| SCUTTLE | NJ | Chrysler LeBaron |
| $4 | Cash | Parking -- Liberty State Park | Jersey City, NJ |
| $7 | Cash | Fare -- Ferry to Statue of Liberty | Jersey City, NJ |
| $7 | Cash | A miserable lunch at Statue of Liberty | New York City, NY |
| $3 | Cash | Postcard and pen -- Statue of Liberty | New York City, NY |
11:30 AM Arrived at Port Authority Bus Terminal, then walked to the United Nations Headquarters. I wanted to take their tour. I needed a reservation, but I did not have one. Saw the building from the outside only, for this time.
After the United Nations, I walked to Grand Central Station -- I had passed it while walking to the U.N. building. This was not in my list of things to see, but I just had to come here to find out if all the rumors I had heard about this place were true.
They were. Grand Central Station is extremely crowded, extremely dirty, and everyone there is always in a hurry.
This was my last day in New York City. I had two more things left to see here -- the New York Stock Exchange and the Guinness Book of World Records museum at the Empire State Building. I decided to go to the New York Stock Exchange just before its closing time, so I could see the final hustle-and-bustle of desperate, money-hungry stock brokers loosing all their money. The Guinness Book museum would be open late, so there was no hurry to go there either. So I decided to walk around town -- just for fun.
I walked by some of New York's "nice" areas. Passed by the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Plaza Hotel, went inside F.A.O. Schwartz, walked on Fifth Avenue, and finally walked by the Eastern section of Central Park (on Friday I had seen the Western and Southern sections). Finally, I took the subway to the Federal Hall National Memorial. No rating for any of the above, since I did not spend too much time at any one place.
3:15 PM Entered New York Stock Exchange building. This was the only place in New York City that did not take any of my money for me to see it! I was watching the action on the floor until the closing bell at 4:00 PM. This was even more hectic than Grand Central Station! About one minute before the closing bell was about to ring, everyone started to hurry up even more. .
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM Empire State Building, Guinness Book of World Records Museum. No rating given then (I forgot!). Rating given November 20, 1995: .
The first thing I saw in New York was Times Square. That was also the last thing I saw as I walked from the Empire State Building to Port Authority Bus Terminal -- on the same route I had used on that first day.
8:00 PM - 9:00 PM Bus back to Dover.
9:30 PM Back to Succasunna, NJ.
Expenses:
| $12 | Cash | Round-trip ticket to NYC -- Dover bus station | Dover, NJ |
| $3 | Cash | Two subway tokens | New York City, NY |
| $15 | Cash | Total for junk food eaten throughout the day | New York City, NY |
| $7 | Cash | Admission -- Guinness Book of World Records Museum, Empire State Building | New York City, NY |
| $1 | Cash | Souvenir book -- Guinness Book of World Records Museum, Empire State Building | New York City, NY |
| $5 | Cash | Croissant & Coke -- Port Authority Bus Terminal | New York City, NY |
| $5 | Cash | "MAD" magazine and "Wall Street Journal" (published on the day I went to Wall Street) -- Port Authority Bus Terminal | New York City, NY |
Packed. Got ready to leave the next day. Bought and packed a parcel full of brochures, flyers, etc. to send back home. Rested.
Expenses:
| $2 | Cash | Parcel box -- Succasunna Post Office | Succasunna, NJ |
GOT A HAIRCUT!!!
More on that later. For now...
10:00 AM Sachin drove me to the post office and I mailed the parcel I had packed yesterday. This was the heaviest parcel I had mailed home so far on this trip, and it did not even contain any pictures -- the primary reason for me to send something home. I also withdrew some cash -- New York City had taken all of my money!
10:25 AM Back to Succasunna; Sachin driving all along. TOTAL MILES DRIVEN BY SACHIN ON THIS TRIP IN MY CAR = 199 MILES.
10:50 AM I left Succasunna for the last time, heading Northwest towards New York state's other big attraction -- Niagara Falls. Odometer reading when I left Succasunna = 145354 miles.
11:25 AM Pennsylvania; 145386 Miles.
1:10 PM New York state; 145474 Miles. I stopped at a rest area near Binghampton and made a reservation for a motel in Rochester -- a 3-hour drive from there.
4:30 PM Checked in at Wellesley Inn at Rochester, NY. I knew there was a "Ritz 1-hour Camera" store at a mall in Rochester. After checking in to the motel, I left for this mall to develop my New York pictures. On the way to the mall, I saw a barber shop. After dropping off the pictures, I finally got a haircut, then came back to the mall to pick up my pictures, then went back to the motel.
Miscellaneous:
| Town: | Moscow, PA |
| KCABLE | PA | Volvo |
| DOLPHIN 4 | NY | Saab 9000 |
| JAZZ BOW | NY | Nissan 300 ZX |
| NTUCKT | OH | Volvo |
| $80 | CB | Cash Withdrawal -- First Fidelity Bank | Succasunna, NJ |
| $37 | Cash | Postage for parcel -- Succasunna, NJ | Succasunna, NJ |
| $11.50 | Discover | Gas -- Mobil | Great Bend, PA |
| $2 | Cash | Toll -- New York State Thruway (I-90) | Rochester, NY |
| $9 | Cash | Haircut | Rochester, NY |
| $33.18 | Discover | Film Developing -- Ritz Camera | Rochester, NY |
| $2 | Cash | 4-color pen -- Rochester Mall | Rochester, NY |
[31]Taking the bus had several advantages. I would not have to put up with the heavy traffic. Parking in New York City is more expensive than a round-trip bus ticket from New Jersey. The bus was also better from a security point-of-view.
[32]This first day in New York was a very long day for me. Especially after seeing Times Square, I got extremely nervous, even a little paranoid! I was terrified I might get robbed, killed, etc. From the second day onwards, I was no longer scared.
[33]Today, I would give it . Then, I was expecting to go to two other, taller skyscrapers on this trip, and assumed that since those buildings were taller, the views would be better. I wanted to "reserve" my highest rating for the Sears Tower in Chicago. Unfortunately, I never went to the Sears Tower! (A story for another page...)