Tag: postaday2011

15 Interesting Facts About New York City

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, a few weeks ago, I offered to help my blog buddy, Tony, plan his latest trip to New York City. Since then, I’ve been doing a bit of research on the city that’s been my home for the past 11 years.

Here’s what I discovered:

  • New York City was the capital of the United States from 1785-90.
  • The first president of the United States, George Washington, was inaugurated at Federal Hall, 26 Wall Street, in 1789.
  • Federal Hall, was the site of the first Capitol Building
  • At just under 19,000,000 residents, New York City is one of the most populous cities in the U.S. with just under 19,000,000 people who live in five boroughs: Brooklyn, Bronx, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island.
  • The Holland Tunnel, which connects New York to New Jersey, which was built in 1927, was one of the first ventilated tunnels in the world. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark.
  • The New York City subway system is the largest mass transit system in the world. It has 468 stations and 842 miles of track.
  • The New York City subway runs 24 hours a day.
  • Musicians who perform in the subway go through a very competitive audition process.
  • There are more than 4,000 food vendors in New York City.
  • Central Park, which was opened initially in 1857, spreads 843 miles.
  • 25 million people a year visit Central Park
  • Times Square, formerly Longacre Square, was renamed in 1904 when the New York Times moved its headquarters to the Times Building.
  • The first ball was dropped in Times Square on December 31, 1907.
  • The Empire State Building is 102 stories. Including the spire, it is 1,454 feet tall.
  • For 40 years, from 1931, the year it was completed, the Empire State Building was the tallest building in the world. It lost that designation with the construction of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in 1972.

How many of these facts are you aware of?

Questions to Answer As You Plan Your Trip

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

My blog buddy, Tony Newboult, who blogs at A Wobbly Rotten Neutron, is planning to visit New York City this fall with his two teenage children. It’s not their first trip to the Big Apple but the first one that I’ve promised to help him plan.

I asked him a few preliminary questions when he told me but once I started making a list of things they should do when they’re here, I realized I needed a bit more information. The list I came up with below is one I think a travel agent would probably need but it can be used by anyone who’s planning a trip.

Here are some questions I came up with:

  • Where do you plan to go?
  • When do you want to go?
  • What’s the purpose of your trip?
  • How long do you plan to stay?
  • How many people will be traveling with you? What are their ages?
  • What type of accommodation do you prefer? Hotel, Guest House, Villa, Bed and Breakfast, Hostel, etc.
  • Will (name of place) be your primary destination or will you be traveling around?
  • If you’re planning to travel to other places, do you want to fly, go by train, bus, car, etc.?
  • What do you like to do when you travel?
  • What’s on your must see list?
  • Is there anything you don’t want to do/see?

Although it’s not listed above, one of the most important considerations is budget. How much Tony or anyone has to spend will determine what kind of trip he will have.

Since Tony’s British, he won’t need a visa for the U.S. He also won’t need vaccinations.  But he should consider getting travel insurance and bring any medications he needs. If he or any of his children has food allergies or is a vegetarian, he should disclose this to the airline so other arrangements can be made.

With answers to these questions, it’s easy to plan your own trip or one for a friend.

What do you think? What other questions would you include?

Innocence Lost – 9/11 Remembered

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

My office, a block south of Grand Central, is empty except for one person when I arrive at a few minutes past nine on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. I greet him as I go towards my desk and ask where everyone is.

Without taking his eyes from his monitor, he says casually, “Oh, they’re in the lunch room. Somebody flew a plane into the World Trade Center. If you look out the window, you can see the smoke.”

Walking the few feet to the window, I think how unlucky people in the WTC are. I remember the 1993 bombing and news footage of employees emerging from the building covered by something whitish.  I remember the look of terror on some of their faces.

With many of its employees traumatized by the experience, my company made the bold decision to move from the thirteenth floor at One World Trade Center to the fifth floor of a building almost a world away on Park Avenue.

When I get to the window, I notice an unimpressive plume of smoke curling its way towards the sky. This had to be a small private plane or tour helicopter, I think. Several companies take tourists on helicopter tours of New York City everyday. One must have crashed.

Continue reading “Innocence Lost – 9/11 Remembered” →

Saturday, 9/10/11

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

In the aftermath of September 11 (9/11), many people commented on the significance of the date 9/11. 911 is the number we call when we need help. The first flight that crashed into the Twin Towers was American Flight 11. Including the hijackers, that flight carried 92 passengers (9 + 2 = 11).

Emails that floated around at the time, gave more details on the numbers, some were just too farfetched to believe.

But as I looked at today’s date, I noticed that it 9/10/11 lines up in perfect numerical sequence. I have no idea what if means or if it means anything. If it does, can someone enlighten me?

What do you think? Does it mean anything? Did you even notice?

 

Friday, 9/9/11

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

It’s the weekend of the 10th anniversary of September 11th and I really didn’t want to be in New York. I want to be someplace far away where there’s no television blasting wall-to-wall coverage, no extra police presence, no threats of terror threats.

All this is probably why my brain feels like it’s shut down. Why I feel like I’m under siege.

September used to be a pleasant month for me. I looked forward to the Labor Day weekend, the changing leaves, the inevitable slowing down of life’s hectic pace. The days go by smoothly until the 11th rises like an unexpected roadblock, one that some years feels easier to go round. Not this one. I feel anxious; I want to hide.

While I didn’t lose anyone in the World Trade Center, I feel deeply for and empathize with those who did. In one week, I lost a significant friendship and before I could even begin to grieve, I received word about my mother. We had spoken just hours before. Seven months later, my grandmother was also gone. These losses changed my life in many fundamental ways.

September 11th also changed our lives. As I write, police sirens screech in the distance. It could be for reasons totally unrelated but it’s hard not to connect it to the upcoming anniversary.

An unexpected consequence of that day is that flying, in particular, is not as pleasurable as it used to be. A simple thing like opening a bank account is now subject to deeper levels of scrutiny, and the government has broader powers to spy on us and intercept our communications. But are we truly any safer?

Life has returned to Lower Manhattan and the World Trade Center site but it’s difficult to see it and not remember.

A 9/11 Memorial, a tribute to those who fell will open to the families on Sunday and to the public on Monday, September 12th. Maybe I’ll visit.

Getting There:

If you’re in the New York City area and want to visit, passes must be obtained before you go and can be  obtained by going to the website.

The best way to get there is by public transportation. Several subway (A, C, J, M, R, Z, 4, and 5) and bus lines (M5, M20 and M22) stop within walking distance, and the E, 1, 2, and 3 and New Jersey PATH trains to go directly to the WTC terminal.

Hours: Monday-Friday: 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekends and holidays.

Travel Photo Thursday – Nobel Square

Posted on by Marcia Mayne
Nobel Square, Cape Town
Nobel Square, Cape Town

These sculptures which honor South Africa’s four Nobel Prize winners, Nkosi Albert Luthuli, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, former State President F.W. de Klerk and former President Nelson Mandela, are located on the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town.

Created by two of South Africa’s most accomplished female sculptors – Noria Mabasa and Claudette Schreuders – they were unveiled on December 16, 2005, South Africa’s Day of Reconciliation.

Nobel Square, Cape Town
Nobel Square honorees, Cape Town, SA

This is my submission to this week’s Budget Travelers Sandbox Travel Photo Thursday series. Be sure to check out other photo and story entries on their website!

An Art Walk in Harlem’s Historic Strivers Row

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

The Strivers Art Circuit (SAC) is a free, self-guided walking tour that will take place on October 8th and 9th, in the Historic Strivers Row area of Harlem (130th street to 145th street, 5th Ave to St Nicholas Ave).

The Circuit allows participants to view some of Harlem’s visual and craft artists at work in their galleries and studios.

The Strivers Art Circuit was created to develop a hub of arts activity and thereby gain increased visibility and exposure for SAC participants.

Strivers Art Circuit

Opening reception: Friday, October 7th from 6:00 p.m.

Tour Dates: Saturday, October 8th and Sunday, October 9th from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The event is free to the public. However, if you plan to attend, click here to RSVP. Strivers Art Circuit Participants

The Harlem Arts Alliance is a sponsor of the Srivers Art Circuit.

 

 

Another Award

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

As you all know, blogging is a solitary thing. You write and read and hope others will appreciate your point of view and decided to follow you on your blogging journey.

It was a real treat to open my mailbox and see that I’ve received an award, not just any award, An Appreciated Follower Award from fellow blogger, Celia at Africa2Asia. Neat, huh? Well, I think so!

And now that I’ve gotten the award, I have a few things to do:

1. Thank the giver. (Thanks Celia!)

2. Pick 5 bloggers to pass the award on to. Let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

3.  Copy and paste the award

4.  Have faith that my followers will spread the love to other bloggers.

5.  Have bloggy fun!

Without further ado and in no particular order, here are the 5 people I’ll bestow the Appreciated Follower Award to. These are talented, eloquent, thoughtful, interesting people whose blogs are worth a read.

Thanks again, Celia!

Saying Goodbye to Summer 2011

Posted on by Marcia Mayne

It happens every year. In April, I make plans for the summer then Labor Day rolls around and I wonder where the time went.

This year was no different. When the weather began to get warm, I planned my summer: free concerts around the city, Shakespeare and other plays in the park, dinners and get togethers with friends at some of our favorite outdoor restaurants, picnics and reading a few books on a blanket in Central Park, watching old movies at twilight in Bryant Park, concerts in Prospect Park, and trying my hands at something different.

Then my friend Elizabeth, who blogs at Mirth and Motivation, posted a few of her music picks and introduced us to Somi, a singer I’d never heard of. Off I went to Google to find her and get more of her music. That’s when I discovered that she performed all over the city this summer, including at Summerstage with, of all people, Hugh Masekela. She also performed in Prospect Park with Oumou Sangaré and Seun Anikulapo Kuti.

Where was I and how did I miss these? I usually have my ear to the ground and a good network that keeps me up to date on happenings in the city. Whatever I miss, they catch. What happened?

Looking back, it feels like I did nothing. But I know I did. I must have. Or else, how would I have gotten to September without driving myself nuts?

Summer underscores how fleeting time is. To counter the notion that I did nothing, I went back to April in my mind to see what I did.

There were a few highlights. The biggest, my two weeks in London and Paris and meeting my new nephew; antiquing in Lambertville, NJ and New Hope, PA; seeing the Spanish Gardens exhibition at the New York Botanical Gardens, and discovering new places and new restaurants close to home.

But the one thread that ran through my entire summer was the preparation for my sabbatical in Jamaica. I haven’t started writing about it yet because there’s much that I’m dealing with, emotionally and psychically, and I want to respect the process. There are a few more things to put in place but once they are, I promise I’ll share.

In the meantime, please enjoy these selections from Somi, who I’m listening to as I write – Ulale Malaika Wangu and Ingele.

Enjoy!