Liberty Tour Day 2: A Cloudy New York City

   It wasn't ideal conditions. That's always my luck. Too hot, too cold, too foggy, raining. I rarely seem to visit somewhere thinking "this is a perfect day for this!" But sometimes that just doesn't matter.

   Pulling into Liberty Park, I was a nervous wreck. Dropping things, having to pee like crazy after a three hour drive! And then I saw her as we walked through the park building, and I started crying. I'm not really sure why, but I just couldn't stop the waterworks. Yes, my name is Kim and I am a sap. A quick run into the potties and then we were walking down to the water's edge. And there she was. She being multiple "she's", Lady Liberty and New York City.

  I admit, this isn't the most flattering view of the Lady. It's a running joke about which side of her New Jersey gets to see. But it didn't matter. There was no time for a tour(so much more to see). But this view was enough to satisfy us. It is still difficult for me to believe this really happened and wasn't just a long, elaborate dream.

   Looking towards The City, you could see just how low the clouds were. There was no seeing anywhere near the top of the newly opened Freedom Tower. From this view you could just make out the skyline past Ellis Island.
   We then made drove the short road through the park to the New Jersey Railroad Terminal. Also here is the New Jersey memorial to 9/11, called "The Empty Sky".

   Here I didn't just cry, I flat out sobbed for about 15 minutes. And that's all I want to say about that.

   I could have stayed there all day, snapping photos of the many skyscrapers. I am a total country girl at heart. I desperately want to live in the middle of nowhere, far from people. But I was totally mesmerized by the size of the buildings. I mean, I grew up in Houston, I've seen skyscrapers-but not like this. I might keep using the word "overwhelming", but that's really what it was. It is hard for me to find words to describe how I felt. Some of the ones I try or check the thesaurus for. just do not seem to do the moment justice.
   The bonus feature at this location is the wonderfully historic Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal. Built in 1889, millions of immigrants, fresh from Ellis Island, left through this train station to find their new lives in America. The station is beautiful. The train shed is massive. The docks(and the main building) were severely damaged by Hurricane Sandy and are still being renovated. But what a beautiful piece of architecture. I will probably do a post later on about all the wonderful details of this magnificent piece of history.

   We soon moved on from this location, as there was still much more to see. I was absolutely not going to be content to just hop back on the expressway and make our way north. No, this was a street by street navigation through Newark, Hoboken and many other communities in New Jersey as we made our way north.

   Another 9/11 Memorial at the foot of Grand Street in Jersey City. 

   A short trek down Frank Sinatra Dr in Hoboken, because I love Frank and just had to!

   Then we came to JFK Blvd in Weehawken. And oh the views from the palisades there. We saw the spot where Aaron Burr killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel. We could see all of midtown from here. Empire State Building. Chrysler Building. Intrepid Air and Space Museum. It was another spot I thought I could sit and take photos from all day. Overwhelming. 

   We finally tore ourselves away from this spectacular view(I love quick trips where you see as many things as possible in a short amount of time, but it can be difficult to leave some places not fully explored), and moved on to another breathtaking spot. This was one I had kept secret from the others and I would like to think I really blew their minds. 

   The George Washington Bridge is another massive icon of New York City. But I didn't really know that before that day. Now that I've seen it up close, I seem to see it everywhere in every movie and tv show! The gorgeous bridge was built in 1927, opening in 1931. It carries Interstate 95 right through Manhattan and costs a whopping $14 to cross. We did not take that route(more on that tomorrow), but we did sit and stare in awe at this "modern marvel". The sheer numbers of vehicles passing over it as we sat there was staggering. What a beautiful site seen from the historic site of Fort Lee, one of the forts built to guard the Hudson River during the Revolutionary War.

   From Fort Lee, we caught the Palisades Parkway going north. After staring at New York all day, we finally actually entered the state! And this is where I leave off for today. Coming up tomorrow: crossing the Hudson, Connecticut, Rhode Island and finally Boston.