HOME AGAIN

SCULPTURE AT RIVERSIDE PARK SOUTH

TAM GOES OFF TO WORK WHILE I PLAY

STATUE OF LIBERTY'S 'OTHER' FACE

GREEN GODDESS

USS INTREPID

THE TOMCAT IS THE ONE WITH WINGS

NO SIGN OF CAPTAIN KIRK

MY LAST VIEW OF NYC

The hot toddies had helped and I was feeling rather better. Tam had also switched on the air conditioner which made sleeping more comfortable.

My unlimited-rides subway ticket was still valid so I got out the map to see where I could use it. It was nice day, so I took a trip down to Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan to be by the water. 

I was last here in June and since then the ticket office at Castle Clinton, nearby, had reopened to sell tickets for the Statue of Liberty. Visits had been suspended whilst repairs to Liberty Island were being undertaken following damage caused by Hurricane Sandy last October. There are three types of ticket: 1. Liberty Island only; 2. The Island plus access to the pedestal; 3. The island, the pedestal, plus up to the crown of the statue.

I knew that tickets that included crown access were sold-out right through to November but I still hoped to get a pedestal access ticket. I was lucky as they had a ticket available for 11.00am the following morning, so I took it.

The rest of the afternoon I spent walking alongside the Hudson River on the west side of Manhattan near the Hell's Kitchen and Clinton areas, and enjoying the sculptures recently erected in Riverside Park South. Then it was up the Lincoln Center, a NYC version of the South Bank in London with theatre, ballet, opera and orchestral music. By the time I had walked back to my digs it was 7.00pm.

I rose early next morning. This was my last day so I needed time to pack my bag before I left to catch the Statue of Liberty ferry. I said farewell to Tam before she departed for work, but left my luggage at the apartment to collect later.

It was a lovely warm clear day for the ferry trip over to Liberty Island. By the time we docked it was apparent just how huge the green lady was. Although not 11.00am yet, they didn't mind me going up to the pedestal right away, but I had to get rid of my rucksack for which they had lockers available at $2 for 2hrs. It would have been useful if they had told me that earlier as my rucksack was about 20% bigger than the locker. After a lot of scrunching I got it in.

Inside the pedestal is an informative museum explaining why and how the Statue came to be (it was a gift from France), and how exactly it was made, with lots of models and illustrations. Although it may look solid, the Statue is actually made of thin sheets of copper hung from a steel gantry.

At the top of the Pedestal is a viewing platform giving superb views of the harbour and also Ellis Island where immigrants were processed.

As I was ferried back to Manhattan I looked back and thought what an amazing sight the Statue must have been to immigrants on ships as they entered the harbour. It was fitting that I should visit this iconic symbol of the USA on my last day. Did I see her wave goodbye and wish me a speedy return?

My last visit was to the 'Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum', mainly located on the WWII Aircraft Carrier USS Intrepid docked at Pier 86 on the Hudson side of Manhattan.

There were some phenomenal aircraft displayed on the carrier's flight deck: the black, sinister and incredibly fast Blackbird spy plane, a Navy Tomcat of the type used in the film Top Gun, a Dassault Etendard - it was an Argentinean Etendard that launched the Exocet missile which destroyed HMD Sheffield in the Falklands War - and a Russian built MIG21.

Recently the Museum acquired the Space Shuttle Enterprise and even had British aircraft such as Concorde and the vertical take-off Harrier.

After a quick tour of the aircraft carrier itself and the cruise missile submarine USS Growler moored on the other side of the dock, I walked back to Tam's apartment to pick up my luggage, then continued on to Penn Station for my journey to JFK Airport.

Just before walking down into the subway I took a picture of the Empire State Building - the first building I had pictured when Mark and I had emerged from the same place nearly three months earlier.

The flight back to Heathrow was uneventful, other than for the tall chap next to me who thought it OK to spread-eagle his long legs into my space. When he intruded too much I refused to give way any more so we ended up touching knees for much of the journey. Other than that we barely acknowledged each other. It was an overnight flight and Virgin Atlantic's on-board supper and breakfast was OK, as was the G'n'T. I watched the films Oblivion and A Good Day to Die Hard (pretty awful) on the entertainment system to help pass the time.

My taxi home was waiting for me as I emerged from Heathrow Airport and I was efficiently driven me home via my favourite route along the A32. I don't think that I fully acknowledged my 3-month tour of North America was truly over until I walked into my house.

Jet-lagged, I jumped into my nice, warm, comfortable and, most of all, familiar bed to readjust to UK time.

FULL CIRCLE

BOSTON'S TRINITY CHURCH REFLECTED IN JOHN HANCOCK BUILDING

QUINCY MARKET

USS CONSTITUTION

SOARING EAGLE AT CONEY ISLAND

MAGGIE? SINGS POP

WHAT, ONLY $10,000?

HOT TODDY INGREDIENTS

The Amtrak arrived at Penn Station in New York City exactly on schedule at 9.50pm. A 20 minute walk got me to Tam's place, except Tam was in Boston. No problem as I knew how to let myself in. Shortly afterwards Tam's roommate Joe appeared briefly with a friend, then went out again, while I went to bed.

When I woke up I had a sore throat and a raised temperature. I could feel it coming the previous day and had prepared with some throat sweets - but couldn't get any medicinal whiskey while on the train all day. The thought of spending a day in bed in somebody's lounge didn't appeal so I decided it was better to be ill on my feet.

I knew that the bus tour company who took me to see Philadelphia and the Amish ten and a half weeks ago also did a day-trip to Boston, so I walked to the pick-up point near Grand Central Station. The coach was quite full of Spanish tourists but there was room for me so I paid my money and off we all went.

There were both English and Spanish speaking guides on board and they were supposedly imparting the same information, but I noted that the Spanish version took about three times as long!

Boston is in Massachusetts, two states away, and it took over four hours to drive there. On the way we passed through New Haven in Connecticut where the famous Yale University is located.

Boston is an even more notable academic centre, being the home of Berklee College of Music and, on the other side of the George River in Cambridge, Harvard University, the oldest higher education institution in the USA, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Other things we saw in Boston included the modern glass-clad John Hancock Tower in which you can see the reflection of the old Trinity Church that stands next door.

Boston is also famous because of the Boston Tea Party and other events leading up to the American Revolution. We followed the Freedom Trail which is a red line linking together several sites relating to this time, including the Massachusetts State House, the Granary Burying Ground where John Hancock, whose flamboyant signature would have been the first on the Declaration of Independence, is buried, and the Old State House.

We stopped for a bite to eat at Quincy Market before continuing along the Trail to Charleston Navy Yard to see USS Constitution, ordered to be built by George Washington in 1794 initially for use against marauding pirates and later in the 1812 War.

The return journey to NYC took another four hours and, whilst I wouldn't say that the trip actually did much to cure my sore throat, it did take mind off it for a while.

The following day was Labor Day, a holiday that takes place on the first Monday of September as a tribute to the social and economic contributions of workers. 

The fact it was Labor Day didn't make my throat any less sore though, but it was warm out so I thought it best to be outdoors still. I initially went to Penn Station to determine the best way to get to JFK Airport for my flight home on Wednesday. While I was looking at the ticket machine, a young couple gave me a ticket for unlimited travel on the subway. It was valid for the rest of the week but they were leaving town and wouldn't need it anymore. I thanked them and decided to see where I could go with it.

Looking at the subway map I saw Coney Island in Brooklyn. I knew that Coney Island was a big Amusement Park, but it had a beach too and I was sure the sea air would be beneficial to my health. I had to change trains to get there so it was all good practice on how to get around on the subway.

Coney Island's Luna Park is more about huge thrilling rides than slot machines, and I enjoyed watching people terrify themselves on the Soaring Eagle, the Sling Shot and the Board Walk Flight.

I walked along the beach for a while and then listened to some very good and some very bad karaoke artists (or should I say participants) performing on the boardwalk. Everyone was having fun and it seemed to be a place where people of all genders gathered (as I am sure there were more than two here).

The place was a little like Brighton beach in the UK (indeed there is a place called Brighton Beach nearby). The main difference was the huge police presence - I must have seen around 50 police officers on duty and there were cars everywhere along with a large 'Communications HQ' truck. I noted the stickers on the backs of the police cars advertising a $10,000 reward for arrest and conviction of anyone shooting a NYC Police Officer. I didn't see the slightest sign of trouble while I was there.

The previous evening Tam had offered me some honey to sooth my throat, so I got some whiskey and lemons on the way back to add to this, and spent the evening supping hot toddies.

NIAGARA

BOARDING THE MAID OF THE MIST

ENJOYING THE SHOWER

AMERICAN FALLS

THE OTHER PART OF NIAGARA FALLS

FORT MISSISSAUGA

INNISKILLIN WINERY

FIREWORKS AND ILLUMINATED FALLS

AMERICAN FALLS FROM US SIDE

My tours of Calgary and Toronto had been done with very little sleep, so I was in no hurry to get out of my bed at the Canadiana Hostel. Indeed, even when I did, I slouched around for so long that I ended up rushing to catch my 12.30pm Megabus ride to Niagara.

Megabus had advertised tickets for this one and a half hour journey for as little as one dollar, which is exactly what I paid for mine.

The bus dropped me off by Niagara Railway Station (on the Canadian side) so I had a good two miles to walk to the Hostel in sweltering heat. My room was up two flights of stairs and my shoulder ached, so I was delighted to find that my luggage had been carried up to the dorm whilst another staff member showed me around.

After a change of clothes I headed down to the River to take the Maid of the Mist boat tour which passes close to the American, the Bridal Veil and the Horseshoe Falls, the three waterfalls that make up Niagara Falls. Unlike most of the passengers, I chose not to wear the plastic poncho they gave me. Given how hot it was, the cool mist produced by the Falls was most welcome and I soon dried off. I was more impressed by the Falls than I thought I would be. The mist combined with the bright sun ensured that there was a good permanent rainbow. A secondary rainbow was also visible which made it a double rainbow. There is no doubt about it. Niagara Falls is amazing. It seems that Takakkaw Falls in Yoho must now take second place in my ratings, although the setting of the latter is better, for reasons which become apparent below.

I continued exploring the Canadian side of the River, taking a close look at the Skylon Tower (not worth going up as only a mere 520 ft high) before returning to the Hostel through Niagara Falls town centre - if this is a fair description. The town centre is actually more like an amusement arcade, with all the flashing lights, gambling machines, burger bars and a funfair. I went back to have a look at it lit up in the late evening, but it wasn't up to Times Square or Las Vegas standards. There was a Harley Davidson shop open, however, and the shop assistant kindly took a picture of me on a Harley. So I got to sit on one after all, even though I didn't go anywhere.

The following day I hired a bicycle and rode roughly 17 miles north alongside the river to Niagara-on-the-Lake. This was a much more pleasant place than the town of Niagara Falls. There are two forts here: Fort George which fell to the Americans in the war of 1812 and was subsequently recaptured by the British, and Fort Mississauga which was built by the British as a stronger replacement.

I hadn't realised this was a major wine growing region until I got here, so on my return journey I stopped by the Jackson-Triggs and the Inniskillin Wineries. I received tasters from both, including some very sweet Icewine served by Sue at the latter. I didn't drink enough to make me wobble on the bike though.

The roads in this area were laid out on a grid system, as I had seen many times in North America. What was unusual were the road names. East to west roads are called Line 1 Road, Line 2 Road, Line 3 Road, etc. and the north to south roads Concession 1 Road, Concession 2 Road, Concession 3 Road, etc. I understand that the terms arise from when land was conceded to farmers by the Crown.

Back in Niagara Falls I had planned to see the waterfalls at night when they are illuminated with coloured lights. On this particular night there was also a firework display. I wasn't sure what the special event was. Perhaps it was for me? As it happens, the display turned out to be a regular thing on Fridays and Sundays.

I was up early on the Saturday as I wanted to depart the Hostel before 8.00am and walk back to the USA across the Rainbow Bridge before a queue built up at the border crossing. I needn't have worried as I went almost straight through, leaving me with lots of time to explore the US side of the Falls. The Tourist Information Center let me leave my luggage with them as I walked all the way around Goat Island. This gave me a different perspective of the three waterfalls. Whereas from the Canadian side you can appreciate the beauty of them, from the US side it is the power of the water that is apparent. The water flow and the noise, even well back from the Falls, are incredible and I doubt that anyone falling in could avoid going over.

I picked up my luggage and walked with it to the Niagara Amtrak Station on the US side. It was a long walk, made longer because of my supermarket detour to buy food for the nearly nine and a half hour rail journey ahead. My shoulder ached from carrying my bag but the train to New York City was waiting for me when I got there. I would be back at Tam's place again that evening.