Off to New York City tomorrow

rocktron

ST. PATRICK’S CATTHEDRAL

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rocktron

ATLAS SUPPORTING THE WORLD AT ROCKEFELLER CENTER 5th Avenue

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rocktron

ROCKEFELLER CENTER CHRISTMAS  TREE

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HOLIDAY CROWD AT ROCKEFELLER CENTER

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RandallFlagg

rocktron said:

PARK AVENUE Walking towards the Met Life Building and Grand Central Station

The thin tall boxy structure on the right is 432 Park Avenue which is arguably the tallest building in NYC from ground level to roof line (all without the addition of a 300 ft spire to claim the title of tallest building in NYC).

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I've seen 432 Park Ave from high up in an adjacent building. It doesn't look like it should be standing, way too thin. I'm not sure I would like being in there, I bet it sways a bit in heavy wind and you can feel it.

RandallFlagg

rocktron said:

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That's the Times Square Marriott Marquis where we stayed in 2015. I had a shed load of Marriott points so got it half price, wouldn't have been able to afford it otherwise! We had breakfast in the hotel only once, after I saw the bill we ate breakfast at Juniors or MacDonalds just over the road after that! 

Also had drinks on the terrace bar, just above those signs, one afternoon, 3 cokes for the wife and kids and I had an old fashioned...$42!

Nitefly

Looks great, @rocktron - very jealous!  How are you going on for food and drink?

rocktron

@RandallFlagg: I think the base of 432 Park  Avenue is only 100ft square. The engineers used modern materials for rigidity and strength, but this building sways more than most other tall structures.

https://sploid.gizmodo.com/video-the-tallest-apartment-building-in-america-sways-1651431417



A few years ago, I read that residents in one residential tower found their coffee cups had moved by quite a few inches from where they were left overnight on tables, and in one incident found a broken coffee cup on the floor. 

I recommend that you read the Wiki article on the Citigroup Center Building - the one with the wedge shaped roof-line. It has a huge, heavy mass damper at the top to counteract the sway in high winds. Also of interest is the near fatal engineering flaw in the construction of the building - bolts which could shear, instead of welding at the joints to cut costs - which was hurriedly corrected in secret after an civil engineering student redid the calculations of the loading due to hurricanes and reported it to the design firm Le Mesurier. It is an interesting story which has repercussions on the construction of tall buildings henceforth. The Wiki article does not tell the full story, which can be read elsewhere. 

The DVD Man On Wire - The Full Movie, it is well worth watching. Unfortunately, it is blocked on YouTube. Here'[s the trailer:-

 
    
 @Nitefly: Food in Manhattan is quite expensive and will be a big part of one's budget. 

I am staying with relatives in Queens, so I have breakfast and dinner at their place. For lunch, I visit the Food Courts in places like the Queens Center Mall, Grand Central Station, and Penn Station, or Pizza Restaurants. The food in a restaurant chain named Boston Market is excellent. I go to the one in Forest Hills by the 71st Avenue & Continental subway station. Forest Hills is a nice area. I've even had an excellent lunch at a Food Court buffet in the Green Acres Mall.   

There are lots of Spanish, family run restaurants in Queens which offer excellent food at cheaper prices compared to Manhattan, to eat in or take out. Some buffet restaurants charge by weight of your food container, rather than a fixed price.

Of course, there is a Kennedy Fried Chicken, PopEye's, Starbucks, McDonald's, KFC, and several Chinese Restaurants near to where I am staying. I like two Diners on the Queens Boullevard which offer an excellent Spanish Omelette and Home Fries

I found excellent Indian buffet restaurants in Jackson Heights by the Roosevelt Avenue subway station, an area which is like Southall in London. They don't do the hot curries like we have in the UK. There is even an Patel Brothers Supermarket in Jackson Heights. I think Elon Musk will find that there is one on Mars!!!:-

Even the supermarkets have packed food to take away. The Whole Foods supermarket in the lower level at the Time Warner Center (Columbus Circle), has excellent prepared food to consume in their restaurant area, but they are expensive.  

That's one good thing about New York - there is food and drinks everywhere. 

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RandallFlagg

I know, stop it with the food shop pics! I love New York food outlets, it was one the best things.

57Deluxe

I   NY


=((

rocktron

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rocktron

On Friday 29th December I went for a ride on the Roosevelt Island Tramway – Cable Car from E60th Street in Manhattan to Roosevelt Island on the East River.  Jeez, it was icy cold that day!!! You need a Metrocard, $2.75 each way. TIP: Keep your Metrocard and top up when needed because you have to pay an extra $1 for a new card. Upon arrival at Roosevelt Island, you can either go for a tour around the Island, or join the next cable-car back to Manhattan.

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Entrance Turnstile

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rocktron

Waiting for the cable car to arrive

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rocktron

Queensboro Bridge

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At Roosevelt Island

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rocktron

Return trip to Manhattan

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rocktron

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Traffic from the Queensboro Bridge

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olafgarten

Emp_Fab said:

I’d love to do Christmas in NY, but I’m concerned about my criminal record.  I had a parking ticket two years ago and I’m worried I might be interrogated by immigration at JFK and anally probed then held in Gitmo in chains.

You have nothing, I travelled to Florida a few years ago, we were a large group of Muslims, about 10 of my extended family in total. We were questions for 3 and a half hours!

thumpingrug

Ive really enjoyed reading about your trip and seeing your pics.  Thank you for taking the time to post in so much detail.  

rocktron

thumpingrug said:

Ive really enjoyed reading about your trip and seeing your pics.  Thank you for taking the time to post in so much detail.  

Thanks. . . .I'm glad that you like the pictures. 

rocktron

After I returned to Manhattan on the Roosevelt Island Tramway – Cable Car ride, I took the R-train at the corner of 3d Avenue by Bloomingdales to 34th Street and joined the No. 1-train to South Ferry subway station to go for a ride on the Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty. I didn’t realise at the time that I could have stayed on the R-train, because it also goes to South Ferry Station. I left going a bit late and it got dark for the return trip to Manhattan. Someone with good photography skills and a better camera than my little Panasonic compact would be able to capture breathtaking pictures. It was -10C on the open gallery on the side of the ferry and the windchill factor made holding a camera difficult. Jeez, it was bitterly cold!!! In addition, the ferry was moving quite fast so I had to pan the camera ahead of the shot to centre the image in the frame.

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Statue of Liberty just to the right of the sun:-

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Ferry Terminal left behind

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rocktron

One World Trade in the centre

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