NY: Columbus Circle - Trump Tower - Time Warner Center - Central Park - Brooklyn Bridge - Top of the Rock
Columbus Circle, Time Warner Center e Trump Tower..
On Thursday, as always, the alarm went off at 6:30, so as to be around 8:00 already around the city. Columbus Circle is a circular square located at the southwestern end of Central Park. This square is very famous for the statue of Christopher Columbus and for the two skyscrapers of the Time Warner Center. A large residential complex where a shopping center is also located, opposite is the Trump International Hotel and Tower.
We skirted Central Park until we reached 5th Avenue. We saw some windows of the numerous boutiques, visited the Apple Fifth Avenue store, saw the exterior of Trump Tower and the window of Tiffany & Co.
Central Park.
The park is immense and beautiful, it almost seems to be in a world of its own. To visit it all, time is not enough, there are numerous attractions: lakes, statues, bridges; the fauna present is rich in animals and birds.
Walking through its narrow streets, you have the feeling of being in a film, also because many films and TV series have been shot in this place.
Walking we see one of the most beautiful bridges the Gapstow Bridge and north we come across the statue of the dog Balto.
Entering the heart of the park we arrive at Bethesda Terrace. From here we admire the beautiful Bethesda Fountain surrounded by the huge square, made famous in a scene from the film “Mom, I swam the plane: I got lost in New York”.
We skirted the lake, saw the Bow Bridge to get to the Alice in Wonderland statue.
We finally tried to reach Belvedere Castle, but all the ways to get there were closed. After many laps we found signs indicating that the Castle is closed to the public for restoration.
Dumbo.
After spending a few hours in the park we decided to move to the Brooklyn district. So through a combination of line 6 and subway line F from 77 St Station we arrived at York Street Subway Station in the Dumbo district, an acronym for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass between Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge.
The Dumbo area was born as an industrial area full of factories, but now it has become a luxurious area. In a street in Dumbo and precisely in Washington Street it is possible to take the famous photo of the poster of the film “Once upon a time in America” where you can see the Empire State Building among the columns of the Manhattan Bridge.
From Washington Street we reached Main Street Park and Pepple Beach, a small beach with benches and amphitheater-shaped steps. From here you can admire the Brooklyn Bridge and the lower Manhattan skyline.
Brooklyn Bridge.
After visiting this area we went to the Brooklyn bridge. Through an underpass at the intersection of Washington Street and Prospect Street, there are stairs that lead directly to the pedestrian walkway.
Its grandeur is not describable. There is both a cycle path and the pedestrian lane. You can travel the bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn or the other way around. A personal advice is to travel from Brooklyn to Manhattan to admire the wonderful skyline, perhaps at sunset.
Top of the rock.
Immediately after admiring this show, via the subway line F from York Street Subway Station we went to the 47-50 Streets Rockefeller Center Station 300 meters from the Rockefeller Center the skyscraper of the GE Building (General Electric) to go to the observatory ” Top Of The Rock “.
The observatory has three panoramic terraces on the 67th, 69th and 70th floors. If you want to take photos, it is the ideal observatory because there are no windows on the 70th floor and you can also place a small tripod on the wall. During the day and until sunset you can see Central Park from above, in the evening when it is dark Central Park is not seen because it is not illuminated but you can admire all the rest.
By purchasing the city pass we could choose to enter different attractions and we chose this. The best time is definitely at sunset especially if you want to take nice photos, unfortunately you have to make choices and we preferred to see the sunset in Brooklyn. On the official website ticket prices and visiting hours.
Brooklyn Bridge sunset.
As we said earlier, we got off the observatory and intended to see the sunset in Brooklyn. So we did the first route backwards and went to Main Street Park and precisely to Pebble Beach. We sat on the steps, positioned a tripod and a camera and waited for the sunset until all the lights came on. Needless to say, what a thrill to see the sun go down and the lights of the Manhattan skyscrapers come on, it is truly indescribable.
When it was dark we moved to Empire Fulton Ferry Park along the river taking still photos of both Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan Bridge. We passed the Jane’s Carousel, the famous horse-drawn carousel built in 1922 and still functioning, and we reached another spectacular panoramic point: The Granite Prospect, one of the best places to admire and photograph Lower Manhattan. There are several benches, so it is another area where, perhaps, you can rest a little, or have a snack and enjoy the landscape.
Continuing further into Brooklyn Bridge Park, we arrived at Old Pier 1, where I took another classic photo of the area. Visiting all these areas, taking hundreds of photos, we did not realize that it was 22:30 and we were without dinner, yes the locals close them early at 22.00 it is not possible to have dinner.
As a punishment in bed without dinner, we could have had dinner in some fast food in Manhattan, but we didn’t want any more sandwiches. So we went to High Street – Brooklyn Bridge Station where by subway we went to the hotel where we were staying.