A Walk in the Park

Our first stop today was right downtown in the Financial district. We stopped by the World Trade Center site to see the progress from last time we were here. They are well on the way to laying the foundations of the Freedom Tower - which will sit across the original base of the twin towers. There is also now a very moving photographic memorial around the fence - it's overwhelming to anyone who visits here even 6 years on. We also took a walk through St Paul's Church grounds - the only building in the WTC vicinity which escaped damage in 2001.




In the same area, is also the well known discount department store Century 21. Here you can get big brand names at hugely discounted prices... or so was the case last time I was here. Seems that it is now a well known secret... and wait you won't believe this - I didn't buy anything!


Given it was such a lovely day, we decided to spend the afternoon at the other end of the city, with a walk through central park. It is such a lovely park - almost hard to believe you're right in the heart of a city with 8 million people! We entered the park at Columbus Circle, walked down past the local baseball fields - quite a few games underway and ended up at the Boathouse restaurant right on the lake. Time for a pitstop and what better than a cold glass of white and cheese platter on a sunny Thursday afternoon in Central Park!



After an enjoyable conversation with a few locals, we walked back through Sheep Meadow to 59th Street - and got an amazing view of the New York skyline from the park.