Overview

Continued from the previous post↓

All right, time for another travel story. I went to Manhattan.

After telling my friends about the trip, I realized that surprisingly, a lot of people are like, "Where exactly is New York?" "What even is Manhattan?" "Wait, the Statue of Liberty is on a separate island?" Turns out people don't know as much as I expected. Honestly, what am I going to do with you guys? Anyway, take a look at the map below.

New York City is one city in the state of New York. And right in the center of it is Manhattan Island (yes, it really is an island), where Times Square is located. The site of the World Trade Center, famous because of 9/11, is near the southern tip of the island.

Wandering Around Manhattan

Well, should we just start with Times Square?

My friends keep asking me, "What is that thing showing up in all your photos?" and I'm like, obviously it's proof that I was actually there?!

You've probably heard the term "Broadway musical," right? I had too. But I didn't really know what it meant. There are lots of theaters around Broadway, and musicals performed around that area are what people call Broadway musicals. The one I went to see was WICKED. It's basically a side story about the "Wicked Witch of the West" from The Wizard of Oz.

This↓ is me wearing my America shirt. For privacy reasons, Lord Golden Mask is covering my face.

This↓ is another entry in Midori-san's Starbucks photo collection: a Starbucks in New York.

This↓ is the post office where I mailed my postcards. ...A post office? This is?

This↓ is the subway. Here are a few things you should know before using the New York City Subway...

  • A color + symbol (a number or letter) corresponds to the XXX line
  • Even if the color is the same, the destination and stops change depending on the symbol
  • This page makes it easy to understand: https://www.mta.info/maps

The most important thing about the subway is that you can ride just by tapping a credit card or Apple Pay. And the fare is fixed no matter how far you travel. Apparently, that system is called OMNY.

This↓ is Bryant Park. A big park near Times Square.

This↓ is a Base Camp Duffel from The North Face in New York, in a US-exclusive color. Not buying this was a huge mistake!! I also bought a New York-exclusive shirt at this store, but seriously, they had no size M.

This↓ is One World Trade Center. It's a building constructed beside Ground Zero, the site of the former World Trade Center.

This↓ is the 9/11 Memorial at Ground Zero. There is a huge hole where the building once stood, with water flowing down into it. It's a pretty unsettling monument. Scary.

Ground Zero is fairly close to the southern tip of Manhattan. If you keep walking from there, you gradually get closer to the waterfront. This↓ is one of the walking paths.

All right, let's take the ferry to Liberty Island! This↓ is from onboard the ferry.

This↓ is a rare view. We're on the ferry to Liberty Island, but the photo is looking back toward Manhattan! These unusual photos are the good stuff.

Did you know the Statue of Liberty is hollow inside, and there are stairs inside it?

Another rare view: directly underneath the Statue of Liberty↓

This↓ is New York University. Private universities in huge cities sure are pretty!

This↓ is Washington Square Park, next to New York University.

Leaving Manhattan for a Bit to Wander Around the Bronx

This↓ is Yankee Stadium. If you're going to New York, you've gotta watch a Yankees game at Yankee Stadium, right?

This↓ is me taking a selfie before the game, but I cared so much about protecting my privacy that the photo barely makes any sense anymore.

Bonus

This↓ is Midori-san's pin badge collection. NYU is, of course, New York University. The one that says NEW YORK is from Yankee Stadium. The American flag and the America 250th anniversary pin (the SSR pin of this trip) came from Liberty Island. These two are really well made. The postcards are high quality too.