We left our hotel bright and early to get to Battery Park where we met up with our friends and boarded a ferry that would take us to Liberty Island, home of Lady Liberty. It was a foggy morning, but I still managed to get a few shots of The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.
Once we arrived on the island we headed up over 300 spiraling steps to the observation room in the Lady's crown. The journey was not or the faint of heart, but the view was highly worthwhile.
The best views were available from the base of the Statue. I didn't fully understand how big her Pedestal was. Fun Fact: Did you know the money for the pedestal was raised the Joseph Pulitzer, the Pulitzer prize guy? He was a publisher of a newspaper at the time and offered to put anyone's name in the newspaper if they donated money for the pedestal. Smart guy!
When we were ready to head over the the National Immigration Museum housed in Ellis Island we hopped on another ferry to make the trek over.
Ellis Island blew me away. I had this preconceived idea that the facility would be bland, utilitarian, and cost effective. In short, I thought it was going to be ugly. I though that because they had to process so many immigrants at a time it was going to just get the job done, no frills. I couldn't have been more wrong. The building was beautiful. The ceiling was tiled, the exterior was colorful and adorned with carvings. And the more I thought about it the more brilliant these design choices became. Ellis processed immigrants who, for the most part, had never seen America before. What a way to make a first impression! The museum was well put together and informative as well, but, sadly, due to hurricane Sandy many artifacts had to be relocated off site because their climate controlled display cases were damaged.
Also it rained some more but thankfully we had an umbrella.
Ellis Island provides some great skyline views. I like how they skyscrapers are shrouded in mist.
On the ferry ride back to Battery park we were able to stand at the very front and Zoe and Lia loved it.
Next we headed over to Times Square to purchase Broadway tickets. While we waited I made a time lapse video that I'll upload soon.
We went to see "Beautiful: A Carole King Musical" and the whole production blew me away. The cast was so talented and on point, the music was fun, the set was magnificent, and the way the changed scenes was flawless. I loved the storyline and the character development. I cannot say enough good about this production. I'd see it again tomorrow night if I could.
My family then enjoyed yet another cheesecake at the famous Serendipity. The establishment itself if eclectic and a tad trippy (think LSD {not that I would know}) Andy Warhol often came and traded his sketches for deserts, so I think that shows you the tempo of the place. In addition to our cheesecake we ordered a sundae and their famous frozen hot chocolate. All our desserts were impeccable. The cheesecake had a walnut crust which was scrumptious.
Our whole day has been so very fun and classic!
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