Why is New York so famous? After all, the weather is terrible, the city is overcrowded, and even the buildings are second to many others elsewhere. The cigar-shaped strip of land called Manhattan is difficult to access with bridges crowded with cars, streets clogged with buses and taxis.
But, oh, that city. What combination of fascinating history, rare sights and unquenchable spirit is found there.
Where after all were some of the first subways built making possible the productive use of former swamp land? The early 20th century saw the expansion of the system North to Central Park and beyond where there were formerly shanties and mosquitos. Now the area hosts some of the most elegant businesses and museums in the world.
And the history of Wall Street would (and has) fill(ed) many a gripping story of passion, greed, and vision. In the second half of the 19th century J.P. Morgan financed the burgeoning steel and electrical industries and many railroads out of his own pocket (while his competitors ran to the legislature for special handouts).
Settled by the Dutch in the early 17th century, the city quickly became an entrance point to 'the New World' for the thousands - later millions - who sailed into the harbor to seek freedom and fortune.
Effectively the capital of the new nation for a hundred years (though only officially from 1788-1790), it has long attracted inventors, artists, and entrepreneurs of every variety. Thomas Edison, a bit of all three, initiated some of the first city electrification projects here. (His laboratory was in New Jersey, but the Pearl Street Station began operation in 1882 in Manhattan.)
Beyond the material advances that began in the 18th century and continue today, New York has not neglected other important aspects of human experience throughout its history.
One of the world centers of politics, the United Nations is in midtown. Manhattan is also home to a fashion business that has rivaled Milan and Paris since the 1920s. Whether it's fashions in law or clothes, it's here.
But Manhattan hasn't been the only part of New York to play a major role in American and world affairs. The Brooklyn Navy Yard was a significant shipbuilding facility during WWII. From the active port was launched many a vessel that helped to conquer the Fascism of the mid-20th century, manned often by men and women from the neighborhood.
Queens and the Bronx are, and have been for a hundred years, home to both major baseball and tennis competitions. Yankee stadium has been thrilling locals and visitors in the Bronx since before Babe Ruth. The US Open Tennis championship takes place in Forest Hills, part of Queens.
Even entertainment and art are at their zenith in New York.
Broadway has presented everything from Cole Porter in the 1940s to 'The Phantom of the Opera' today, from Olivier's Shakespeare in the the 1950s to 'Penn and Teller' recently. The Metropolitan, opened a hundred years ago, houses 6,000 years of art and Desha is only a few years old, but already joining the ranks of the world's great art museums.
Early radio and television development were centered here and remain major factors in the economic and cultural life of the city. In 1928, William Paley founded CBS and as early as 1931 Bing Crosby was singing nightly on a CBS station. By 1935 Edward Murrow joined the company and went on to a series of broadcasts that remain the subject of movies today.
Placed again at the center of history on September 11, 2001, New York has risen to reveal its unconquerable face. The Freedom Tower is set to begin a 1776-foot climb to the sky and residents and visitors from the world over are anew looking up, as they did a hundred years ago to the Statue of Liberty.
That's New York.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Monday, August 07, 2006
Travel: Paris - La Ville Lumière
Translated from the French, the title means 'City of Lights'. By now a commonplace description, there's nothing commonplace about the place. Paris, for those who love... well, anything, is stellar.
With over 2 million inhabitants, 11 million in the Ile-de-France region overall, Paris is a metropolis second to none. A center of world culture for centuries, it hosts the most up-to-date museums alongside its ancient sites and sights.
Despite the enormous population and the ever present cars, there are nonetheless numerous oases scattered around the city. Even today, parts of the Seine can offer a quiet walk down the banks of one of Europe's most famous rivers. Here the many bridges are both artistic and functional, in true Gallic style.
Other quiet nooks, such as the Marais district, home to Victor Hugo's apartments, seem to have changed little since he wrote his masterpieces there. And on some days one can visit any number of excellent museums and be one of the few visitors, even during the summer.
But there's also the bustling, exciting city that roars from morn to morn.
The Eiffel Tower continues to attract thousands daily more than 100 years after its difficult birth. Still one of the tallest structures in France, the three-leveled spire adorned with thousands of lights inspires awe decades after being surpassed in height.
The Louvre still overflows with art lovers from around the world who flock to see the collection of over 100,000 works. The Mona Lisa exhibit is perpetually crowded, but there are dozens of justly famous, and unjustly obscure, pieces besides. Vermeer's Geographer adorns one wall, while the Lacemaker is on the other side of the portal.
Visit the Paris Opera House (site of the fictional Phantom of the Opera). Or see the Musée d'Orsay, home of many of the world's finest 19th century works of art, housed in a renovated train station. Walk up the Champs-Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe or up the hill in Montmartre to the Byzantine-style Sacré Coeur Basilica.
Even take a trip not far out of the city to see 17th century Versailles or 21st century Disneyland Paris. Sit at a cafe just about anywhere along the way and enjoy some of the world's finest coffee or wine.
Whatever your interests, Paris has something for everyone.
The climate year round is moderate, rarely moving outside the range of 4C (39F) in the winter to 22C (72F) in the summer. Rain very rarely lasts long enough or pours hard enough to put a damper on any plans.
Divided into 20 'arrondissements' (districts), with the first at the center and the others running clockwise around the face, there is overlap of history, architecture and sights in all.
In every case, travel from one to the other is made easy and inexpensive by the safe and relatively clean Metro (subway). First opened in 1900, there are almost 400 stations transporting 6 million people per day.
But walking to and from many parts is also perfectly feasible. While not as simple as Manhattan's rectangular grid, armed with a good map the hardy visitor can travel on foot over a good portion of the city.
That's the best way to see this City of Lights - even when the illumination is the warm French sunlight.
Shane Dolby
http://www.worldcityblog.com
With over 2 million inhabitants, 11 million in the Ile-de-France region overall, Paris is a metropolis second to none. A center of world culture for centuries, it hosts the most up-to-date museums alongside its ancient sites and sights.
Despite the enormous population and the ever present cars, there are nonetheless numerous oases scattered around the city. Even today, parts of the Seine can offer a quiet walk down the banks of one of Europe's most famous rivers. Here the many bridges are both artistic and functional, in true Gallic style.
Other quiet nooks, such as the Marais district, home to Victor Hugo's apartments, seem to have changed little since he wrote his masterpieces there. And on some days one can visit any number of excellent museums and be one of the few visitors, even during the summer.
But there's also the bustling, exciting city that roars from morn to morn.
The Eiffel Tower continues to attract thousands daily more than 100 years after its difficult birth. Still one of the tallest structures in France, the three-leveled spire adorned with thousands of lights inspires awe decades after being surpassed in height.
The Louvre still overflows with art lovers from around the world who flock to see the collection of over 100,000 works. The Mona Lisa exhibit is perpetually crowded, but there are dozens of justly famous, and unjustly obscure, pieces besides. Vermeer's Geographer adorns one wall, while the Lacemaker is on the other side of the portal.
Visit the Paris Opera House (site of the fictional Phantom of the Opera). Or see the Musée d'Orsay, home of many of the world's finest 19th century works of art, housed in a renovated train station. Walk up the Champs-Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe or up the hill in Montmartre to the Byzantine-style Sacré Coeur Basilica.
Even take a trip not far out of the city to see 17th century Versailles or 21st century Disneyland Paris. Sit at a cafe just about anywhere along the way and enjoy some of the world's finest coffee or wine.
Whatever your interests, Paris has something for everyone.
The climate year round is moderate, rarely moving outside the range of 4C (39F) in the winter to 22C (72F) in the summer. Rain very rarely lasts long enough or pours hard enough to put a damper on any plans.
Divided into 20 'arrondissements' (districts), with the first at the center and the others running clockwise around the face, there is overlap of history, architecture and sights in all.
In every case, travel from one to the other is made easy and inexpensive by the safe and relatively clean Metro (subway). First opened in 1900, there are almost 400 stations transporting 6 million people per day.
But walking to and from many parts is also perfectly feasible. While not as simple as Manhattan's rectangular grid, armed with a good map the hardy visitor can travel on foot over a good portion of the city.
That's the best way to see this City of Lights - even when the illumination is the warm French sunlight.
Shane Dolby
http://www.worldcityblog.com
Friday, August 04, 2006
Travel: Paris - The Seine River
Whether seen by a long, leisurely walk or from one of the many excellent tour boats, the view along the Seine in Paris is a delight.
The river flows nearly 800km (480mi) from Dijon through Paris and into the English Channel. But even the short section through the city provides enough sights to satisfy the most discerning traveler.
La Tour Eiffel can be seen changing shades from cocoa to gold as dusk fades to dark. The lights along its four pillars melding into the spire are only one of the many sights not to be missed.
Joining the left and right banks (the 'rive gauche' and the 'rive droit') along this ancient river are bridges themselves no stranger to time.
The oldest extant is Pont Neuf, ironically called 'the new bridge', whose first stone was laid by Henry III in 1578. Continued during the reign of his successor Henry IV in 1598, the construction was an enormous undertaking for the time. Finally completed in 1607, the bridge itself is, in a sense, older than France. At the time, the country was still split into fairly independent regions, such as Burgundy, Champagne and Normandy.
One of its newer cousins is the Pont d'Austerlitz constructed from 1854 to 1885. Comprised of five cast iron arches with a span of 32m (105ft), it rests on four piers and two stone abutments. (Abutments are the supports for the ends of a bridge.) The bridge has been widened twice from its original 13m (43ft) to the present 30m (98ft).
But not only youth and age are represented along these shores. Elegant beauty, in the form of the Alexander III, is also here. Opened in 1900, the bridge connects the Grand Palais on the right bank to the Invalides on the left. With pillars decorated by a gilded bronze Pegasus and large lampposts encircled by cherubs and nymphs, the Alexander III is among Paris' most artistic public works.
The many tour boats provide another way to see the sights. Some are small, others larger, but they all offer a relaxed way to see the bridges and parts of Paris from another point of view.
The visitor can enjoy a glass of wine as the lights come on along the Montparnasse. The larger boats even offer lunch or dinner. From the uncovered flat boats tours are given in English and French. Several glide as far as past the Eiffel Tower and back past Notre Dame to Quai Henri IV.
Accessible from the center of the Pont Neuf, just walk down to the tip of the island, du Vert Galant.
Once you've completed the boat tour, don't forget about the other attractions. From the exit it's just a short walk to many other things to do and see.
Just down the bank is one of the finest art museums in the world, the Musée d'Orsay. And there are several small galleries and shops along the way. Be sure to walk down the stone steps to the river itself and see the bridges from underneath as well.
Enchanté!
The river flows nearly 800km (480mi) from Dijon through Paris and into the English Channel. But even the short section through the city provides enough sights to satisfy the most discerning traveler.
La Tour Eiffel can be seen changing shades from cocoa to gold as dusk fades to dark. The lights along its four pillars melding into the spire are only one of the many sights not to be missed.
Joining the left and right banks (the 'rive gauche' and the 'rive droit') along this ancient river are bridges themselves no stranger to time.
The oldest extant is Pont Neuf, ironically called 'the new bridge', whose first stone was laid by Henry III in 1578. Continued during the reign of his successor Henry IV in 1598, the construction was an enormous undertaking for the time. Finally completed in 1607, the bridge itself is, in a sense, older than France. At the time, the country was still split into fairly independent regions, such as Burgundy, Champagne and Normandy.
One of its newer cousins is the Pont d'Austerlitz constructed from 1854 to 1885. Comprised of five cast iron arches with a span of 32m (105ft), it rests on four piers and two stone abutments. (Abutments are the supports for the ends of a bridge.) The bridge has been widened twice from its original 13m (43ft) to the present 30m (98ft).
But not only youth and age are represented along these shores. Elegant beauty, in the form of the Alexander III, is also here. Opened in 1900, the bridge connects the Grand Palais on the right bank to the Invalides on the left. With pillars decorated by a gilded bronze Pegasus and large lampposts encircled by cherubs and nymphs, the Alexander III is among Paris' most artistic public works.
The many tour boats provide another way to see the sights. Some are small, others larger, but they all offer a relaxed way to see the bridges and parts of Paris from another point of view.
The visitor can enjoy a glass of wine as the lights come on along the Montparnasse. The larger boats even offer lunch or dinner. From the uncovered flat boats tours are given in English and French. Several glide as far as past the Eiffel Tower and back past Notre Dame to Quai Henri IV.
Accessible from the center of the Pont Neuf, just walk down to the tip of the island, du Vert Galant.
Once you've completed the boat tour, don't forget about the other attractions. From the exit it's just a short walk to many other things to do and see.
Just down the bank is one of the finest art museums in the world, the Musée d'Orsay. And there are several small galleries and shops along the way. Be sure to walk down the stone steps to the river itself and see the bridges from underneath as well.
Enchanté!
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