New York City

Inside Poughkeepsie Station

Poughkeepsie Station

All of the images, smells, sounds, and emotions of our short visit to the big city are whirling around in my head. There is so much to see and do in a city of this magnitude that it is impossible to even come close to capturing its flavor in a month, much less in a few short days. I’ll try to relate, the best I can, our experiences of Wednesday and Thursday. It may take multiple installments.

Waiting for our train

Our primary purpose for coming to New York City was to visit with family. Gene has two nephews who live on Manhattan--one in Greenwich Village and the other on the Upper East Side. We were spending the night with Scott and Para and the whole gang was meeting for dinner. Our main sightseeing objectives were Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. Anything else would be icing on the cake. That was the plan. This is how it played out.

Because I did not want to leave little deaf Peanut for more than one night alone, we planned to go into the city late in the afternoon on Wednesday. We learned from our scouting on Tuesday that late in the afternoon would be our best hope of finding a parking space at the Poughkeepsie Station, so our decision to leave late in the day worked out great. We got to the station about 5 minutes before the arriving train so the garage was still full when we got there, but the very nice attendant allowed us to pull in and wait for someone to leave. Once parked, we only had about 30 minutes to wait for our train. I spent that time taking pictures of the Poughkeepsie Station. It is small, but beautiful in an old sort of way.

A snake handler in Battery Park

Memorial at Battery Park

Poughkeepsie is about 70 miles from New York City so we had an hour and a half ride to Grand Central Station. Poughkeepsie is at the northern end and Grand Central at the southern end for the East of Hudson Metro North train. I was a small child the last time I rode a train (well, except for the Durango-Silverton cog railroad and I don’t think that counts). We got on like we knew what we were doing and made ourselves comfortable. I got to sit by the window. As it turned out we had chosen seats that were facing the opposite direction we would be traveling. It wasn’t unpleasant, though, and I was content to watch the passing scenery. I nearly jumped out of my skin, however, the first time a northbound train passed. I had no warning whatsoever and it seemed like it was only an inch from my nose. I never did get accustomed to another train approaching suddenly just inches from my seat.

Sculpture damaged on 9/11

Arriving at Grand Central Station was a rush. A rush emotionally and psychologically of, not only being in “The City”, but also at the hub of the city. A rush literally as thousands of people darted in every direction trying to make train connections in the afternoon “rush” hour. Gene’s nephew, Tom, met us at the old clock in the main concourse. From the internet we know basically where our subway was located, (plus there is an information desk for the uninitiated) but it was very helpful and reassuring to have someone there to hold our hands. We rushed off to our subway all the while receiving a lesson on the dos and don’ts, ins and outs, and rules of subway riding. We had a wonderful evening catching up on all the news and family gossip. Having not seen any family since April, it was a real treat just to be together.

Metro North

Bright and early Thursday morning Scott walked us back to the subway and sent us on our way to Battery Park to catch the ferry to Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty. We came out of the subway right at Battery Park; now that was easy. In the park was a memorial to those who died on 9/11. The damaged sculpture at the head of the memorial had been between the twin towers. We were also just in time for a skydiving program which was part of the 9/11 anniversary activities. We were waiting for our ferry to leave so we had a prime viewing spot. The skydivers carrying American flags landed on the New Jersey riverfront. That was pretty special.

Up next—Statue of Liberty.