New York Pictures (Finally!)

Well... the final quarter of my undergraduate career is now in full swing, as evidenced by my absence from this page. I still have a lot of work to do tonight, but I need a break, therefore I present to you... New York pictures! I didn't take any of these, but rather "borrowed" them from my good friend Rachel. Don't worry, I was standing right next to her when she took them all, so these are the same views I had. She just happens to have a very nice camera and a better eye for all of this than me. Credit where credit's due and all of that ;-P But without further ado... here is our trip in (more or less) chronological order. Enjoy!

Our first stop - Battery Park. A very calming place to start our whirlwind tour of the city. This is the statue that stood between to the two World Trade Center towers prior to September 11. You can see the damage it took that day.

Ground Zero - There was an incredible amount of activity here... even as darkness fell. Construction has begun on the memorial that will eventually stand here. It's hard to believe it's been almost 7 years. Very humbling.

A random and unexpected, yet fantastic find - The Manhattan courthouse (as seen on Law & Order so many times in our house).

Our final stop the first night - We crossed the Brooklyn Bridge by foot... this is a view of the skyline from the middle(ish). I love the way the sky lights up in this picture. Absolutely incredible views up there that night. Very surreal.

Our second and final day began with a trip to Rockefeller Plaza. NBC Studios is in the background.

Central Park - Two things that are nearly invisible in this picture: 1. The wizard standing in the foreground. 2. The incredible group of street performers sitting at the edge of the fountain. This was a fun stop.

Yes, we did the Empire State Building. Great views? Absolutely. Total tourist trap? You'd better believe it!

Times Square at dusk. This area is every bit as crowded and chaotic as you'd imagine... this was the only part of the trip/city where I felt truly uncomfortable.

The perfect way to close our trip - RENT Saturday night. The show was great! I love the music, but had never seen it live. Well worth the ticket, especially since it's closing in June. Afterwards we had dinner at an awesome little Irish Pub near the theatre.

All in all a simply wonderful trip! I will miss these band tours when I'm not a student anymore! After seeing Toronto, Italy/Switzerland, Chicago, and New York... great experiences.