Trains and boats, Friday in NYC

This is a daytime view of the sphere from the World Trade Center
that I mentioned in a previous post.  (It was moved to Battery Park)

Last night, I realized that though this is the fourth time I have been to New York (not counting bringing Anneliese in the fall), I had never been to the Statue of Liberty.  So, that was the plan for today.  I checked the website and it said to buy tickets at Battery Park, so 2 trains later, and there I was.  The weather was warm, but windy and I found rain coming straight at me like bullets, so I battled that as I walked to the park.  I was informed that to go all the way up to the crown (which was what I had intended), I had to reserve that three months ago (!!!).  Needless to say, I was quite disappointed.  But, I went anyway.  First I took the ferry to Liberty Island and an audio tour is available at no extra charge (it is park land so all you need to pay is the $18 for the ferry.   I did that.  Cool views of Mahattan.  I've always loved the Statue of Liberty as a beacon and symbol of freedom and hope.  I thought it interesting that at the celebration of the installation of the Statue of Liberty, women were not allowed.  Hmmm--anyone else see the irony in that?  Liberty, but not for all?  Anyway, very interesting learning more about something I thought I knew a lot about.  Even though I couldn't go into the pedestal or the crown (both need to be reserved early).

Battery Park from the ferry

my favorite

Manhattan from the ferry

Then, since it was included in the price of the ferry, I went to Ellis Island.  It was mid-afternoon and since I hadn't eaten anything so far that day, I paid too much for a mediocre burger and chips at Ellis Island. Randy and I were there over 20 years ago, but it has evolved since then.  There are more displays.  I walked around for awhile but tired of the audio tour early on and just wandered and read plaques.  Soon, I was ready to leave.  In the morning, Anneliese and I had signed up for online lottery rush tickets, but we didn't get them (I found out at 2:00) so that dampened my spirits a bit.

This is the hospital/quarantine area that has not been updated and is closed.

At that point in the late afternoon, my phone was on zero so I decided to go back to the hotel and charge it knowing that I would need it that evening.  Anneliese contacted me at 5:30 after class and we decided to get dinner then go to a pub in Midtown to hear a Celtic band.  We ate at Vanessa's Dumplings, then went to the subway station.  As we were loading more money on our metro cards, Anneliese realized that she couldn't find her debit card.  She searched her purse a few times, then used my phone (hers was dead) to check her bank account and see if there was activity.  She couldn't get a connection, so we decided to go back to her dorm room and look.  She knew she had used it at the lighting store earlier when she bought something for a project.  We checked the pockets of the clothes she wore earlier, I checked her purse, etc. but couldn't find it.  There was no activity on her card, so there was nothing to do until the morning.  We came up with a plan.  She was devastated because there was no way to get more money if she had to wait for a replacement card.  She was very sad so I held her until she calmed down.  I gave her what cash I had to last her for a few days if she needed it.  Then we knew we weren't going out that night so I suggested that we play cards to pass the evening and get her mind off her problem.   We played Crazy 8s until 11:30 and she pointed me in the correct direction for the subway.  I held my heavy Jane keys in my hand to use as a weapon if I was attacked.

So this is my getting home story:  I got there and checked my Moovit app, but the A train wasn't due for 20 minutes.  I got into a conversation with a young man asking me for information about the F train.  He told me that I could use the F to get to my stop, so, not wanting to wait for 20  minutes, I boarded with him.  He was right.  We talked and he offered to walk me to my hotel, but I said that I would be fine (I didn't want him to know where I was staying).  I was careful to give no identifying information other than my first name.  I got off, but accidentally exited the station on 16th street instead of 14th.  I had no bearings, so I walked a few blocks to see if the streets numerically went in the right direction.  They didn't, so I was about to turn around when I saw a park a block away.  I walked to the park to try and get my bearings and it was Union Square.  I've met Anneliese there a few times (including earlier that night) so I knew how to get home from there (about a half hour walk).  I set off and arrived home.  I called Anneliese when I got to the last few darker and more deserted streets near my hotel (it's in a very quiet neighborhood).  I talked to her until I was near the hotel, telling her my story.  Then, straight to bed.