Next Stop, America - New York 1st

Oi there! How are you doing? I am Alessandro, and I am finally back. It has been a while, but luckily Aurora did a great job. I got news! From today on, I’ll personally start writing and speaking only in English because even if most listeners are Italian, I think this will significantly improve audiences.

Today we will leave Spain and reach a new country: The United States of America! I alert you it will be a long voyage starting from the Est coast arriving at the west. Buckle up, and let's go!

We take off from Granada with a flight with a stopover in Madrid and direction New York.

Please, relax because it is going to be a long flight.

After almost 10hrs, we land in NY at JFK airport. I give you an advice: before coming to the USA, buy an internet sim card.

Ok, fine, we are regularly registered with the touristic visa ESTA to go to the passport control desk and get into America. I am so excited!

During the entire journey, we are going to follow a route that I followed two years ago.

We have finally arrived in NY, and we have booked a great hotel room at the Plaza Hotel, one of the most famous and important hotels in NY. What a view from there above all Central Park!

To reach the hotel from the airport, we have to take the AirTrain JFK Red first from terminal 1 to Jamaica Station. We have to take many different transport types to reach the city centre, and I suggest not using the NY Public Transports' app to find the correct ones.

The hotel site is just in front of Central Park, and it allows you to have a great picnic whenever you want. If you are lucky, you may have the opportunity of skiing on one of its lakes during winter.

However, as you can see, going around the Big Apple is not that easy. It's a massive city with lots of metro and busses lines to reach all the places around it.

The first time, and the only, I’ve been to NY, I fell immediately in love with this city. I’ve many reasons why, but I think chiefly because I live in a very similar town to the Big Apple but in its earlier version with fewer skyscrapers, fewer inhabitants, and more minors. I love seeing people running all around me, working, drinking their coffees, and so on. It’s is a chaotic city just perfect for me.

Fine, take a break, and then we will leave in the direction of Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood in a few minutes.

Ok, let's go!

To reach the HK neighbourhood, we walk in the direction west. When I've been in New York, I was very impressed by the massive buildings surrounding me. It happened that some people almost crushed me because I used to walk around looking up, admiring the massiveness and the beauty of these architectural works.

Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, is the neighbourhood on the West Side of Manhattan. It has long been home to the homes of many actors and the headquarters of art organizations. It is also the favourite destination for the gay community. Today, one of the most famous American TV shows takes its name from this neighbourhood. In my opinion, great places to visit are the Hearst Tower (W 57th Street), Pier 86 on the Hudson River, and 34th Street for shopping.

Once we visited HK, we decide to go through W 50th st and reach the city centre. Here we are spoilt for choice! Where do you want to go? Times Square? Rockefeller Center?

Let's do this: we go to Times sq at first, then to the Empire State Building, and at the end to the Rockefeller Center. Alright?

We are on 50th street and, we reach Times sq going south on Broadway.

Here we are, one of the most popular and known places in the world: Times Square! It is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment centre, and neighbourhood in Midtown Manhattan. Times Square has been featured countless times in literature, on television, in films, video games, music videos, and immediately recognizable locations. When I've been there, I was utterly astonished by the number of billboards that cover almost 90% of buildings. That was WOW!

Moreover, this square is also the site of the annual New Year's Eve ball drop. About one million revellers crowd Time square for the New Year's Eve celebrations, more than twice the usual number of visitors the area usually receives daily.

From here, we go straight in the direction of Down Town through Broadway till we reach Greeley Square Park, from which we can admire the beauty of the Empire State Building. If you want to get in till the 102nd floor, tickets cost more or less $70.

Designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon, this building was built between 1930 and 1931. Once, it was one of the world's highest buildings.

From the top of this building, we have an excellent 360 degrees view above all the city. Looking at North, we can see Harlem, the Afro-American neighbourhood, and on the Southside, we can find the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn bridge that takes us to the homonym neighbourhood.

After we exited from the Empire State Building, we take 5th Ave to reach the Rockefeller Center after just 1 mile of walking. It is a famous building with TV studios, a seasonal ice rink, and a giant Christmas tree.

Unfortunately, I’ve not been there during Christmas because RF Center becomes a wonderful place in that period!

Guys, that’s all for today from Rockefeller Center.

See you next week for discovering Down-Town New York.

I remind you to follow our podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcast, and Google Podcast, where you will find all the different cities' episodes! Have a great week!

Cheers,

Alessandro Cappa _ Rolling South