Visiting the World Trade Site

Cranes at the World Trade Construction Site in New York

On The Ground At the site of the World Trade Center

I was in NYC last week (just for one night) and the first place that I visited was the World Trade Center Construction Site in Lower Manhattan. To a young child born since 2001, the locale might just be another group of high rises going up in a city that is filled with these kinds of structures. However, to us older folks, September 11, 2001 is a day of infamy, when three towering NYC buildings came crashing to the ground of being struck by jet airplanes.

The Site Today

Today the site is a beehive of activity. First there is the everyday flow of city pedestrian traffic. Then figure that a large area of several blocks has been roped off and fenced in, so it cannot be used by the general public. This also increases the pedestrian traffic aroungd the construction work. Then add all the visitors, who have come just to watch the places be prepared. All in all, that figures to be a ot of congestion. Still the builds are going up, giving a NYC an air of confidence. Remember, it’s been many years since NYC has seen such a large undertaking.

World Trade Skyline

Best Free Ride In America

Lower Side NYC Skyline Viewed From the Staten Island Ferry

Free Ride

The Staten Island Ferry just may be one of the best free activities in all the US. These boats carry passengers only back and forth from Manhattan’s Lower Eastern tip to Staten Island. Designed as a commuter transport that run around the year, this 25 minute one way trip also attracts an inordinate amount of tourists and sightseers. Where else can you get a grand view of the Statue of Liberty, the Manhattan Skyline and Brooklyn Bridge in less than an hour without paying a dime, unless you splurge for a hot dog or ice cream. And don’t forget the majestic Verrazano Bridge that gateway to the sea, where all the oil tankers pass through on their way to harbor.

The Ferry at dock

Details

During peak hours the ferry company of New York has to keep as many as five of these boats in service to service the commuter traffic. Once on board there are many places to sit indoors, where the temperatures are kept warm, no matter what the month. However, non-locals tend to flock to the open-air docks, where they can watch all the sights pass by and smell the salt air. Perhaps the best time to make the one-hour round trip is just after dusk when the lighted up buildings are accented by the dark blue afterglow of the twilight. The terminals are also an unique experience, as travelers get a chance to mingle with the large local crowds that are always traveling back and forth on the large metal watercraft.

Statue of Liberty surrounded by sailing schooners

Philadelphia’s Hostel Mansion

Waiting Room At The Chamonoix Mansion

Chance Find

I came across the listing entirely by chance. I just did a search on Google and two hostels popped up, both part of the Hostelling International network. One listing was located downtown near the downtown historical sites in the heart of Philly, while the newest entry seemed to be a large mansion located outside the main city right next to a large city park. The reviews seemed good, but not quite as good as the more popular and centrally-located HI Apple Hostel. So I took a chance, contacted the Chamounix Hostel and made a reservation for two nights.

Air Conditioning

Getting to the hostel was not difficult, but it did involve a long bus ride past the Museum of Art and through the working-class neighborhoods of North Philly. However, the bus stop was situated about a mile from the hostel, so I had to hoof it along a city sidewalk, underneath an old railroad bridge and then along a gravel path that ran next to the paved road. After passing public tennis courts, a horse stable I came to end of the public road, where the hostel was located. It was a green location well within the city limits of Philadelphia.

Chamonoix Hostel in North Philly

Walk-up Stairs and Fourteen Foot Ceilings

The ground floor featured 14-foot high ceilings and the complete furnishings of a mansion. One of these rooms even held a large screen TV and a collection of DVD movies. The other two rooms made for great reading or sitting rooms. As the place I had free Wifi, I grabbed a chair and went online, my favorite pass time as of late. To reach my bed, I had to haul my belongings up two flights of stairs and took my place in a somewhat crowded bunk room. Fortunately, a functioning air conditioning system made my stay very pleasant. Anybody, who is hostelling through the Northeast should consider a stop here as well as a visit to the old historical sites in the downtown area. This slightly out-of-the-way place-to-stay makes it all worthwhile.

More Luxury at the Chamonoix Hostel

Visual Tour Through The City of Brotherly Love

Philadelphia Skyline as seen from ground level

This is what I saw when I first came into the City of Philadelphia on a pleasant train ride that took me through the Amish country of the southeastern part of the city. After arriving at the Amtrak station I went to Suburban Station and emerged into the realm of high buildings and intense sunlight. From here I made my bus connection out to the Chamanoix Mansion, a classy hostel located near one of the city’s large urban parks.

Blue Air-conditioner in Philadelphia

Here is a picture taken on a very hot afternoon on a June afternoon that I have dubbed “The Blue Air Conditioner”. I don’t know how some people, including myself, would survive the sometimes torrid heat without this nifty electronic cooling device.

Cedar Tree In Philadelphia

Sometimes, surviving city life takes lots of  creativity and ingenuity. Planting trees and painting walls are two activities that can make a place more livable, though this image may lead people to think otherwise.

The Old and the New In Downtown Philly

Philadelphia is full of contrasts. Here are two different styles are architecture.

Poor Poe

Statue of the Raven at the Poe House in Philadelphia, PA

Twas A Hot and Humid Sunny Afternoon

Last Wednesday was a torridly hot day in Philly. The heat was oppressive and the humidity was just as bad. Somehow I negotiated the sizzling mid-afternoon walk from the Philadelphia Free Library to the historic literary site. Once I walked in the front door of the early 19th century brick rowhouse I was glad I did.  The main reason being the fully-functional air conditioning system and the ice-cold drinking water that came shooting out of the basement fountain. Oh, the joys of visiting a federally funded building. After attending the University of Virginia and West Point Military Academy (he had to withdraw from each due to lack of money), Poe set out on his own literary career as a writer, poet, editor and critic.

Modest Housing

Not only did Poe experience many tragedies during his lifetime( both his mother and wife died of tuberculosis), but  he also moved frequently. During his life time he dwelt in four cities, Boston, Baltimore, Richmond and Philadelphia, but during his six year stay in the City of Brotherly Love, he moved four times. One of these residences, located at the corners of 7th Street and Spring Garden Ave., is now a National Historic Site administered by the National Park Service. Poe moved to Philadelphia to take on a job of editor of a prominent literary magazine. The attractive brick house sits on a quiet tree-lined in a working-class neighborhood, just a few blocks from the downtown high rises. A walk through the house is a step back in time and according to the historians, a trudge down the stairs into the basement, is like a glimpse into the creative mind that penned “The Black Cat”. Much can be learned about how people lived before the Civil War by walking through the various rooms of the Poe house. Most noticeable is the small-size of the rooms and especially the stairways.

Across Pennsylvania

Train Stop at Downington, PA

The train ride started near the swollen, but not quite flooded Susquehanna River that flowed right through Harrisburg, the state capitol. After leaving the station and passing underneath a maze of overhead power lines, electrical transformers and metal connectors the train ride headed for greener pastures – literally.

At first glance, the countryside looked like normal fields, but a small team of horses pulling an old plow through the green terrain was a dead giveaway. I knew I was heading  into the heart of the Amish country. Except for the team of draft animals the view from the train window was pretty normal. Only a pair of young Amish boys headed home from school broke the familiarity of the rural scene.

But these two were different. Instead of bicycles they rode small scooters which they pushed with one foot. The mechanical devices worked quite well, for with one powerful stroke of the leg, each boy was able to coast quite a ways along the side of the  highway. Their movement reminded me of skateboarders, but their transportation had two wheels rather than four and the front handlebar was situated at waist level, several feet above the ground level.

Definitely lacking were the baggy shorts, oversized T’s and backwards baseball caps that skateboarders love. In their place the boys were dressy, blue cotton shirts and long khaki pants. Several books were tied to the back of the youths in a manner that resembled an old-fashioned satchel. From the safe distance I watched the boys as they nimbly glided down one small incline and then pushed their way back up the other side.

Seconds later, the scene had vanished, like it never happened. Their was no way to revisit the intriguing event, but somehow I could not stop wondering if I was looking at the past or the present. With our fluctuating gas prices, volatile oil supply and increasingly difficult foreign wars, I could easily imagine I was also looking into the future.