NYC sights pt 2

With 17 curatorial departments, 2.2 million sq ft of space, and 2+ million works in its permanent collections, the Metropolitan Museum of Art—colloquially known as The Met—contains more treasures than most visitors will ever be able to see in a lifetime

Marble Statue of Athena Parthenos, discovered at Pergamon (Turkey), ca 170 BC; the Met Gala, with a different theme each year, has been chaired by Vogue editor Anna Wintour in recent years

The Guggenheim Museum is better known for its Frank Lloyd Wright-designed building than for the art it contains; admission is $25; given the largely disappointing reviews on TripAdvisor, I decided to skip going inside

Alexander Hamilton was founder of the nation's financial system, the Federalist Party, the US Coast Guard, and the New York Post newspaper; the first Secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton was killed in a duel w/VP Burr near Trinity Church where he is buried

The NY Botanic Garden is located an hour away by bus (you really see the other NYC) and is next to the Bronx Zoo; admission starts at $35 but the place is huge and you could easily spend an entire, enjoyable day here

Grand Central Terminal is one of the world's ten most visited tourist attractions, with 21.6 million visitors in 2018 and is the 3rd busiest train station in North America

The JP Morgan Library and Museum was expanded in 2006 by the world-famous architect Renzo Piano; the addition of light-filled pavilions served to connect the three historic structures on the property

The statue of Atlas is one of many at the complex of 19 buildings known as Rockefeller Center; in addition to the famous ice skating rink, the Rock contains Radio City Music Hall and is the HQ for NBC

Seating 3000+, St. Patrick's Cathedral is the largest, decorated Neo-Gothic-style, Catholic cathedral in North America; the 1878 building received an update in 2017 getting a new geothermal system believed to be the largest in the city

The 84 story Steinway Tower is said to be the thinnest skyscraper in the world; there are 60 residences in the building with prices ranging from a mere $16 million for a studio to $60+ million for the duplex penthouse

The $4-billion, Santiago Calatrava-designed Oculus, opened in 2016, is the World Trade Center Transportation Hub and serves roughly 20 million passengers each year; it's generally considered the most expensive train station in the world

It was a gorgeous day when I walked the Hudson River Park from Little Island down to the Freedom Tower; this oasis in the city runs 4 miles and includes a slew of parks, playgrounds, ball fields, etc and is immaculate

Little Island had just opened the week before my visit and, to help with crowds, you needed a timed ticket to visit after noon but not before noon; Barry Diller and wife Diane von Furstenberg donated funds for the park and its upkeep

The Vessel at Hudson Yards is an elaborate, honeycomb-like structure that rises 16 stories and consists of 154 flights of stairs, 2,500 steps, and 80 landings for visitors to climb

Charging Bull was created by an Italian artist in the wake of the 1987 Black Monday stock market crash; one of the city's most photographed artworks, there was a long queue waiting to have their photo taken with the bull when I was there

In 1985, the great US Congresswoman Barbara Jordan spoke these prescient words - Liberty can gradually suffer erosion just like the Statue itself has suffered erosion. You have to attend to Liberty.

Castle Williams on Governor's Island was constructed in the early 19th century to protect New York City from naval attack; the Smothers Brothers were both (they're not twins) born on the island

There are dozens of humorous artworks by Yayoi Kusama at the NY Botanic Garden, such as Dancing Pumpkin, that help substantially drive attendance; each year new pieces and attractions are added to keep the idea fresh