Summer in the (New York) City!

Thanks to living in New Jersey for 2 years, we were able to get into the City for various day trips and wander around a few of the different neighbourhoods which make Manhattan island such a special place. My sister and family were visiting from the UK and I had booked them into the Park South hotel for a few nights before their flight home. The Park South is a brownstone property, well located midtown in Gramercy Park and is one of the few hotels that include breakfast!

We took the ferry across to the City from Atlantic Highlands, NJ – the warm sea breezes were welcome on that boiling hot day in July!

Passing Sandy Hook National Park and whizzing past the Staten Island ferries we could see Lady Liberty in the distance and having dropped off passengers at Wall Street the ferry continued up the East River, under the Brooklyn Bridge and into East 54th St Pier.

We walked to their hotel from the pier and dropped off their luggage before catching taxis across the island to Chelsea to begin our walk on one of New York’s newest and now very popular attractions – the High Line. The High Line is a public park built on an historic freight rail line elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side. You get quite different views of the City and across the Hudson from the High line and with wooden boardwalks, herb gardens, wild flower, coffee bars and water features for cooling off your toes…. it provides quite a unique experience!

We joined at 30th Street in Chelsea and after a short walk (it was hot!!), we stopped off at ‘Chelsea Market’ (at Ninth to 10th Avenue and 15th to 16th Street) for lunch….what used to be the National Biscuit Company (apparently where the Oreo was invented) is now home to a high class food temple - stuffed with restaurants, cafes and gift shops. Buskers play music and the tantalising smells from the Fat Witch Bakery and the Lobster Place compete with the many other eateries – from smoothies to cupcakes, chocolates to pizzas, books to baskets, fresh fish to fresh flowers - you could spend hours wandering up and down the Market ‘block’.

Instead we headed back up onto the High Line to continue our journey on into the Meatpacking district and down onto the streets once more.

After several blocks walking through this district we were ready for a very welcome ice cream and then spent some time chilling out in Washington Square park watching street performers and listening to a local brass band…the children cooling off in one of the fountains. From there we walked on into the Village and Chinatown and no visit to New York would be complete without a piece of cheesecake and a cannoli at ‘Ferrara’s’ bakery in Little Italy….not cheap but a truly New York experience!

We ended our walk in the business district and said good bye to our family before taking the ferry back to New Jersey from the Wall Street pier.

I would urge all visitors (first time or returning) to walk the High Line for a unique perspective of the City and a truly wonderful experience!