Third time's a charm. When we reached 33rd street and 5th Avenue, I was excited to see and go in the Empire. I was a little bit anxious to see how long the line would be, but I was prepared for it (I had planned to wait at least four hours, and I brought books to read and my journal to work on a short story).
I was surprised to see that the line didn't extend outside. I thought that maybe the Empire was close because of the cloudy weather (it was open so yay!). The ushers pointed me to the second floor ticket booth. I went inside and I thought wow this isn't too long if I were to wait in the long line that extended outside (gee was I wrong again). It looked short but as I walked through it I followed a smushed serpentine path like intestines.
Luckily for us, there was no line. We made our way easily to the booth, and went through security/metal detectors. Next thing we were entering the elevators to go up. The workers had remote controls (they pushed a button that would send us to the 80th floor).
The elevator was fast. We started in the 2nd floor and in less than a second we were already in the 10th floor. It exponentially rose (10, 30, 50 etc.). My ears actually popped. When we got off 80th floor, the workers herded us as if we're sheeps. Exiting you felt the air coming from the elevator shaft urging you on. From 80th we went to 86th. We were going to go to its zenith the 102nd floor but it cost an extra $14. The guidebook said that the space was smallish and the extra 16 stories "didn't really add much to the view" (the Empire experience).
It was breathtaking to see the city from this point. To the north I saw the Hudson River and the canopy of Central Park. To the east, the East River winds down while the Chrysler building acknowledges the victor of the skyscaper race to the heavens. To the south, Lady Liberty ushers in the waves of the Atlantic ocean which brought in the immigrants of the past.
It was breezy and the sky was in layers of gray. In the horizon, the sun tried to reassert its presence- illuminating it with a peach orange glow. I asked this fidgety photographer who knew how to use a manual camera to take my picture (he didn't know about the etiquette of counting down to three before taking the picture- I just hope that it turned out alright).
I walked around the observatory deck and watched the contrast between a congested city below and the open sky above lands beyond. A black pigeon was at the edge nested/rested for a bit- curious. I watched it catch the wind and drift upward momentarily before gliding to the urban abyss. Smoke from cigarettes, smoke from factory pipes and steam from pyramidal building roofs all seemed to vanished before one's eyes. Camera flashes and clicks filled the atmosphere. People, 'perpetual tourists' intently looked beyond. What are they looking at or what are they looking out for?
After this we went down and rode the virtual skyride around NY. It was pretty cool. It was like riding a helicopter minus the cost and perhaps the danger (and who would want to miss Footloose's Kevin Bacon's commentary about NY). This ride was also a good and entertaining introduction to NY. It gave you some highlights- the top ten things to do. The following is a summary of this, not necessarily in the same order of importance.
10.See the Blue Man group
9. Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
8. Helicopter Ride (NY by air)
7. Cruisin at Sea/river (NY by water)
6. Watch a Broadway Show/Musical
5. Central Park
4. NY Double-decker Bus
3. Chinatown and Little Italy (Shopping)
2. The Museums (the Met, MoMa, etc.)
1. The Empire State Building
With a couple of substitutions, I could claim that 9 out of the top ten things to do in NY, I had accomplished. I combined the Blue Man Group with Broadway Musicals (both very histrionic in appeareance). The virtual skyride took the place of the actual helicopter ride. The boat ride around Manhattan was replaced by the ferry that took me to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. The next thing I needed to do in order to complete this list is to ride the double-decker bus.
For lunch we ate inside the Empire at Rosa's Pizza and Pasta. I ordered this Sausage specialty roll for $4.50 (like a strombolli but smaller). I only finished half of it. Rather than throwing it away (and wasting food) I wrapped it up and hoped that I would encounter a homeless person who would accept it. I didn't see any homeless in the streets or subway, but I was still glad that I didn't throw it away because later on in the night, I ended up eating it for dinner.