Weekend in NYC

After my amazing trip to Yosemite (see posts Parts One and Two) I had to work Tuesday-Friday the following week.  Instead of flying back to LA on Friday night and then flying right back east on Sunday night, I decided to stick around and do a few things in New York that I've been meaning to see.  I tried to get Lindsay to fly in and meet me there, but she had some new carpet being installed in her apartment and had to be there for that.  I've been feeling disconnected from her for the past few weeks and I'm not sure why.  But there was enough for me to do in the city to keep me temporarily distracted.  The three major things I wanted to see were the MOMA, Statue of Liberty and 9/11 Memorial.

Museum of Modern Art
The MOMA was home to my two favorite works of art - The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali and The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh.  Picasso, Miro, Kahlo, Pollock, Warhol, Seurat, the list goes on.  The museum is pretty big but you can get through most of it in about 3 hours.  Here are some of my highlights.

Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island
Lady Liberty and Ellis Island are very close together, and for $24 you can see them both in about 2 hours. It's a cheap deal and entertaining to do, especially when you are alone like I was.  I usually don't do audio tours, but this one was easy to use and interesting.  The ferries are 'hop-on, hop-off', so you can spend as much time as you like at each site.

9/11 Memorial
The 9/11 Memorial opened just after I visited New York in 2011 during Hurricane Irene.  This was my first chance to see it and almost coincided with the anniversary of the event, which I think made it more packed than it otherwise would have been.  It's free to get in, and the only downside is that the museum is still under construction.  Overall, it is a powerful place and a beautiful remembrance to those who died.  The Freedom Tower is nearing completion, I can't wait to revisit it when all the planned buildings are done and the construction barriers are gone.