Day 37 - 9/11

Some of you may know I was slightly obsessed with the whole 9/11 thing when it happened 5 years ago and when I figured out that we were gonna be in NY on the fifth anniversary I was keen to go to the memorial ceremony at the World Trade site. So we got up early and went down, and to be honest it did not feel right as it felt like we were gate crashing a funeral, there were literally thousands of family members of those who died there, so we actually left fairly promptly. We walked further downtown to catch the Staten Island ferry, this is a free 25 minute ferry ride that gives great views of Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty, and did I say it's free! After letting Ruth loose in designer discount store Century 21 for an hour or so we then caught the subway up to 110th street and the start of Harlem, and man is it black up there! Let's just say for the hour or so we walked around the streets up there we woulda seen less than a dozen white folks, in saying that the rep of the place is way worse than the reality and it seemed safe enough to me anyway...during the day. Our last night in NY and NJ concluded by having dinner with Tiff and Rudy at Houstons in Jersey, that had the best ribs. We then caught the impressive Manhattan skyline by night, with the lights shining up from ground zero piercing the night sky, and us singing Star Spangled Banner, well ok me singing it. A final thanks to Tiff and Rudy for their hospitality that included an ensuite and some fine home cooking, a cat-fix for Ruth, and chaufferring. Cheers.