We took a trip to downtown Manhattan to explore what tourist came to see and down while in New York City. We observed the highlights of the downtown area and read the plaque on the wall of some of the buildings.

We meet at the Staten Island Ferry where it is a place to go to for those who want to see the Statue Liberty without paying a fee. We walked by Ann Seton’s Shrine who was the first born saint in America. Then we walked to Fraunces Tavern, which is one of George Washington’s drinking spots. There were three plaques on the building, one from the New York City Landmark Society, the second from the National Register of Historical Places and lastly a plaque to memorialize Fraunces Tavern Tallmadge himself. According to the plaques, it was place where George Washington held his farewell gathering after the Revolutionary War in December 4, 1783. Fraunces was an American patriot who aided American prisoners of war as well as assisted in hosting the Sons of Liberty meeting in the tavern. I did not realize that above the restaurant was a small museum that cost $7 to go and see what is up there.

We continued you back to the Custom House or better known as the National Museum of the American Indian. It is free museum that displays the history of the Native Americans who once lived here. I have entered this museum either, but I plan on one day walking in there to educated myself on the culture and appreciate their works of art.

We walked past the famous Charging Bull and Brave Girl. The statue of the Brave girl was smaller than I thought and was a heavy populated spot for tourist to gather to take pictures while downtown. I am glad they kept her at in front of the Charging Bull. I like the message they are trying to spread through her, that we should stand up to our opponents no matter how large or face our fears. There are other interpretations of why she was placed there in the first place. Either way, I am happy that she a new addition to Downtown’s collection.

We traveled through the Canyons of Heroes that consisted of people who did great things, it is our version of walk of fame without the stars and celebrities. Back in the day we used to throw ticket tape, which was strips of paper that people used to send to each other before we had mobile phones. Now we throw confetti out the window for the parade.

Our last stop was World Trade Center and Brookfield place. I think the Occulus is bit strange way to memorialize those who passed away on 9/11, but it is justified of all the shops inside to attract tourist to the location. The sculpture is supposed to represent a bird in flight. When you are up in the One World Observation Deck it looks more like a dinosaur creature. At the actually memorial the location is peacefully and I like how they have the waterfall that is always running unless the weather is bad. There is a sense of peace and sadness in the air as people come to pay their respects. Some people noticed flowers that have been inserted into the names of those who lost their lives. The white flowers represent that it is their birthday and the red represents an anniversary. It is sad, but it is a nice gesture to keep them in mind on their special day as if they were still with us.

I have always liked to go the Brookfield place even when it is cold. The public space is lovely. When it summer there are more activities to do and things to see like the wealthy people bringing out their yachts to park it at the dock or the free concerts inside. There is always something going on either inside or outside. I like sitting by the water when the sunsets. It is lovely especially with the waves churning and splashing into the dock. It is just a very calming feeling sitting at Brookfield place.