Weekend Update

Sorry for the absence of posting for the last couple of days, but after I got back from Spring Break, I was swamped with work.

At any rate, I'm back and now I have finally ridden what is perhaps the most famous subway in the world. Last weekend was not my first time in New York, but because I was with a school trip before, there were no pilgrimages to transit.

I certainly rectified that on this trip. From Washington, I took the bus to Philadelphia. A short trip on PATCO brought me to Camden, where I took my first trip on the River Line. At Trenton, it was NJ Transit's commuter train to Newark. Since I stayed across the river in New Jersey, PATH ferried me back and forth to the Big Apple. Finally, came the moment I've waited for for a long time. Entering at Fulton Street, the 4 train took me to Bowling Green.





That evening, I traveled around New York, including an obligatory trip to Times Square and the Empire State Building. On Saturday, I visited Central Park, FAO Schwarz, and Grand Central. Later, a trip to lower Manhattan took me through Tribecca, SoHo, and Christopher Street, where I was surprised to learn that the Stonewall Inn is still in business.



Sunday took me on an obligatory visit to the NYC Transit Museum, well worth the trip. The museum, in an abandoned subway station in downtown Brooklyn holds a wide range of NYC Subway equipment and other transit stuff. Afterwards, I rode the F train to Coney Island. The trip reminded me of the Chicago L, although the scale of New York's system is overwhelming. After a walk on the boardwalk (which ended because of a sudden rainstorm) the D train took me back to Manhattan. Once there, I took the Staten Island Ferry out and back.


Monday morning, it was off to Penn Station for my trip to visit family in the Pittsburgh area. I'll talk more about that trip in a different post, though.

Overall, I was impressed by New York. As an urban planning student, the city is one which has many good and bad examples of urbanism, though the good ones definitely outnumber the bad ones. One of the things that I don't like about America's largest city is the scale. With buildings towering above on all sides, one can feel particularly small as a pedestrian. Still, the vibrant street life and mix of uses make it a place I would consider living.

I'm sure I'll be back in New York before too long. After all, one weekend is not enough time to do much in a city so large as this one. Besides, I didn't get a chance to ride the Long Island Railroad or the Metro-North lines.

While Penn Station's Track 29 is
fictitious, the one at Grand Central
is real enough.