Long Island City Revisited

Today was a beautiful fall day. The air was crisp and the sun was shining, so we decided to go out and enjoy the weather. It's been awhile since we've really done any sight-seeing activities, or gotten out and about around the city. So today was perfect.

We revisited Gantry Plaza Park in Long Island City. It is located in Queens on the edge of the East River. We've been meaning to come back since the last time we were here in February. Wow, has it really been that long ago?! That day was freezing cold and foggy. The views weren't that great and we ended up wet and chilled to the bone after our visit. Although today was a bit chilly, there was no fog or rain, and the views of the city were spectacular.

They were having some kind of Halloween carnival in the park. There were little children everywhere, and they were all wearing costumes. Brian was envious of the Batman, Captain America, Wolverine and Darth Vader costumes. I, on the other hand, was checking out the Dorothy costume with the sparkling red shoes and the various princess costumes. Hahaha It was fun watching the kids run around and hearing them laugh. We don't get trick-or-treaters knocking on our apartment door here in New York, at least we didn't last year. I really missed giving out candy. It was nice to see some kids dressed up. Halloween is such a fun holiday.

Here is a shot of one of the gantry cranes. The walkways weren't buried in drifts of snow this time so we were able to walk out onto the piers past the cranes.

Here is my handsome husband posing in front of the city line. This is a side view of Manhattan. You can see the tip of the Empire State Building to his left and the Chrysler Building to his right.

View of midtown Manhattan without Brian. The tall bluish building to the right of the Chrysler building is the United Nations Building. We have been meaning to sign up for a tour of the UN but it just hasn't happened yet. Don't worry, we'll get to it.

So glad that we're together! The view was really incredible. The skyline, skyscrapers, cityscape always amazes me. I find myself a little breathless whenever I get a great view of the city, or am walking around in the hustle and bustle of Manhattan between the tall, tall buildings. Maybe it's just because I'm a small town girl used to open fields and mountains, but I don't think so. I think New York is so grand it is hard not to be mesmerized by it all.

I feel like this next picture should go on the cover of my book (if I ever write one) about moving to New York from Idaho.

There are portions of train track left on the ground near the cranes. This is where rail cars where unloaded from the boats that transported them down and across the river.

This section is a few yards behind the cranes. There are still sections of track, but they have turned it into a cute little area with plants, walkways and benches.

Here is another picture of the city, similar to a picture I took in February. You couldn't see the city then, just a wall of grey fog.

Here is a shot of the city as we walked further north up the park. Manhattan really isn't that big of a piece of ground. You can kind of see here how all the buildings are just jammed packed onto it.

I'm pretty sure that this is the Queensboro Bridge.

Of course I had to get a picture of the Pepsi sign for my family in Idaho. We are Pepsi drinkers, through and through. My grandpa would even put some Pepsi in a bottle and give it to us when we were babies. Of course when my mom found out about that she wasn't too happy. I think he has done it with every one of his grandkids, or at least most of us. Hahaha Apparently this section of the park used to have a Pepsi bottling plant, hence the sign.

So there you go, a small tour of Gantry Plaza Park.