A little exploration of New York City’s amazing architecture.Â
New York City, the name itself conjures up images of the bright lights of Broadway and the instantly recognizable skylines we all know from movies. The city has been a center of American history for centuries, a center of immigration for thousands of immigrants, and a place of great tragedy in more recent times.
The iconic skyline of lower Manhattan, taken from Brooklyn Bridge Park.
New York City is a city of skyscrapers, both of immense beauty and horrendous concrete. I prefer the older the better when it comes to architecture, but this millennial has seen a new beginning in the city I fell in love with long ago. The old blah buildings of a generation ago are going away and the new architecture of this millennium is as brilliant as the clear blue sky, as seen in the new World Trade Center, a true testament of the endurance of New York City.
1 World Trade Center, the big up-yours to those terrorists that threatened the States. When I first visited New York City in 2005, construction on the tower had yet to begin. I was very moved to be in the city when this tower opened in November 2014 for visitors.
While I now finally can get behind modern buildings for once, I do prefer the older New York, one that unfortunately is slowly disappearing, despite all efforts to save it. It took losing the original Penn Station (where Madison Square Garden now is) to understand how important these places are. If we don’t appreciate what we have, we are going to lose it, just like Penn Station.
The first Penn Station’s main waiting room.
They tore down Penn Station to build this monstrosity. I don’t even have a recent photo of this building. It’s that bad.
I have been to the city many a time, even lived there for a while. I have now been to every major museum, so the rush of a tourist to see everything is now over. That’s when I started wandering, started exploring; that’s when I really started to truly experience all the intricacies of my favorite place in the country.
There was no destination in mind, no time frame. The only goal was to look up and enjoy the surroundings.
My token entry from the Bronx, a mausoleum at Woodlawn Cemetery. Woodlawn is huge and full of the rich and famous from a century ago. It can be reached easily from the end of the 4 train.
The lower level of the Bethesda Terrace in Central Park. I love that they restored the original tiled ceiling.
Alice in Wonderland at the 50th St. Station on the 1 train heading north.
A wonderfully detailed building at the corner of 7th Ave. and 58th St. near Carnegie Hall.
The not so hidden but rarely visited lobby of the amazing Art Deco Chrysler Building. It even has its own subway entrance.
The impressive front entrance of Grand Central Terminal and its huge clock. I love everything about this place, especially the Main Concourse.
The beautiful entrance of the Fred F. French Building finished in 1927, one of my favorite eras of New York City architecture. The building is located at 521 5th Ave in Midtown.
The almost never open for visitors Central Synagogue in Midtown. If you can make for the two hours on a Wednesday afternoon (took me years), go for a wander in.
A little detail from Rockefeller Center, one of my favorite places in New York City. The Art Deco details on the buildings are just amazing.
Another one from Rockefeller Center, this one is from the inside 30 Rockefeller Center‘s lobby. Thousands flood through the lobby on their way to the NBC Store, NBC Studios, and Top of the Rock (better view than the Empire State Building and less crowded) every day. Few look up at the amazing ceiling. How could you not be amazing by this?
Far from the streets of Midtown are the quiet winding historic streets of the Village.
Some old-fashioned wood and brick buildings in the Chelsea Historic District on 9th Ave. and W. 21st St.
Sometimes it’s not just the old that is a hidden gem, but also some amazing street art, like this painting on the side of a building in Chelsea as seen from the High Line.
A random door frame near Wall Street. I love the detail.
The sculptures on the exteriors of the buildings in the city are amazing. These are from Surrogate’s Court behind City Hall.
And finally, the magnificent carvings of the wooden door frame and clock in the commissioner’s office at the U.S. Custom House, which has free tours!
New York City is full of hidden gems of architecture around every corner, which is why it’s one of my favorite places to wander. I’ve explored so much of Manhattan. Yet, every time I walk down a street for the millionth time, I am still finding something neat and wonderfully unique. Not every city is like New York, but every urban environment has its own hidden gems.
Check out my other adventures in the great city of New York!
The demolition of the original Penn Station is such a shame.