New York state of mind …

Here are a few scenics we got on our last day in the city, including a few stop-you-in-your-tracks reminders of 9-11. We actually got married the weekend before the planes hit the towers and sat in horror in front of our televisions as we watched the second plane hit live. It was such a surreal experience there in our living room with family and friends all around watching this unbelievable and pivotal moment in history unfold before our eyes. Crazy!!

We hadn’t been back to the city since, so seeing this really brought the memories of that time flooding back. The Ground Zero shots were all taken from the Millennium Hilton, located right in the heart of the financial district.

This one is actually three shots sewn into one…there are some issues with the overlays, but if you look quick you can’t tell…pretty cool nonetheless:

Here’s a shot of a classic New York style pastrami sandwich from the infamous Katz’s Deli. Now, I love pastrami. I grew up eating it and it’s hard to find a good sliced pastrami like I remember. So, I was very excited to check out the NY pastrami scene. Gotta be honest…the sandwiches made us feel kind of sick afterwards…and even while eating them if we’re being completely honest. I don’t know if it was the slightly old tasting pickled cukes and tomatoes or the seemingly raw and ridiculously thick-cut pastrami…but it wasn’t good. Definitely a downer and certainly not worth $15. Kind of a funky place, definitely a landmark. But, I don’t think we’d go back.

Here are just a few street scenes. Only in New York can you get charged a fine for honking…love that!

Taking a cab ride around town

More cool architecture.

This guy could crank out a pretty funky painting in less than 5 minutes using nothing but spray paint and pieces of paper to help guide where his paint went…very impressive. The best part was that he was playing the Baz Luhrmann’s “Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen)” speech/song that was really popular in 1999…I loved that song!

Lastly, a shot from one of the top floors at the Hilton Millennium, facing the Brooklyn Bridge. Such a cool city. Let’s hope we don’t wait another 10 years before we go back!