New York Rideabout 2002
Tuesday 10th September 2002 is, without doubt, one of the most amazing days I have ever experienced. They say, whoever they may be, that visiting New York changes you irrevocably. I can confirm that, that is so. What a truly amazing city, New York is. So, how did I come to be here on the day before the first anniversary of 9-11? Here’s how it all came down…
I was here with punk band the Skeptix, to record their set at the HITS Festival in Asbury Park, the previous weekend. It hadn't been too pretty, but it had been great fun! Now, we were back at Newark Liberty, and had a whole day in New York before our evening flight back to the UK. This was my very first US trip, remember. At this point, America was still all bright, new, and shiny.
The EconoLodge ran a shuttle bus to the airport at 9AM. We had to be out front 5 minutes before. My alarm went off at 7:30. I had a shower, Fish had a shower, Ush had a shower. Chig was still asleep. At 8:48, Chig went for his shower. I don’t think I need to say more than that!
We got dropped off at International Departures just after 9AM by our driver, Maria. One thing you do get weirded out by in the US is that people actually ask for a tip. At first I thought it was odd. In England, that would just never happen. A tip is discretionary and to demand one goes against everything that the English are. In America, asking for a tip is accepted as standard practice. Of course, you can still choose to either give a smart answer or refuse but being English we just hand over our pocket change at once, so shocked are we by the sheer effrontery of it all!
I was here with punk band the Skeptix, to record their set at the HITS Festival in Asbury Park, the previous weekend. It hadn't been too pretty, but it had been great fun! Now, we were back at Newark Liberty, and had a whole day in New York before our evening flight back to the UK. This was my very first US trip, remember. At this point, America was still all bright, new, and shiny.
The EconoLodge ran a shuttle bus to the airport at 9AM. We had to be out front 5 minutes before. My alarm went off at 7:30. I had a shower, Fish had a shower, Ush had a shower. Chig was still asleep. At 8:48, Chig went for his shower. I don’t think I need to say more than that!
We got dropped off at International Departures just after 9AM by our driver, Maria. One thing you do get weirded out by in the US is that people actually ask for a tip. At first I thought it was odd. In England, that would just never happen. A tip is discretionary and to demand one goes against everything that the English are. In America, asking for a tip is accepted as standard practice. Of course, you can still choose to either give a smart answer or refuse but being English we just hand over our pocket change at once, so shocked are we by the sheer effrontery of it all!
Lionel's Lincoln
The general idea was that we leave our luggage at the airport, get a cab into the city and see what we can. So, we tracked down the baggage storage area and then tried to figure out how we were going to do this.
As we were stood around wondering whether to scope out the taxis or get the train, this little fella of Asian descent, dressed in a suit minus tie, came up to us and asked us if we were looking for a cab. We explained that we wanted to go to New York and see the city. He said he’d got a nice car and he’d take us for $50 and pick us up again later for another $50. For a further $50 he’d stay with us and drive us around and show us the sights. $150 between the five of us that’s about £20 each to be chauffeur driven around NYC for the next 6 hours, in a limo. If this was Kosher, it was a steal.
Of course, I am a natural cynic and when some airport employee sidles up to us and said that he was offering us a good deal, alarm bells rang and I had visions of being dumped in El Barrio, naked and bleeding, with a daffodil up my arse! Maybe this was a slight over-reaction. There were five of us. Even Chig dwarfed the little Indian guy, so Gash must have looked like the Statue of Liberty to him. But, I reasoned quickly, that if he took us to see his homeys, who were packing some major heat, we could be exploring unmarked graves in South Jersey by lunchtime, naked and bleeding, with daffodils up our arses! I mean, I’ve seen documentaries on TV about this sort of thing. Gullible tourists getting mugged by streetwise locals who promise to show you the sights, then take all of your money and jewellery and drop you off on a piece of wasteground in The Bronx, naked and bleeding, with a daffodil up your arse!
So, we went with him to the parking lot. That is usually the point in the story where it suddenly gets dark and figures loom out of the shadows and you glimpse a sudden flash of light just before a razor sharp blade slices through your carotid artery…
Er, no, sorry. It seems that Lionel, as it turned out his name was, was on the up and up. He did have a nice car, a Lincoln Town Car, fully loaded with leather and AC and he did indeed take us all around New York, show us the sights and then deposit us back at Newark in time for us to check in.
As we were stood around wondering whether to scope out the taxis or get the train, this little fella of Asian descent, dressed in a suit minus tie, came up to us and asked us if we were looking for a cab. We explained that we wanted to go to New York and see the city. He said he’d got a nice car and he’d take us for $50 and pick us up again later for another $50. For a further $50 he’d stay with us and drive us around and show us the sights. $150 between the five of us that’s about £20 each to be chauffeur driven around NYC for the next 6 hours, in a limo. If this was Kosher, it was a steal.
Of course, I am a natural cynic and when some airport employee sidles up to us and said that he was offering us a good deal, alarm bells rang and I had visions of being dumped in El Barrio, naked and bleeding, with a daffodil up my arse! Maybe this was a slight over-reaction. There were five of us. Even Chig dwarfed the little Indian guy, so Gash must have looked like the Statue of Liberty to him. But, I reasoned quickly, that if he took us to see his homeys, who were packing some major heat, we could be exploring unmarked graves in South Jersey by lunchtime, naked and bleeding, with daffodils up our arses! I mean, I’ve seen documentaries on TV about this sort of thing. Gullible tourists getting mugged by streetwise locals who promise to show you the sights, then take all of your money and jewellery and drop you off on a piece of wasteground in The Bronx, naked and bleeding, with a daffodil up your arse!
So, we went with him to the parking lot. That is usually the point in the story where it suddenly gets dark and figures loom out of the shadows and you glimpse a sudden flash of light just before a razor sharp blade slices through your carotid artery…
Er, no, sorry. It seems that Lionel, as it turned out his name was, was on the up and up. He did have a nice car, a Lincoln Town Car, fully loaded with leather and AC and he did indeed take us all around New York, show us the sights and then deposit us back at Newark in time for us to check in.
Liberty State Park
Our first stop on the tour was Liberty State Park, from where you can normally catch a ferry over to Liberty Island. On September 10th 2002 however, that was not a possibility. Therefore, all we got to see was The Statue of Liberty’s great, green, ffrench, copper-plated ass! Somehow, it seemed appropriate.
The views over to Manhattan were impressive, although somewhat misty. In the distance you can make out the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which we had crossed the previous evening, joining the Brooklyn to Staten Island.
Here we met a bloke with crabs. I don’t mean he had some sort of STD, he was fishing for seafood. He showed us one of his catches… he lifted the lid off his bucket and there was this crab in there. Lionel asked how did he know if it was big enough to keep. The bloke replied that if it was as big as, or bigger than his fist, he kept it. Otherwise, he threw it back. To prove his point, he stuck his fist in the bucket to show us that the crab was indeed of edible proportions. As soon as his paw went anywhere near the crab, the bloody thing started snapping away…it was still alive!
Oh, yeah, and we mustn’t forget this War Memorial either. This thing is hugely impressive.
Click here for the next bit
The views over to Manhattan were impressive, although somewhat misty. In the distance you can make out the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which we had crossed the previous evening, joining the Brooklyn to Staten Island.
Here we met a bloke with crabs. I don’t mean he had some sort of STD, he was fishing for seafood. He showed us one of his catches… he lifted the lid off his bucket and there was this crab in there. Lionel asked how did he know if it was big enough to keep. The bloke replied that if it was as big as, or bigger than his fist, he kept it. Otherwise, he threw it back. To prove his point, he stuck his fist in the bucket to show us that the crab was indeed of edible proportions. As soon as his paw went anywhere near the crab, the bloody thing started snapping away…it was still alive!
Oh, yeah, and we mustn’t forget this War Memorial either. This thing is hugely impressive.
Click here for the next bit