day two NYC

well we did end up with lots of noise at 7 AM - loud pounding that we covered up a bit by turning up our own "noise machine" the white noise generator that Phil travels with.

we managed to stay a sleep until around 11 AM and then got up - we were headed first to lunch but the subways were not favoring us this morning so we ended up doing that later.  we got off at Rector Street on the R line and headed for the hot dog cart- no that was not our next destination - just a stop along the way for a soda to share and a hot dog to split as we didn't have enough time for lunch before our timed tickets to the 9/11 memorial at the WTC site.

the process for entry was well run even with high security.

the memorial is devastating emotionally- and I think the architects have it just right- the fountains are on the foot prints of the twin towers and they empty into the seeming abyss of a black shaft in the center of each.

the names of all who perished line the railings of the fountains and the site is covered in trees (including the survivor tree- the lone tree that survived the attack.)

it is quite peaceful and I think when the whole complex is complete will be a worthy tribute to our heartrending loss. 

Photos:  you must have a ticket to enter- they are timed every fifteen minutes-

the site is quite quiet for being in the middle of a construction site

the foot prints of the WTC towers are the fountains foot prints

both fountains flow into the abyss of a central "bottomless" chamber- and are lined with the names of all who died there and at the other 9/11 locations- DC and Shanksville PA as well as the six who died in the earlier attack on the WTC-

the first responders are memorialized at the south tower in the area where we first entered the site.

the scale of the fountains is overwhelming- plenty of space for each of the individuals to be memorialized

I knew only one person who died there that day - a woman who had worked for me in the 1990s in the Claims Department- Linda Rosenbaum

this photo gives some perspective of the plan of the site-

and since there is no appropriate seque from the somber and emotional 9/11 memorial to the life of the living- I will just go on- as we did-

from there we went to lunch at Luke's Lobster in the financial district- yummy yummy lobster rolls-

then since we were right around the corner from Laure and Arno's place we stopped in to say hello before leaving for the Occupy Wall Street protests on the way home to our noisy hotel

the view from the bedroom of their new apartment

Zuccotti Park - the HQ of the Occupy Wall Street Movement-

no lack of police - the ratio of white shirts to protesters seemed pretty high-

we later went to have drinks with Jeremy and Vanessa and then on to the Judy Show  before a late dinner at The House near the show- an excellent salad of butter lettuce and endive in a ginger dressing was my favorite dish.