Ground zero

I was in New York last week and I spent a lot of time walking Lower Manhattan’s streets which always wakens the senses. This part of NYC is the oldest part of the original colony of New Amsterdam that evenutally became New York City and is a maze of history and a myriad of architecture.

Wednesday night I was in Chinatown, the largest of its type in the west. A few pints in the Whiskey Tavern and we asked for a recommendation of a non-touristy Chinese restaurant with the only insistence being that it was licensed! The barman suggested Hop Kee, and we proceeded to eat ourselves into a MSG coma. You simply cannot get good or even average Chinese food in Bermuda and it was a big treat as we all live on the island.

Thursday we were at a clients and we walked across the southern tip of Manhattan from east to west and past the World Trade Center site, which is an ever changing piece of architectural artwork. Our client was on West Street and their iconic head office suffered a lot of damage on 9/11 and again in Superstorm Sandy.

One World Trade Center or as it used to known, the Freedom Tower is now almost complete and will open next year. America’s tallest building shimmered in the overcast sky and the controversial antenna, a substitute for the original graceful spire, is now in place. I liked it though, despite the building’s cost (nearly $4 billion) and the arguments and angst it has caused during the lifetime of it’s construction.

There is a lot of building work going on in Lower Manhattan, as there has been since 2001. Who knows who will occupy these vast new buildings, but a very welcome addition to New York’s Financial District is the creation of some open spaces such as Zuccotti Park near One Liberty Plaza, an emotive area very near the World Trade Center site.

Our last night was spent on the South Seaport, an historic area located where Fulton Street meets the East River. In the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge this area was decimated by Sandy and was a hang-out area for my colleagues as our office is down there and it was good to be out that way drinking again.

Numerous pints at the newly opened Trading Post was followed by overtime on Stone Street, a quaint historical area plundered by fun bars and restaurants.

Late night, early morning. New York never loses it’s charm.