Giulia's holiday

INTRODUCTIONLocated on the east coast, New York is the largest city in the USA. The city is called “the big apple”; it has this name for two reasons: for some people this name came by Edward S. Martins’ book, "The Wayfaver in New York" where new York is compared to a big Apple in the tree, for other people, because some poor people came to New York and became very rich in few time, new York is compared at a big apple to which you can make a bite. The climate is very cold in winter with temperature often below zero. The summer is unbearably hot and humid. Therefore, the best time to visit New York is in spring or in autumn. Only in the 19 th century became the main centre of the country and port of immigration for people from all over the world. Today is an important business centre, seat of the United Nations, but it is also one of the most famous tourist destinations thanks to its museums, monuments, elegant shops and café.

HISTORYNew York was discovered by Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524. Then, the Dutch bought the island from the Indians. It is done in 1626 by Dutch, they bought it for $24; Dutch called the city “New Amsterdam”. English occupied the city in 1664 and they called it “New York”. New York was the first capital of the USA.  

The symbol of New York is the beautiful Statue of Liberty. The statue was donated by France in 1883 to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of the American Revolution; therefore it is a symbol of freedom and democracy. The statue was the first sight of America for the immigrants coming from the Old Continent.

NEW YORK

POPOULATIONNew York has more than 7 million people.Today in the city there are some ethnic groups: Italians, Chinese, Africans, Greeks... In New York there are five boroughs: Manhattan, Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Staten island.

WORK OF ARTIn New York there are some construction and works of art:

Central Park: it is a park, it is very big and very famous, it is called green lungs of New York. It is artificial, there are some lakes and two skating risks, there is a theatre, its road is 10 Km long.

Madison Square Garden: It is a most famous arena, in it there are 20000 people, you can do some sports in it, it is the arena of NBA, boxe, Hockey, Wrestling, and in it there are some concerts, at Madison Square Primo Carnera won his world title in boxe.

Wall street: It is a way of New York, at the number 25 there is the Stock exchange, this name came by the old walls of the city. It is American’s financial centre and has played an important part in the history of New York.

St Patrick’s Cathedral: It stands in the middle of Manhattan. The contrast between this white neo-Gothic church and the modern skyscraper is striking.

Empire State Building: It is the tallest skyscraper in New York after The Twin tower’s crash, it was built in 1930 and it is tall 381 m. It is the second skyscraper tallest in USA, it has got 102 plans, there are 6500 windows and 73 lifts. It was built after the “great depression” and the offices were empty, in evening the lights were turned. In 1945 a war air was crashed against the skyscraper . Worth seeing are the Rockefeller Center and the Empire State Building. The Rockefeller center, in December, is adorned with a huge Christmas tree. The Empire State Building is the tallest and most famous New York’s skyscraper. From the top floor you can enjoy a breathtaking view over the city. Shopping lovers can’t forget the wonderful Fifth Avenue with a lot of prestigious stores like Louis Vuitton, Prada, Tiffany, Gucci, etc. and the world-famous shopping centers Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s.

With regards to the museums, the most important are the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, called MOMA for short, and the Guggenheim museum. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the richest museums in the word with collections featuring Egyptian, Greek and Roman art, European and American paintings. The MOMA houses the world’s largest collection of modern painting and sculpture. The Guggenheim Museum looks like a huge white shell, a masterpiece in itself. This museum displays one of the most remarkable collections of modern and contemporary art. Worth visiting is also the Ellis Island Immigration Museum. This museum allows guests, with lots of computers, to research their ancestors who emigrated to New York and find out names, dates and other details about them.

Guggenheim museum

In Brooklyn you can see the Gothic Brooklyn Bridge, which offers breathtaking views of the Manhattan’s skyline When it was opened in 1883 it was the first suspension bridge in the world, and it is still one of the longest bridges (485 m). During its construction 27 men died, including its designer.

Time Square is nicknamed the “crossroads of the world” with its huge advertising billboards. It is famous for its New Year’s Eve celebration. Thousands of people gather here to celebrate the New Year with fireworks and the countdown to midnight.

The most important events are the Thanksgiving Day and the Independence Day. The Thanksgiving is celebrated in November with the tradition of eating turkey for lunch. The Independence Day, known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States that commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Very interesting are also the Chinese New Year Parade and the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

Very interesting are the city’s neighborhoods: the exotic Chinatown and the bohemian Greenwich Village and TriBeCa. In Chinatown you can find a lot of Chinese goods from foods to clothes and souvenirs. Greenwich Village was the home of bohemian artists living in delightful and unusual houses. TriBeca is one of America’s most fashionable neighborhoods and is known for its celebrity residents like Leonardo di Caprio, Julia Roberts, Beyoncé, Daniel Radcliffe, Justin Timberlake, etc.

With regards to the traditional foods, we have to remember the Waldorf salad, a delicious salad made with apples, lettuce and nuts. Very popular is the “brunch”, a meal that is usually taken in the middle of the morning, between the normal time of breakfast and the normal time of lunch, as a substitute for both of these meals. New York also features exquisite dessert such as the cheese-cake, the pancakes, waffles and the famous banana split. A problem in New York and generally in USA is the obesity caused by the so-called “junk food”.

Another important event is the New York City Marathon that attracts, every year, runners from all over the world.

11th SEPTEMBER ATTACKWorth seeing is also the area occupied by the Twin Towers, now called Ground Zero. It is a memorial for the victims of the tragedy of September 11th 2001. A group of Islamic terrorists piloted two planes into the Twin Towers. Nearly 3.000 people died in the attack.