Spanning the rivers, scraping the skies

Returning from our Statue of Liberty cruise, we stroll through the financial district and down the historic Wall Street, with its curious mix of bankers and tourists.  This is the command centre for the world economy, and what happens here has a frightening baring on everybody in the world, at least to some degree.  When the stock market crashed here in 1929, it caused a cataclysmic series of events that ultimately shoulders much responsibility for the onset of the Second World War.  Nonetheless, the mood is jovial enough, but with a definite air of purpose absent from other parts of the city.  Wall Street is also home to Federal Hall, the site of the very first capitol building of the United States, where George Washington was inaugurated as the first President, and where the Bill of Rights was first introduced to Congress.  The original building was razed in 1812, and the current structure completed in 1842, built as a customs house.

Wall and Broad Street

Federal Hall

Our destination is the Brooklyn Bridge, which crosses the East River and connects Lower Manhattan with (funnily enough) Brooklyn.  When it opened in 1883, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world, and was dubbed "the eighth wonder of the world." Still a magnet for tourists like us, and a lifeline for local commuters, the bridge carries 150,000 vehicles and pedestrians every single day.  From end-to-end, it's just over a mile to walk, which is slightly terrifying if, like me, you suffer from heights and the occasional bout of vertigo.  Nonetheless, the opportunity to cross such a noteworthy landmark cannot be passed up, and so we approach, step-by-step, until we're well over the river.  To the north sits the nearby Manhattan Bridge, whilst a 180-degree turn reveals the splendour of the city in all its glory - skyscrapers aplenty, all merging together beyond a mesh of thick cables that keep us on the level over the East River.

The Brooklyn Bridge

Looking back at Manhattan

Brooklyn sits on the east side of the East River, and is one of the five boroughs that make up New York City (the other four, for future pub quizzes, are Manhattan, Queen's, the Bronx, and Staten Island.)  It's actually quite a sizeable borough, so large in fact that if it were a stand-alone city, it would be the seventh largest in the US.  We content ourselves, after our mammoth walk across the famous bridge, with a stroll around Brooklyn Heights, a residential neighbourhood by the water, with commanding views of Downtown Manhattan.  There's a atmosphere of Sesame Street about the place, with its brownstone rowhouses and well-maintained roads, aided by the fact that it's clearly kick-out time in the local school, and kids are running around the little playgrounds, and queuing up at the local ice cream van.  Adjacent to this neighbourhood sits Brooklyn Bridge Park, where the water laps up against the shore, and swanky new apartments take shape with million dollar vistas.  It's a little escape, a brief shelter from the bustle of the city, which is just across the river, but feels many miles away.

Brooklyn Bridge Park

Back in Manhattan and all-too-briefly rested, we set out for another of New York's engineering marvels, the Empire State Building.  The building is named after the nickname for New York State - the Empire State - and was completed in 1931, when it instantly became the world's tallest building, a record it held until the 1970s, and the introduction of the World Trade Centre twin towers.  Nowadays it is the world's 34th-tallest, but few of its rivals can match the location and history of this truly magnificent structure.

The Empire State Building from 34th Street

Like many of its companion skyscrapers, the Empire State Building was a child born of the roaring twenties, when money was easy, and dreams attainable.  New York's economy was booming, and a frenzied competition was underway to see who could build the world's tallest building, with the Bank of Manhattan's 40 Wall Street Building up against the Chrysler Building, conceived by motor mogul Walter Chrysler. Then, in August 1929, General Motors executive John J Raskob and New York Governor Al Smith announced a third major player in the race - the Empire State Building.  Of course, it surpassed both its rivals to take the crown, but as its completion coincided with the Great Depression, much of the building space went unrented, and New Yorkers quipped that it was in fact the Empty State Building.  This was certainly not the case on our visit, and it seemed like half the city was indeed in the queue, which (it has to be said) lacked a little organisation and coherence.  Nonetheless, we do eventually emerge on the 86th floor, and in the evening air, the lights of the city glowing in all directions ensures a magical experience.  We are in awe, for it's as if the whole city finally makes sense when viewed from here.  Maddison Square Garden lies directly below, the Chrysler Building and its beautiful roof is a few blocks away, the bridges in the distance, like fairy lights twinkling in the night.  The visitor can actually go even higher here, up the spire to the 102nd floor, an add-on to the original design of the building, built so that air ships could dock.  It's an amazing idea to take away, and one that perfectly sums up the 1930s experience in this most celebrated of locations.

Views from the 86th floor