Amy Feldtmann

9/11 Memorial

Photographs taken at the 9/11 Memorial, Lower Manhattan, New York.

Entrance to 9/11 Memorial with the new ‘Freedom Tower’ seen on the left hand side through the blue ‘scrim’.

Freedom Tower: One World Trade Centre

South Pool

Flowers left for a loved one. On the birthday of each victim, memorial staff place a rose on their name.

The ‘Survivor Tree’ — the tree that withstood the attacks on the World Trade Centre.

Some of the most famous tourist landmarks of New York are the New York Stock Exchange, the bronze ‘Charging Bull’ sculpture by Arturo Di Modica, Wall Street, and Tiffany’s. Yet until today, I hadn’t seen any of them.

A few quick things I was taught on the tour, and photos below, from what was a ‘glorious summer day’ as they say:

The ‘Charging Bull‘ statue was mysteriously dumped in front of the New York Stock Exchange overnight, near Wall Street, but now lives next to Bowling Green Park. It was meant to symbolise the US being the first country to recover from the crash of Wall Street.
If Brooklyn were a separate city, rather than borough of New York City, it would be the USA’s fifth largest city with 2.5 million population, just behind Chicago (2.7 million population).
When migrants arrived at Battery Park, they had to promise they weren’t anarchists or polygamists.
The Statue of Liberty is a second hand gift — it was originally intended for the Suez Canal in Egypt, but the Egyptians didn’t want it.
‘Ticker tape’ was the narrow tape used at the stock exchange, to record shares and help with trades; later thrown from the windows, and often seen in parades (hence the name). Due to the small size of the tape, it would have taken too long to type out the full trading name of a company, which is why the initials were used for companies; as used today.
St Paul’s Church, due to proximity to the World Trade Centre site, operated as a rest station for emergency workers. Today, you can still see one of the stretchers workers slept on, and the hats and badges that workers from all around the world left behind as a mark of respect.

Battery Park

St Paul’s

Battery Park

At the bottom of Broadway.

Battery Park

On the left, ‘wedding cake’ style of architecture common in Manhattan (gradually smaller width the higher the building goes).

Freedom Tower in the distance.

Tiffany & Co. (Funnily, not mentioned by tour guide, we only stopped as Trump Building, 40 Wall Street, across street and had stories to tell).

Fraunces Tavern — where rebels used to meet, and Washington said farewell to his troops after the British had departed at the end of the war.

Living memorial garden for the British citizens who died in 9/11.

Memorial for all people who fought for the US, who are resting at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Opened by President Kennedy.

St Paul’s churchyard — visitors gather around the Bell of Hope, which hangs above a map of the World Trade Centre site, and is only rung on September 11.

Sydney — crests of all destinations for this shipping company on exterior of building.

George Washington statue out the front of the building that was where congress sat before Washington DC existed.

Blimp in the sky, and a ferry tour about to depart to visit the Statue of Liberty.

New York Stock Exchange.

Names of those who are resting at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Tourist out the front of the National Museum of the American Indian. In the background is a statue representing the continent of ‘Africa’. Four continents are represented by statues, but not Australia, as it wasn’t considered a continent at the time.

View across to Statue of Liberty.

Graveyard of Trinity Church.

Stone Street — hidden dining treasure.

Battery Park

You can read more about the Lower Manhattan Walking Tour that I went on to see these sites at the ‘Free Tours by Foot’ website.

Wandering Greenwich Village

Greenwich Village is full of history, tree-lined streets, ‘Federalist’ style housing, and a true neighbourhood feeling. It is no wonder it is one of the most in-demand (and expensive) places to live in New York CIty.

On a recent walking tour of ‘the Village’, I snapped the photos below, and learned:

Before property prices hiked, it was an artist haven, and where the Beat movement originated.
When the city re-mapped the streets to a grid formation, the Village refused to conform, happy with the existing streets, many based on farmers tracks and sacred Native American trails. Today, they wind and curve unlike anywhere else in Manhattan.
Living in one of the prettiest villages, the early inhabitants fought long and hard against high-rise buildings.
This area is home to the ‘house fronts’ for Friends, the Cosby Show, and many film locations — Miranda and Steve were married in the grounds of Jefferson Market Courthouse on ‘Sex and the City’ (yes, the Paris scenes of Sex and the City were filmed here too — many outside the Cherry Lane Theatre).
The Stonewall Inn riots in Christopher Street started the gay rights movement, and many gay pride marches around the world are still called the ‘Christopher Street Marches’.
Washington Square Park is built over a swamp. It was paved for military marches, until the weight of solders sank the earth into the ground. It is also the site of public hangings from long ago.
Jimi Hendrix was discovered here, when he was on stage at ‘Cafe Wha’.
Even in olden times, you get a strong sense of social conscience in the area — the dispensary was built for people who couldn’t afford a doctor, including the staff of wealthy residents, and a young guy named Edgar Allan Poe.
There is no DNA evidence to prove it, but it is said the son of King Louis XVI of France was buried in the old cemetery on Leroy Street. When excavated, a headstone was uncovered that was inscribed ‘LE ROI’, or French for ‘The King’. The street is named Leroy in honour of that find. The American Revolution was said to inspire the French Revolution, and as the French has helped fund the American Revolution, they secretly acted as a safe house for their French friends (History experts are welcome to correct this version of events).

Washington Square Park

The ‘Friends’ apartment

Minetta Tavern, hangout of Ernest Hemingway

Streets of the Village

Last wooden house in the West Village on the left; Ross from Friends apartment block on the right

Washington Square Park

Waverly Place (where Don Draper was said to live on Mad Men)

Grom, the famous Italian ice-cream

Judson Memorial Church, founded wiht money from Rockerfeller to accommodate an expanding congregation.

Washington Square Park

Site of the no-longer Northern Dispensary, where the poor could go when they couldn’t afford a doctor

Bigelow Pharmacy signage, with Jefferson Market Courthouse in background

Entrance to comedy club that launched 100s of careers

The Stonewall Inn — the start of the movement for gay rights

Streets of the Village

You can read more about the Greenwich Village walking tour at the ‘Free Tours by Foot’ website.

Get your popcorn ready

Justin Evans and partner Zara were driving through north east Victoria when they saw a sign marked ‘Dookie’, and decided to follow the direction. They were led to a small town, and on an adventure of scarecrows and deserted streets, that has inspired the film producers to make a short film with ambition for entry at Tropfest.

You can hear Justin talk about his idea for the film, and involvement from Peter Rowsthorn, in this short ABC radio interview.

If you would like to donate to the film to help get Dookie — my home town — to the big screen and beyond, you can contribute at this Pozible crowdfunding page (until 23 September 2013).

Brooklyn on foot

On the weekend, I decided to venture across the East River, and explore a bit of Brooklyn — America’s first suburb. I went on an evening walking tour (which is, I am convinced, the best way to see and learn about a city) and these are some of the photos I took, and things I learned:

Brooklyn is where Jackie Robinson signed his first contract for the then Brooklyn Dodgers (now LA Dodgers), making him the first African American on a major league baseball team sports – paving the way for thousands.
Harriet Tubman, African-American abolitionist, after escaping slavery herself, made 13 trips to the South from Brooklyn, helping to free more than 70 slaves.
Manhattan comes from ‘Mannahatta’ used by Native Americans, meaning ‘island of many hills’.
‘Brooklyn’ evolved from the Dutch naming the area ‘Breuckelen’.
It is called the city of churches as there are 400 churches in Brooklyn’s 70 sqm.
Arthur Miller wrote Death of a Salesman while living on Pierrepont Street.
Outside Plymouth Church, mock slave auctions were held to raise money that would then be spent in the south on buy, and ultimately freeing, slaves.
When the French sent the Statue of Liberty to the U.S., the large copper sheets sat in crates for 10 years before it was constructed, as the Americans couldn’t afford the base to build it on.
The Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, at the under the bridge and by the water, does have the most delicious butter pecan ice-cream.