I love New York

A highlight of our trip so far has been the day we spent in New York. I can truly say there is nowhere else like it. Our day started at 8.30am when we got a lift to Trenton station from a kind friend of our hosts. Trenton is at the end of the line for the Philly SEPTA (transport) system and at the start of the New Jersey Transit train line. The travelling time to NY is about an hour and a quarter, so at 10:30 we stepped out of Penn Station NY and hit the streets of the Big Apple.

We were instantly swept up into a different world full of people, excitement and energy. Our first stop was the Empire State Building. Having fought off the ticket touts outside offering us fast track tickets for $49, we went inside and paid $22 to go to the 86th storey - 80 floors by lift and the last 6 on foot up stairs (queue for lift was long). The view is incredible; I have never been in a building where skyscrapers look small by comparison. We spent some time up there marvelling at the sights all around.

Our next stop was 5th Avenue - lots of interesting shops but I was not allowed to linger. We strolled up Broadway to Times Square and then onto Central Park where we stopped for icecreams and smoothies. Central Park is like a rural oasis in the heart of the city, with bicycles, horse-drawn carriages and even a game of croquet in progress. After a little while we found the heat too intense to walk any further so left the Park and took the metro to South Ferry. From there we boarded the free Staten Island ferry from where you not only get good views of the Statue of Liberty and the New York skyline, but also a refreshing sea breeze into the bargain.

We only scratched the surface of New York, but I know we will want to return to sample more of its attractions.