New York City- Day 4

Sunday was our day to conquer Lower Manhattan! 

We were  proud of ourselves for figuring out the subway to lower Manhattan:)

Our first stop was the World Trade Center and 9/11 Memorial. You had to reserve tickets for a certain time, so once we got down there we had some time to kill until we could go any. Boy am I ever glad we did because we found my favorite part of the trip: St. Paul's Chapel of Trinity Church. This little church is across the street from the WTC and served as a refuge for rescue workers. In this little church that has been surrounded by so much devastation, you are able to witness God's overwhelming love and compassion that has been extended by this church. You literally feel rescued from the depths of sadness as you read that in the midst of all this, ordinary people pulled together to serve those who had given so much. Several walls of photographs show hundreds of nameless doctors, grief counselors, massage therapists, restaurant owners and other regular people who provided round the clock food, comfort and care to the heroes. One exhibit that's particularly moving is dedicated to the firefighters and first responders. Photographs show rescuers sleeping in their gear on the church's pews, Some of the actual cots they rested on are still on display, complete with the teddy bears brought by kids to lay on their pillows. There's also a collection of messages of support from school kids and people from around the world that once dotted nearly every square inch of the church. There is also an exhibit dedicated to those who lost their lives on that day. It has some of the hundred and hundreds of flyers that family members made to pass out to look for their loved ones. I could have stood there all day looking at their pictures and names and praying for the families that were left behind.  You can just feel God's love when you walk through the doors. (We didn't take any pictures on the inside because it was so emotional and intimate we did feel it was appropriate.)

There is a picture of the church after 9/11 and debris is piled to the top of the grave stones , as though it literally snowed debris. 

We then headed over the the 9/11 memorial. On the way over there you are able to see witness the building of 4 new towers that they are building around the memorial. The time on our tickets is apparently what time you are allowed in to the beginning of the line. We walked for about 45 more minutes through a winding line and very intense security. Boy was it worth it when we finally got in! There are two huge square waterfalls in the ground where each of the two towers were. Around each waterfall is a metal ledge that has everyone's name that was lost in the tragedy engraved in it, absolutely breathtaking! I just stood there and ran my fingers over the names with goosebumps on my arms. One of the coolest parts was the "Surviving Tree." I don't know how this little thing did it, but it did. I reached up to touch a branch and just thought all it had been through.

So tranquil

Can you see the names engraved behind us? 

The only tree at the memorial that was there before 9/11

We then walked down to Battery Park which was SO relaxing. I just watched the people jogging through it thinking, do they know how lucky they to have everyday access to this? We ate lunch at a cute little vegetarian place that only drink options were water or locally brewed beer. It was too funny to sit there and watch everyone go up to buy a soda and get turned down. I think my stomach would feel much better if I lived in NYC. From Battery Park we got on Staten Island Ferry. It gave us some great views of the Statue of Liberty and of the lower Manhattan sky line!

Our Lady Liberty

There were tons of Jet fans on the ferry going to the game, Jeff was a little jealous!

After that we walked some more (did I mention I had 3 band-aids on my feet at this point!) We got to see Wall Street, New York Stock Exchange, and lots of other 'business' stuff I had no idea what it was :)

We were there on Sunday so there wasn't much to see but the street sign :)

Then we came across Jeff's favorite store EVER, so we had to go in. I had to take a picture because this TJ Maxx just looks so much more regal than a normal TJ Maxx. Jeff of course found something to buy.

He did not have room in his suitcase for shoes, so he got a Columbia rain jacket

As we were walking we saw this advertisement for an apartment complex. Look at the monthly rent! No thank you!

We finally made it to South Street Seaport and I had to sit down because my feet were killing me! This place was similar to Kemah boardwalk but that much cooler! We found a really neat restaurant to sit down and have dinner at where we could watch people taking trapeze lessons, very entertaining!

Not sure why there were all these old ships parked here, but boy were they pretty!

Then Jeff was determined to walk the Brooklyn Bridge. Well, I had hit a walking wall at this point and I sat at the end and let him go walk by himself (I am a terrible wife!) At least he got a some pretty pictures for us :)

We took a subway home and collapsed in bed not being sure if we would be able to get out of bed in the morning!