{"id":1725,"date":"2016-05-21T22:22:31","date_gmt":"2016-05-21T22:22:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/?p=1725"},"modified":"2016-06-08T02:06:41","modified_gmt":"2016-06-08T02:06:41","slug":"the-big-apple","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/2016\/05\/21\/the-big-apple\/","title":{"rendered":"The Big Apple"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I once had a business trip to New Jersey and had planned to go to New York City one evening to explore, but the colleague I was visiting talk me out of it saying it was too crazy and dangerous. \u00a0I should have went. \u00a0Well, now is my chance and I get to go with my whole family!<\/p>\n<p>I had read about the Liberty Harbor RV Park long before we even left on our trip so I was pretty well prepared for the prices and that it was more of a parking lot than a park. \u00a0The reviews are all pretty bad. \u00a0But the few decent reviews say its all about the location. \u00a0I think it was good that I read so many bad reviews as it set my expectations really low. \u00a0But it wasn&#8217;t so bad. \u00a0Absolutely nothing fancy about the place at all and the only green at the RV &#8220;park&#8221; were a few pads of astro turf for tent campers. \u00a0But it had what we needed: electric, water and a dump station. \u00a0The staff was nice, helpful and quickly took care of us by finding a place to park the truck since it didn&#8217;t fit in our site. \u00a0We had nice French speaking neighbors from Quebec who had a dog, Pica, that the kids adored and they also shared with us a little tidbit on a walking path out to a nice view of Manhattan. \u00a0I thought for sure it would be hard to sleep with all the city noise but it was quiet. \u00a0With a nice nights sleep under our belt, let&#8217;s go see the sites!<br \/>\n<a title=\"Liberty Harbor RV Park(inglot)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/27091676461\/in\/album-72157666213242553\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/c6.staticflickr.com\/8\/7601\/27091676461_baae3d7dde_n.jpg\" alt=\"Liberty Harbor RV Park(inglot)\" width=\"240\" height=\"320\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n <!--more-->We started by taking the light rail to Liberty State Park to catch the ferry to Ellis Island. \u00a0You could probably walk it but we knew we&#8217;d be on our feet all day which is still a bit too much for Brielle. \u00a0It would have been cheaper and faster for me to drive and drop the rest of the family off, bring the truck back to the RV park and walk back (our own Uber). \u00a0Oh well. \u00a0The ferry ride out to Ellis Island gave us a great view of Manhattan. \u00a0It was sort of a grey dreary day but at least it wasn&#8217;t raining.<br \/>\n <a title=\"Ferry to Ellis Island\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/26625495734\/in\/album-72157666213242553\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/c7.staticflickr.com\/8\/7363\/26625495734_76b9d8880e_n.jpg\" alt=\"Ferry to Ellis Island\" width=\"320\" height=\"240\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Ellis Island was really cool. \u00a0It took us awhile to figure out how the audio tour was organized. \u00a0We finally found the family friendly version of the tour which was targeted at kids and did an excellent job of keeping it fun, exciting and educational. \u00a0My Great Grandfather Trojanovich came through Ellis Island from Czechoslovakia. \u00a0Its hard to believe some of the stories of people who hated their home country so much that they would rather throw themselves overboard than be rejected at Ellis Island and sent home. \u00a0The thought of leaving everything you know to come to a foreign country with little more than the clothes on your back and a few bucks in your pocket because that seems better is hard to wrap my brain around. \u00a0We are a very blessed and lucky people to live in such a great country!<\/p>\n<p>The kids got their Jr Ranger badges and we ate our sack lunch before riding the ferry over to Liberty Island to see the Statue of Liberty. \u00a0This time we knew to ask for the family friendly audio tour. \u00a0Again, this was a hit with the kids and I even thought it was better than the adult version. \u00a0I&#8217;ve seen a gazillion pictures of the Statue of Liberty&#8230;really nice professional grade pictures. \u00a0But seeing it in person is just different and much better. \u00a0The view of her from the ferry is beautiful. \u00a0I wish we could have just stayed parked out in the water for awhile to enjoy the view awhile longer.<br \/>\n<a title=\"Its a beautiful sight\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/26625493714\/in\/album-72157666213242553\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/c3.staticflickr.com\/8\/7174\/26625493714_825afa4976_n.jpg\" alt=\"Its a beautiful sight\" width=\"240\" height=\"320\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>After our stay on the island we boarded the ferry bound for Manhattan. \u00a0Once there we\u00a0grabbed a few pretzels from a street vendor and slowly made our way along some greenway toward the WTC memorial. \u00a0The memorial is very well done and sobering. \u00a0We also visited the little church just a block away that had a great display on how the church was utilized during the efforts following the 9\/11 attacks. \u00a0After getting kicked out of the church at closing time we headed to the subway for our ride home. \u00a0Unlike the light rail where I could buy multiple tickets in one transaction you have to buy subway rides one transaction at a time&#8230;.what a pain. \u00a0But we got &#8216;er done and found the subway we needed and got home in time to have a late dinner and catch some shut eye before another full day in the city.<\/p>\n<div id=\"flickr_72157666213242553_2086\"><div class=\"slickr-flickr-slideshow landscape medium \"><div class=\"active\"><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7392\/27091676721_3163392822.jpg\" title=\"Ava&#039;s peg leg\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Ava's peg leg<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7601\/27091676461_baae3d7dde.jpg\" title=\"Liberty Harbor RV Park(inglot)\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Liberty Harbor RV Park(inglot)<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7026\/26555600493_d2fba106fd.jpg\" title=\"Our campground\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Our campground<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7067\/27091675731_1453931d1c.jpg\" title=\"Here we go\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Here we go<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7271\/26885794250_1886175593.jpg\" title=\"Hahahahaha\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Hahahahaha<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7551\/27135066902_49d3a8e44a.jpg\" title=\"Waiting for the train\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Waiting for the train<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7146\/26625496474_2251150a6d.jpg\" title=\"Light rail to the ferry\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Light rail to the ferry<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7639\/26625496284_d58fbd0e6d.jpg\" title=\"Walking to the ferry\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Walking to the ferry<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7704\/27135065982_b0ceeb2bbe.jpg\" title=\"Abandoned train station\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Abandoned train station<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7362\/26625500754_2cb4af906d.jpg\" title=\"Ellis Island in the background\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Ellis Island in the background<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7363\/26625495734_76b9d8880e.jpg\" title=\"Ferry to Ellis Island\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Ferry to Ellis Island<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7373\/27135065372_fe48ac8a9f.jpg\" title=\"Brielle\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Brielle<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7316\/27135070452_ef57919331.jpg\" title=\"Caden\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Caden<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7438\/26625495384_3fc5b65c83.jpg\" title=\"Dacen\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Dacen<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7364\/27135065042_bed5048976.jpg\" title=\"Tourons!\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Tourons!<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7196\/27232068195_46f8aca8fa.jpg\" title=\"In the grand hall\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>In the grand hall<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7717\/26625494524_0a5f375e85.jpg\" title=\"Jr Rangers\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Jr Rangers<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7456\/27135064072_ee6412b7c1.jpg\" title=\"Windows\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Windows<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7585\/27135069952_c2a7b476e9.jpg\" title=\"Window\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Window<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7425\/26625499134_811b8a32dd.jpg\" title=\"Ellis Island grand hall\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Ellis Island grand hall<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7187\/27232067315_06b1c71c06.jpg\" title=\"Manhattan sky line\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Manhattan sky line<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7174\/26625493714_825afa4976.jpg\" title=\"Its a beautiful sight\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Its a beautiful sight<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7766\/27135068992_51a483600f.jpg\" title=\"Arrival at Liberty Island\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Arrival at Liberty Island<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7549\/27135071342_e84a31ae6f.jpg\" title=\"From the ferry\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>From the ferry<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7592\/27135063242_d38670401c.jpg\" title=\"Wachs at Lady Liberty\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Wachs at Lady Liberty<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7794\/26625493144_f53b30673f.jpg\" title=\"Lady Liberty pose\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Lady Liberty pose<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7112\/27135067832_134001f449.jpg\" title=\"Dude Liberty\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Dude Liberty<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7320\/27232066605_e230f61ccd.jpg\" title=\"Ferry ride to Manhattan\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Ferry ride to Manhattan<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7186\/27135068472_8a5dbacb7f.jpg\" title=\"LiBEARty\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>LiBEARty<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7696\/27163213651_3f05bebcb4.jpg\" title=\"Manhattan\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Manhattan<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7023\/27232066255_de81ba39f1.jpg\" title=\"Cool earth art display\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Cool earth art display<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7360\/26625492104_68f305b159.jpg\" title=\"NY Pretzles\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>NY Pretzles<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7692\/27135067432_4ff0448b82.jpg\" title=\"Downtown Manhattan\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Downtown Manhattan<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7400\/27232065775_f324c6fe3e.jpg\" title=\"Jersey City sky line\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Jersey City sky line<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7457\/27135060842_e9a72778d1.jpg\" title=\"Taking a rest\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Taking a rest<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7377\/26625491024_480825dd03.jpg\" title=\"Greenway\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Greenway<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7379\/26625490364_f94b60f4bc.jpg\" title=\"WTC Memorial\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>WTC Memorial<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7610\/27232064325_5cbee64b97.jpg\" title=\"Church yard by WTC\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Church yard by WTC<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7277\/26625489484_4428ce2071.jpg\" title=\"Subway escalator\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Subway escalator<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7619\/26625497704_3b1411bd49.jpg\" title=\"The subway ride home\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>The subway ride home<\/p><\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\">jQuery(\"#flickr_72157666213242553_2086\").data(\"options\",{\"delay\":3000,\"autoplay\":true,\"transition\":500,\"link\":\"next\",\"target\":\"_self\",\"width\":\"\",\"height\":\"\"});<\/script><div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I once had a business trip to New Jersey and had planned to go to New York City one evening to explore, but the colleague I was visiting talk me out of it saying it was too crazy and dangerous. \u00a0I should have went. \u00a0Well, now is my chance and I get to go with [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[62,54],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1725"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1729,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725\/revisions\/1729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}