New York on Halloween, Princeton and Utility Machines
Trips
15. Feb. 2021
Manfred Goschler
We were still at Starbucks near Time Square and had just got a coffee. Meanwhile it was raining a little harder outside, so we wanted to stay a little longer. I thought about what we actually wanted to do here. There were plenty of options, but now I wanted to take a little more time for something that was always on the agenda. Visit the site of a well-known scientist who emigrated to the United States in 1933 and found a new home in Princeton. Wouldn’t that be an excellent opportunity to take a (virtual) detour from New York to this renowned university? That’s exactly what we’re doing now.
Actually,we wanted to take a trip to the American Midwest including a visit to some cities like Chicago. But we didn’t have enough because we were in Princeton for the second time to deepen some topics from there. Nevertheless, there were some thoughts on the technical part of this planned excursion, which was about utility machines. For more Details click on the picture.
Now we come back to Starbucks were we looked out the window and the rain had stopped. It was time to leave, because we still had a lot to do in New York and had get back on ship this late evening before the departure
We first walked up 5th Avenue to Central Park, turned there again and walked back down the street until we even left the Empire behind us to take the subway for a few stops to the Word Trade Center.
A lot had changed here since our last visit in 2009.
Then we continued towards Greenwich Village, where the Halloween parade took place in this evening. It is said to be the biggest Halloween parade and is also called New York’s Carnival. Accordingly, many people are out there in the evening and, like us, were looking for a nice place on the roadside. Many law enforcement officers and police were present on the way to secure and divert traffic by blocking roads. Despite this great rush, the helpers appeared relaxed and friendly and were happy to provide information. Despite this large number of people, we saw neither riots nor other misconduct, not even after we went back, which was remarkable. Whether this is also due to the alcohol ban, which in the USA forbids drinking in public places, can only be guessed at.
After we had taken our stand, it took longer than expected for the first noises of the move to be heard. It took some time until the head of the parade reached us and we saw many dancing people dressed in colorful masks and costumes. They presented different topics in a relaxed atmosphere and the spark jumped over and over again to the viewers. We couldn’t stay until the end of the parade because we had to reach our ship before midnight, which was supposed to leave shortly afterwards.
The way back through the crowded streets was sluggish, even on foot. Large queues formed in front of the subway stations and we tried in vain to get one of the few available taxis. I counted the street names at every intersection, from 3rd to 48th. The exuberant and good atmosphere makes it a little easier to walk the long way from Greenwich to the ship. Late in the evening on the ship, we were able to take a look at New York from the deck.
The next morning we were supposed to be at sea and on our way to Boston, but due to the strong wind in the bay, the gangway of the ship was damaged and it took until noon for this damage to be repaired and the ship then cast off . Normally, we might have been annoyed about the delayed departure, but not in this case, as New York showed itself at its best. We enjoyed the lunchtime departure from the upper deck. Just as I had hoped.
We said goodbye to New York, it was a nice time again, but too short. We take these impressions with us and look forward to our next destination, Boston..
