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Cathay Pacific First to New York, & a sombre visit to the 9/11 Memorial Museum (CX F)

Cathay Pacific First to New York, & a sombre visit to the 9/11 Memorial Museum (CX F)

Old Jul 11, 2014, 6:08 am
  #46  
 
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Wow, must have been a moving experience, to be at the same spot where the two towers collapsed and so many innocent people lost their lives on that tragic day.

Looks like they have done a great job, both with the memorial and the museum. Very beautiful, touching as well as educational.

Great photo's too, especially of the outside memorial.
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Old Jul 13, 2014, 12:13 pm
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Originally Posted by platbrownguy
That said, your comments have incited me to rant. So here I go.
I agree with pretty much all you said...but, that is what the OP gets for eating late in Midtown.

[QUOTE=Frequent_Flyer1;23160960
And your example of leaving $20 for a $13 cerainly does seem a little bit excessive, doesn't it? [/QUOTE]

This is where I slightly diverge from agreeing with PlatBrownGuy. I live above a bar and go to many regularly, for the $3 special glasses of wine last night at Julius or the $12 spiced margarita at BBar I will usually leave $2 for the first round I get and then after that it's usually a $1. What gives me the red a$$ is when I see people during happy hour/2for1 who on their second free drink don't go up and leave something.

Originally Posted by DanielW
Wow, must have been a moving experience, to be at the same spot where the two towers collapsed and so many innocent people lost their lives on that tragic day.

Looks like they have done a great job, both with the memorial and the museum. Very beautiful, touching as well as educational.
It's a great tourist trap. Talk to families of the victims, first responders and those in/around lower Manhattan during 9/11 and many of them won't go and have serious issues with it.
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Old Jul 13, 2014, 3:47 pm
  #48  
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Originally Posted by JVPhoto
It's a great tourist trap.
Do you pay for it?
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Old Jul 13, 2014, 4:08 pm
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Originally Posted by offerendum
Do you pay for it?
Adults $24
Seniors/Vets/Students $18
Kids 7-17 $15
Under 6 Free

Fire, Police, Paramedics $12

9/11 Family Members, 9/11 Rescue Workers, Any Military Free

And then you have the gift shop with hats and tshirts and hoodies. I live off Bowery and I'm down in Battery Place several times a week and usually ride a CitiBike home up by where the exit is and dumps everyone out. It's an unsettling feeling seeing a tour group decked out in 9/11 merch.
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 1:20 am
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Originally Posted by JVPhoto
Adults $24
Seniors/Vets/Students $18
Kids 7-17 $15
Under 6 Free

Fire, Police, Paramedics $12

9/11 Family Members, 9/11 Rescue Workers, Any Military Free

And then you have the gift shop with hats and tshirts and hoodies. I live off Bowery and I'm down in Battery Place several times a week and usually ride a CitiBike home up by where the exit is and dumps everyone out. It's an unsettling feeling seeing a tour group decked out in 9/11 merch.
That`s sad in my eyes. Such places shoudn`t charge a fee
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 3:23 am
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Originally Posted by offerendum
That`s sad in my eyes. Such places shoudn`t charge a fee
That's because it is a "Museum" before it is a "Memorial" even though they call it the 9/11 Memorial Museum if you look at the site and all the language it is always referred to as the Museum.
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 5:01 am
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Very emotional description, I'm planning to come back to NYC for a weekend expressively to visit the museum. 9/11 touched me deeply, I was a kid at that time but I remember everything of that shameful day. Thanks for reporting your experience.
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 9:37 am
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Originally Posted by JVPhoto
It's an unsettling feeling seeing a tour group decked out in 9/11 merch.
Yes, not quite sure what they're trying to achieve with that.

Originally Posted by offerendum
That`s sad in my eyes. Such places shoudn`t charge a fee
The actual memorial is still free though(?).
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 11:14 am
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Originally Posted by DanielW

The actual memorial is still free though(?).
IIRC yes the memorial is the fountain/pool outside that is free to sit with the Klampett clan as they eat their halal cart, hot dogs and crummy pizza in the plaza. To go inside the museum to see the exhibits is $.
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 6:11 pm
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Originally Posted by CMK10
Excellent description of the museum, you captured the reverence very well. Thank you for sharing your emotions with us. I lived in New York when 9/11 happened so I appreciate your kind words and outpouring of feelings.
CMK10 - It's an interesting experience for sure. Perhaps it touches home for those of us that fly on a regular basis. It certainly made me think twice about what was important in life, as I'm sure the event did with you.

Originally Posted by offerendum
Impressing Museum - I will visit on my next NY-trip
Yeah, offerendum. It's among the new realities of museums. It's somewhat similar to the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg. The events are totally different but the circumstances of what they are trying to recount are only a few decades back. It makes the experience seem very intense since there is a of multi media around that recounts it.

Originally Posted by DanielW
Wow, must have been a moving experience, to be at the same spot where the two towers collapsed and so many innocent people lost their lives on that tragic day.

Looks like they have done a great job, both with the memorial and the museum. Very beautiful, touching as well as educational.

Great photo's too, especially of the outside memorial.
Originally Posted by JVPhoto

It's a great tourist trap. Talk to families of the victims, first responders and those in/around lower Manhattan during 9/11 and many of them won't go and have serious issues with it.
Thanks for the support DanielW and JVPhoto.

I think the efforts put in by the museum designers, from a tourist's perspective, appear to be well balanced. It's always difficult to strike a neutral perspective when it comes to something like this. I don't doubt that there are those that feel that people are profiting off of this attraction. As JVPhoto accurately points out, visitors need to wade through throngs of conspracy theorists and people selling "the real stories of 9/11" outside of the memorial grounds. I address this by visiting the museum itself, and not paying money to the "independents" who appear to be gaining on an opportunity.

The memorial itself (grounds and pools) is now free. The Museum under the memorial is pay admission.

Originally Posted by themapelligroup
Very emotional description, I'm planning to come back to NYC for a weekend expressively to visit the museum. 9/11 touched me deeply, I was a kid at that time but I remember everything of that shameful day. Thanks for reporting your experience.
Thanks themalelligroup. I think we can all sadly relate to that morning on that day.
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Old Jul 14, 2014, 6:18 pm
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Gordon Ramsey at The London, New York
May 23, 2014


After seeing Gordon Ramsey on the television through a variety of reality television shows broadcast in North America, it came time to try one of his restaurants. MrsWT73 has been a regular visitor to Gordon Ramseys Maze in London on her work travels through there and I was playing catch up as I had yet to have the opportunity.

I was able to get a reservation at Gordon Ramsey at the London about 5 days out using Open Table. The booking process advertised a dress code and set out the expectations for dress. This struck me as a bit unusual as most other restaurants simply state: smart casual, semi casual or the like. The restaurant is conveniently located a few blocks from Times Square or Central Park at the South End.



On arrival, we were led in through the outer restaurant (a New York offering of Maze another Gordon Ramsey casual dining outlet) and into the Gordon Ramsey restaurant proper.

The dining room itself was a fine dining dcor with colored in greys and greys, silvers and golds colors. It was reminiscent of what my British grandfather would have found super classy for an elegant service. In other words, it wasnt all too contemporary.

Another first impression that we had were a table of middle eastern Arabs who were dining nearby up wearing Tommy Hillfiger Rugby shirts. Another bit of an oddity to make obvious efforts with the dress code, but then appear not to enforce it. It could be perhaps because I went through the trouble of wearing a suit jacket (laughing).







Dinner service here is on a fixed menu consisting of either 3 course or 5 course offering. We each went with three course meal. As with many other fine dining establishments, each course was supplemented in between each course with additional surprises.





The service throughout the meal was exceptionally attentive and of high caliber. The seating was similar to other high end establishments that next tables in were seated in the opposite corners of restaurant to minimize intrusions and disruptions in your area.

There was no music playing immediately in restaurant, which led to nice conversation volume. There was some carry over of volume from maze restaurant next door. Despite seemingly many tables sitting empty, and no available times on open table, some must not have turned up or cancelled as at least 10 tables (out of a total of 45 persons occupancy) not were not sat by our reservation time of 8 PM. Either that or the restaurant wasnt releasing all tables to the Open Table reservation system.

Our first amuse bouche was a caviar on pancake and a warm corn veloute soup.



This was followed by a wonderful morel mushroom sherry gellee.



I went with the foie gras appetizer chaud / froid. Foie gras hot and cold accompanied with peach, almond, crispy faro, celery, served with lightly toasted brioche. The hot foie gras was seared to absolute perfection. It wasnt a perfect pairing, but we opted for a bottle of Ken Wright Pinot Noir from the Williamette Valley in Oregon, USA.





For the main I went with the Colorado Lamb Cannon, accompanied with sun choke goat curd puree, spiced eggplant, black olive caramel, shallot powder. The lamb was again wonderfully cooked.





MrsWT73 went with the Organic Chicken, accompanied with tortellini, sweet corn, artichoke barigoule, parsley pure, natural jus



The waiter dropped off a watermelon sorbet prior to dessert to cleanse the palette.



For the desert, I went with the Chocolate Hazelnut accompanied with coffee, burnt cinnamon, caramel ice cream. Again, perfection on a plate.



The meal was closed up with more chocolates prior to the arrival of the bill.



Tab for two with a bottle of wine was a reasonable $440.

Overall the dessert was the highlight of the meal. The comparison of the restaurant offering with Gordon Ramsey the television personality is a natural one to make. The meal itself was similar to a German BMW exceptionally refined, conservative in flavors with nothing too over the top. Everything was perfectly prepared with obvious attention to detail. I would have expected sharper flavours given the amount of energy from his TV performances. Either way, it was a very pleasant fie dining meal.

MrsWT73 loved the service and the smaller portions. She felt that the environment was very comfortable.

We had a great meal here and found it to be reasonably priced for New York. I found myself thinking about the experience throughout the rest of the evening and the next morning so much I must have enjoyed myself. I find that you don't always remember the meal itself over and over again. You dont always get memories of dining experience dining out.

Two thumbs up. ^^
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Old Jul 17, 2014, 7:42 am
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Wow what beautiful and moving pictures, what a moving experience it must have been to go around the museum, can well imagine it would take a long time to see everything and take it all in, all of us can remember where we were at the time when this awful tragedy happened whether it be in NY or anywhere else in the world, those awful photos of TV will always be rooted in everyones mined for ever. Went in 2003, still very vivid, will definitely have to make a visit back to see the memorial, thank you for sharing this experience with us. Enjoying your TR so far
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Old Jul 19, 2014, 4:59 am
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Will defiantly check out Gordon Ramsay's restaurant next time I am in New York!
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Old Jul 19, 2014, 11:25 am
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Originally Posted by worldtraveller73
[B]Tab for two with a bottle of wine was a reasonable $440.
That's probably what I've spent on food so far this year
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Old Jul 21, 2014, 5:50 pm
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Originally Posted by BA5E
Wow what beautiful and moving pictures, what a moving experience it must have been to go around the museum, can well imagine it would take a long time to see everything and take it all in, all of us can remember where we were at the time when this awful tragedy happened whether it be in NY or anywhere else in the world, those awful photos of TV will always be rooted in everyones mined for ever. Went in 2003, still very vivid, will definitely have to make a visit back to see the memorial, thank you for sharing this experience with us. Enjoying your TR so far
Thanks BA5E. Indeed the memorial museum was quite an interesting and moving experience. I'd highly recommend a visit, despite some of the controversy surrounding the exhibits.

Originally Posted by alexisonsmith
Will defiantly check out Gordon Ramsay's restaurant next time I am in New York!
Thanks again alexisonsmith. I doubt you'd be disappointed.

Originally Posted by xenole
That's probably what I've spent on food so far this year
Thanks xenole - No inexpensive SE Asian food prices in this postal code!!
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