New York, after the attack
Sep 22, 2001, 9:50 am
#1
Original Member
Original Poster
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kirkland, WA
Posts: 6,932
New York, after the attack
No towers
Hunnybear and I weren’t about to cancel our weekend in New York just because of some terrorist attacks so we switched our Starwood Free Weekend from W The Court to W Union Square and triple-checked our flight arrangements to make sure they were still on. Hunnybear was taking United from Lansing, Mich., and I had booked my first transcon on Continental because United had given up competing on price or service.
I had a 10:30 a.m. flight. Normally I would have taken a 9:30 taxi for the 10-minute ride to LAX but today I ordered a cab for 8:15 because of admonitions to arrive at least two hours before flight time. Traffic was light as usual all the way to the airport, where the north Sepulveda entrance remained closed and the Century entrance was still available only to commercial vehicles such as my cab. The airport was a ghost town, almost post-Apocalyptic, empty except for a few shuttles and buses. The last few cars remained in the off-limits central parking garage, waiting for their owners to return from extended trips and claim them, never to return. It wasn’t only New York that was hit.
We pulled up to Terminal 6. I gave the driver an extra buck just because and I wheeled by Briggs & Riley into the concourse. There was a healthy line for economy check-in but none at either the E-ticket kiosks or First Class. I chose the latter because I wanted to make sure it all worked. I showed my ID and asked a smiling but concerned agent if I could carry on my two bags as usual: my Briggs & Riley expandable with garment carrier and my Brenthaven laptop bag. She said they should be fine as long as I wasn’t carrying any shaving equipment. I asked about Mach 3 cartridges and several agents discussed the answer among themselves before replying they were OK today but last week they had confiscated them. I mentioned it looked like I had arrived far too early and she agreed. She offered to put me on the 9:00 flight and I agreed provided I could get First Class. No problem. It was already boarding.
About 15 people waited in line at the foot of the escalator to have tickets and IDs checked. Then at the top of the escalator the process was repeated. Security was as usual except there were more of them standing around and they made me put my cell phone and digital voice recorder through the x-ray. I had my ID scrutinized one more time by a serious-looking Continental agent just before boarding. I felt safe.
I wheeled down the Jetway, turned left, and found a fabled BusinessFirst cabin. I had seat 3B. More than half the 16 roomy seats were filled with uniformed Continental employees, including my seat opponent, a Cleveland-based flight attendant. Legroom was ample and the seat had nice electronic controls, a footrest, and multi-channel personal video. I got a coat-hanging service and a preflight coffee in a plastic cup and settled in for a nice flight. New electronic headsets came in a plastic bag with a note saying you could keep them. I kept a pair for a spare but whipped out my new Bose noise-cancelers for the duration. In coach, an announcement explained the movie was free if you brought your own headsets, the opposite of traditional practice.
We took off on time and quickly broke through the marine layer. It was a nice sunny day in LA if you weren’t on the earth’s surface. They quickly started the movies. They were all wrong compared to the program listing but I found a classic, Monkey Business, starring Cary Grant with Marilyn Monroe in a supporting role. As soon as the movie started the captain made his radio address over the dialogue. The video system did not automatically pause as it did on some United flights.
Breakfast was a choice of omelet, crepes, or cereal. I took the omelet. It came with a tablecloth and was preceded by an appetizer course of papaya and two large, delicious strawberries. They served it with regular silverware except for the knives, which were white plastic. Next came a choice of hot breads. I picked a fluffy orange-cranberry muffin. The main course included bacon, sausage, and tiny potato pancakes. It was all relatively good.
The movie finished and I switched to the main feature to watch classic episodes of Brady Bunch and The Odd Couple. A second food service came, a small but tasty plate of cheese and crackers not quite as generous as the one National serves on the 38-minute flight from Vegas to LA. I didn’t hear any announcement that the second video program would be starting but when I turned back there was an extremely annoying Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis movie on so I watched that and played with Monkeyboy until we started our descent into Newark.
Our approach took us on a path parallel to the Manhattan skyline from north to south. Through the haze and low clouds I could not tell if there was still smoke smoldering from the World Trade Center site but there were definitely no towers there. All the passengers craned their necks to look out. We looked in silence. We landed 25 minutes early.
We waited on the taxiway for some traffic and then headed for the gate. I gathered my belongings and wheeled them out into the concourse. There was a voice mail from Continental saying my return flight was canceled and I should call them. I decided to wait until I could hook up Monkeyboy and check schedules before returning the call. Hunnybear called immediately after. She had just landed in Chicago and had made her tight connection to LaGuardia with nine minutes to spare.
With plenty of time to get to New York before Hunnybear I decided to take the bus to Grand Central Station. I bought a ticket for $11 and waited only a few minutes for the coach. I had a view of a long row of Continental jets, mostly DC-10s. Transient parking next to the bus stop, formerly available to users of Continental’s small-package courier service, was now coned off with warning signs from the FAA. The bus pulled in and a kid loaded my bag underneath after asking where I was going. The ticket agent had thought Penn Station was closer to Union Square but I stuck with Grand Central because I knew I knew how to walk down Park Ave. to the W. The third option, according to the sign behind the counter, was World Trade Center. I didn’t ask.
It was all economy seating so I grabbed a seat next to a Japanese man and across the aisle from an Israeli couple. Friday-evening traffic was nonexistent on the New Jersey Turnpike but as soon as we got off it was bumper to bumper all the way to the Lincoln Tunnel tollbooth. The driver kept a safe 3-inch following distance the whole way.
I kept looking at the skyline but there was an obnoxious mesh spray-painted with advertising covering most of the windows on the bus. There were still no towers and I couldn’t even pick out where they used to be. I did see the Chrysler building, though, and the Empire State, somehow standing taller and more alone than ever before in a proud New York-style **** you to the terrorists.
Huge Old Glories hung over each of the three branches of the Lincoln Tunnel and the traffic was light the rest of the way to Grand Central. Sidewalk hustlers worked hard as usual, this week doing a brisk business in American flags as people stopped their cars and jumped out, engines running, to buy one or five. Banners hung up and down the street in front of Macy’s proclaiming “New York & Co., Shopping Capital of the World!” To make that come true this season, I thought, would require a true miracle on 34th St.
An hour and a quarter after the bus left Newark we arrived at Grand Central Station. It was a beautiful evening, in the mid-70s with a few clouds. I clipped my bags together and wheeled downtown towards Union Square, a little over the 20 city blocks that made a mile in the City. I wheeled past the Sheraton Russell with its matched pair of stone Russell terriers out front, and got a glimpse of the Empire State Building up close, now after dusk lit up red, white, and blue.
New York lived on. Women still dressed smartly, some swapping pumps for tennis shoes just for the walk home from work. Drunken derelicts still talked to themselves, or to nobody. A look through the window of the Hotel Giraffe revealed a couple engaged in a long necking session. Men in white shirts and red ties still sat waiting in black cars. A thousand demonstrators, chanting and carrying signs proclaiming their disapproval of war, walked up Park Ave. “Break the cycle of violence,” one sign read. I wondered how many free shots its owner would give the terrorists. No, I thought, it was too late for New York to turn the other tower.
I got to the W and checked in with a nice clerk named Willy. I showed my Plutonium card and asked if we could possibly have a So Very Suite or a Way Suite or even a Toot Suite but it was not possible because the 90 Free Fridays in town. We had already been upgraded to a Spectacular room but he bumped us up one level to a Sommelier room. I went up and found an ordinary hotel room with a peek of a park view. Finally I could see the smoke, brightly illuminated by electric lights, from the still-smoldering disaster site.
Michael and RichG, New Yorkers, came over to have a drink with me while we waited for Hunnybear to arrive. We had a lovely waitress, Harmony, who took care of us in the signature W comfy lounge. The hotel restaurant at the W Union Square was Olive’s, part of the same chain as the one at Bellagio in Las Vegas. I found out you could order the yummy olive tapanade in the lounge while waiting for a table so you get double tapanade. I ordered a Manhattan in honor of New York City and Michael ordered a whisky sour in honor of he liked whisky sours. RichG had a couple doubles.
Hunnybear arrived, as did Michael’s beautiful girlfriend Claudia, and we put our name in for a table at Olive’s. I told Harmony if a bribe was necessary it was no problem but apparently it was not. We got a VIP booth in the back and ordered a nice bottle of Santa Barbara syrah. It was all good, although not up to the Vegas restaurant in any respect I thought. I had a decent paella and Hunnybear had some kind of red fish. As a rule I don’t eat dessert but Hunnybear and I split just one piece of banana chocolate cake.
There were a handful of firemen in the bar blowing off steam. I talked to one, John, who said frankly they all felt more comfortable when they were at the site instead of being forced to take days off. I told him I realized many people had probably been coming up to him but I just had to add my thanks. We embraced.
We went up to the room to surf the Internet a bit and saw the management of the three pyramid-topped buildings west of Union Square had attempted to illuminate them with red, white, and blue lights but they somehow came out mauve, taupe, and aubergine. We tried to hook up the high-speed Internet access and I was shocked to learn it had not yet been installed in this W. The WebTV ran at a turtle’s pace and the dialup line maxed out at 24k baud. It wasn’t what I expected from a brand-new hotel but frankly I had other things on my mind. We bid goodnight to Michael and Claudia and slept as best we could.
Lion pause:
------------------
I hope you enjoy my Lion Tales. For photos, past travelogues, subscriptions, and more, see www.liontales.com
[This message has been edited by QuietLion (edited 09-22-2001).]
Hunnybear and I weren’t about to cancel our weekend in New York just because of some terrorist attacks so we switched our Starwood Free Weekend from W The Court to W Union Square and triple-checked our flight arrangements to make sure they were still on. Hunnybear was taking United from Lansing, Mich., and I had booked my first transcon on Continental because United had given up competing on price or service.
I had a 10:30 a.m. flight. Normally I would have taken a 9:30 taxi for the 10-minute ride to LAX but today I ordered a cab for 8:15 because of admonitions to arrive at least two hours before flight time. Traffic was light as usual all the way to the airport, where the north Sepulveda entrance remained closed and the Century entrance was still available only to commercial vehicles such as my cab. The airport was a ghost town, almost post-Apocalyptic, empty except for a few shuttles and buses. The last few cars remained in the off-limits central parking garage, waiting for their owners to return from extended trips and claim them, never to return. It wasn’t only New York that was hit.
We pulled up to Terminal 6. I gave the driver an extra buck just because and I wheeled by Briggs & Riley into the concourse. There was a healthy line for economy check-in but none at either the E-ticket kiosks or First Class. I chose the latter because I wanted to make sure it all worked. I showed my ID and asked a smiling but concerned agent if I could carry on my two bags as usual: my Briggs & Riley expandable with garment carrier and my Brenthaven laptop bag. She said they should be fine as long as I wasn’t carrying any shaving equipment. I asked about Mach 3 cartridges and several agents discussed the answer among themselves before replying they were OK today but last week they had confiscated them. I mentioned it looked like I had arrived far too early and she agreed. She offered to put me on the 9:00 flight and I agreed provided I could get First Class. No problem. It was already boarding.
About 15 people waited in line at the foot of the escalator to have tickets and IDs checked. Then at the top of the escalator the process was repeated. Security was as usual except there were more of them standing around and they made me put my cell phone and digital voice recorder through the x-ray. I had my ID scrutinized one more time by a serious-looking Continental agent just before boarding. I felt safe.
I wheeled down the Jetway, turned left, and found a fabled BusinessFirst cabin. I had seat 3B. More than half the 16 roomy seats were filled with uniformed Continental employees, including my seat opponent, a Cleveland-based flight attendant. Legroom was ample and the seat had nice electronic controls, a footrest, and multi-channel personal video. I got a coat-hanging service and a preflight coffee in a plastic cup and settled in for a nice flight. New electronic headsets came in a plastic bag with a note saying you could keep them. I kept a pair for a spare but whipped out my new Bose noise-cancelers for the duration. In coach, an announcement explained the movie was free if you brought your own headsets, the opposite of traditional practice.
We took off on time and quickly broke through the marine layer. It was a nice sunny day in LA if you weren’t on the earth’s surface. They quickly started the movies. They were all wrong compared to the program listing but I found a classic, Monkey Business, starring Cary Grant with Marilyn Monroe in a supporting role. As soon as the movie started the captain made his radio address over the dialogue. The video system did not automatically pause as it did on some United flights.
Breakfast was a choice of omelet, crepes, or cereal. I took the omelet. It came with a tablecloth and was preceded by an appetizer course of papaya and two large, delicious strawberries. They served it with regular silverware except for the knives, which were white plastic. Next came a choice of hot breads. I picked a fluffy orange-cranberry muffin. The main course included bacon, sausage, and tiny potato pancakes. It was all relatively good.
The movie finished and I switched to the main feature to watch classic episodes of Brady Bunch and The Odd Couple. A second food service came, a small but tasty plate of cheese and crackers not quite as generous as the one National serves on the 38-minute flight from Vegas to LA. I didn’t hear any announcement that the second video program would be starting but when I turned back there was an extremely annoying Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis movie on so I watched that and played with Monkeyboy until we started our descent into Newark.
Our approach took us on a path parallel to the Manhattan skyline from north to south. Through the haze and low clouds I could not tell if there was still smoke smoldering from the World Trade Center site but there were definitely no towers there. All the passengers craned their necks to look out. We looked in silence. We landed 25 minutes early.
We waited on the taxiway for some traffic and then headed for the gate. I gathered my belongings and wheeled them out into the concourse. There was a voice mail from Continental saying my return flight was canceled and I should call them. I decided to wait until I could hook up Monkeyboy and check schedules before returning the call. Hunnybear called immediately after. She had just landed in Chicago and had made her tight connection to LaGuardia with nine minutes to spare.
With plenty of time to get to New York before Hunnybear I decided to take the bus to Grand Central Station. I bought a ticket for $11 and waited only a few minutes for the coach. I had a view of a long row of Continental jets, mostly DC-10s. Transient parking next to the bus stop, formerly available to users of Continental’s small-package courier service, was now coned off with warning signs from the FAA. The bus pulled in and a kid loaded my bag underneath after asking where I was going. The ticket agent had thought Penn Station was closer to Union Square but I stuck with Grand Central because I knew I knew how to walk down Park Ave. to the W. The third option, according to the sign behind the counter, was World Trade Center. I didn’t ask.
It was all economy seating so I grabbed a seat next to a Japanese man and across the aisle from an Israeli couple. Friday-evening traffic was nonexistent on the New Jersey Turnpike but as soon as we got off it was bumper to bumper all the way to the Lincoln Tunnel tollbooth. The driver kept a safe 3-inch following distance the whole way.
I kept looking at the skyline but there was an obnoxious mesh spray-painted with advertising covering most of the windows on the bus. There were still no towers and I couldn’t even pick out where they used to be. I did see the Chrysler building, though, and the Empire State, somehow standing taller and more alone than ever before in a proud New York-style **** you to the terrorists.
Huge Old Glories hung over each of the three branches of the Lincoln Tunnel and the traffic was light the rest of the way to Grand Central. Sidewalk hustlers worked hard as usual, this week doing a brisk business in American flags as people stopped their cars and jumped out, engines running, to buy one or five. Banners hung up and down the street in front of Macy’s proclaiming “New York & Co., Shopping Capital of the World!” To make that come true this season, I thought, would require a true miracle on 34th St.
An hour and a quarter after the bus left Newark we arrived at Grand Central Station. It was a beautiful evening, in the mid-70s with a few clouds. I clipped my bags together and wheeled downtown towards Union Square, a little over the 20 city blocks that made a mile in the City. I wheeled past the Sheraton Russell with its matched pair of stone Russell terriers out front, and got a glimpse of the Empire State Building up close, now after dusk lit up red, white, and blue.
New York lived on. Women still dressed smartly, some swapping pumps for tennis shoes just for the walk home from work. Drunken derelicts still talked to themselves, or to nobody. A look through the window of the Hotel Giraffe revealed a couple engaged in a long necking session. Men in white shirts and red ties still sat waiting in black cars. A thousand demonstrators, chanting and carrying signs proclaiming their disapproval of war, walked up Park Ave. “Break the cycle of violence,” one sign read. I wondered how many free shots its owner would give the terrorists. No, I thought, it was too late for New York to turn the other tower.
I got to the W and checked in with a nice clerk named Willy. I showed my Plutonium card and asked if we could possibly have a So Very Suite or a Way Suite or even a Toot Suite but it was not possible because the 90 Free Fridays in town. We had already been upgraded to a Spectacular room but he bumped us up one level to a Sommelier room. I went up and found an ordinary hotel room with a peek of a park view. Finally I could see the smoke, brightly illuminated by electric lights, from the still-smoldering disaster site.
Michael and RichG, New Yorkers, came over to have a drink with me while we waited for Hunnybear to arrive. We had a lovely waitress, Harmony, who took care of us in the signature W comfy lounge. The hotel restaurant at the W Union Square was Olive’s, part of the same chain as the one at Bellagio in Las Vegas. I found out you could order the yummy olive tapanade in the lounge while waiting for a table so you get double tapanade. I ordered a Manhattan in honor of New York City and Michael ordered a whisky sour in honor of he liked whisky sours. RichG had a couple doubles.
Hunnybear arrived, as did Michael’s beautiful girlfriend Claudia, and we put our name in for a table at Olive’s. I told Harmony if a bribe was necessary it was no problem but apparently it was not. We got a VIP booth in the back and ordered a nice bottle of Santa Barbara syrah. It was all good, although not up to the Vegas restaurant in any respect I thought. I had a decent paella and Hunnybear had some kind of red fish. As a rule I don’t eat dessert but Hunnybear and I split just one piece of banana chocolate cake.
There were a handful of firemen in the bar blowing off steam. I talked to one, John, who said frankly they all felt more comfortable when they were at the site instead of being forced to take days off. I told him I realized many people had probably been coming up to him but I just had to add my thanks. We embraced.
We went up to the room to surf the Internet a bit and saw the management of the three pyramid-topped buildings west of Union Square had attempted to illuminate them with red, white, and blue lights but they somehow came out mauve, taupe, and aubergine. We tried to hook up the high-speed Internet access and I was shocked to learn it had not yet been installed in this W. The WebTV ran at a turtle’s pace and the dialup line maxed out at 24k baud. It wasn’t what I expected from a brand-new hotel but frankly I had other things on my mind. We bid goodnight to Michael and Claudia and slept as best we could.
Lion pause:
- Last time in New York, Hunnybear and I watched The Out-of-Towners. Compared with today’s issues, the crowds, storms, and muggings seem like the stuff of fairy tales.
- Kevin couldn’t come to New York this time because he and Lara were attending a wedding in Sequim, Wash. (pronounced “squim.”) I admonished them to be careful because there were indications Sequim could be the terrorists’ next target.
- The skyscraper was the symbol of the industrial age, so much so that Chrysler Motors built the world’s tallest one in the midst of a city less dependent on cars than any other in America. Will anyone want to work in such a high-profile building again?
------------------
I hope you enjoy my Lion Tales. For photos, past travelogues, subscriptions, and more, see www.liontales.com
[This message has been edited by QuietLion (edited 09-22-2001).]
Sep 22, 2001, 10:26 am
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Reality, Freedom • Fly Tarom •
Programs: AF FB Platinum For Life (F+ Rouge Vintage®) / Hertz President's Circle / SNCF Grand Voyageur Le Club
Posts: 10,077
Thanks. I enjoyed this report.
Only sorry to hear you didn't get the "Toot Suite".
Only sorry to hear you didn't get the "Toot Suite".
Sep 22, 2001, 12:28 pm
#3
Join Date: Feb 1999
Location: New York, NY, AA 4MM PLT, BA Gold, VS Gold, Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, Marriott Gold, Hyatt Platinum, IHG Platinum, CC Gold
Posts: 1,098
Enjoyable report as always and nice to know that you are not giving into the terrorists.
I believe that the pyramid topped buildings that you are referring to are Zeckendorf Towers.
Enjoy NYC and take a walk in Union Square to see the "WTC memorial".
I believe that the pyramid topped buildings that you are referring to are Zeckendorf Towers.
Enjoy NYC and take a walk in Union Square to see the "WTC memorial".
Sep 22, 2001, 12:58 pm
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 1999
Location: Seat 1A, Juice pretty much everywhere, Mucci des Coins Exotiques
Posts: 34,339
Kudos for not giving in to the terrorists and continuing with your travel plans. I have to admit that I would really love to visit NY now to talk to people there and help out where I can. Your report solidifies that feeling.
But business requires that I have to continue my existing travel plans that take me elsewhere. Maybe Christmas in NY?
But business requires that I have to continue my existing travel plans that take me elsewhere. Maybe Christmas in NY?
Sep 22, 2001, 2:27 pm
#5
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Highland Park, IL USA
Programs: AA PLT 2MM, UA Plat, SPG Gold, HH Gold
Posts: 561
Nice report, QL. Glad to see that the normal three inch following distance rule still applies in the NYC area.
I was supposed to be in NYC tomorrow myself but turns out I wasn't needed at the meeting...nothing to do with whether or not to travel.
Recently stayed at the W San Francisco but didn't have a need to use the in-room Internet. Would have been great to find an Olive's branch (pun not intended
) there, as I was never able to eat at the original while I lived in Boston. Guess I will have to do so in NYC or in Vegas.
I was supposed to be in NYC tomorrow myself but turns out I wasn't needed at the meeting...nothing to do with whether or not to travel.
Recently stayed at the W San Francisco but didn't have a need to use the in-room Internet. Would have been great to find an Olive's branch (pun not intended
) there, as I was never able to eat at the original while I lived in Boston. Guess I will have to do so in NYC or in Vegas.
Sep 22, 2001, 4:44 pm
#7
Join Date: May 1999
Location: Central New Jersey
Programs: UA-Platimum 2 MM, HH-Gold, MR-Lifetime Gold, Hyatt-Discoverist
Posts: 6,238
Nice report Quiet Lion, how were the rooms at the W Union Square? As small as the W uptown or better??? Good to see you and Honeybear made it into the city and are safe and sound.
Sep 22, 2001, 6:07 pm
#8
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Winnipeg Canada, Cambridge England. CP - EP (R.I.P.) formerly AC-SE now lower than the lowest low.
Posts: 828
QL, I'm delighted you hav'nt let your standards drop, and are supporting the Economy in NY.
The Ba-stards hav'nt got you down.
Raise a Glass to the fallen for us.
Stewart.
The Ba-stards hav'nt got you down.
Raise a Glass to the fallen for us.
Stewart.
Sep 23, 2001, 12:24 am
#9
Join Date: May 2000
Location: DXB
Programs: QF Plat QC Life Member; AA Plat; EK Silv; SPG Plat; Hyatt Diamond; Sirius (Jumeirah) Silver
Posts: 285
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by QuietLion:
We took off on time and quickly broke through the marine layer. It was a nice sunny day in LA if you weren’t on the earth’s surface.
</font>
We took off on time and quickly broke through the marine layer. It was a nice sunny day in LA if you weren’t on the earth’s surface.
</font>
I needed resuscitation after that.
As always, a fantastic trip report. Please always keep them coming.
Sep 23, 2001, 8:39 am
#10
Original Member
Original Poster
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kirkland, WA
Posts: 6,932
Visit to the wreckage
We opened the drapes and turned on the TV. Everything looked peaceful so I fired up Monkeyboy and wrote while Hunnybear jumped up and down on my head and gently reminded me not to spend our whole time in New York in our hotel room. With all the talk of airport security confiscating Mach 3 razors I must have subconsciously left mine at home because I discovered I had nothing, not even a backup, in either of my two shaving kits. I got a disposable razor from the front desk in a trendy white box.
Since my 6 p.m. return flight on Sunday had been canceled I called Continental to see what could be done. They stonewalled me on taking another airline or getting a refund. I said I didn’t think that was right but signed up for the 8:10 flight for the time being. First Class was sold out.
We went for a walk and headed downtown. Weather was perfect, sunny and 70. Union Square was full of photos, flowers, people soliciting donations, and crazies talking loudly to no one in particular. We ended up at Canteen in SoHo for brunch. It was a downstairs restaurant with orange retro-sixties chairs shaped like Mick Jagger’s tongue. They brought around fresh banana bread and strawberry butter. I had a bowl of gazpacho and a nice Cobb salad while Hunnybear had an omelet.
We continued south and at Canal St. saw the first signs of the fallout from Sept. 11. Three TV satellite trucks were parked in a lot on the corner. Blue sawhorses marked “police line do not cross” lined the sidewalks but they must have been the remnants of a previous perimeter because they were letting people cross and letting pedestrians, but not cars, continue south on Church St. We crossed and saw state troopers guarding the street entrance. AT&T had set up a tent so people could make wireless phone calls.
A huge yellow flatbed truck carried away just three enormous steel girders with twisted ends. How many more of these must there have been? We smelled fresh paint at we approached White St., where Sixth Ave. converged with Church. A New York State Dept. of Transportation emergency-response unit was parked on the street, then at Franklin St. a New York City Housing Dept. command center. Just past Franklin we began to see a smoky haze, flashing lights, and cranes in the distance. The air smelled faintly of sulfur, like it did after a fireworks display. A narrow path of fresh asphalt close to the curb betrayed some recent utility work. An enormous dump truck made a right turn in front of us, presumably hauling away some of the 80,000 tons of wreckage disposed of so far. A flyer for the Eden Day Spa was stuck up on a phone booth. “Attention New York Police, Fire, Rescue Workers,” it read. “Our facilities are available for you.”
Finally at Duane St. the sidewalks were cordoned off. We turned left and found the fire station of Engine Company No. 7 and Ladder Company No. 1. Spread out in front were dozens of hand-designed white T-shirts, flowers, candy, cookies—all in memorial tribute to the fallen. A plaque on the side of the building listed the names of the firefighters who had given their lives in the line of duty since 1880. There were 12 names. On Sept. 11 some 200 firefighters died trying to save the victims of the World Trade Center attack.
Broadway was open heading downtown so we turned right and continued in silence. A father took a picture of his boy with a policeman. The boy wore the cop’s hat. At Chambers St. we had to cross over to the far side because the sidewalk on the right was closed. Another dump truck passed, this time carrying visible debris. Soldiers in camouflage guarded the entrance to Warren St. Another AT&T tent offered phone service. Evangelists handed out leaflets urging passers-by to “call out His name while you have the chance.”
Con Edison trucks carrying giant spools of electrical cable parked at Park Place. A darkly ironic sign on the 760.5-foot Woolworth Tower, once the world’s tallest building but now undergoing renovation, proclaimed “State of the art in 1913, state of the future in 2000.” I surely hoped it wouldn’t be the tallest building in town again anytime soon. Another wild-eyed evangelist shouting at us to believe! believe! believe! carried a sign with a web site you could check for further information about God.
Just on the other side of the Woolworth tower we saw the first damaged building a block down. We kept walking and found a large crowd of people just standing and watching. There wasn’t much to see besides a crane but people were taking pictures and reporters from all over the world were interviewing and filming. We detoured east on Ann St. Three more soldiers in camo rode a John Deere Gator down the middle of the street. We turned south again. Soldiers guarded each of the next several streets, letting people out but not in. Finally at Maiden Lane we were permitted to turn right. There we could see the twisted base of the supporting wall of one of the towers, all that was left.
We stood and stared at the devastation for about five minutes. Then a well-decorated police captain asked us all to walk the other way. They wanted to close the sidewalks here. We followed the perimeter once again to the south. Windows were caked with gray dust. We hurried past a pile of stranded garbage and turned right once again at the next block. We found ourselves in Liberty Plaza, right underneath One Liberty Plaza, the building it was feared would topple but it was still standing. From there, though, we had a full-on view of the devastation. We saw all the remnants of the towers, the cranes, a pile of rubble and twisted beams seven stories high. Surrounding buildings had windows blown out. One had a corner torn off. We stared in silence.
I saw a plastic American flag on the ground, inadvertently being trampled by a woman taking photos. I retrieved it and dusted if off. We simultaneously decided we had seen enough and turned away.
A block away workers were pressure-washing buildings, cleaning the dirt and ash away. Banners hung from the streetlights: “NYC & Company: Financial Capital of the World.” Four firefighters rode a John Deere Gator back toward the devastation.
We instinctively headed for the water. We walked through the South St. Seaport and then sat on a bench. After seeing one of the most horrific sights of our lives—and it was much, much more horrible in person than on TV—we sat and looked at something beautiful for the better part of an hour: the Brooklyn Bridge. When we were ready we walked up Mulberry St. and then hailed a cab to take us the last mile to Union Square.
The wedding in Brooklyn that was postponed last time we were in town happened tonight. We met Michael and shared a cab to Flatbush. We wished Howard and Diane mazel tov and then walked to Atlantic and hailed a cab back to Manhattan.
We had dinner reservations at Asia de Cuba, kindly made for us by the manager of Red Square in Las Vegas, so we had the cab drop us there and Claudia met us. Asia de Cuba was a stealth restaurant and would be easy to miss, marked only by a faintly lettered frosted-glass panel on the front door. We sat down and quickly had a round of mojitos. Claudia had a caipirinha, a mojito without the mint. We started with tuna tartare, which came in a pagoda-like tower, crispy calamari salad, and a superb seared foie gras served on French toast. It was family style so we all sampled it all. We then ordered a couple entrees, the wok-seared whole fish and the wonderful miso-glazed Atlantic salmon. As a rule I don’t eat dessert but Michael ordered just one Coconut Invasion so I had a few bites. The manager came by and introduced himself and we gave him full marks for the excellent meal. He invited us to try their other location in the Hotel Mondrian on Sunset in Los Angeles.
The weather couldn’t have been more perfect as we walked back downtown to the W Union Square. We were both still shaken from our visit to the attack site. We flipped on the news to make sure there was no new danger and then went to bed.
Lion pause:
------------------
I hope you enjoy my Lion Tales. For photos, past travelogues, subscriptions, and more, see www.liontales.com
We opened the drapes and turned on the TV. Everything looked peaceful so I fired up Monkeyboy and wrote while Hunnybear jumped up and down on my head and gently reminded me not to spend our whole time in New York in our hotel room. With all the talk of airport security confiscating Mach 3 razors I must have subconsciously left mine at home because I discovered I had nothing, not even a backup, in either of my two shaving kits. I got a disposable razor from the front desk in a trendy white box.
Since my 6 p.m. return flight on Sunday had been canceled I called Continental to see what could be done. They stonewalled me on taking another airline or getting a refund. I said I didn’t think that was right but signed up for the 8:10 flight for the time being. First Class was sold out.
We went for a walk and headed downtown. Weather was perfect, sunny and 70. Union Square was full of photos, flowers, people soliciting donations, and crazies talking loudly to no one in particular. We ended up at Canteen in SoHo for brunch. It was a downstairs restaurant with orange retro-sixties chairs shaped like Mick Jagger’s tongue. They brought around fresh banana bread and strawberry butter. I had a bowl of gazpacho and a nice Cobb salad while Hunnybear had an omelet.
We continued south and at Canal St. saw the first signs of the fallout from Sept. 11. Three TV satellite trucks were parked in a lot on the corner. Blue sawhorses marked “police line do not cross” lined the sidewalks but they must have been the remnants of a previous perimeter because they were letting people cross and letting pedestrians, but not cars, continue south on Church St. We crossed and saw state troopers guarding the street entrance. AT&T had set up a tent so people could make wireless phone calls.
A huge yellow flatbed truck carried away just three enormous steel girders with twisted ends. How many more of these must there have been? We smelled fresh paint at we approached White St., where Sixth Ave. converged with Church. A New York State Dept. of Transportation emergency-response unit was parked on the street, then at Franklin St. a New York City Housing Dept. command center. Just past Franklin we began to see a smoky haze, flashing lights, and cranes in the distance. The air smelled faintly of sulfur, like it did after a fireworks display. A narrow path of fresh asphalt close to the curb betrayed some recent utility work. An enormous dump truck made a right turn in front of us, presumably hauling away some of the 80,000 tons of wreckage disposed of so far. A flyer for the Eden Day Spa was stuck up on a phone booth. “Attention New York Police, Fire, Rescue Workers,” it read. “Our facilities are available for you.”
Finally at Duane St. the sidewalks were cordoned off. We turned left and found the fire station of Engine Company No. 7 and Ladder Company No. 1. Spread out in front were dozens of hand-designed white T-shirts, flowers, candy, cookies—all in memorial tribute to the fallen. A plaque on the side of the building listed the names of the firefighters who had given their lives in the line of duty since 1880. There were 12 names. On Sept. 11 some 200 firefighters died trying to save the victims of the World Trade Center attack.
Broadway was open heading downtown so we turned right and continued in silence. A father took a picture of his boy with a policeman. The boy wore the cop’s hat. At Chambers St. we had to cross over to the far side because the sidewalk on the right was closed. Another dump truck passed, this time carrying visible debris. Soldiers in camouflage guarded the entrance to Warren St. Another AT&T tent offered phone service. Evangelists handed out leaflets urging passers-by to “call out His name while you have the chance.”
Con Edison trucks carrying giant spools of electrical cable parked at Park Place. A darkly ironic sign on the 760.5-foot Woolworth Tower, once the world’s tallest building but now undergoing renovation, proclaimed “State of the art in 1913, state of the future in 2000.” I surely hoped it wouldn’t be the tallest building in town again anytime soon. Another wild-eyed evangelist shouting at us to believe! believe! believe! carried a sign with a web site you could check for further information about God.
Just on the other side of the Woolworth tower we saw the first damaged building a block down. We kept walking and found a large crowd of people just standing and watching. There wasn’t much to see besides a crane but people were taking pictures and reporters from all over the world were interviewing and filming. We detoured east on Ann St. Three more soldiers in camo rode a John Deere Gator down the middle of the street. We turned south again. Soldiers guarded each of the next several streets, letting people out but not in. Finally at Maiden Lane we were permitted to turn right. There we could see the twisted base of the supporting wall of one of the towers, all that was left.
We stood and stared at the devastation for about five minutes. Then a well-decorated police captain asked us all to walk the other way. They wanted to close the sidewalks here. We followed the perimeter once again to the south. Windows were caked with gray dust. We hurried past a pile of stranded garbage and turned right once again at the next block. We found ourselves in Liberty Plaza, right underneath One Liberty Plaza, the building it was feared would topple but it was still standing. From there, though, we had a full-on view of the devastation. We saw all the remnants of the towers, the cranes, a pile of rubble and twisted beams seven stories high. Surrounding buildings had windows blown out. One had a corner torn off. We stared in silence.
I saw a plastic American flag on the ground, inadvertently being trampled by a woman taking photos. I retrieved it and dusted if off. We simultaneously decided we had seen enough and turned away.
A block away workers were pressure-washing buildings, cleaning the dirt and ash away. Banners hung from the streetlights: “NYC & Company: Financial Capital of the World.” Four firefighters rode a John Deere Gator back toward the devastation.
We instinctively headed for the water. We walked through the South St. Seaport and then sat on a bench. After seeing one of the most horrific sights of our lives—and it was much, much more horrible in person than on TV—we sat and looked at something beautiful for the better part of an hour: the Brooklyn Bridge. When we were ready we walked up Mulberry St. and then hailed a cab to take us the last mile to Union Square.
The wedding in Brooklyn that was postponed last time we were in town happened tonight. We met Michael and shared a cab to Flatbush. We wished Howard and Diane mazel tov and then walked to Atlantic and hailed a cab back to Manhattan.
We had dinner reservations at Asia de Cuba, kindly made for us by the manager of Red Square in Las Vegas, so we had the cab drop us there and Claudia met us. Asia de Cuba was a stealth restaurant and would be easy to miss, marked only by a faintly lettered frosted-glass panel on the front door. We sat down and quickly had a round of mojitos. Claudia had a caipirinha, a mojito without the mint. We started with tuna tartare, which came in a pagoda-like tower, crispy calamari salad, and a superb seared foie gras served on French toast. It was family style so we all sampled it all. We then ordered a couple entrees, the wok-seared whole fish and the wonderful miso-glazed Atlantic salmon. As a rule I don’t eat dessert but Michael ordered just one Coconut Invasion so I had a few bites. The manager came by and introduced himself and we gave him full marks for the excellent meal. He invited us to try their other location in the Hotel Mondrian on Sunset in Los Angeles.
The weather couldn’t have been more perfect as we walked back downtown to the W Union Square. We were both still shaken from our visit to the attack site. We flipped on the news to make sure there was no new danger and then went to bed.
Lion pause:
- Rooms at the W Union Square are much nicer than the ones at the original W. More to the point, it’s the first W in New York that has a bathroom worthy of a four-star hotel.
- A McDonald’s at 28th and Park advertised “ATM inside! Only 99¢!” It was the first time I had seen a fee for an ATM plugged as a benefit.
- It’s much more quiet than usual in New York. People aren’t talking much, or if they are there’s only one topic of conversation.
------------------
I hope you enjoy my Lion Tales. For photos, past travelogues, subscriptions, and more, see www.liontales.com
Sep 23, 2001, 1:45 pm
#11
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Valley Springs, Ca USA;Proud Retired AAer SJC Ramp/ AA- 2 MM Platinum;Hilton Diamond
Posts: 851
QL,
I am both a police officer (22 years) and an AA employee (15 years). To say I was traumatized on 9/11 would be a gross understatement. The world will never be the same. As a long-time fan of your travelogs, I cannot tell you what a catharsis your trip to New York report is, since your narration is in your usual entertaining style while giving the gravity of what you witnessed the appropriate perspective.
As a rule, I avoid gratuitous sentimentality, but your trip to New York in the face of what happened has reassured me life must go on.
Thanks.
I am both a police officer (22 years) and an AA employee (15 years). To say I was traumatized on 9/11 would be a gross understatement. The world will never be the same. As a long-time fan of your travelogs, I cannot tell you what a catharsis your trip to New York report is, since your narration is in your usual entertaining style while giving the gravity of what you witnessed the appropriate perspective.
As a rule, I avoid gratuitous sentimentality, but your trip to New York in the face of what happened has reassured me life must go on.
Thanks.
Sep 23, 2001, 2:20 pm
#12
Suspended
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Seattle
Programs: Ephesians 4:31-32
Posts: 10,690
Thanks, QuietLion, for the report. Excellent as always.
Our whole family is going to NYC later this week. We are staying at the Essex House using the great $199 rate, including carriage ride in Central Park, which doc posted, for Hunki and I, and a free Friday and Saturday for the kids. We hope to be able to get tickets to The Lion King, which we previously have not been able to see.
Support New York! Go and spend money!
Our whole family is going to NYC later this week. We are staying at the Essex House using the great $199 rate, including carriage ride in Central Park, which doc posted, for Hunki and I, and a free Friday and Saturday for the kids. We hope to be able to get tickets to The Lion King, which we previously have not been able to see.
Support New York! Go and spend money!
Sep 23, 2001, 5:23 pm
#13
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: May 1999
Posts: 46,817
Thanks QL, as always for the fine report!
Of course, I'm sad to have missed you. LarryU was also in town. And as it turned out, in a strange twist, our trip to BOS was called off at the very last minute!
---
Just as Mayor Guillani has been saying!
Is that "Hattuta muttata?" No worries!
While truly it is a changed place/world, I trust your upcoming trip will be "great", as always!
Of course, I'm sad to have missed you. LarryU was also in town. And as it turned out, in a strange twist, our trip to BOS was called off at the very last minute!
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Punki:
Thanks, QuietLion, for the report. Excellent as always.
Our whole family is going to NYC later this week. We are staying at the Essex House using the great $199 rate, including carriage ride in Central Park, which doc posted, for Hunki and I, and a free Friday and Saturday for the kids. We hope to be able to get tickets to The Lion King, which we previously have not been able to see.
Support New York! Go and spend money!</font>
Thanks, QuietLion, for the report. Excellent as always.
Our whole family is going to NYC later this week. We are staying at the Essex House using the great $199 rate, including carriage ride in Central Park, which doc posted, for Hunki and I, and a free Friday and Saturday for the kids. We hope to be able to get tickets to The Lion King, which we previously have not been able to see.
Support New York! Go and spend money!</font>
Just as Mayor Guillani has been saying!
Is that "Hattuta muttata?" No worries!
While truly it is a changed place/world, I trust your upcoming trip will be "great", as always!
Sep 23, 2001, 8:52 pm
#14
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Lake Oswego, OR
Programs: UA 1K 2MM, Marriott Lifetime Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,202
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by doc:
Thanks QL, as always for the fine report!
Of course, I'm sad to have missed you. LarryU was also in town. And as it turned out, in a strange twist, our trip to BOS was called off at the very last minute!
</font>
Thanks QL, as always for the fine report!
Of course, I'm sad to have missed you. LarryU was also in town. And as it turned out, in a strange twist, our trip to BOS was called off at the very last minute!
</font>