NYC - Lower Manhattan - Travel Around the Galaxy

Lower Manhattan is the beating heart of the American Capitalist machine. This is where you will find New York’s financial district, including Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange and many major US and World Bank headquarters. The whole area has a certain buzz to it. If you’re lucky enough to visit on a weekday when the markets close, the streets are filled with suits and the air smells like money; it is a unique opportunity for people watching.

It is also a good place to begin your exploration of the city. There is Battery Park located at the southern tip, which looks over the water towards New Jersey, Staten Island and the Statue of Liberty. My first trip to New York in 2006, this is where I began. It’s easy to get to via the subway, and if you’re lucky enough to have good weather you can start at the bottom and just walk north towards the rest of the city. Even without much planning, it’s difficult to not run into a recognizable landmark on your walk.

As you travel north from Battery Park, you can walk through the Financial District and eventually arrive at Ground Zero, the former home of the two World Trade Center towers. Today it has been transformed into the 9/11 Memorial, with the new World Trade Tower surrounded by a massive park, which includes the two reflecting pools which stand in the footprint of the two collapsed towers.

Over the last 12 years of visiting the city, I have captured a few pictures which document the slow rebirth and reconstruction of the location. In 2013, we were lucky enough to get a chance to climb to the top of the new World Trade Tower, which allowed for amazing views of the city.

As you travel north from the financial district you stumble upon historic Little Italy and Chinatown, which sit side by side near the edge of the Manhattan Bridge. Here the tall buildings of Lower Manhattan fade into the old brick style buildings that spread out between here, Central and Midtown Manhattan. There are many historic buildings and hidden restaurants and shops to occupy your time before you head to Central Manhattan.

New York is a massive city, and over the last 12 years, I have traveled here several times and still haven’t had a chance to see everything. There is no shortage of things to do, and you will always leave the city wanting more. It’s best to just enjoy the ride, and try to see as much as you can each trip. It’s always fun to re-live the journeys of the past by going through my photo archives. This is the first of several NYC posts planned for the next few weeks, we hope you enjoy.