History Geek - NEW YORK

Theme song : New York – Alicia Keys

Hi again people,

How are you? I hope everyone is happy and cheerful.

Okay so as promised earlier, here’s a blog post about #HistoryGeek which goes on air every Saturday at 7pm to 8pm only in UMalaya Radio.

*This is a recap on the first week of History Geek*

To start it off, I chose a city that I have always love since I don’t remember when. Yup, as the theme song suggested its NEW YORK people. The city where MAGIC happens, or that’s what I always believe in.

As a little girl , I remember watching a movie played by the little naïve Lindsay Lohan called ‘ Parents Trap ‘. In the movie, LiLo doubled up as a pair of twins that made a pact to unite both of their parents which went through a lot of hassle and troubles in the way. In the end, both of their parents got married in a church in the middle of New York. I remember thinking how beautiful the church looks like and how huge New York seems to be from the movie itself.

There are also other movies, books and TV shows that takes part in New York mainly, and all of them never failed to awe me by the architecture, attitude of the people and the drama that revolves in and around the city.

I guess, what I love about it was the hustle and bustle of the city, how people go around trying to get things done here and there and how there’s a mix of diversity of people compacted in the whole city itself.

Alright, so that’s about it the introduction to the city which already take a few space here ( sorry, I just cannot  contain myself whenever I am talking about the Big Apple ). So let us move on to the factual part ( and a more serious part ) of this blog post.

Let us start with the history of it shall we?

New York in the early years was owned by the Lenape or also known as the Native Americans. Back  then , they were living in free seasonal campsite and were freely hunted and fished along the regional borderline. Spear points, arrowheads, bone heaps and shell mounds testify to their presence. Some of their pathways still lie beneath streets such as Broadway. In the Lenape language of Munsee, the term Manhattan may have translated as ‘hilly island.’ Others trace the meaning to a more colorful phrase: ‘place of general inebriation.’ However in 1524, the region was uncovered by a Florentine explorer named Giovanni da Verrazano who first explored the Upper Bay describing it as a beautiful lake. Then in 1624, the Dutch West India Company started trading activities in Lower Manhattan where they named the place as the New Amsterdam. Since then, it developed into a trading nation which have went through a series of troubles along the way.

Read more: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/new-york-city/history#ixzz2wrV2TxLq

Oh and here is my favorite part of the city, the beautiful architecture around the city.

As it has come a long way from the existence of the city to where it stands now, New York is well known with its own characteristics in architecture that has awed architecture geeks since a very long time. Generally New York is divided into four main parts, the Lower Manhattan, Lower East Side, Midtown and Upper West Side. And from these four parts of the town. It holds its own gems such as the Statue of Liberty, One Fifth Avenue, Chrysler Building and the all-time favorite Central Park. You can just google the buildings i stated here anyway, hehe. 

And soooo, what else is there in New York that is A MUST for every tourist? ( aside from getting on one of the oh-so-famous Yellow cabs that sprawled all around the Big Apple )

Here’s a list of the 10 Must visit place/to do when you are in New York

( my own version, influence mostly by HIMYM and Cecelia Ahern books hehe )

1. Times Square ( go to the middle of TS and scream there , oh well that what I would do )

2. City Park ( especially in Winter and Autumn!! )

3. Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ( for the tourist feel of it hehe )

4.  Brooklyn Bridge ( effects from watching too much HIMYM )

5.  Staten Island ferry ride

6. Bronx Zoo ( have you ever watched Madagascar? Yeap you get it why )

7.  Eat hotdogs from one of the street vendors ( to get the whole NYC thing, but be careful tho in choosing what you are eating )

8. Visit downtown Manhattan and have stroll in one of the streets and maybe have a shopping spree while you’re at it

9. Visit the 9/11 memorial

10. Window shopping at fifth avenue and stroll around the area acting rich ( when you’re not )

And  with that , I shall leave you with a travel log of New York which i think is very interesting although the person didnt really focus on the buildings and place he visited. I would do something like this but with a much 'fun' factor when i finally have the chance to go New York myself. 

    Till then, 

     Love, Aishah.