Wet & Windy New York City!

The weather today was horrible from the start - windy & wet as we boarded our bus to drive into New York City.
The traffic wasn't too bad so we arrived in Lower Manhattan close to an hour early - enough time to take a short walk & visit some of the more famous sights of the financial district.  But as we began our walk through Battery Park the skies opened even more & getting off the bus suddenly wasn't such a great idea!  Still we made the best of it to make sure we saw the sights we came to see.
First we were just about to glimpse the Statue of Liberty through the mist & rain from the southernmost tip of Manhattan island.  Then, a few yards away on Bowling Green we had the famous Wall Street bull all to ourselves - usually it is surrounded by hordes of tourists but this morning most visitors were trying to stay dry!
Another short walk up Broadway, down on Wall Street, we saw both the New York Stock Exchange & Federal Hall - once the site of the capitol of the United States & the spot where George Washington was inaugurated president.
Our final sightseeing this morning was at the 9/11 Memorial & museum.  Unfortunately the much heralded museum is behind schedule & has not yet opened.  So the memorial site, with the two huge footprints of the Twin Towers, was something of a disappointment as it is all open-air.

The Statue of Liberty, just visible through the mist & rain!

The Wall Street Bull

The start of Broadway, Lower Manhattan

George Washington at Federal Hall

By now we were all wet & cold so we reboarded our bus for the drive up to Midtown & our lunch destination - Grand Central Terminal.  

After visiting the spectacular main concourse there was plenty of time to enjoy the many choices in the huge food halls below the station, as well as to dry out a little.

Grand Central Terminal - out of the rain at last!

The rain didn't look to be stopping anytime soon so we decided to change plans & visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art this afternoon (instead of tomorrow when we our reserved time is booked).  So we headed to this enormous museum - the largest in the western hemisphere - for the afternoon, a warm & dry haven from the weather.

The Greek & Roman Galleries at The MET

Meeting at The MET

Ramses II at The MET

It had finally stopped raining when we left so we had time for a little more shopping & sightseeing in Times Square before this evenings dinner, a pizza, pasta & salad buffet.  

Our final visit today was to the nearby Lincoln Center, & specifically to the Juilliard School, to see the New Juilliard Ensemble perform.  With the students not being a lot older than some of the group it was hopefully inspiring to see these world-class young musicians performing in such a prestigious & impressive venue.

After the performance our driver Mike was on hand once more to whisk us home at the end of a long, wet day that was still a lot of fun & filled with great experiences!

At the Lincoln Center, just before our Juilliard School concert