NEW YORK is the kind of place you need to visit multiple times – it is that big! Within the space of a week, we had visited twice, as we had a few days visiting Vermont in between, and we packed in as much as we could. Prior to that, we were last in New York City in summer 2017, and we are sure to return at some point in the future. There is that much to see and do!

Times Square was as crazy as it always has been and weirdly it seemed to smell a lot better than when we last visited! The place was heaving with tourists and crawling with costumed characters, wanting gratuities in exchange for a selfie. We laughed at ‘Mucky Mouse’, a kind of off-brand Mickey, as we had seen him last summer on Hollywood Blvd. Despite their questionable likeness to the characters they were meant to be, visitors were lapping them up and it was great for us to people watch as we came and went over the course of our time in Midtown Manhattan.

On our night of arrival (Sat Jul 27 2024), there was a bit of commotion: a group of Trump supporters were waving flags and placards in a barriered corner. NYPD cops were in attendance, presumably ensuring the group remained in their designated area.

Trump supporters at Times Square, New York City (July 2024)

Elsewhere, early in the morning, we saw that a section of Times Square had been cordoned off for ABC’s Good Morning America show to broadcast live from. The ABC studio, of course, looks down on Times Square.

Good Morning America, Times Square, New York City

On another occasion, apparent NYPD civilian workers were double-lining 7^th Ave. with crowd control barriers, creating a sizeable void between the road and the sidewalks. It made us wonder if an event was due to take place?

Always something going on in Times Square!

The streets of New York seemed to be awash with vendors selling counterfeit Gucci and Louis Vuitton bags and accessories. In the past, they were few and far between, with their goods laid out on big sheets, ropes attached, ready to be cleverly bundled up in an instant should the need arise; this time, their displays were more elaborate and brazen. We saw one tourist hand over $100 for a small bag!

Rector St. Subway station, New York City

We walked many miles around the city and didn’t use the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Subway as much as during our first visit to New York, but we found the system just as easy to use this time, if not easier, for we were able to tap and go with our cell phones thanks to the contactless fare payment system at the turnstiles.

Our journey down to Tribeca from Times Square and back again cost us:

17:30 = MTA NYCT Paygo = $4.25

17:31 = MTA NYCT Paygo = $2.90

19:45 = MTA NYCT Paygo = $2.90

The subway is typically as hot underground as it is on the surface. On the way back to our hotel, we spent a while waiting on a platform at Rector St. station for the next train and the heat was torturous. Worse still, when we boarded, a group of Italian teenagers surrounded us, chattering loudly in Italiano and talking over us. I couldn’t tell them to shut up or ask them to show some consideration, as I was unwell and had lost my voice. That journey felt like an age! Other than that, we found the Subway to be efficient and safe – we thankfully encountered no indigenous crazies or smellies this time!

Bannerman Castle, Pollepel Island, New York

Up until this visit, the words ‘New York’ conjured up the iconic cityscape images of skyscrapers and crowds, seen in all the marketing, but as we left Manhattan by Amtrak for a couple of days in Vermont, we got to see Upstate New York and how green it was! Graffitied concrete faded away to be replaced with river scenes, woodlands with wild turkeys, a castle and mountains. Yes, a castle and mountains: a great view of the Catskill Mountains across the Hudson River, and Bannerman Castle sat on Pollepel Island, an abandoned military surplus warehouse!

We rolled through places with unusual names such Poughkeepsie, Rhinecliff (population: 425 in 2010) and Schenectady. On the way back, we noticed that the railroad even cut through the center of the infamous Sing Sing Correctional Facility! Only in New York.