We didn't have a massive list of things planned for today, but the few items that were on the agenda were set to be absolutely cracking – properly TOP-notch, if you catch my drift (that’s a little hint for you). The morning, however, didn't exactly get off to a flying start weather-wise. It was one of those grey, grumpy sorts of mornings: cold, decidedly dull, and with a wind that had a real nip to it. Rubbish, to be honest. Luckily, as the day wore on, the clouds began to break, and things started to look up, which, as it turned out, made the evening all the more special. But more on that later…
Battery Park
First, we took the C train to Fulton Street, where we transferred to the 4 or 5 train heading toward South Ferry Station. This route bypassed the closed station, instead bringing us to Bowling Green—a stop on the very southern tip of Manhattan Island.
After our earlier change of plans, we found ourselves emerging from a subway station right across the road from the impressive National Museum of the American Indian. It's a grand, imposing building, and I’m pretty sure it’s the one they often used as the courthouse in the TV show Law & Order. You know the one – where characters always seemed to get dramatically shot as they walked out onto the magnificent front steps. You’d think after the first few times, they’d have sussed out using the back door!
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| Lady Liberty at sunset |
From there, we crossed into Battery Park, a large, sprawling green space right on the shoreline. It was clear this area had taken a bit of a battering recently, which explained why the Castle Clinton National Monument was closed. The "Castle," as they call it, is actually a sturdy circular fort built way back in 1808. It once stood proudly on a man-made island, but over the years, the land around it was filled in, eventually joining it to the rest of Manhattan. Both the park and the fort were badly hit by the flooding when Hurricane Sandy came calling. Luckily, being mostly open space with very few buildings, once the waters receded, there was thankfully less permanent damage than there might have been.
This is also the spot where you catch the ferries to the Statue of Liberty. Unsurprisingly, that was all closed off too. The real kick in the teeth for them was that the ferry service had only just reopened the day before Sandy struck, and then the hurricane caused massive damage to the docks and all the surrounding infrastructure. We hadn't actually planned on going over to Lady Liberty anyway; at around $50 each at the time, it felt a bit pricey, especially when you learn that entry to the Statue itself is free – you're essentially just paying for the boat trip and the airport-style security rigmarole.
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| The Sphere |
Despite the closures, this whole area was incredibly peaceful to walk around. Strolling along the waterfront, we had a fantastic view of the new One World Trade Center, which was nearing completion back then, soaring into the sky about a mile away – a powerful symbol of resilience. On a more sombre note, Battery Park was also the temporary home for "The Sphere." This enormous, 20-ton bronze sculpture originally stood in the plaza between the Twin Towers from 1972 right up until the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It’s incredibly moving to see this massive piece of art, scarred and dented but essentially intact, having survived so much destruction. It really makes you pause and reflect.
Top of the Rock
Tonight was the night for one of our big, pre-planned treats: we had tickets to go up to the Top of the Rock, the observation deck at the Rockefeller Building. Now, it might not be the absolute tallest building in New York City, but we’d heard on the grapevine that it offers the best all-around views of the sprawling cityscape. We’d pre-booked our tickets to avoid any lengthy queueing, which is always a bonus. After navigating the airport-style security – where, of course, I was the one to set off the metal detector and duly received my customary public groping –before we were shown around to the lift area.
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| Rockefeller Building |
I’d never even heard of a "multimedia lift" before, let alone been in one, but wow, what a ride it was! When the doors slid shut behind us, nothing happened for a few seconds, lulling you into a false sense of normality. Then, plunged into darkness, heavy bass music started thumping, and an array of flashing lights above your head instinctively made you look up. The ceiling, initially an opaque, milky colour, came alive with swirling patterns of light while a booming voice announced, “Welcome to Top of the Rock!” Just as dramatically, the swirling lights stopped, and the entire ceiling turned crystal clear. That’s when the magic really happened: the entire lift shaft above us lit up with thousands of small blue lights, stretching all the way to the top. Then, whoosh! We were off, ascending at an incredible speed – 800 feet in less than 30 seconds – yet it was so smooth it barely felt like we were moving at all. It was an amazing sight, watching those blue lights race past.
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| Awsome view from Top of the Rock |
Stepping out of the lift, we arrived at the first of three observation decks, perched about 800 feet above the twinkling street level. This level is fully enclosed in glass, which, while keeping the wind off, made nighttime photography a bit tricky due to the reflections. But the view? Absolutely breathtaking. Millions of lights stretched out in every direction. There were plenty of seats to just sit and soak it all in, and they even had free, superfast Wi-Fi access, which was a nice touch.
We took another lift up one more floor, passing briefly through the "light room"—an interactive space where the lights in the floor and ceiling shifted colour in response to movement. Whether you were young or simply young at heart, it was a fun place to dash through. This level was open air at each end, adding to its unique atmosphere.
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| Jane taking is easy at 800 feet up |
From there, a set of doors led us up one more floor. Normally, we would have taken the stairs, but they allowed us to use the lift for accessible access, bringing us to the highlight of the night—the fully open-top viewing deck.
Standing 850 feet above the city, the air was crisp but not overwhelmingly cold. The uninterrupted, 360-degree panorama stretched before us, with the city shimmering under the night sky—a truly breathtaking sight. At that late hour, around 11 p.m., the deck was nearly empty, making the moment feel even more intimate. Just sitting there, taking in the incredible vista with Jane beside me, was pure magic.
That night, and those memories, are ones we’ll cherish forever.
Finally, before making our descent, we nipped into the gift shop at the top to buy a few mementoes of our visit. Then, we headed back down to one of the lower, enclosed floors to warm up a bit, make use of the Wi-Fi again, and just take a seat for a while, savouring the last moments of that incredible view. After soaking it all in one last time, we took the lift back down to the main lobby and headed for what we thought was the exit…
Rockefeller Plaza
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| Get your Skates on |
Once we were back at street level after our amazing trip to the Top of the Rock, we found ourselves navigating through yet another gift shop. It was then we discovered that if you venture down another level, there's a whole network of shops tucked away in the basement. More excitingly, this lower concourse also opens out onto a viewing area for the famous Rockefeller Center ice rink. Being so close to Thanksgiving, the rink was absolutely alive with activity, a classic New York winter scene buzzing with skaters, even at that time of night. It was fantastic to stand there and watch everyone gliding around, and then, right before our eyes, we saw someone drop to one knee in the middle of the ice and propose!
A huge round of applause erupted from everyone watching from the balcony area just above the rink, so we safely assumed she must have said yes. It was another lovely, feel-good moment to add to an already special day.
The only slight downside to the whole Rockefeller experience was that they hadn't quite finished putting up the enormous Christmas tree. We could see it, partially constructed, but it wasn't the fully decorated, spectacular sight that famously has its own televised switch-on ceremony. Still, you can't have it all. By now, it was nudging 12:30 a.m. or so, and even for us, it was time to start thinking about heading back to the hotel.
What we hadn't quite appreciated, though, was that the area beneath the Rockefeller Center is a bit of a rabbit warren. It’s not just under the main building; these corridors and passages extend out under the roads too. I’ve since found out you can actually walk a fair distance underground and pop out a block or so away.
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| Amazing view of Top of the Rock |
Of course, with our usual impeccable sense of direction, we managed to get completely disorientated. After wandering around for a while, encountering several frustratingly locked doors, we bumped into a friendly janitor. The poor bloke must have seen the bewildered looks on our faces because he immediately took pity on us. He led us to a service lift, which he said would save us the walk back through the maze we'd just navigated. Using his "magic key" to operate the lift, he told us to just turn left when we came out. I half expected to emerge on another basement floor, but to our surprise, the doors opened directly onto a quiet side street! It definitely made me wonder what other secret passages and mysterious doors are hidden away behind the scenes in big cities.
So, yes, this was another very late night for us, but an incredibly memorable one, from the breathtaking views at the top to the unexpected proposal and our little subterranean adventure at the end.
