a little trip to the grocery store

Saturday evening David and I stepped out for a quick trip to the grocery store.  We decided to take the "long way" and walk down by the water.  Greenpoint is on the northwest edge of Brooklyn, bordered on the west by the East river.  We are 3 blocks from the river and thus, 3 blocks or so from the Greenpoint pier.

There is a ferry service, the East River Ferry, which makes a stop at the Greenpoint pier.  A ticket costs $4 for a one way trip, so on a whim, David and I bought tickets and went for a ride.  It is a 2 story transport boat, with an open viewing deck on top.

Of course, since we were just on a quick trip to the grocery, I didn't have my camera.  I will never leave the house again without my camera, no matter how quick I think the trip may be.

We whirred off on the boat, heading south toward Williamsburg and lower Manhattan.  It was a beautiful clear afternoon. I was brushing the windblown hair out of my face and tucking my skirt between my legs so as to not give everyone a "show", when I looked up and saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time! Not only that, but it was framed underneath the Brooklyn bridge.  What a sight for this Midwestern girl.

As we didn't have a destination, we rode to the last stop, which was "Pier 11/Wall Street". We were on Wall Street, in lower Manhattan. What a sight. The buildings are so tall and close to one another. Old and new, right next to each other. It felt like Europe right here in America. We only had an hour before the last ferry left for the night, so we looked a bit, and headed back to the pier.

Once back on the ferry, heading north towards home, the sun was setting, it was almost dark. I looked back at the skyline.  It was aglow and unexpectedly we caught sight of the "Tribute in Light"which is an art installation of 88 searchlights placed at ground zero, representing the loss that occurred at the world trade center on 9/11. 

What an amazing time to be in New York, to be a very small part of something so huge. And what an unexpected experience: to go for an impromptu ferry ride and witness something so spectacular.

We went back to the pier last night, Sunday 9/11, to take some photos. You can see the skyline from the Greenpoint pier, but it was cloudy and the view didn't compare to what we experienced the night before.

"Tribute in Light" on a cloudy night, taken by David.  9/11/2011

The Empire State building in Red, White, and Blue.

This image, from the internets, is the closest I can find to what we visually experienced that night.

 obit-mag.org.

It is hard to express, or even comprehend within myself, feelings for those who lost their lives on 9/11, those who are still fighting for our country. But I will say, what a glorious country we live in. I am proud and humbled to be apart of it.

 Craig and Theresa:  David and I spoke about how much you both would appreciate this.