We continued our NYC adventures by hitting some of the most recognizable points of interest in the city…

Like the Statue of Liberty!

Heading out to Liberty Island.

I got chills seeing Lady Liberty!

Cap showing you the gorgeous view of Lower Manhattan from Liberty Island.

We paid our respects at the 9/11 Memorial.

The twin reflecting pools stand in the same footprint as the towers. It’s such a sobering experience to visit the memorial. It’s so difficult to imagine the devastation and terror that took place there. I’m glad we took some time to remember.

One thing I HAD to do in NYC is walk the Brooklyn Bridge. Seeing Miranda & Steve meet on the bridge in the Sex and the City movie might have made an impression on me. 🙂

It’s so beautiful. Sadly for us, the bridge was under construction so it wasn’t quite the romantic walk I envisioned. There was aluminum-type scaffolding covering various parts of the bridge, which made it difficult to see the view.

But once we hit the halfway point, there was a fantastic view of Manhattan waiting for us.

For more views of the city, we headed to Rockefeller Center.

Rockefeller Plaza

And up to the Top of the Rock!

I love that you can see Central Park.

Awesome view of the Empire State Building and even the Statue of Liberty way in the background!

We also did the NBC Studio Tour, which was an entertaining way to spend an hour while it was raining outside. I wouldn’t say it’s a must do but it was fun to walk around backstage. The best part was getting to see the Saturday Night Live set!

On our last night we visited the Empire State Building. As luck would have it, it started raining when we got to the observation deck on the 86th floor.

Can you see the rain zipping by sideways?

Still a phenomenal view. I personally preferred the view from Top of the Rock but the Empire State Building is iconic. And I’m glad we didn’t miss the opportunity to see the lights of the city at night. It was stunning.

And OF COURSE, we spent some time in NYC’s tourist mecca Times Square.

We found it overwhelming during the day and even more so at night…

But we loved it. Just walking around and soaking it all in is a unique experience in itself.

I hope it won’t be another 20 years until our next trip to NYC. There’s still so much more to see! I would have loved to spend time at Ellis Island or visit the High Line. NEXT TIME.

Up next — we head to Washington, DC!

For more pics, check our Flickr –
Day 4
Day 5