New York City (Fodor's, 2012) - Fodor's [19]
Fodor’s Choice | Ground Zero.
Although the World Trade Center grounds remain largely a construction site, people continue to visit and reflect on the tragedy of September 11, 2001, and the heroic acts of rescue workers and average New Yorkers that fiercely united the city in the aftermath. Dubbed Ground Zero, the fenced-in 16-acre work site that emerged from the rubble has come to symbolize the personal and historical impact of the attack. A steel “viewing wall” now encircles the site, bound on the north and south by Vesey and Liberty streets, and on the east and west by Church and West streets. Along the east wall are panels that detail the history of Lower Manhattan and the WTC site before, during, and after September 11. There are also panels bearing the names of those who perished on 9/11/01 and during the 1993 World Trade Center attack.
After years of delays, the process of filling the massive void at Ground Zero is well under way. Reflecting Absence, the World Trade Center memorial designed by Michael Arad and Peter Walker, will be set in an oak-filled plaza. Water will cascade down into two subterranean reflecting pools outlining the twin towers’ original footprints, and then tumble down into smaller square holes at the center of each pool. A museum and visitor center will be built below the plaza surface. In 2009 a preview site opened at 20 Vesey Street, where visitors can learn about the plans for the memorial.
The memorial plaza will be bordered by four distinct new skyscrapers: the 1,776-foot Freedom Tower, and Towers 2, 3, 4, all designed by famous architects. The site will also include a performing arts center designed by Frank Gehry. An estimated date for the finished construction of the Freedom Tower is 2013, with other buildings following.
The corner of Vesey and Church streets is a good starting point for viewing Ground Zero; walk clockwise around the site. The main viewing area is on Liberty Street, but you’ll have a better view from the two pedestrian bridges to the World Financial Center as well as in the WFC itself. | Between Trinity and West Sts. and Vesey and Liberty Sts., Lower Manhattan | 10281 | 212/267–2047 for the preview site | Subway: 1, R to Rector St.; 2, 3, 4, 5, A, C, J, Z to Fulton St./Broadway-Nassau; E to World Trade Center/Church St. | www.national911memorial.org.
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Unfortunately you can’t tour it, but it’s certainly worth ogling. At the intersection of Wall and Broad streets, the exchange is impossible to miss. The neoclassical building, designed by architect George B. Post, opened on April 22, 1903. It has six Corinthian columns supporting a pediment with a sculpture titled Integrity Protecting the Works of Man, featuring a tribute to what were then the sources of American prosperity: Agriculture and Mining to the left of Integrity; Science, Industry, and Invention to the right. The Exchange was one of the world’s first air-conditioned buildings. | 11 Wall St., Lower Manhattan | 10005 | Subway: 1, 4, 5, N, R to Rector; 2, 3 to Wall St.; J, Z to Broad St.
South Street Seaport Historic District.
Had this charming cobblestone corner of the city not been declared a historic district in 1977, the city’s largest concentration of early-19th-century commercial buildings would have been destroyed. But take note that this area is mobbed with tourists, and if you’ve been to Boston’s Quincy Market or Baltimore’s Harborplace, you may feel a flash of déjà vu—the same company leased, restored, and adapted the existing buildings, preserving the commercial feel of centuries past. The result blends a quasi-authentic historic district with a homogenous shopping mall.
The Fulton Fish