Life in the Concrete Jungle: A Photographic Journey Across New York City

 Earlier this month, I was in New York for a week-long stay with my family, the first stop of our two-and-a-half-week US trip. New York originally wasn't part of the plan--we had originally decided to go to Las Vegas and then Los Angeles and finally San Francisco, but after reading so much about New York (nicknamed "The Big Apple" and "The City That Never Sleeps", among other titles), I just knew I had to go here. In fact, New York tops my list of must-visit cities, closely followed by Paris and Tokyo. Finally, after weeks (or was it days?) of constantly hinting and insisting to my parents, they finally agreed to drop Vegas in favor of New York, albeit hesitantly.

Now, I'm pretty sure they don't regret making that decision.

While to some, New York may just be another dirty, crowded, and chaotic megacity, one cannot deny the fact that it is still a great place to be. Stepping into Times Square and taking in all the chaos--watching those famous yellow taxis pass by and seeing all those gigantic billboards and those tourists excitedly taking photos--just gives you this certain kind of rush that you probably wouldn't feel anywhere else--and that's just one part of it. New York City is a HUGE city, with lots of great attractions to offer. The five days we had to explore the city (minus two because we took a little side trip to Washington DC and we had to leave early for the airport on our last day) was certainly not enough. I hope to be back soon and experience what I still missed out on.

Office workers heading home after a long day at work

The lobby of the hotel where we stayed in

We got a double double room at the hotel, with two double beds, two bathrooms, and two large LCD TVs.

We stayed at the Wellington Hotel, a 3-star hotel that is more than 100 years old (I'm not kidding) located along 7th Avenue. If you're planning to stay here, it's best to book early. This hotel is quite popular with tourists given its close proximity to Times Square, Central Park, and other tourist attractions in Midtown Manhattan. I've no complaints about this hotel--we had a great stay.

Seeing yellow in the streets of New York--these yellow cabs are a great way to get around the city if you're too tired from all the walking you will certainly do during your stay.

Giant billboards at Times Square

The sound of sirens of ambulances and firetrucks such as this one constantly add to the chaos of this city

Times Square in all its chaotic splendor

Pure chaos--but this is New York, dammit!

You can have your photos taken with these guys (or girls)--but they expect you to give them a tip afterwards.

Watching a Broadway Musical is part of the New York experience. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to catch a play.

Times Square all lit up at night.

This sunken area transforms into an ice skating rink during the winter

Flags surround the sunken plaza

Beautiful landscaping at the Rockefeller Plaza

The GE Building (30 Rock), the "centerpiece" of the Rockefeller Center

The St. Patrick's Cathedral, the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York. The Church is currently undergoing a massive, $175-million renovation.

Renovations are also on-going inside. However, the cathedral continues to attract tourists, and daily masses continue to be held.

The cathedral's altar. This church was built in the Neo-gothic style.

This is a common sight throughout Manhattan. This is steam, which is used to power the heating systems of buildings throughout the city. 

One of the many food carts you'll see around Manhattan. You cannot leave this city without getting a taste of street food--popular choices include hotdogs, bagels (with cream cheese!) and pretzels.

Amazing view of Central Park and beyond from the Top of the Rock observation deck, at the top of the GE Building

Midtown Manhattan

The rest of Midtown Manhattan, The Empire State Building, and Lower Manhattan (the main  financial center) in the distance

Tourists at the observation deck

TIP: To avoid the long queues at the major tourist attractions such as the Top of the Rock observation deck and the Empire State Building, I suggest you purchase a New York CityPASS for a few hundred dollars (or less if there's a promo).

Fifth Avenue, New York's main shopping street. It is the home to numerous flagship stores of the world's most recognizable fashion brands, and is the most expensive retail street in the world, with rent prices soaring to unbelievable amounts.

The Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo's global flagship store can be found along Fifth Avenue. It is the largest Uniqlo store in the world.

One of the two Lindt chocolate stores we spotted along Fifth Avenue

Mouthwatering window display at the Godiva chocolate store

Fifth Avenue is home to numerous clothing brands

A large Louis Vuitton store

Fifth Avenue is not just limited to clothing brands--Apple's flagship store can also be found here.

Chaos isn't just limited to the streets--the Apple store gets hounded by customers looking to get their hands on the latest Apple gadgets

The Plaza Hotel, one of New York's famous historic luxury hotels, can be found along Fifth Avenue

The Trump Tower, a mixed-use skyscraper along Fifth Avenue

The stretch of Fifth Avenue near Central Park (left), in the upscale neighborhood of Manhattan known as the Upper East Side

The Empire State Building is also located along Fifth Avenue 

A view of the Flatiron District (below), named after the triangular Flatiron building which at one point became the tallest building in New York. In the distance are the tall skyscrapers of Lower Manhattan.

The Flatiron Building, as viewed from the Empire State Building's observation deck.

Across the Hudson river is New Jersey. The ill-fated Titanic was supposed to have docked in one of the piers here, had its maiden voyage been successful.

The building with the green glass is the United Nations Building

The famous Grand Central Terminal, not to be confused with the Grand Central Station which is actually just a subway station

This is what rush hour at the Grand Central Terminal looks like. 

The terminal also has its own large Apple store. Commuters who use this terminal to get to and from work everyday may also shop at any of the clothing stores just outside the terminal.

The New York Fire Department in action--responding to an emergency at a building along Fifth Avenue

An artist demonstrating his skills (yes, this is still along Fifth Avenue).

The gigantic M&M store along 7th Avenue, near Times Square

This M&M jacket was made with Swarovski crystals. Custom-made jackets with Swarovski crystals usually cost between $3,000-$10,000.

The M&M store also sells different sorts of M&M merchandise, and not just chocolates

The M&M store boats of having the "world's largest wall of candy".

The wall of candy with different interesting M&M flavors. Look--coconut M&M!

For Broadway musical tickets at a 20-50% discount, you may head over to the TKTS pavilion at Times Square. Note, though, that lines can be really long and tickets could run out easily.

Buying tickets for a ride on the famous New York subway system.

This subway station shows its age.

The New York Subway system is one of the busiest in the world and transports over 5 million commuters on weekdays.

The Dakota, the building where John Lennon was shot.

The Imagine Mosaic at Central Park, a tribute to John Lennon.

Fans pay tribute to John Lennon. A man even played the song "Imagine" on his phone while we were there.

A lagoon at Central Park. Note the thunderstorm brewing in the distance.

Not too long after we had crossed that bridge, it started raining really hard. We did get soaked as we were unable to find a place to take shelter in (trust me--finding a place to seek shelter is difficult). Luckily, my camera stayed dry as I hid it under my jacket. Here's a tip: visit Central Park only when you're completely sure that the weather will be fine all day (or at least for the next several hours).

The One World Trade Center building, also known as the Freedom Tower, towers above the other buildings in Lower Manhattan. The building is now the tallest building in New York, and is built close to the site of the twin towers which were destroyed during the September 11 attacks.

The names of the victims of 9/11 are engraved around two large fountains built at the former site of the Twin Towers.

The noise of the water is meant to drown out the noise of New York City, which can serve as a place where people could reflect.

Paying tribute

The Chamber of Commerce Building at Wall Street

Wall Street, located in Lower Manhattan, is New York City's main financial district.

Wall Street was fairly empty when we visited (save for other tourists) since it was a Sunday.

Protesters outside the Federal Hall

Taking a ride on one of Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises' boats from their base at Pier 83 allows you to view Manhattan from the Hudson River, as well as a closer look at the Statue of Liberty. However, the Statue has been off-limits to tourists since Hurricane Sandy, and will open again on July 4, 2013.

An old British Airways Concorde jet on display near Pier 83

A yacht owned by a Russian billionaire businessman.

The George Washington Bridge in the distance, which US Airways flight 1549 barely missed as it was preparing to make an emergency landing at the Hudson River. In 2009, US Airways flight 1549 suffered a birdstrike shortly after take-off from the LaGuardia Airport, damaging its engine. The spot where our boat is on was where the plane landed. Luckily, all passengers and crew on board the plane survived.

The Lower Manhattan skyline.

Ellis Island, which served as the primary gateway for immigrants to the US who arrived by boat between 1892-1954.

There she is--Lady Liberty herself.

The Statue of Liberty will formally re-open to tourists on July 4, 2013 after it had sustained some damage from Hurricane Sandy.

The Brooklyn Bridge

The One World Trade Center building dominates the Lower Manhattan skyline.

Street Vendors in Manhattan sell the most random of things. Most of the street vendors I've spotted in New York are clearly immigrants from Africa (not African-American). Some of them even sell fake designer bags and watches along Fifth Avenue, close to the shops where the real designer bags are sold. 

A street performer outside the Metropolitan Museum entertains passers-by.

(Delta Airlines flies daily from Manila to New York, via Tokyo. For more information, you may visit the Delta Airlines website at www.delta.com)