We have seen it in many movies, but why New York has so many steam clouds emerging from the ground? I had never wondered about it, but during our trip to NYC, Mario told us about an article he had read about the NYC Steam System.
Built in the late 19th Century, it is still up und running, and the biggest district steam system in the world (everything in NYC is the largest, tallest, most important or similar in the world). To get some perspective on how important this is, a couple of figures: the 1800 customers provide Consolidated Edison more than 600 Million US Dollars revenues per year and it is used for heating, hot water, and air conditioning.
Chrysler Building is one of the most famous skyscrapers in Manhattan, and in my opinion, the most beautiful one. Moreover, there is a nice story regarding the construction of it, which makes it a bit more interesting.
Several buildings were under construction at the same time and were competing to be the tallest building in the world. According to the plans, the Chrysler Building and the one in 40 Wall Street were leading this competition, being this latter replanned to be two feet taller than the Chrysler Building. That looked like the final result, when both buildings’ structure was finished, but there was still a surprise to come.
During the last weeks of contruction, the characteristic dome of the Chrysler Building, was secretly prepared, and in less than two hours, they installed it on top of the structure. With this last-minute change, the Chrysler Building became the tallest building in the world, until the Empire State Building was built a few years later.
New York’s taxis are one more of the icons of the city, together with the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty or Empire State. Who has never seen one of those yellow cabs?
The taxi importance is present not only in the roads with the 12,000 yellow cabs that NYC has, but also in some other small details. The Fifth Avenue, for those who don’t know it, is one of the most exclusive avenues in Manhattan due to its expensive shops. North from that, in front of Central Park, shops are substituted by museums, and mansions, like the ones we have seen hundreds of times in the movies: with the doorman saying hello to the guests, helping the ladies out with the boxes and also stopping taxis when requested…
I always thought it was thanks to their ability that they always managed to stop a taxi within seconds… but according to the following pictures, it seems they had some technological gadget helping them in this task: a “taxi light”!
I hadn’t seen this in any place before… And you?
There is no need to introduce the most famous bridge in New York. The Brooklyn Bridge links Manhattan and Brooklyn and it is a very enjoyable walk you shouldn’t miss if you visit this city. Furthermore, it is one of the most photographed spots in the city, and our visit was not an exception…
