A FOREIGNER IN NEW YORK

The statue was a present from the French goverment in 1876 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the USA and as a sign of friendship between the two countries, but due to some economic issues it was erected in 1886. It was designed by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi.

It is a famous symbol of liberty and one of the greatest American icons.

It is one of the world's largest statues, which measures in total 92.99 metres. The table that is maintained by its left hand says "4 of July of 1776" in Roman numerals, the date in which the American Independence was signed.

It is located in Lower Manhattan, it is the biggest Chinese neighborhood in the United States and the biggest concentration of Chinese people in the western world.

During the nineteenth century, Chinatown was considered the most dangerous neighborhood in the city. However, nowadays it is one of the most colorful and authentic neighborhood in Manhattan, and also is the most visited places in New York, which is crowded with hundreds of fish, fruit and vegetable stalls and restaurants. It is a neighborhood that is gradually expanding.

With five floors and a seating capacity of more than 20,000 people, the Madison Square Garden is a great name for all boxing fans. It is known as "The World's Most Famous Arena".

Nowadays, the most important events that take place here are basketball and ice hockey matches. It is home of the New York Rangers hockey team, New York Knicks basketball team, and New York Liberty women's basketball team.

Central Park was the first landscaped public park in the United States. Every path, bush, tree and lake was designed to be where it is. This is one of the first examples of man making nature.

The reason why this park was built is because the city leaders realised that New York was growing rapidly and that there weren't any public green spaces where people could get away from the urban enviroment.

After years of debate over the location, the park's construction finally began in 1857. The city government organised a competition to see who could make the best design for the park. Vaux and Olmested won the competition. It took twenty years to finish this park.

Central Park is 4 km long and covers an area of 341 hectares where 26,000 trees are planted and where 275 bird species coexist.

On Fifth Avenue, opposite the Rockefeller Center complex, is one of New York's finest examples of Gothic Revival, with its massive bronze doors, white marble facade, 100.584 metres spires, the Great Organ, rose window, bronze baldachin, 2,400 seating capacity, and the statue of Pieta at the side of the Lady Chapel. With millions of visitors annually, the cathedral is a major destination for believers and tourists alike.

St. Patrick's Cathedral began to be built in 1858 led by the architect James Renwick who designed it under the French and English influence. The cathedral was not completed until 1888.

More than any other building in the world, the Empire State Building embodies the ambition of humans to build towers that reach for the skies. The skyscraper is probably New York's best known building and it is a symbol of New York itself, visited by more than three million people each year.

It was inaugurated in 1931, by President Hoover, who switched on the lights of the building from Washington. For 40 years, it held the title of the world's tallest building, which it lost after the construction of the World Trade Center Twin Towers.

The biggest disaster in the history of the Empire State was in 1945, when a US Army B25 bomber crashed into the north facade of the building.

You can visit the Empire State Building's observation deck on the 86th floor from where you have a magnificent view over the city of New York.