A FOREIGNER IN NEW YORK

Central Park arose because of the large population increase that New York had experienced in the early nineteenth century and the absence of a place of recreation. Between 1853 and 1856 land was purchased in downtown Manhattan for $ 5.5 million with the idea of building a large public park. The works began in 1858, directed by the architect Calvert Vaux and the landscapist Frederick Law Olmsted. These works lasted for twenty years.

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.

Sundays and holidays are the days when you can find more activities and outdoor concerts.

The crowded streets of Chinatown are one of the most famous neighbourhoods in the United States. A neighbourhood that is gradually expanding. Fish, fruit and vegetable stalls, restaurants and posters written in Chinese create the impression of being in an eastern city. Canal Street and Mott Street are the streets where Chinatown's biggest shopping malls are.

A very special event is celebrated through the streets of Chinatown all the first full moons after every 19th January, with a carnival parade: it is the Chinese New Year.

The Empire State Building is New York's most famous building. 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 Empire State Building occupies the same grounds as the first Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. It was built at a high speed, completing it in a year and 45 days. It is 443.2 meters high and has 102 floors.

The Statue of Liberty is the symbol par excellence of America and one of the most visited and photographed monuments in the world. It was a gift from France to the US in honour of the bonds of friendship during the War of Independence.

The statue was commissioned to the sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi in order to inaugurate it in 1876 making it coincide with the first centenary of the American Independence.

The statue was finished in July 1884. After finishing the pedestal in 1886, the statue was mounted on the platform in four months. Eventually, in 1886, President Grover Cleveland inaugurated the statue symbolizing Freedom Enlightening the World.

The monument measures in total 92.99 meters and the table that maintains its left-hand says "4 of July of 1776" in Roman numerals, the date in which the American Independence was signed.

It has a capacity of 20,000 people. It is home to the New York Knicks basketball team, New York Rangers hockey team, and New York Liberty women's basketball team.

On Fifth Avenue, opposite the Rockefeller Center complex, is the largest Catholic Gothic Cathedral in the United States.

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.

This symbol of the Irish Catholic domain of the late nineteenth century is dedicated to Saint Patrick (patron saint of the Irish) and is the seat of the Catholic Archdiocese.