Empire State Building New York

The Empire State Building is definitely a tourist destination for New York.  I’d so enjoyed reading the history of the Art Deco skyscraper era of New York.  It was begun in 1929  by Wall Street tycoons Alfred E. Smith and John Jacob Raskob.  Completed in 1931 it is 102 floors and 1250 feet/ 381 m high at the rooftop and 1454 feet 443 m) with it’s antenna spiral included. Th construction by steel workers, Mohawks and others is an amazing feat.  There were line ups and a security check but it was worth it.
I’d been to the top of the Empire State Building when I first visitted New York some thirty years ago.  It was memorable then, the views of the Hudson and seeing the Statue of Liberty off to the south.  This is Laura’s first visit so I thought it a must.  The weather was so fine we were able to walk from our Redbury Hotel on 29th to 350 Fifth Ave between 33rd and 34th where it is.  We really enjoyed the elevator ride up to the 80th floor because they have this amazing story and movie of it’s making playing on the ceiling.  Once you’re at the observatory level there’s a great view all around the city but another another elevator  takes you to the 86th floor where the outdoor observatory is.
Laura and I had watched the incredible Tom Hank’s movie, Scully, of the jet passenger plane having to land in the  Hudson and here we were looking down at where it had actually occurred.  I loved that I could see the Statue of Liberty in the distance and also the Brooklyn Bridge. The Chrysler Tower looks spectacular. We even looked down on Macy’s and later walked along to it looking back up to where we’d been.
From the guide books and presentations we learned that this was where King Kong was set, also that a B52 bomber crashed into the 79th storey in the fog, and 2 Englishmen parachuted from the top.  In 1997 a man killed one tourist and wounded 5 when he opened up with a gun and occasioned the security precautions today.
Our time at the top was just beautiful views and amazement at the capacity of men to build such a functional and beautiful structure.