NYC: Part 2

Since pictures are worth a thousand words and you probably don't have the time or interest to read a million words on a blog........ How about a lot of pictures to summarize the rest of my adventures in New York?

Great! Because I really wasn't going to give you an option.

I present:

March 24-26^th—Angola Embassy Trip, New York City.

Part Two, March 24th-25th--A PhotoSummary. 

The rest of the 24th involved befriending our hotel shuttle bus driver. As it turns out, he's from Ecuador and lived with 10 Costa Ricans at one point of his life. The Ticos introduced him to this Ecuadorian/Costa Rican restaurant blocks from our hotel. He insisted on driving by it to show us. I'm so glad he did.

Meet Birthday Dinner:
Gallo Pinto, fried sweet plantain, fried egg, and chicken with sauce.
It did my heart good.

Pretty much all we did after supper in our hotel room. These forms.
Note to self: learn more Portuguese.

Sleepy Jersey-
our neighborhood for the next few nights outside our 'best value' hotel

After hours of paperwork and documents, we awoke to tackle the public transportation system of New Jersey and New York. Destination: New York City.

I found great interest in this bus station,
considering it's the first I've been to in years. #SmallTown

Meet Bus.

Note Honduran flag on far right:

United Nations Building!
Next door to the United Nations PLAZA
(Apparently, it's different), location of Angolan Consulate.

Across the street from the Consulate
Donald Trump left a building here. Goof.

These are our "We just got dropped off our forms at the Consulate
and they fingerprinted us and it went pretty well" faces.
Family selfie in front of UN Flags. NYC Trip Goal: Accomplished. 

So the entire mission of this trip was accomplished a little before noon. Flight doesn't leave until tomorrow morning. Now what?

Dad: Do you want to go see the Empire State Building?
Me: Actually, all I want is a picture.

Brooklyn Bridge, maybe? Aesthetically-pleasing either way

Liberty Island, anyone?
Castle for a gateway. Classy, America.

People love their pictures with The Lady.

Manhattan

Ellis Island

We actually didn't even stop to see the Statue of Liberty, we just spent time on Ellis Island to find records of Great-Grandpa Hans and Great-Grandma Dina. WE FOUND THEM. 

What kind of tourists would we be without
an Instagrammed picture of the Statue of Liberty?

Freedom Tower

Nothing like a trip to a memorial and museum
to realize you knew so little
about something that devastated
the country you live in so much.
9/11 Memorial.

9/11 Memorial

 People walk quietly here. There is little talking, with the exception of the occasional question or comment. I think it's because Silence is the voice of pain here. And it's really loud.

Left: an obliterated fire truck;
Everywhere Else: People who are processing

2,977 pieces of colored paper.
One page to represent each life lost.
The colors to represent how someone described the sky that day.
"No day shall erase you from the memory of time." -Virgil

A shadow from Ground Zero:
the wall of the North Tower below ground
and a memory of emergency response units

I'd hate to end on such a somber note. However, to be honest these were the last pictures of the trip that I took. It's these kinds of experiences that make an impact on your perspective. Time is extremely short and unexpectedly abrupt at times. Go see this place. Go visit New York City or something. Go find out what your family heritage is. Dream and pray about how God can use you to leave a legacy for your great-grandkids and His Kingdom. Go do that.