Trip to New York City with AFS Exchange Students

At the end of the summer vacation, the AFS volunteers in New York area decided to have a little trip to New York City. For you who are not familiar with this, New York is actually a state (a big area with many cities inside, like a province) while New York City is the city inside New York State. For example, I live in Brewster, meaning I live in New York State but not in New York City.

It was my first trip to New York City aside from when I arrived at New York for the first time, which was very exciting. Here are our photos; most of the time pictures tell stories better than words (because people are lazy to read lol)

Right before going, still at the Hastings-on-Hudson station

Well we don't have any ticket machine like this in Indonesia...

Inside of the Metro North Railroad train. There's the train ticket there.

Inside of the Grand Central Station

Still inside the Grand Central Station

 Before going, we were having a sleepover in the local volunteer's house, at Hastings-on-Hudson. After taking the train to Grand Central Station, we walked several blocks to the Museum of African-American Burial Ground in Manhattan. Back then when African-Americans were still viewed as mere slaves, they always had their own burial ceremony with other African-Americans in an area called "African-American Buriel Ground". Apparently as the New York City develop, the government bury the burial ground and build buildings on top of it as if it were nothing. This fact was discovered later, and for a while the government was trying to hide this fact, but finally they acknowledged that it was the African-American burial ground and the government built a museum in regard of the burial ground.

Visiting the Museum of African-American. These were statues of a burial scene back in those days. 

Writing on the top: "You may bury me in the bottom of Manhattan, I will rise. My people will get me. I will rise out of the huts of history's shame."

 After visiting the museum, we went to a nearby park and had a little afternoon snack. Then we continue walking to the Hudson River because we wanted to get lunch in another island by taking ferry. LOL I totally forgot about where exactly that was, I was not feeling really well back then so I don't really remember.

A glance of New York City~ I know my photography skill isn't that great but oh well whatever~

 

We were having afternoon snacks at the nearby park.

Well I know I'm the whitest person in the middle

Another glance of New York City~

Ferries ashore~!

MOTHER LIBERTY!!!

Manhattan skyscrapers looked really cool from the ferry

Okay now I remember we went to Brooklyn by ferry and had our lunch there.

After going back to Manhattan, we ended the trip with walking down The Times Square on the evening. The lamps from the buildings were fabulous.

Just right before the sun sets~

Screens, screens everywhere

This was... Broadway Show posters, I guess?

Me and Rachel, exchange student from China

My mom said we have to take pictures in case we arrive in new places so yeah.

Pretty lights~

...and finally going back home!

Yeah, it was a really wonderful trip. When we got off the train at Hastings-on-Hudson, it was already dark and it was freezing even though it was summer night. I remember Chris from German saying to me, "You're the most dressed person in this group, yet you're still cold?!" Hahaha, I guess growing up in a tropical country has a big effect in things like cold-or-not-cold.