TimManBlog

A Shiny Glimpse of Manhattan at Christmas

December 31, 2023
(Photos and memories of December 9th and 10th, 2009)
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It’s been 14 years since I last visited New York City. Since then, old Gotham has been subjected to floods of criticism for its rising crime rates, rampant homelessness, and plain old filth. Perhaps things were better back in December 2009. I didn’t stay long enough to tour the whole city, but I found a number of places worthy of fond memories.

As a tourist at Christmastime, the first stop had to be Rockefeller Center for its giant tree, its ice rink, and its Christmas decorations.

Below (left to right) : The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree at night; its iconic statue, and skaters on the ice rink.

I snapped some other photos of Midtown. Americans are seen throughout the world as a proud, flag-waving people. I’ve seen this especially in rural areas, but it’s also apparent in Manhattan.

Tired of shiny new things, I stopped at the American Museum of Natural History to see old things.

Now, back to the human species.

I’ve set a goal to see all of America’s county courthouses in my lifetime, and this includes New York City. Although the city is commonly thought of as a single entity divided into five boroughs, the boroughs of New York City also comprise 5 counties:
  New York County — Manhattan
  Richmond County — Staten Island
  Bronx County — The Bronx
  Kings County — Brooklyn
  Queens County — Queens

Here is the New York County Criminal Courts building in lower Manhattan. It’s a huge structure of 20 stories or so. Many (but not all) of the windows have little air conditioning units. Google Maps includes Night Court somewhere within the building.

Chinatown and Columbus Park are nearby. The park is a gathering place for Chinese men enjoying board games. They might be playing the Chinese board game “Go” — or it could just be checkers — I’m not sure.

In the evening, I reviewed the famous Midtown windows for their Christmas displays.

Scenes from the classic Christmas movie “Miracle on 34th Street,” covered several adjacent windows.

I’ll finish off this post with some views of Midtown’s street scenes at night.

Now, one giant snowflake for the last shot.

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A list of all photo posts from the American County Seats series in TimManBlog can be found here.

All photos were taken by the author on December 9th or 10, 2009.

My lifetime hobby is traveling to all of America’s county courthouses, and each month I post about a visit to a scenic or interesting county seat. It’s a hobby, and donations are greatly appreciated to help cover my costs.
Thanks,
Tim