Call my name, or walk on by...

This post comes to you live and direct from Cape May, NJ. A full day spent in the town, and I have found it very quaint, classic and Victorian. The beach is not much different than Wildwood, Sea Isle or any other cigarette butt ridden gravelly beach in New Jersey. But, there's less kids and general riff raff running rampant through the streets. I may blog a bit more about the town later, but I still owe the blog additional details about NYC.

New York Part II

I quoted that 80's song once before, but in this case, I think I need to use it again. "Don't You Forget About Me" by Simple Minds is the first 80s song that pops into my head when thinking about our trip to Ground Zero two weeks ago. Again, I wouldn't say that you necessarily need to go there, but it certainly can be a troubling and worthy trip if you're in the area. The first thing you think of when you get there is...probably anger. In my case, I found myself angry at the fact that I never really got to see those two buildings in person. I never got to marvel at their enormity and New York effectively lost half of it's skyline on 9/11. You can't help but look at the gaping hole in the financial district and think about the fact that two of the tallest buildings in the world were once here, and are now gone.

We did learn some interesting things, though, while visiting the site. St. Paul's Chapel, a church about 2 blocks from Ground Zero, has setup a bit of a living memorial to 9/11, and rightfully so. In the days following the attacks, the church served as a triage unit, a hostel, a soup kitchen and a place of solace for those helping in the relief efforts. Relief workers would come back to the church to grab some water, patch up some wounds and even catch a few winks in the cots you see here.

Walking around the church, we actually heard some of the rescue workers sharing stories and talking about those days...sharing their own experiences. The church has setup different areas with photos, videos and items from those days of rescue and recovery. Today, many law enforcement groups and individuals return to the church and leave their city or township patches in honor of those individuals who worked through the tragedy and clean-up efforts. We saw patches from all over the United States and the glove. It's a touching sign of solidarity amongst the police and fire groups who feel a sense of connection to those in their field.

Throughout the financial district you'll find memorials and statues that commemorate 9/11, as it has become a bit of a tourist trap. The backside of the church is actually a cemetery, although I don't know that any of the victims or other related individuals have been buried there. In the cemetery area, you'll find a bell, which commemorates the day and resembles the Liberty Bell. In Battery Park, we found the statue on the right, which actually sat at the base of the Twin Towers in the days and years prior to the attacks. The collapse of the buildings damaged the Plaza Ball, but they salvaged what you see here and moved it into Battery Park. The ball also has an eternal flame in front of it, similar to the flame at JFK's grave in Arlington National Cemetery.

My blog postings haven't been as frequent as I would like, and this is certainly not the most entertaining or comical posts of my life. But the trip to Ground Zero gave me a bit more education than I had anticipated, specifically in the trip to St. Paul's. And while I normally don't opt for serious posts, I thought I needed to jot a few points down here...if not so I remember, so that anyone reading doesn't forget.