United States > Arrival in New York

Shortly after 10:30, my plane takes off from Schiphol Airport. A few hours earlier, I was dropped off at the airport and went through the special security checks for travel to the United States. Below me, the villages of Hoofddorp, Nieuw Vennep, and Lisse pass by. Then the plane turns and heads toward the North Sea. The flight lasts just over eight hours, but due to the six-hour time difference with the U.S., I arrive only two hours later. During the flight, I pass the time with a meal, a drink, a movie, a newspaper, and a puzzle. Slightly ahead of schedule, the KLM Boeing flies over the suburbs of New York. A little later, I land at Newark Airport in New Jersey.

United States - A view of New Jersey just before landing at Newark International Airport

At immigration, it turns out I did not fill out the form completely. The stern officer sends me back. “Welcome to the USA?” The second attempt goes better. My fingerprints are recorded, and a photo is taken. I doubt I look very flattering after an eight-hour flight. After a few questions about where I am staying and how long I plan to remain in the United States, I am admitted. I had read beforehand that I could reach Penn Station in New York by train in about an hour. A taxi would also take about an hour, so I choose the train. After some searching, I find the ticket machine and the platform. This first leg turns out to be a kind of monorail to the train station outside the airport. From there, the actual train departs for New York. Surprisingly quickly, I arrive at Pennsylvania Station. The mentioned travel time probably includes the monorail segment. I walk to the station exit and find myself in the middle of Manhattan. What a powerful feeling to stand in a city with busy streets and towering buildings I had only seen in films and series. Orienting myself proves remarkably easy: all streets and avenues run perpendicular to each other and are consecutively numbered. This means my hotel is nine blocks to the south, which also means I have to cross at nine traffic lights. Along the way, I decide to make a stop in a bar and have my first beer of the vacation. On East 24th Street, it takes a bit of searching to find the exact location of my hotel, as the travel agency had only given me the street name, not the building number.

United States - Times Square

At 3rd Avenue, I find The Marcel Hotel, a nice, simple hotel with a clean room. The view is not great; I look partly at a blank wall and partly at another hotel room. But, well, I’m not in New York to look out of my hotel window. I have a cup of coffee in the hotel lobby and then walk into the city. Using the straight street grid, I explore the city. The Empire State Building, as the tallest building in the city, exerts a strong attraction, but I decide not to go to the top yet. There will be plenty of time later this week. Via 34th Street, I walk toward Macy’s. The world’s largest department store, according to its own slogan, resembles our Bijenkorf the most. On the upper floors, there are still old wooden escalators, rattling as they take me to the higher levels. Walking along 5th Avenue, I continue toward Broadway. Broadway, at eight kilometers long, is one of New York’s longest streets. It also diverges from the regular street grid. But when people speak of Broadway, they usually mean the theater district at the intersection of Broadway, Fifth Avenue, and 42nd Street. This square is better known as Times Square. Around Times Square, there are dozens of theaters with various musicals, television studios, and large retail chains. Times Square stands out for its extravagant and flashy lighting and neon advertisements. Big, bigger, biggest. Now that dusk is falling, the lights appear even more prominent—a true experience. On the way back to my hotel, I order a sandwich with fries in a restaurant. I go to bed early, having already been awake for 21 hours.