Sightseeing in New York

After a restful day yesterday, when we did nothing at all after arriving at our hotel, Tim and I decided to do a little sightseeing today. When we were in New York last year, we managed to visit two National Park Units. There are quite a few of these sites in New York, so we set out to see additional ones on this visit.

I thought a Hop-On-Hop-Off bus would be an economical way to visit these sites, so we bought our tickets and hopped on board just a few blocks from our hotel. Our destination this morning was Stonewall National Monument. The walk from the closest stop to the monument was much longer than I had anticipated, but we saw a bit of Greenwich Village on the way to the recently opened Visitor Center.

Stonewall National Monument interprets the Stonewall Uprising of June 28, 1969, which became the turning point and catalyst for the modern LGBTQ+ civil rights movement. On that night, a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar, sparked a spontaneous act of resistance. Prior to the 1970s, almost everything about being LGBTQ+ was legally forbidden, institutionally prohibited, and economically, socially, and scientifically attacked. Before Stonewall, there were barely 50 LGBTQ+ organizations. A year later, there were over 1,000.

Stonewall National Monument - The Stonewall Inn

We toured the exhibits at the Visitor Center, which is housed in one section of the original Stonewall Inn, and watched several excellent films to learn more about Stonewall and its legacy. I especially enjoyed the jukebox and the listing of songs that captured both the rebellious spirit and collective joy of the Stonewall community. Many were songs that I still love.

Stonewall National Monument - Exhibits

We then crossed the street to Christopher Park, where demonstrations continued for several nights after the police raid. Today, the park fence is festooned with pride flags and photographs that visually tell the story of the gay rights movement. A sculpture by George Segal honors and commemorates the events at the Stonewall Inn that gave rise to the movement. The small park was filled with people enjoying their lunches.

Stonewall National Monument - Christopher Park

After our own lunch nearby, we walked to the next stop to catch our Hop-On Hop-Off bus and considered whether to stop at another site. We reluctantly decided that another visit would be too rushed, so we went back to the hotel instead.

After returning to our room in the evening, we were so surprised to look out our window and see the illuminated Empire State Building. It had been foggy this morning, so we had no idea that we had such a great view.

A Great View of the Empire State Building from Our Room