NYC has some amazing photo opportunities!

Here are some of my snaps from my recent stay in The Big Apple. I had the most amazing time there and none of the photos can do it justice but it shows it off well.

During my stay I was lucky enough to be able to experience Manhattanhenge. When the sun sets inbetween the buildings. Manhattanhenge — sometimes referred to as the Manhattan Solstice — is a circumstance which occurs twice a year, during which the setting sun aligns with the east–west streets of the main street grid in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The neologism is derived from Stonehenge, where the sun aligns with the stones on the solstices with a similarly dramatic effect. The word was popularized in 2002 by Neil deGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History. The term applies to those streets that follow the Commissioners' Plan of 1811, which are laid out in a grid offset 29.0 degrees from true east–west. (The 29.0 degrees should be added to true east and west, making the western bearing approximately 299.0 degrees.) During Manhattanhenge, an observer on one of the gridded east-west streets will see the sun setting over New Jersey directly opposite, from the street, along its centerline.

NYC had some amazing sunsets...

From the top of the rock, the views were amazing. I could see completely over Central Park on one side then got a clear view of all the buildings on the other.

I just love this typical American shot.

I'm not a huge fan of colour picking but I couldn't resist it with this photo of an American taxi and school bus.

The fountain in Central Park.

 The Lady herself, The Statue of Liberty.

I took a ride on the East River Ferry and took in the views from Dumbo, the viewing point and also walked over Brooklyn Bridge for these photos.

My visit to the Alice in Wonderland statue in Central Park NYC

So... Last week I spent over a week in NYC. Obviously, the Alice in Wonderland statue in Central Park was at the top of my list of places to visit.

As I walked up through the bottom of Central Park and rounded the corner to see it, my jaw dropped open. Firstly, it was much bigger than I expected and it was SO well made with such amazing attention to detail.

It was a very busy attraction, mostly with children climbing all over it. It was lovely to see a bunch of timelessly classic characters being enjoyed still to this day.

The sculpture was constructed in 1959 by José de Creeft under the commission of philanthropist George Delacorte so that children could visit and experience the wonder of Lewis Carroll’s classic story. Atypical of most sculptures, children are invited to climb, touch and crawl all over Alice and her friends. In fact, through the decades thousands of hands and feet have literally polished parts of the statue’s surface smooth.

The design for the bronze sculpture was patterned off the original illustrations of John Tenniel that were used in the first published edition of the book. The obvious centerpiece of the work, Alice, who depicts the face of Creeft’s daughter, Donna, is pictured sitting on a giant mushroom reaching toward a pocket watch held by the White Rabbit. Peering over her shoulder is the Cheshire Cat, surrounded by the Dormouse, Alice's cat Dinah, and the Mad Hatter -- a caricature of George Delacorte. 

Photography wasn't too easy as I tried to get the statue in and keep the children out. Below are my attempts...