30 B4 30 Day 21: Go to the Top of the Empire State Building

I live in the shadow of the busiest city in the world and I feel like I haven't taken true advantage of it. Even though I have not seen all there is to see, I have been to the Met, the MOMA, the crown of the Statue of Liberty, Tavern on the Green, on a horse and carriage ride, to F.A.O. Schwartz, the Museum of Natural History and Patsy's. In New York City, there are countless things to do and they are all in walking distance. Pedestrians have access to some of the most interesting and magnificent places in the world. I don't think anyone has enough time in their life to do everything available to them in NYC, but it doesn't hurt to try. So, today I added another NYC landmark to my list by Going to the Top of the Empire State Building.

Mary Kate and I went into the Empire State Building and took every elevator and escalator to get to the 86th floor. We decided to get the $20 tickets for the 86th floor and not the 102nd floor. We felt like there was no need to go to the smaller crowded space while at the top of the city. Claustrophobia at 102 stories is not an interest of mine. When we got out to the observation deck, I realized that it didn't look anything like it did in Sleepless in Seattle because the surrounding deck was more narrow than I thought. However, I did hear the song, "Make Someone Happy," by Jimmy Durante in my head while we were up there.

The view was spectacular even with the summer haze that sits on the city when the temperature exceeds 90 degrees. The Building is surrounded on all four sides by the island of Manhattan and the significant buildings that make the city the spectacle that it is. I saw the Chrysler Building, the Met Life buildings, the Statue of Liberty and the Flatiron Building. They looked miniature from up there, but still just as majestic as they are from the street level.

I can't believe that, in almost 30 years of my life, I never made it up to the top of the ESB. (That's what they call it online.) It is an icon and since the skyline was catastrophically altered forever with the collapse of the World Trade Center, the Empire State Building is the symbol of the city. There has recently been talk of building a similar skyscraper adjacent to the ESB, but I feel that it won't be as aesthetically pleasing and it will take away from the significance of the ESB. The ESB is a unique structure and I feel that it should stand alone. The Building stands as a sign that you are approaching the Big Apple and welcomes you into one of the best cities in the world.