The Time Warner center is a complex with residential and commercial space located on Columbus Circle at the Southwest corner of Central Park. The New York Coliseum was demolished in the year 2000 to make way for this high rise building.
It was the first skyscraper to open in New York City after the destruction of the World Trade Center in 2001. Some of the wealthiest residents of New York City own apartments it the building and there is also an array of shopping and entertainment options within the complex. The structure is 750 feet high and has 55 floors. It was designed by David Childs of the Skidmore Owings and Merrill firm of architects. The structure has two towers and a multistory atrium where upscale retail stores are located. The total floor area is 260,000 square meters. The offices of Time Warner are located in the office space of the complex.
Time Warner Center has some of the most expensive restaurants in New York City including Chef Thomas Keller’s Per Se and the Masa Takayama Sushi Restaurant. A well known Whole Foods store in the ground floor offers fare at reasonable prices for those who want to picnic in Central Park.

The St. Malachy’s Church is better known in New York City as the Actor’s church. The theater district moved into the area in the year it was built and it became the place of worship of several well known actors and dancers till the 1960s.
The St. Malachy’s Catholic Church was built in 1920 based on the plans of well known ecclesiastical architect, Thomas J, Duff. An Actor’s Chapel was built under the main church where members of the theatrical community worshipped. It was also the venue of weddings and funerals of famous actors and dancers. Rev George Washington Moore who took over in 1976 was the most active among pastors of the church and he extended the services of the church to help the poor, the elderly and the homeless. He was given a Tony award for services to the parish. The church chimes play, ‘There’s no business like show business’ in honor of the many distinguished theatrical parishioners who worshipped at its pews.
Famous members of the congregation include Bob Hope, Ricardo Montalban, Rosalind Russell, Irene Dunne and Gregory Peck. Ceremonies of theatrical personalities that took place here include the marriage of Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Joan Crawford, the funeral of Rudolf Valentino and the baptism of Herb Shriner’s children.
Today the church offers community services called Encore to help the elderly residents of the parish. In 1991 extensive repairs were carried out to make it a comfortable and beautiful place to worship.

One of the Great White Way Broadway theaters, the Majestic Theater is located on the 10 block line of playhouses in Manhattan. Through its history, it has been the venue for well known major musical productions.
The Majestic Theatre forms part of a three theater complex. It was the largest among the three and one of the largest theaters in Broadway with 1655 seats. Architect Herbert J. Krapp was commissioned to design the building by Irwin Chanin of the Channin brothers. The façade of the structure has a Spanish Moorish style and the interior has a neo classical style of architecture. Chanin also wanted the interior to have a ‘democrat stadium plan’ and the balcony did not hang over the orchestra as in other theaters but over the lobby so that both classes of patrons entered the auditorium through the same entrance. The theater opened in 1927 with the production of Rufus Le Maire’s Affairs. During the Great Depression, the Channin Brothers sold Majestic Theater to the Shubert Brothers who still own the theater.
Majestic Theater has been the venue of well known musicals like Fanny, South Pacific and Camelot. The Phantom of the Opera opened at the theater in 1988 and had a run of 9,825 performances breaking all records in Broadway history.

Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets. The theaters of Broadway and the huge number of animated neon and LED signs have long made them one of New York's iconic images, and a symbol of the intensely urban aspects of Manhattan. Times Square is the only neighborhood with zoning ordinances requiring building owners to display illuminated signs. The density of illuminated signs in Times Square now rivals that of Las Vegas. Officially, signs in Times Square are called "spectaculars", and the largest of them are called "jumbotrons." Times Square is the site of the annual New Year's Eve ball drop. On December 31, 1907, a ball signifying New Year's Day was first dropped at Times Square, and the Square has held the main New Year's celebration in New York City ever since.

This large complex of commercial buildings lies between 5th and 7th Avenues in New York City. It is often described as a city within a city because of its unique design. All the buildings have a common plan and are connected by an underground concourse called The Catacombs.
D. Rockefeller Jr. leased the site to build a new structure for the new York Metropolitan Opera. Architect Benjamin Wistar Morris designed the complex to include a large opera house, landscaped gardens, office space shops and terraces connected by bridges and walkways. After, the Great Depression, the Metropolitan Opera abandoned its plans for relocation and Rockefeller changed the design of the structure making it suitable for housing radio and television corporations. It was the first high rise commercial complex to be completed during the Great Depression. The first building to be completed was the headquarters of the Radio Corporation of America, RCA. It has an observation deck with spectacular views of Central Park and Empire State Building. The style was similar to that of a ship with deck chairs and ventilation pipes shaped like chimneys. It was completely remodeled in 2005 and reopened as a new art deco style deck called the Top of the Rock. The Christmas tree lighting ceremony held every year since 1933 marks the beginning of the festival season in New York.
Guided tours take visitors around the complex and through the many art deco interiors, frescoes and sculpture that adorn its interiors and exterior.

The St. Patrick’s Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic archdiocese of New York. It is located directly opposite the Rockefeller Center and has over 3 million visitors every year.
The St. Patrick’s Cathedral is built of brick covered with white marble. The stones were quarried in New York and Massachusetts. It is the largest Gothic style church in the country. The present structure replaced an old St. Patrick’s Cathedral that is now used as a parish church. The Archdiocese of New York was created by Pope Pius IX in 1850. American architect, James Renwick designed the building as the seat of the Archbishop in decorated geometric ecclesiastic Gothic style, popular in Europe between 1275 and 1400. Construction began in 1858 but stopped during the Civil War. Work resumed in 1865, the cathedral was completed in 1878 and dedicated in 1879. It has stained glass windows from France and England as well as the Great Rose Window that was the finest work of American stained glass artist Charles Connick and three magnificent organs.
The cathedral holds daily masses and visitors can use a pamphlet available at the back of the church to take a self guided tour. There is a gift shop selling books and religious items and visitors can check the schedule to attend one of the organ concerts frequently performed at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

For 11 months before the completion of the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building enjoyed the status of being the tallest skyscraper in the world. Built in art deco style it is regarded by many well known contemporary architects as the most beautiful structure in New York City.
Walter P. Chrysler, the automobile magnate commissioned architect, William Van Alen to design the building in 1928. The structure was built at a furious pace of four floors a week. Despite the haste, it was completed without incident or accident. Chrysler planned to make the skyscraper, the headquarters for his company and the ornamentation in the lower floors has steel automobile parts. The design is art deco with gradually decreasing steel arches studded with triangular windows. The structure is the highest steel supported brick building in the world. It is 319 meters high and has 77 floors topped by a 38 meter spire. At first there was a viewing gallery on the 71st floor that was later closed in 1945. The marble clad lobby has a mural in the ceiling showing an automobile assembly line.
The Chrysler Building remains the best loved skyscraper in New York City. It got the 9th place in a survey of the Favorite Architectural Memories in the US, ahead of many well known landmarks like the now destroyed WTC. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1976.

The New York Central Railroad built this large railway station when long distance passenger trains were the most popular mode of transport in the U.S. It is the largest train station in the world with 44 platforms and 67 tracks running besides them.
Cornelius Vanderbilt commissioned architect John B. Snook to build the largest railway station in the world and it was opened to the public in 1871. It was remodeled in 1913 and got its name, the Grand Central Terminal. The station is housed in a Beaux Arts style building and the 67 railway tracks are on two levels. The ornate building has Corinthian columns and grand staircases. The ceiling on the top level has a beautiful blue fresco decorated with gold constellations by French artist, Paul Hellou. The lower level has a restaurant called the Oyster Bar. The Oyster bar has vaulted ceilings with terra cotta Gustavino tiles that form the support for the vaults.
In 1994, Grand Central Terminal was remodeled again with lower ceilings and space for a retail mall and food court. It is now, not only a transportation hub but an important tourist destination for visitors to New York City.

The New York Public Library is the largest library and research facility in North America. It is unique because it is a privately managed nonprofit institution in a public cause. The library has many first editions and important documents among its treasures.
The main building of the New York Public Library is designed based on a rough sketch by its best known librarian, Dr. John Shaw Billings. His idea was a large reading room at the top with seven floors of book stacks and stairs that would make one of the swiftest book delivery systems in the world. The plan was formulated by architects Carrere and Hastings in a Beaux Arts style. The site chosen was a redundant reservoir and workers spent two years dismantling it and preparing the site to make it suitable for building a library. Construction began in1902 and the library opened its doors in 1911. At the time it was the largest marble clad building in the U.S. On the date of its dedication it had over a million books.
The Institution is celebrating its centenary this year and visitors can enjoy a special show about the collections and history of the New York Public Library. There are two docent led daily tours around the library and entrance is free of charge.

Bryant Park is an 8 acre green space located in front of the New York Public Library. It lies in the heart of the city and offers spectacular views of towering skyscrapers. It is a place where New Yorkers come to have lunch, rest or enjoy events.
The first park at the site was called Reservoir Square after the adjacent Croton distributing reservoir. The square was the scene of the New York Draft Riots of July 1863 during the American Civil War. In 1884, it was named Bryant Park after New York Evening Post editor and abolitionist William Cullen Bryant. His statue occupies a prominent place in the Park. In 1969, a large demonstration seeking to end the Vietnam War took place in the venue. The 70s saw the park suffer neglect and it became a haven for drug dealers and the homeless. In 1988, the privately funded Bryant Park Restoration Corporation took over the restoration of the park making it a safe and beautiful venue for rest and recreation in the heart of the city.
Today the park is an oasis amidst the city bustle for office workers and visitors. There are movable chairs, chess tables and café’s. It hosts fashion shows, a summer film festival and becomes a popular ice skating rink in winter. Well known skyscrapers that tower over Bryant Park are the W.R. Grace building, the Bank of America building and the Bryant Park Hotel.

For 40 years, the Empire State Building was the tallest building in the world until 1972 when it lost the title to the World Trade Towers. After the September 11th 2001 attack on the WTC, it became the tallest building in New York City once again.
The Empire State Building was designed by William Frederick Lamb of the Shreve, Lamb and Harmon architectural firm. It has a simple art deco design typical of high rise structures in Pre World War II, New York. The simplicity was dictated by budget constraints, time limit for construction and the city zoning laws. 3400 workers helped to construct the building including immigrant European workers and Mohawk metal workers from reserves in Canada. It was completed in one year and 45 days. When it opened its doors in 1931, it was declared one of the seven wonders of the modern world by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Empire State building has 102 floors and stands at a height of 1,250 feet. It became a designated Historical Landmark in 1986. It was the last skyscrapers to be built before the Great Depression adversely affected the real estate market. From the date of its inauguration till the present, it remains an iconic part of New York City.

One of the most events venues in the world, the Madison Square garden is a large indoor arena that hosts sporting events, music performances and has a large indoor theater. It also has an expo center for trade shows and car shows, two cafes and a 9,500 feet terrace.
The Madison Square Garden was built in 1968 on the site of the demolished Pennsylvania Railway Station. The structure was the first to be built on the platforms of a railway station. It was a masterpiece in design by the Texas based architect, Robert E. McKee.
Today, the auditorium hosts over 320 events each year. It is the longest active sporting facility in New York City and hosts basketball, ice hockey and boxing events. It is the third biggest music arena in the world based on the number of tickets sold each year and has hosted performances of some of the best known singers and musicians through its history. The theater at the stadium can seat 2000 to 5600 spectators and has an 8000 square foot lobby. It is also the venue of graduation ceremonies and music award ceremonies.
Viewing an event at the Madison Square Garden gives visitors the dual experience of enjoying the event while take in the atmosphere of one among the biggest indoor stadiums in the world.

The Rubin Museum of Art is a repository of a private collection of Himalayan artifacts. It houses the collection of Donald Rubin who founded the managed healthcare network, ‘Multiplan Inc.’
Donald Rubin and his wife Shelley purchased a building that was once the Barney’s New York departmental store as a storehouse for their collection. The structure was remodeled and opened as a museum in 2004. The façade has a Tibetan design by New York based museum artists, Celia Imrey and Tim Culbert and Milton Glaser designed the graphic identity. A spiral staircase that formed part of the building before it became a museum winds through six spacious floors. The ground floor has a café serving cuisine of the Himalayas and a bookstore.
The collection has a vast array of objects from the Himalayas especially Tibet. Exhibits include paintings, stone sculptures, metal sculptures, Buddha statues, textiles, cloth paintings, altars and ritual objects that date back to the 2nd century. Temporary exhibits are also held from time to time featuring the art of different ethnic groups living in Southwest China, Tibet, Nepal and India.
The museum has interactive computer terminals and detailed descriptions to enlighten visitors about the objects on display. Admission is free on Fridays.

Known as the most photographed structure in New York City the isosceles triangle shaped Faltiron Building gets its name from its unique shape. It may not be as high as the high rise edifices in the city today, but when it opened its doors it was one of its tallest buildings.
The Faltiron Building was constructed to house the offices of the Fuller Construction Company. It was designed by Chicago architect, Daniel Burnham with a renaissance palazzo style and beaux art detailing. The exterior is of steel clad with terra cotta. It rises like a Greek column unlike other New York Skyscrapers that rise from a lower base block. It is 307 feet high and has 21 floors. When it opened its doors in 1901, it was called Burnham’s Folly by skeptics who doubted the building’s resistance capability against strong winds. The design of the structure has defied their misgivings and has remained structurally sound till the present. It is now the headquarters of the McMillan Publishing Company.
The Flatiron building symbolizes New York City in picture postcards, television commercials and documentaries. It became a New York City landmark in 1966 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

This small private park in New York lies at the heart of the Gramercy neighborhood, one of the few places in New York City that has not changed for the last 80 years. It is a fenced in facility held in trust as a green space where only those who live in the neighborhood are allowed.
In 1831, Samuel Ruggles a developer bought the area around the park which was then a swamp in the midst of Garmercy Farm from a descendant of Peter Stuyvesant, the last Dutch governor of New Netherlands. He drained the swamp, formed a garden and deeded it to the 60 purchasers who bought lots around Gramercy Park. In the middle of the park is the statue of one the most famous residents of the neighborhood, actor, Edwin Booth the brother of Abraham Lincoln’s assassin.
Gramercy Park remains a well kept privately owned park till the present and two keys are given to each original building in the neighborhood. Keys can be rented by temporary residents and the locks are changed every year. Members of the Players Club and National Arts Club located nearby and residents of the Gramercy Park hotel are provided with key access. In 1966, the New York Landmarks Commission designated the neighborhood as a Historic District and Gramercy Park became part of the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

This major intersection gets its name because it marked the union of two major New York thoroughfares, Bloomingdale Road (now Broadway) and the extinct Eastern Post Road. It has been the scene of many gatherings and demonstrations throughout history.
Developer Simon Ruggles, who owned lots around Union Square worked with the city corporation to fence and develop the square. At first, it served as the entrance to New York City and was a residential neighborhood. After the Civil War the area become a commercial hub. Famous rallies held in the square include the patriotic rally where a quarter of a million people gathered in support of the Union troops after the fall of Fort Sumter during the American Civil War and the historic Labor Day March, one of the first workers demonstrations in the world that inspired workers movements all over the world. Recently, it was the public gathering point for mourners after the terror attacks on September 11th 2001.
The statue has many statues of great statesmen including George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Gandhi. The Council on the Environment of New York City set up an open air greenmarket in the square where small farmers sell fresh produce to New Yorkers. Between November 23rd and December 24th, it is the venue of the temporary holiday market run by craftsmen who sell a range of locally made products.