| The Staten Island Ferry is a fabulous | | | | anyone else to react, although I have to say, |
| institution. It is a huge ferry that departs | | | | the crowd showed compassion and shock at what |
| from a very modern, glass enclosed terminal, | | | | had happened. The minute the bus came to a |
| holds several thousand people and in just | | | | stop, the two guys jumped out and ran |
| about 20 minutes whisks you over to Staten | | | | away.Everybody was shocked. The Latino kid |
| Island, very close to the Statue of Liberty, | | | | was sitting there, rumpled, stunned, not |
| and all this for free! One thing we really | | | | seriously hurt, but had a very pained |
| noticed about New York City is that we | | | | expression on his face. After he had calmed |
| definitely love the public transportation | | | | down he explained that about 8 kids were |
| system. With our week long pass we have been | | | | trying to extract money form him at the bus |
| hopping on an off subways as we please and we | | | | stop, he said he didn't have any and gave |
| have found the transit system to be very | | | | them an expired transit pass and 2 of the |
| efficient, pretty clean and quite safe (for | | | | guys followed him onto the bus.I have never |
| the most part).The Staten Island Ferry is a | | | | personally witnessed public violence, so this |
| great insiders way of sneaking a peak at the | | | | was very shocking to me and I was glad that |
| Statue of Liberty since it passes pretty | | | | the kid wasn't really hurt. But I did feel |
| close by Ellis Island. Not close enough to | | | | very sorry for the victim and the whole event |
| take really great pictures with a simple | | | | left a bad taste in my mouth, particularly |
| digital camera like mine, but I gave it a | | | | since we had had the impression that New York |
| shot anyway.As we got off the ferry terminal | | | | City had felt so clean and safe. As a matter |
| on Staten Island I had a bit of a | | | | of fact we had commented on that a number of |
| hare-brained idea: I suggested that we board | | | | times, of how little litter there was in the |
| one of the buses that was waiting there, just | | | | street, how few street people or hustlers |
| to hop on and ride around and see the island. | | | | there were, how there was no graffiti in the |
| Of course I didn't have a bus map with me, | | | | subways, and how safe it felt to be taking |
| didn't have any literature about Staten | | | | transit at all hours of the day. We heard |
| Island, so didn't know where we were going or | | | | that former mayor Rudy Giuliani as well as |
| what the major destinations were on the | | | | current mayor Michael Bloomberg have really |
| island. So we got on the #46 bus without any | | | | been cleaning up the city, and it shows. I |
| idea where we were going or how long it was | | | | guess it still doesn't prevent all violence |
| going to take. (I guess I figured how big can | | | | from happening.After our return to Manhattan |
| the island be? Well, it's bigger than I | | | | we subwayed it all the way up to 103rd Street |
| thought...).But we saw a good chunk of Staten | | | | and essentially walked all the way down |
| Island's neighbourhoods and there are some | | | | through Central Park, admiring all the |
| pretty nice residential neighbourhoods, | | | | recreational facilities and the beauty of |
| although I had expected a more upscale, more | | | | this giant green space. Further south we |
| landscaped environment. The ethnic mix in the | | | | strolled over to 5th Avenue and then down |
| area seemed to be very much characterized by | | | | into the Broadway Area just north of Times |
| Blacks and Latinos, at least those were | | | | Square, where we had some quick Italian food |
| pretty much the only people getting on the | | | | at Ray's Pizza. The evening was pretty |
| bus. School had just ended so a bunch of | | | | chilly, probably only about 12 degrees or so |
| highschool kids had gotten on with us.Well, | | | | and past 11 we headed back home on the Q |
| we rode the darn bus until the end, which | | | | train, processing the memories of another |
| ended up being a non-descript shopping mall | | | | packed day and studying the behaviour of our |
| called "West Shore Plaza", where we ended up | | | | fellow transit riders all the way |
| having a sandwich and strolling around in a | | | | back.Susanne Pacher is the publisher of a |
| sports store which had amazingly good prices | | | | website called Travel and Transitions( Travel |
| on most merchandise. Then finally another bus | | | | and Transitions deals with unconventional |
| showed up and we had to run to catch it.It | | | | travel and is chock full of advice, tips, |
| was a pretty non-eventful bus ride, people of | | | | real life travel experiences, interviews with |
| all ages got on and off, then two young black | | | | travellers and travel experts, insights and |
| teenage boys got on, but didn't pay. The bus | | | | reflections, cross-cultural issues, contests |
| driver didn't question them and we just | | | | and many other features. You will also find |
| continued the ride. All of a sudden, I heard | | | | stories about life and the transitions that |
| a big noise, like someone fists hitting | | | | we face as we go through our own personal |
| another person and all the people in the bus | | | | life-long journeys.Submit your own travel |
| turned around, and the two young men were | | | | stories in our first travel story contest( |
| beating up a young short Latino teenager. It | | | | and have a chance to win an amazing adventure |
| all took just a few seconds, right before a | | | | cruise on the Amazon River. |
| bus stop. The whole event was too quick for | | | | |