New York Must Sees – The Statue of Liberty and St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Interactive display at the Statue of Liberty Museum that gives you a free souvenir photo!

I’ve had the opportunity to visit New York about half a dozen times in my life. Enough time goes by between visits, each one almost feels like it’s the first. My father used to travel to New York fairly frequently so he was pretty much over the tourist aspect of the city pretty quickly. But when I was about 14 I made him take me to the Statue of Liberty. It was cold – some time in December or January, I think. He wasn’t exactly enthused about getting on a boat but I insisted that I needed to see this national treasure up close.

My first impression was that it was a lot smaller than I thought it would be. I had only seen the statue in the movies and it always looked HUGE. When I walked up to it the first time, I hate to admit, I was pretty disappointed. But Dad took me right up to it. Back then you could go all the way to the top – even to the torch. This was before the torch was refurbished into the the shiny gold flame you see today. Back then the flame was made of glass. I told Michaela this story as we made our visit – her first actually on the island – during Spring Break 2022. I had taken her on the Staten Island Ferry back when she was 9 so she was able to see the statue as we went by (a great alternative if you don’t want to spend the money or deal with the crowds and it’s FREE!). Back then that was enough. But now that she was older and could appreciate it more, I wanted to make the effort at least once.

The adjacent museum is quite nice and I was thrilled that the original flame was house there. First it validated my story and my recollection and two, it’s important that it was preserved.

The longest part of the experience was getting through security. Of course we went during some of the Covid restrictions, so there was a few extra things we had to do. We learned that you don’t argue with the security guards there (a man from Australia who was going through in front of us with his family flipped out when they had him remove his belt – don’t do that. Just remove the belt.).

The ferry ride out to the island was packed but provides pretty great views of the city. They let you off on the island with no real return time other than you must vacate before they close. So you can go at your own pace. It was cold when we went so our pace was swift.

Note: Access to the statue’s pedestal and/or crown costs extra. They do not allow people to climb to the torch any more.

St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York City

St. Patrick’s Cathedral is spectacular. You may visit it for free and walk around and look at the artwork. It’s an active church, however, so reverence is expected. Tours are available for a fee. I always like to visit here when I am in New York City. I am in awe of the differences in architecture between religions. My church builds large beautiful temples. They emphasize the light so you will see lots of uses of white furniture, carpet, marble, crystal and natural light. The depictions of the Savior in our temples show him during his ministry and after his resurrection. In contrast, however St. Patrick’s cathedral is darker save for the light coming through the stained glass (during daylight), dim lights and candles. Artwork is in the form of statues depicting various saints and Christ on the cross or dead (in Mary’s lap). The contrast sounds extreme but both are beautiful. The emphasis is just different. I think it’s important for those of other faiths to visit places like this to recognize the similarities while acknowledging the differences.