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Battery Park City |
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(Manhattan's green toe), a wonderful waterside haven with 30 acres of gardens, playgrounds, a one-mile
esplanade, public art, and views of the Hudson River. The Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust is
here as is the brand new Ritz-Carlton. Battery Park has fine views of harbor islands - Governor's Island, Staten Island, the
Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island, and Ellis Island, the famous immigrant gateway to America (1892-1954) for ancestors of
one in four present-day Americans. Frequent ferry service to Staten Island, Ellis Island, and the Statue of Liberty departs from
South Ferry & Battery Park.
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Financial District |
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The lower tip of Manhattan (called The Financial District, Lower Manhattan or Downtown), where the East
and Hudson rivers meet, is where New York City began; it was also our nation's first capital. In one of history's most famous
real estate deals, Dutch traders purportedly purchased the island of "Man-a-hatt-a" from the Algonquin Indians in 1621 for
$24 worth of beads and other trinkets. Originally called New Amsterdam by these Dutch settlers, the 21st century blend of old
colonial churches and gleaming skyscrapers has become the financial capital of the world. The heart of it all is the area clustered
around Wall Street - originally a walled fortress (c. 1633) built by the settlers. Titanic edifices such as the New York Stock
Exchange and the Federal Reserve Bank buildings line the streets here.
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