On Its 80th Birthday, Recalling My First Visit to the Empire State Building
The Empire State Building was constructed in 410 days, with 4 1/2 stories being completed a week. Look down Manhattan to the Ground Zero site today and you can only wonder how long it will take to put a tower up there.
I recall my first visit to the Empire State Building. It was 1990, and I had just started in a new job at Los Angeles International Airport. As a kid growing up in small western towns, I longed to travel. My stint in the Navy and my employment in the airline industry helped me see the world.
I took a flight from LAX to LaGuardia Airport to see New York City. My traveling companion and I also bought seats to see a Virginia Slims tennis match at Madison Square Garden. The epic five-set match between Monica Seles and Gabriela Sabatini lasted nearly four hours and added an extra flavor to my first New York experience.
The next morning after the match we went to the Empire State Building. I had been to Chicago for training at Midway Airport just a few weeks before, and went up in the Sears Tower then. When the two are compared, the Empire State Building stands out more in my memory.
Perhaps it was the architecture, or the history, or the impressions of the Empire State Building I had from films, but I found the entire experience captivating.
The view from the observation deck puts you in the center of the action, so to speak. In any direction you look, New York City and its boroughs are laid out in front of you. A person can see a city in motion, while looking down on it from above. It's no wonder King Kong picked it to climb -- more than once, with the remakes!
In an era when the new great buildings are going up in Dubai or Kuala Lumpur or Taipei, it's refreshing to think of the Empire State Building, and hope for an America that dreams and builds big once again.
Published by Jeff Musall
Jeff Musall has a passion for writing, a knack for frank and informed expression, and a desire to engage the minds of readers. He is an avid sports fan across the board and loves good competitions. His work... View profile
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1 Comments
Post a CommentMy first job in NYC about 15 blocks lower than Empire St Bldg... So, loved walking uptown to the train with that building glowing in the night.