Staten Island Ferries - the last ferry company of the New York ferry system. It's since there was no bridge connecting the islands to Manhattan. But five unhappy ships carry the company enough to carry 22 million passengers a year. It's about 70 thousand every day just on weekdays, excluding weekends and holidays.
The daily boat makes 109 inter-island trips, on weekends - a little bit lower: 88 - on Saturday and 82 - on Sunday. The distance between destinations is 5 miles, travel time is 25 minutes. Ferry - free! It is believed that the person has paid for the subway to get to the terminal, and this cost is enough.
So, actually, the ferry itself. Until 1926, all ships were white, then painted in orange, so the ferry could be seen in any weather, even in thick fog and blizzard.
The terminal looks like a regular train station. In the waiting room there are cafes, shops, kiosks, water fountains with drinking water and toilet rooms. A lot of time in the hall you did not spend, the ferry went every half hour, the last one left at two in the morning.
No tickets for ferry, ticket control, respectively as well. When the time came, the doors opened, and the passengers peacefully occupied the deck chairs.
And I'm not in a hurry. I have taken a place in a nearby shop and I sit quietly.
The internal spots are spacious and comfortable, but they do not use special requests in the summer.
Docks delivery company "from behind." This we just left.
Beauty! With a Manhattan backdrop, even the dock is beautiful! And with the weather we were not lucky - serenkoy.
During the first ten minutes, people sit in their chairs and take pictures of everything they see. As a dutiful child.
Then they get used to it and start taking photos of themselves against the background of everything they see - they make people or fellow travelers are asked to take pictures.
And that's why we all gather here today - the stunning panorama of Manhattan in fine weather. But this is not hot.
As proof that New York is beautiful, I show off city photos made a few days ago.
Well, the promised Statue of Liberty - Freedom, Illuminates the World. So it's called completely.
On the way we see a variety of boats, including sailboats - old and old made ...
Small motor boats, it's not clear what they're looking for in New York harbor ...
And even the Coast Guard cutters!
I do not know about other people, but I am not sad that I managed to avoid the many meter line on the island to climb the base or crown of the statue. Who still decides, better buy tickets online first. And who wants to bring the kids on the tour, remember that there are no elevators inside the statue, and that children less than 1.20m tall are not allowed to ride.
To our right is the port of New York. Great, but in Rotterdam more.
We almost arrived at Staten Island. Now we will enter the dock and stand next to this ferry.
I think that it is possible not to leave the ship and on it to return. But no, it did not work. The speaker announces that all passengers must leave the ferry and switch to another ship, which within five minutes will depart from the terminal. I had to get up and go to the exit. Judging by the general sigh, 90% of passengers will not admire the beauty of Staten Island.
Two alleys were taken down, which we passed to the terminal.
When the terminal looks, I do not remember much, because I'm in a hurry to get back to New York. Large, lots of people ...
Places on the new ferry are enough for everyone.
On this ferry there is even a bar where no one buys anything. Maybe the bar was on the first ferry, but I did not realize it.
The weather somehow feels spoiled. Fog, cloudy, damp ... Bridge barely visible in the distance.
Swam to Manhattan, in front of him came the gray Green Battery Park.
We swam the last buoy, and we're almost there. An hour passed, and with him - and walked me.
