New York

New York is the biggest city in the USA. It has about 8 million people. It is one of the largest cities in the world (after Sao Paulo, Seoul, Mexico City, Tokyo). It is sometimes called „The Big Apple“. New York covers the area of arout 800 sq km snd has five major boroughs: Manhattan, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island and Brooklyn.

History

The original inhabitants were Indian. This island was bought from the Indians by the Dutch for the bargain price of US $25. The original name was New Amsterdam. Later it was renamed New York. In the southern part of Manhattan Island there used to be a wall against Indians, now there is Wall Street – the centre of financial life with the most important stock-exchange in the world.

Manhattan city plan

The city was built on a modern plan of streets and avenues which are numbered. Streets run east-west and avenues north-south (e.g. Fifth Avenue – shopping centre, Wall Street). Broadway is the center of cultural life. The island is washed by two rivers – the East River and the Hudson River.

In southern Manhattan we can find the liveliest boroughs such as Little Italy, Chinatown. Artists created studio lofts in 19 century industrial buildings. East Village is a multi-cultural area with many ethnic restaurants, funky boutiques, rock and jazz clubs. Greenwich Village is the home of artists, writers and N.Y.U. students.

The city is notorious for its crime. Many people believe New York is no longer a healthy place to live.

Skyscrapers

New York is famous for its Manhattan skyline – a large number of skyscrapers in a small area. They started to build skyscrapers here because of the lack of space and the high price of land on the island. A skyscraper uses a steel frame to support the vertical load, they are built with the help of computers which can take into consideration wind, earthquake. The building is a small city itself – it offers residential quarters, office spaces, parking lots, restaurants, shoping facilities, fitness centres, swimming pool – living in a skyscraper is expensive. The best-known skyscrapers are Empire State Building and the World Trade Center (WTC) – the New York’s highest skyscraper is 417m high.

Park, Islands

The only quiet place where, however, it is dangerous to go after dark is Central Park where also famous rock concerts take place. There are many attractive places where visitors like to go – the most widely known is the Brooklyn Bridge. There is the Statue of Liberty – it is a symbol of hope and freedom.

There are many islands in this area – Roosevelt Island, Coney Island and Liberty Island.

Economy

New York is an important industrial city and business center (machinery, electronics, chemistry, food, textiles, fish market). It is also the biggest port in the USA. There are 4 airports, 15 TV stations, 39 radio stations, over 100 hospitals, 29 universities, many cultural institutions, galleries. New York has the largest subway system in the world.