Today was SOOOOO AWESOME!! The theme for today was "immigration". We spend a lot of class time discussing immigration, so I was reall y excited to start my day!! I began the day in Battery Park, where I toured Castle Clinton, a stop for many immigrants who came to America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. I then took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty, where I got to walk all the way up to the crown of Lady Liberty. Although the climb up was intense, it was so worth it! I read stories about how the Statue of Liberty served as a beacon of hope for many immigrants. Upon first seeing the statue, many immigrants who had taken the arduous journey across the Atlantic became overwhelmed with joy.
I then took the ferry to Ellis Island... I was very excited to visit this immigration station that served the East Coast. Millions of immigrants passed through this checkpoint before departing to their new homes. Ellis Island ahs a wonderful museum, although many exhibits were still removed due to the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy a few years back.
I then made my way to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. This is one of the sites I have been wanting to visit the most. I wanted to see, first-hand, what a tenement looked like and take pictures to show to my students. To my dismay, the museum did not allow us to take photos. However, I now have a better idea of what tenements really are and can now relay that information to my students. I learned about a couple of families who lived in this tenement. Apartments were only 325 square feet!!!
Next, I visited PDT (Please Don't Tell). PDT is a former speakeasy from the Prohibition era *hence, it's name). This was so cool!! PDT looks like a hot dog joint from the street (and it does sell hot dogs inside), but walk into the building and you will see a phone booth to the right. Go into the phone booth and dial "1" and a secret door will open, allowing you to enter the speakeasy. I can not wait to tell my students about this when we discuss Prohibition.
I finished the night by eating dinner at Lombardi's Pizza, which is supposedly America's first pizzeria. It was wonderful! I walked around Little Italy for a while. So far, I am loving New York City!!! I love seeing and learning more about the things we discuss in class! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to everyone who supports PEF & FFT!!! I am blessed!
I then took the ferry to Ellis Island... I was very excited to visit this immigration station that served the East Coast. Millions of immigrants passed through this checkpoint before departing to their new homes. Ellis Island ahs a wonderful museum, although many exhibits were still removed due to the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy a few years back.
I then made my way to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. This is one of the sites I have been wanting to visit the most. I wanted to see, first-hand, what a tenement looked like and take pictures to show to my students. To my dismay, the museum did not allow us to take photos. However, I now have a better idea of what tenements really are and can now relay that information to my students. I learned about a couple of families who lived in this tenement. Apartments were only 325 square feet!!!
Next, I visited PDT (Please Don't Tell). PDT is a former speakeasy from the Prohibition era *hence, it's name). This was so cool!! PDT looks like a hot dog joint from the street (and it does sell hot dogs inside), but walk into the building and you will see a phone booth to the right. Go into the phone booth and dial "1" and a secret door will open, allowing you to enter the speakeasy. I can not wait to tell my students about this when we discuss Prohibition.
I finished the night by eating dinner at Lombardi's Pizza, which is supposedly America's first pizzeria. It was wonderful! I walked around Little Italy for a while. So far, I am loving New York City!!! I love seeing and learning more about the things we discuss in class! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to everyone who supports PEF & FFT!!! I am blessed!