New York
New York is a big city in the United States of America. The Dutch founded New York in 1624. It wasn´t very big at that time and called "New Amsterdam". It was first called New York by the British 1664. In the 19th century, New York grew rapidly and became a major port. In 1861 the Civil War began, it was the war between the North and the South. After the South had lost, their slaves were set free. From 1800 to 1900, the population grew from 79 000 to 3 million people. Today more than eight million people live in, New York, the biggest city of the USA. To see the whole city you can go by subway, by taxi, or even by helicopter, but you must have a lot of time to see the "Big Apple". The "Big Apple is a synonym for a city which is very busy and very big ! 70% of the country ´s corporations were based in New York by 1900. Two-thirds of all imported goods were handled there. From 1892 to 1954 nearly 17 million people passed through the famous immigration gates on Ellis Island, which belongs to New York, in the greatest wave of migration the world has ever known. Today the site has a national museum.
In its early years, when the greatest number of immigrants entered the country Ellis Island at that time let everyone in, to America, but then in 1920 it changed the laws and "closed the doors", and people then who didn´t pass various inspections had to the countries, they came from. Ellis Island is an essential place to visit because no other place or museum explains so well the "melting pot" that formed the unique character of New York and the nation.
The Bronx, Manhatten, Staten Island, Queens and Brooklyn are the five parts of New York. The most famous of these five parts is 21 kilometres long and 4 kilometres wide, it is called: "Manhatten" with all its skyscrapers, shops, nightclubs, theatres and museums. Manhatten was a forested land in which Indians lived. In 1625 the first settlers built houses in which they lived then. Many people spend their spare time in the Central Park which is right in the middle of
Manhatten and sometimes called "the lungs of New York". There you can see many people of all ages on the lawn and lanes.
An other attraction is the Broadway and Fifth Avenue where you can find many famous, very expensive and exclusive shops. Only rich person who come from all over the world can afford to buy there.
To see the Greenwich Village, Chinatown, Financial District, Little Italy and the Hudson River you can take an elevator to an Observation Desk, which is higher than the Empire State Building, to look down.
If you want to see the American Karate Championship, International Wrestling, the Muppet Show on tour, races, rock concerts, the Barnum & Baily Circus and of course tennis you must go to the Madison Square garden, there are many shows a year.
Many people are robbed out or even killed every year in the dangerous parts in the city with lots of crime and poverty. Nobody takes care of the people who are homeless and live in the streets of the city. Drugs are a big problem for them, too.
But not only for them, for all the people in the world who have no home, no work, and noone who helps them when they need help.
The Statue of Liberty and the skyscrapers are the typical landmarks of New York. Many New Yorkers live in Brooklyn. Staten Island and Queens are residential areas, too.
I think New York is a very beautiful city with a lot of famous sights which are interesting to see.
