When planning our trip to NYC, the 9/11 Memorial was a unanimous “must-see”. Our trip would not be complete without going to pay our respects to the thousands of people who lost their lives that day and for the families who suffered such a loss. Also huge respect for the continued efforts from the workers at the Memorial who have made such a devastating place somewhere beautiful you can go and reflect and remember. The last time we were there, 5 years ago, there was not much at Ground Zero except for a fenced area that would become the Memorial that stands today. It was shocking to come back and see its transformation into a moving and serene place of hope.
One World Trade Center (1 WTC), or previously the Freedom Tower is the lead building of the new World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The 104-story super-tall skyscraper is being constructed in the northwest corner of the 16-acre World Trade Center site at Ground Zero, where the 110-story Twin Towers and five other buildings once stood. 1 WTC has officially grown taller than the Empire State Building and it can be seen from far away. In the picture below we were several blocks away from the 1 WTC.
The National September 11 Memorial is a place of remembrance honoring those who perished in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993. The Memorial, dedicated on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, opened to the public on September 12, 2011 and consists of two massive pools set within the original footprints of the Twin Towers with 30-foot waterfalls cascading down their sides. According to 9/11 Memorial booklet, the 2,983 names of the men, women, and children killed in the attacks are inscribed into bronze parapets surrounding the twin Memorial pools. This national tribute, located at the heart of the World Trade Center, also gives visitors the unique opportunity to witness the rebuilding taking place around them, including the construction of 1 World Trade Center. At the time of its completion in 2013, One World Trade Center will be the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere and the third-tallest building in the world by pinnacle height. The entrance to the Memorial starts here.
The admission to the Memorial is free, but advanced passes for a specific day and time are required. They are offered either online, or at the 9/11 Preview Shop. It is better to obtain them online to escape the lines at the Shop. The 1 WTC Tower and the other six buildings in the area are under construction, so the Memorial is surrounded by all this construction. And because of that the Memorial is walled off (temporary) and the visitors had to walk through a lengthy labyrinth to actually get there. There is a security process similiar to that in the airport, but it was quick and very efficient, therefore it didn’t take long for us to get through.
North and South pools are built on the exact location where Twin Towers stood before 9/11. Both pools with reflections and names engraved is a respectful and dignified way to commemorate 9/11 and the people who lost their lives on that day. Both pools are quite beautiful, cascading waters flow down into one pool and then into a center pool called the void. The waterfalls are poetically symbolic in so many ways (tears, souls, eternity). This is the South pool in the pictures below.
There were booklets available on the site, directional signs as well as people on hand, who were more than willing to answer any questions.
The North Pool has the same design as the South Pool. There is a lot of construction around it.
The glass-and-steel pavilion building between the Memorial pools will serve as the entrance to the Museum, with exhibition housed below the Memorial plaza. The emotional journey will begin from the moment someone enters the museum’s glass pavilion. The Museum will display artifacts of intimate to monumental scale, from a wide range of personal items donated by victims’ families in memory of their loved ones to multiple objects salvaged from the wreckage of the World Trade Center. Among the larger artifacts to be presented are the two forked steel beams known as “tridents”, already visible through the Museum Pavilion’s glass atrium. Standing over seven stories tall, these columns were once part of the original façade of the Twin Towers. Now, they signify the power of the historical artifacts within the Museum (from the official 9/11 Memorial site). The museum was under construction during our visit, but we were able to see steel beams through the glass panels of the museum.
All but one of the trees on the Memorial are swamp white oaks. The exception is a Callery pear tree known as the “Survivor Tree”. This tree was recovered from the rubble at the World Trade Center site in October 2001. Long after recovery workers didn’t expect to find anything alive at the site. At the time of its recovery it was 8-feet tall, badly burned, and it had only one living branch. In March 2010, while still under the care of the Bronx nursery, the tree was uprooted during a storm. It suffered no significant damage, and was replanted. In December 2010, the Survivor Tree, grown to a height of 30 feet, was returned to the World Trade Center site. Over the years, the tree has been a symbol of hope and rebirth and an emotional symbol for a lot of people.
It just touches your heart, everyone will always remember where they were when it happened. This horrific tragedy will be never forgotten and we continue to honor the memories of those we lost.
