|
|
|
#1161 | Sunday, April 7th, 2002
|
|
Well, we found ourselves in NYC on 9/10 looking forward to 4 days of great fun and sightseeing! We had flown to Conn. , from our home in Albuquerque, NM to delebrate our grandaughters 10th bday in Mass.. After 3 days there, we headed to NYC. Our son had made us reservations at the Waldorf Astoria (never would we have stayed at such a special place, but he made up the difference in price) telling us he really wanted us to have a special vacation, not knowing when we'd get back to NYC! Little did he know , how special and profound it would be! We checked into the hotel and what a grand place it is! WE were able to get the Guggenheim museum in and a nice dinner that Mon.. We would get up early on Tues. am to head uptown to the studios where the Regis Philbin show is done. So we found ourselves at that location trying to get into the show without tickets! Well, while we were waiting in line, the TVs were on in the lobby and we saw the first plane hit the first tower! We were in disbelief along with all the other people there, including some of the station employees, thinking it had been a terrible accident! WE stayed put, thinking we might still get into the Regis show and my God, another plane hit the other tower! At this, every one exclaimed "it must be a terrorist attack"! People were dumbfounded, in a state of shock! We hailed a taxi and headed down to Rockefeller CTR., thinking we could get into the outside audience of the Today Show but by then it was almost deserted! This was only 10 am! WE could see the smoke billowing from the towers but were amazed that we didn't hear any explosion! Being in a state of shock still, we actually went into a restaurant in Rockefeller CTR. to have breakfast, which in afterthought, seems so crazy! Half way through our meal our waiter, very pleasant and from S. America, told us that the restaurant was closing down. He was not happy about this, because it meant no pay for the day. He shared with us that he shared an apartment with 3 other men and was saving money to return to S. America. As we left the restaurant into the lobby we saw Stone Phillips talking to other people and tried to hear what he was saying, but it seemed they didn't know much more than anyone at that moment. We headed back up to the WAldorf Astoria and found out from our cabbie (a man of about 35) that he and his wife and 3 children lived in an apartment and had to make about $10,000 a mo. to live in the city! WE were astounded!
WE were surrounded by all this chaos , but at the same time calm, and in the hotel we felt so protected, as though this horrible thing hadn't happened and was a dream! The hotel set up incredible security right away. WE got ahold of our son, who had stayed in the city, but at a different hotel and he was safe, later that day he joined us. Thank God we had not gone down to the Twin T. as tourists do! That evening we went to dinner at a lovely Italian Rest. close to the WAldorf and it seemed so bazaar , all these people visiting, having a good time, eating great food while the horrors of the site were going on! We walked down to time square and it was almost deserted!! It was frightening and seemed like a movie of the "end of the world". WE had never seen the city like this! Streets were all but abandoned! WE were hopeful that we could still get to enjoy some plays and museums on Wed. or Thurs. , but our hopes were dashed! I didn't even get to visit with my 2 cousins who live in the city who we had planned to visit with. They were so distraught by the attack they were in no mood to visit. They are still affected by this horror and still miss the spirit of the city , as it was! Driving out of the city on Wed. was so strange, it was deserted except for the police who were at different intersections. My son had hoped to get one of the wonderful NYC hot dogs from a vendor on the way out and sadly there were none to be seen or had! It's strange how even such a small, seemingly insignificant thing as not getting a hot dog can astound a person! We left the city , returning to Mass., with no problems. WE returned to Albuquerque that next week, 6 days after the attack. There were slight delays but the most noticeable thing were peoples moods and frame of mind. We were very quiet and subdued. I wondered if I would panic when on the airplane, but I didn't and I had faith that we would arrive home safely. The pilot flew over the TT area as we left Conn. and we could see the smoke and how sad we all felt! Our 2 grandchildren in Mass. made red, white & blue ribbons and passed them out to the neighbors in their area and I still proudly wear mine. Even though Albuquerque is 2000 miles away from NYC our people were so concerned and sad and in shock, as the people all over were. So, my sons' words were pretty profetic when he said "he really wanted us to have a special and memorable vacation in NYC". And he shared it with us. He has been back to ground 0 for business reasons and was appalled by the site! I'm glad I found this chance to share our story, hope it can help in some way. Thank You, Patricia Smith
|
Patricia | 60 | New Mexico
|
#1162 | Sunday, April 7th, 2002
|
|
Hello,
During the attack on the WTC builings I was sitting at home (Tel Aviv, Israel), studying for a biology exam, and I was on the phone with a girl in my class named Shiran, and suddenly they showed on TV the 1st building going on fire and the 2nd plane hitting the 2nd building. since that moment, I watched the special telecast about the attack.
|
Shahar | 15 | Israel
|
#1163 | Sunday, April 7th, 2002
|
|
Looking at the burning buildings, from the 7th floor lunchroom of my high school, Brooklyn Technical H.S. I left my classroom with permission to go to the bathroom, and ran up the stairs from the 3rd floor. Trying to figure out what happened ... I remember hearing from a kid ... "a plane hit the Twin Towers" and something else about terrorists. I was going to bring my video camera that day just for fun too. That day was hectic. Cell phone calls could barely connect, subways were closed off, and alot of students went to the auditorium trying to get in touch with whoever they knew were around that vicinity.
And I stayed quiet, watching the news.
|
MaGiCs | 16 | New York
|
#1164 | Sunday, April 7th, 2002
|
|
i rember september 11th very well i was sitting in my 2nd period class and were listening to what was going on, on the radio the entire class was, but none of us really understood what was going on and just continued working on our projects...then came 5th period when our teacher explained what was happening almost every 5 min. a kid was pulled out of class over the intercom...i got very nervous because both my step-mom and my dad work there and all i could do was pray that they were okay. when i got home from school..i recived many phone calls from my friends and family. and now being april 7th i am still praying for the families who lost loved ones... many things that i have read about after september 11th were very sad and one of the things i read was that people were wondering "where was god on september 11th" and i thought about it and God was there!! i mean think about how long he held the towers up so that people could get out. and for those who didnt all my thoughts and prayers are with them and there family and to make sure they no that they are in a good place with god. And i think that america has become STRONGER and more UNITED as it will ever be!!!!!!!!!!!! GoD bLeSs
|
kate | 14 | Maryland
|
#1165 | Monday, April 8th, 2002
|
|
I got out of the shower and turned on the TV to listen to the news. Something I do every day. Normally it's the "usual" news. I heard something about planes hitting the World Trade Center. I went over to the TV to see what happened. I saw the buildings on fire. It seemed so unreal. I kept getting ready for work and listening to the TV and stopping what I was doing several times to look at the TV screen. My three children got up for school and I told them what had happened. Everything seemed so quiet that morning. I remember feeling apprehensive about sending my children off to school. I felt an emptiness as my two older children left. I hugged them extra. I walked my seven year old to school and watched in silence as he walked to his classroom. The thing that strikes me the most is how quiet everything seemed in the world. No emotions. Everyone's faces were like stone. I drove to work. I couldn't concentrate on anything. It seemed so weird to be at work trying to conduct business while all this was happening in the world. They let us go home early. I was glad. It seemed wrong to be at work on that day. I wanted to be safe at home with my children.
|
Jeanette | 40 | Arizona
|
<< |
< |
showing 1161-1165 of 2527
| >
| >>
|
|
|
|
|
