So I got a little head start on my New Year’s resolutions, which you can read right here. One of my resolutions was to travel around the city more, since I’m from the boroughs of New York, yet blue moons are more frequent than my trips to my Manhattan. My friends and I decided to take the Staten Island Ferry since none of us have ever rode it. I wanted to go but I was a teeny bit uncertain about it – mostly because I wasn’t sure how safe I’d feel traveling over water.
We took the A and R trains to Whitehall Street in Battery Park. Truthfully, I imagined us waiting outside on the dock for the ferry and then walking up a gangplank to board the boat. Turns out there’s actually a building that you enter if you want to go on the ferry. It was spacious and honestly reminded me of an airport because of the vendors and magazine stations and all the people waiting. The ferry was supposed to come every half an hour. As the time neared the 30 minute mark, more and more people started crowding around the doors that would be opened once the ferry arrived. I honestly hadn’t expected there to be so many people taking the ferry!
I felt almost tingly as everyone began boarding the ferry (which is a lot more humungous in person!) I was extremely surprised to see that there were rows and rows of seats on the ferry. I wanted to grab a window seat just so I could watch the water. I got one better, however. My friends and I went to the bow of the ferry where passengers were allowed to stand, but there were safety ropes and gates barring us from going beyond a certain point.
Standing outside while the ferry was in motion was my favorite part! I even made a new little feathered friend who seemed to be enjoying the ferry ride as much as I was!
Moving on water against the (rather cold) sea breeze, past other small vessels and even past a sister ferry was really exhilarating! We stayed up front until the trip was complete so we could watch the ferry pull into the dock in St. George. We were in Staten Island! This was also my first time coming to Staten Island, the only borough I had never visited in all of my 19 years in New York.
In Staten Island we took a short walk to the National Lighthouse Museum. It’s just off the ferry in a cozy little house-looking kind of building. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students. There were displays of other white houses in the United States (and really cool looking ones at that). The souvenirs sold were mostly some type of jewelry and were really pretty. Everyone there was really nice and welcoming! There was even a map with hundreds of pushpins. Visitors to the museum could take a pushpin and insert it on the map to represent where they came from. People from all over the world visited this museum! Fun fact: People from every U.S. state has visited the National Lighthouse Museum in Staten Island except for Minnesota!
I had a great time on the Staten Island Ferry, and without a doubt have been thinking of taking another trip on it! Maybe next time to tour Staten Island and visit some cool restaurants and cafes. Taking the Staten Island Ferry is definitely a fun thing to do in the city that also happens to be free. As my best friend put it, the ferry is one of the last few remaining free things in the city. Even if you just take it to St. George and then turn around for the return trip, it’s still a wonderful experience!
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