Переведите new york, or the big apple, as the americans often call it, is the largest city in the usa and in the whole world. it stands in the mouth of the hudson river. the people of new york city (nyc) live within five boroughs of manhattan, brooklyn, queens, the bronx and staten island. manhattan island, the oldest part of the city, was bought from the native americans for the amount of goods worth $ 26. now it is one of the busiest financial and cultural centre in the world, offering the visitors a unique collection o f experiences and attractions. there is a wide choice of internationally acclaimed theatres, restaurants and museums, historic parks and churches. manhattan is also a district o f business and finance. in wall street there are offices of large companies and banks, as well as new york stock exchange, which dominates the business life o f the whole world. new york is an international city. on the map of manhattan one can find little italy with the italian restaurants and its own way of life, brighton beach, where the immigrants from the former soviet union live and chinatown, inhabited by the chinese. ny is also famous for its fine department stores and boutiques. in the evening you can enjoy one of its many nightclubs, the ballet, opera, a show or concert. broadway is the centre of nightlife. it is the longest street in new york with many sights. the best way to go around ny is on foot. one word applies to driving your own car in manhattan: don’t! streets are jammed and the parking is scarce and astronomically expensive. however, nyc is a paradise for walkers, who enjoy the finest window shopping and people-watching. when proper caution is exercised, most areas are safe. it is best to use well-lighted, busy streets at night. you can also travel anywhere you want by subway and buses. subway, though rather inattractive and not so well organized as in moscow, runs 24 hours a day. the fare is $ 1.50 for a single journey, payable with tokens. free bus and subway system maps are available from hotels, tourist information centres and subway stations. however one gets around new york, it is important to know some basic geography: fifth avenue divides the city between east and west. street numbers begin at fifth avenue, so two w. (west) 57th street is just a few steps to the west of the fifth avenue, while two e. (east) 219 57th street is just to the east. most streets in manhattan are one-way. with a few exceptions, traffic on even-numbered streets travels east, and traffic on odd-numbered streets travels west. to new yorkers, “downtown” does not connote the city centre. rather, “downtown” simply means “south” and “uptown” means “north”. thousands o f tourists come to new york every day to see the statue of liberty, which is situated on liberty island and is a symbol o f american democracy. it has a torch of freedom in her right hand. new york is famous for its skyscrapers, among which are the chrysler building and the empire state building. the unprecedented terrorist attack on september 11, 2001 disguised the face o f new york. two twin towers, which used to form the world trade centre, were destroyed as the result o f the planes crash. this was the tragic day for the people o f the usa and for the whole world. two towers were in ruins in the matter o f minutes. the life of the big city was paralyzed completely for more than a month. now the wtc is under reconstruction
