NEW YORK, the World Metropolis

Athens – New York (and from Thessaloniki/Crete/Cyprus*)
Meet at the airport and fly to New York. Welcome to the “Big Apple”! Our first acquaintance with the city begins with the route from the airport to Manhattan. New York consists of five boroughs: Manhattan, Staten Island, Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx. The islands are connected by bridges, tunnels and ferries. We will cross some of them to reach our destination – the city where each skyscraper is also a unique piece of architecture.Most avenues are numbered from east to west (so 1st Avenue is east of 2nd ave.). Building numbering on avenues begins at the south end of the avenue and increases northward, while street numbering begins at Fifth Avenue and increases both eastward and westward.This fact means that you can very easily find your way. Streets are numbered – except in midtown Manhattan – and the numbering increases as you go north. Check in at our hotel, located in the “heart” of Manhattan. Those who wish (depending on the time) can go for a first walk in the city, accompanied by our guide.

Today we start our tour from the United Nations (UN). The main objectives of this Organization are the maintenance of international peace and security, development, cooperation between Nations to resolve international crises and the promotion of the protection of human rights. The large courtyard of the building is decorated with exhibits – donations from various countries. Next is the circular plaza with the statue of Christopher Columbus and Lincoln Center, a complex of buildings that house arts organizations such as the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera and the famous Julliard School of the Arts,where countless world-renowned artists have appeared, including the Greek Maria Kallas. Right next door is Fordham University Law School, where the biggest names in modern history have studied. We continue to Central Park, the most important green lung of the American metropolis, which will give you the opportunity to escape to a small natural paradise with artificial lakes, manicured picnic areas, playgrounds, sports fields and a zoo. On the west side of the parkwe see the imposing, renaissance Victorian-style Dakota building, in whose expensive apartments live artists, shipowners, etc. – the late “Beetle”, John Lennon, also lived here. Next is Columbia University – in short, the world’s grandest “temple” of humanities. What has been produced by human thought over the centuries about how a society should live, behave, be educated, rule and be governed, exists in this historic institution as science and research. All undergraduate departments, especially those of history, political science, psychology and sociology, are particularly valuable.In the history of art especially, nowhere in the world can a more complete education be given. We continue with the monument of the Northern general Ulysses Grant, who in 1868 was elected President of the USA. with a percentage of 52.7%, the Hudson River and Harlem with the famous Apollo Theater. The physiognomy of the area, which for decades was the largest black ghetto in New York, has undoubtedly begun to change.The dilapidated buildings in which large families were crammed have in recent years begun to be replaced by modern constructions, while the burning garbage bins around which the needy gathered for warmth have long since disappeared. Harlem is now a destination for many gourmet foodies in the American metropolis, as restaurants and cafes have started to spring up everywhere. Next is the famous 5th Avenue with the Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art,the Trump Tower (of the multi-millionaire and former US president Donald Trump), all the European fashion houses and many glamorous jewelry stores, such as Cartier, Bulgari, etc. We proceed to Rockefeller Center, a complex of 19 buildings.It is one of the largest private complexes of its kind in the world, with shops, restaurants and in the center, in one of the skyscrapers, the Observatory with an amazing view, called Top of the Rock. We conclude our tour of Broadway, the “heart” of theaters. Broadway is a major boulevard that runs all the way through Manhattan and has lent its name to many spectacular musical productions. In the evening follow your guide’s suggestions.

Today begins with a Cruise, during which we will admire and photograph from the ship the restored piers, the historic Ellis Island – a place of reception for immigrants in the past – the Statue of Liberty, as well as Staten Island and New Jersey . From every point of the cruise we will enjoy a unique view of Manhattan. We will then pass by Governor’s Island and Brooklyn. Next up is our visit to the lovely Chelsea Market.Red bricks dominate and embrace the entire huge space of the covered market, industrial details such as pipes, chimneys etc. make their presence evident – in general prepare for a labyrinthine space with dozens of different options, entrances, exits etc. quite simply, it is the “mecca” of New York gourmands. Chelsea Market has established itself as the “Food Mall”, but there are also several additional options for shopping and artistic activities. Our next stop is The High Line, a long and narrow park installed on abandoned elevated train tracks. Continuing towards the southern end of Manhattan (Lower Manhattan),we will see the famous Wall Street, which acts as the heart of big business and is home to the New York Stock Exchange and Federal Hall. Even further south is Battery Park. The “One World Trade Center” skyscraper, the tallest building in New York, stands today at “Ground Zero”. The “National September 11th Memorial and Museum” complex has also been erected on the site, which includes an underground museum and two memorial pools. The underground museum houses exhibits of the victims of September 11, while at the site where the Twin Towers were locatedtwo pools-reservoirs have been built, inscribed with the names of the 2,983 victims killed that day. Next we will see the all-white Metro station at the World Trade Center, the imposing Oculus, a landmark of architecture and symbolism designed by the famous Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, with the aim of making the World Trade Center Transportation Hub look like a bird ready to fly. This impressive station is 111 meters long and 35 meters wide -to walk it with a normal step from one side to the other takes about a minute and a half. Nearby is the famous Greek Orthodox church of Agios Nikolaos in New York, which was destroyed by the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001 and after 21 years is opening its doors again, after being rebuilt with marble from Penteli according to the architect’s plans Santiago Calatrava and with a truly impressive icon painting by the equally famous Saint icon painter Fr Loukas.Finally we will see the new Hudson Yards neighborhood, the largest private real estate development in US history after Rockefeller Center. In the center dominates the impressive “Vessel”. Spread across 14 acres, Hudson Yards includes gardens, groves, dozens of commercial and ultra-luxury stores, celebrity chef restaurants, etc.

Today’s first visit is New York’s Grand Central Railway Station, which began operating in 1913. Since then, it has become a landmark of the city and the ingenious way in which it separates car, pedestrian and pedestrian traffic is remarkable. of trains. The building has a steel frame, covered with granite and marble. A little further down we see the Flatiron Building or Fuller Building, as it was originally called. It is an innovative skyscraper built on a triangular block between 5th Avenue and Broadway, which after its completion in 1902,it was one of the tallest buildings in the city. The Flatiron is another landmark of New York and every year it gathers thousands of visitors from all over the world. Next is New York University (NYU), which was founded in 1831 and has attracted writers, musicians, artists and intellectuals to study. It is a private institution with 27,444 total undergraduate enrollments.The main campus is located in Washington Square, near Greenwich Village. Our tour continues through well-known Manhattan neighborhoods that have their own color and culture, such as Greenwich Village – between Houston Street and Broadway – and Soho, the 19th-century neighborhood full of galleries, boutiques and restaurants. We arrive in “Little Italy”, with many Italian restaurants and shops, which will remind you of scenes from the movie “The Godfather”. We proceed to Chinatown, one of the largest areas of Asians living outside of Asia, famous for budget restaurants, grocery stores and ethnic gift shops. We continue with the magical Brooklyn Bridge.It is the first suspension bridge with steel cables in the world and has been connecting Manhattan with Brooklyn since 1883 (the journey on foot takes about 20 minutes). An emblematic element of the image, but also of everyday life in New York. Walking, we gaze at the view and countless images from movies and TV series with skyscrapers in the background come to mind. Finally, today we will take a close look at Hudson Yards, the largest private investment in reconstruction ($25 billion) in US history after Rockefeller Center,which intends to form an “other city” within New York. When this brand new neighborhood officially opened its gates to welcome citizens and visitors, more than 1,000 people rushed. Hudson Yards extends over 14 acres and includes huge sidewalks, gardens, groves, dozens of shops and restaurants, ultra-luxurious apartments, while at its center is the Vessel, the impressive sculpture-building, which looks like a huge beehive and consists of 154 stairs with a total of 2,500 steps, offering a unique view.Among these… beasts is the building “The Shops & Restaurants at Hudson Yards”, which gathers in its well-polished corridors some of the biggest retail and restaurant brands in the world: the first Neiman Marcus store in New York, a concept store of the Zara chain, but also the first physical stores of several online retailers, celebrity chefs’ restaurants, such as the eclectic “Mercado Little Spain” of José Andrés and the brothers Albert and Ferran Adrià in the basement or “Wild Ink”, the first restaurant of the London catering company Rhurhab.There is also the new “Estiatorio Milos”, which exclusively occupies the top communal floor of the building. Kostas Spiliadis, a leading representative of Greek gastronomy in America, but also one of its most important ambassadors around the world, the chef, restaurateur and founder of a restaurant empire, is at the heart of this new project.

Today we can spend our day at Woodbury Common, a shopper’s paradise just 1.15 minutes from Manhattan. Woodbury Common Premium Outlets features over 220 boutiques and stores, offering the largest collection of the world’s best designers and brands, with deals ranging from 20% to as much as 70% off. Some of the stores are: Adidas, Banana Republic Factory Store, Barneys New York Outlet, Burberry, Coach, Dolce & Gabbana, DKNY, Frette, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, Zegna, Max Mara, Neiman Marcus Last Call, Gap Outlet, Nike Factory StoreSaks Fifth Avenue Off 5th, Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store, Salvatore Ferragamo, Tommy Hilfiger, Timberland, Versace. You will also be able to relax in a variety of restaurants and cafes. Alternatively, we suggest you visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET), one of the largest and most important art museums in the world. It was founded in 1870 by a group of American businessmen and artists, who wanted to create a museum to bring Art and Education to the American people.Located on 5th Avenue in Manhattan, its collections include approximately two million works of art, spanning more than 5,000 years of history and from nearly every corner of the globe. The Museum houses exhibits of Greco-Roman, Medieval, Islamic, Asian and modern art, as well as photographs, clothing, weapons and musical instrumentsAlso for something more different… The Cloisters, which is part of the Metropolitan Museum of New York. It opened its gates to the public in 1938 and consists of five medieval monasteries. The museum is dedicated to the art and architecture of Medieval Europe with around 2000 works of art, which date from the 12th to the 15th century. The gardens that surround it are a real refuge to escape the noise of the city.In the afternoon we recommend a stroll through Tribeca and especially Soho – many local artists, writers and intellectuals have given way (and their galleries) to the big brands and the crowd. At night East, West and Greenwich Village are among the neighborhoods listed in the guides as must-sees – especially for their nightlife.

For today’s free day we suggest a full-day excursion to Washington D.C., the capital of the United States of America. The D.C. patch comes from the phrase “District of Columbia”, meaning the District of Columbia – the federal district identified with the city of Washington. The city was named after George Washington, the first president of the United States. It is the seat of the US government and is home to the White House, Congress and the Supreme Court.It is also home to 172 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of international organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Built on the banks of the Potomac River, between the states of Virginia and Maryland, Washington DC is itself a state of the US territory (the state of Columbia) and is endowed with majestic buildings, imposing monuments to the history of the United States, numerous parks with rows of trees, museums, squares and aligned avenues. Apart from its historical value, it is one of the most beautiful cities in the USA.Fresh air, imposing monuments, manicured gardens – a perfectly built city, the nation’s capital. We see the Capitol, the White House, Arlington Cemetery with the Kennedy memorials, the Lincoln Memorial and other sights. In the center of the city there are examples of remarkable architecture, as well as DuPont Circle, something like Manhattan’s 5th Avenue. Those of you who prefer to stay in New York, we suggest you visit the wonderful “Solomon R. Guggenheim” museum,which has a permanent collection of more than 6,000 works of contemporary art. Also, the “Museum of Modern Art” (MoMA), considered the “Mecca” of modern art, houses one of the richest collections of works by famous artists from the entire spectrum of modern art. Another suggestion is the magnificent New York Public Library. What a great building! Located between 40th and 42nd Streets, the New York Public Library is one of the lesser-known attractions.But you will surely have seen her in a movie (Ghostbusters, The Thomas Crown Affair, Spider-Man, The Day After Tomorrow, Breakfast at Tiffany’s). Yes, it is no coincidence that he stars in them! Worth!

Free day for those who want to visit museums and various sights of the city or combine walks and shopping in its rich market. We recommend a full-day excursion to one of the oldest cities in the USA: Boston. The city was founded in 1630 by the English and was the site of many important events of the American Revolution. After independence from Great Britain, the city continued to be an important port, as well as a world center for education and culture.We will visit internationally renowned Universities, such as Harvard and MIT, we will see the Prudential Tower and various Victorian buildings, we will pass by the Symphony Hall, home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, etc. This city is not unfairly called “The Walking City”, since, compared to the rest of the world, commuting on foot is a frequent choice.

Day 8-9: New York – Athens (Thessaloniki/Crete/Cyprus*) Last day of the tour today and WE OFFER you a FREE visit to the American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History is a “must visit” for those interested in the natural world. It spans four city blocks and consists of 28 interconnected buildings, making it the largest natural history museum in the world – an amazing place to experience the natural world and its many wonders.It was founded in 1869 and in its 45 exhibition halls it hosts more than 33 million specimens of plants, animals, fossils, minerals and rocks, meteorites, human bones, but also human cultural artifacts. It also has a planetarium and a library. Visitors can use the museum’s interactive app, Explorer, to navigate its 570,000 square meters and take detailed tours of the halls.The museum also offers a treasure hunt and has 360 devices that can be borrowed during the visit. One of the most important sections of the museum is the collection of dinosaurs and fossilized vertebrates, which is considered the most important in the world. The museum has six rooms dedicated to the history of vertebrate evolution, with popular exhibits such as Tyrannosaurus Rex and Apatosaurus. The museum’s dioramas are also impressive, such as the Biodiversity Hall, which focuses on preserving the diversity of Earth’s living things, and the Margaret Mead Hall of Pacific Peoples,the Hall of Asian Peoples, the Hall of African Peoples, and the Hall of South American Peoples, which showcase indigenous cultures and related fauna The museum’s Rose Center for Earth and Space is an impressive glass box added in 2000 and includes the Heilbrunn Cosmic Pathway, the Scales of the Universe, and the Cullman Hall of the Universe.It also houses the Hayden Planetarium, the most technologically advanced in the world, which offers a multi-sensory tour of the universe. In addition to its exhibition halls, the museum is also a world-renowned scientific research institution. Arrival the next day.

Arrival in Athens. Now you understand that New York is more than just a trip to the USA. It really is a trip of a lifetime to the center of the world!