J.A. Myerson, Truthout
Wednesday 7 December 2011
http://truth-out.org/occupy-our-homes/1323268606
Yesterday, no one had lived in 702 Vermont Street for three years. Vermont Street sits in East New York, the Brooklyn neighborhood where foreclosures are five times more frequent than in the rest of the state. Today, Alfredo and Tasha and their son and daughter moved in, with the help of a number of friends whom they'd never met. Some were from the advocacy groups Picture the Homeless and Vocal New York, others were clergy or members of the city council. They had been organized and brought together by Occupy Wall Street for a national day of action to promote foreclosure resistance, an event kicking off a project they call Occupy Our Homes.
Alfredo, Tasha and the kids, way back yesterday, were homeless, having been foreclosed upon by a bank and hundreds upon hundreds of people who had never heard of them came to East New York today to get them a home. Occupy Wall Street is itself somewhat homeless these days, having been evicted from Zuccotti Park on the orders of the 12th-richest man in the United States. A few weeks ago, the media tycoon in question deployed what he openly calls his "army" to dispossess the occupation, including, naturally, everyone who called it their home. Much wondering has been going on in the press about what Occupy Wall Street would do now that it was homeless. Today's answer seems to have been: get other people homes.
The few hundred activists marched through the streets of East New York and took a tour of the foreclosed properties in the area, which is very easy to do, since they are everywhere. "On every block, we have one or two homes either for sale or in foreclosure," Lorraine, who lives in the neighborhood, told me. "I think we have three houses for sale on my block alone."
On the Upper West Side, there are always street fairs. There are museums and libraries and there are parks and concert venues. And on the Upper West Side, there are places for kids to go after school and there are places for people who want to get healthier to exercise. On the Upper West Side, there are churches made of stone. In East New York, there is a church called Hope Christian Center, which looks like an abandoned office building, the paint on the façade stripping away to reveal the brick beneath.
"There's nothing to do here," said longtime East New Yorker Corinne Gonzales, who attributes the many people who watched the march from their windows to this. Revealingly, it was at their windows where people found themselves on a chance Tuesday afternoon in this neighborhood and not, perhaps, at work. Many of them joined the march, which, at its peak, swelled to what was widely estimated to include 1,000 participants - on a Tuesday afternoon in the rain.
Corrine had never seen anything like it. News cameras and satellite vans don't come here, except, occasionally, in the case of a shooting. Now, they'd come here to document the difficulty of a life of poverty and the attempt to change that dynamic. If Occupy Wall Street had chosen to do something else today, another day would have gone by in which no one in the media or politics paid any attention to East New York.
"It's not fair to us low income families," Corrine told me. "Everybody's talking about middle class. Middle class? What about us? We got children. It's not fair to us. And I thank God that you guys came out today to represent us low income families. And I appreciate it very much."
Some activists brought housewarming gifts for the new residents of 702 Vermont Street. Yates McKee, 32, marched carrying a large houseplant. "A plant is important because it's something that helps make it a nice environment," he told me. "It's also a metaphor for sustaining life."
Lorraine had brought brownies. She started a "part-time cooking thing" to make extra money before she lost her job. "They're free," she said, offering me one. "It might energize you, with a little sugar. I have a sweet tooth." These brownies were to welcome the activists who had come to help, though the baker herself faces foreclosure. "Any person at this point is one step away from being jobless and homeless," she remarked. "It's a reality. This is the life that we're living right now. It's like this is what we worked for, all those other years. This is the point that we've come to."
If anybody wanted demands, they were clear today. As Brian Gibbs of Picture the Homeless said by way of the people's microphone, "What we need is real, affordable housing now. It has to change." Gibbs was once homeless on the street and spoke of the police harassment routinely visited upon him and others in his situation. "The problem with homelessness is that people get so desperate, they are willing to risk arrest in order to get off the streets," he told the crowd.
At one stop along the tour, a young man named Quincy, who works as a part time plumber, took the people's mike. "I was tricked into signing over my deed," he confessed. "Now I'm getting evicted. I have a loan of $475,000."
Standing beside him, his city council member, one-time Black Panther Charles Barron, announced, "We will not let this young man lose his home. We've stopped other foreclosures and we're going to stop this one." Thereupon, Quincy began to weep, the friends and comrades he never knew he had gathering around him to place their calming hands upon his shoulders and his arms and his head. He didn't know they were out there, but 1,000 people ready to protect his home happened to be around the corner the day upon which he was getting foreclosed.
As Quincy wrapped up his remarks, a cry from the crowd drew everyone's attention to another longtime resident of the neighborhood, who told the story of having bought her house in 1997, putting $80,000 down. She'd been working two jobs all of her life and had paid her mortgage responsibly, putting down months in advance when she went on vacation. Her son did four years in Kuwait and four years in Iraq and now he's dead. The Pentagon, the woman said, doesn't know whether he died by enemy bullets or friendly fire. Since then, she's become sick and the bills for her medical treatment have ruined her hopes for paying off the rest of her mortgage. Crying to the sky, she asked again and again, "How am I going to do it?"
At the march's destination, balloons announced the block party to be thrown for the incoming neighbors. A tent appeared on the roof, on which was scrawled, "You cannot evict an idea whose time has come." Remarks were shared by, among others, Alfredo, a 27-year-old community organizer around stop and frisk, and Tasha, whose shyness in the face of the people's microphone moved her to nervous giggles and a swift conclusion to her brief thanks.
I went into 702 Vermont Street with the Occupy Wall Street Sanitation Working Group, who entered before anyone else to get the house ready to be, so to speak, occupied. This was a formidable charge. It very much seemed to one as though the people who left 702 Vermont Street did so in a big hurry. Crumbled dry wall, copious mold, piles of refuse - the house might as easily have been Sarajevo in 1996 than in the same city as Wall Street in 2011.
The sun set over Vermont Street behind the clouds, steadily drizzling on the block party. Eventually, Bloomberg's army, consisting of quite a smaller number of people when there wasn't rich people's property to protect, asked the block party to stick to the sidewalk, and the event drew to a close, teams of occupiers agreeing to stay with Alfredo and Tasha and with Quincy for the night, vowing to put their bodies between the residents and anyone attempting to turn them into something else.
The police's boss has $19.5 billion. He's got places to stay all over the world, luxury townhouses in the swankiest neighborhoods in the finest cities in the world and sprawling mansions in lush paradises in the tropics. And no one ever threatens to kick him out of any of them. For the time being, anyway.
This work by Truthout is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.
J.A. Myerson is an independent journalist who is involved in the Media and Labor Outreach committees at Occupy Wall Street.
Showing posts with label New York. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New York. Show all posts
Friday, December 23, 2011
Saturday, December 3, 2011
In a New York City post office, a WW2 monument and tribute.. and a postal delivery bike
Found on http://www.amusingplanet.com/2011/05/dirk-skrebers-car-crash-sculptures.html where the painting behind the WW2 monument is discussed, it's an art deco piece titled Manhattan Skyline, painted by artist Louis Lozowick at the height of the art deco movement as a Works Project Administration commission. It's 18 feet tall, and in the Farley post office on 8th Ave.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Top 10 Destinations for Holiday Lights
From dazzling Disney displays to brilliant boat parades, these 10 destinations mark a spectacular start to the holiday season. Elissa Richard, Y! Travel
http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-40883953
The holidays are just around the corner, and there’s nothing like an electrifying display of holiday lights to charge you up for the season and zap you with that jolly-good Christmas cheer. Luckily for us, there’s no place in the world that does holiday lights quite like the good ol’ U.S. of A., and we’ve rounded up a merry mix of small towns and sprawling cities that do it best.
From East to West, from dazzling Disney displays to brilliant boat parades, sparkling city skylines to mesmerizing megawatt-lined drives, when these top 10 destinations for holiday lights flip the switch, they mark the spectacular start to the holiday season, guaranteeing spectators a sparkling dose of over-the-top holiday spirit.
1. New York City, NY
The Big Apple is known for doing things bigger, better, and brighter, and the holidays are no exception, what with the city’s wondrous window displays, holiday concerts and events, bustling holiday markets, ice-skating rinks, chestnut-roasting street vendors, and seemingly endless street-to-street stream of shining holiday lights.
While you can hardly turn the corner without glimpsing a generous glimmer, some illuminations are simply not to be missed: Start with Rockefeller Center’s iconic towering tree, set aglow with some 30,000 bulbs that glisten down upon the ice-skating rink, bugling lit-up angels, and wide-eyed tourists through early January (lit November 30; free; http://www.rockefellercenter.com/). Tree-lighting fixes (all free) abound – try the South Street Seaport (lit November 25; http://www.southstreetseaport.com/), Lincoln Center (lit November 28, http://www.winterseve.org/), Washington Square Park (lit December 7; http://www.washingtonsquarenyc.org/), Bryant Park (lit November 29; http://www.bryantpark.org/), or the Metropolitan Museum of Art (lit November 29; http://www.metmuseum.org/); or, catch the lighting of the world’s largest Chanukah menorah – at 32-feet high and 4,000 pounds – on the southeastern corner of Central Park on December 20. Other highlights include downtown’s wonderful Winter Garden, where 45-foot-tall palm trees are offset by 100,000 white lights (lit November 29–January 8; free; http://www.artsworldfinancialcenter.com/) and the dangling dozen of illuminated 14-foot stars at the Time Warner Center (now–January 3; free; http://www.shopsatcolumbuscircle.com/).
Look to the city’s outer boroughs, too, for unique takes on holiday lights: We especially like the ostentatiously decorated homes (expect larger-than-life motorized displays, inflatable decorations, and a gargantuan gaggle of glaring lights) in Brooklyn’s Italian-American neighborhood of Dyker Heights (free). Overwhelmed on where to start? Sign up for an organized tour: CitySights NY offers 2.5-hour “Lights of the Holidays” tours of Manhattan (runs November 28–December 30, except Christmas; $44 adults, $34 kids ages 5 to 11; http://www.citysightsny.com/), while A Slice of Brooklyn offers a Brooklyn-based “Christmas Lights and Cannoli Tour,” on select dates in December ($55 adults; $45 children under 12; http://www.asliceofbrooklyn.com/).
2. Newport Beach, CA
For more than a century, Newport Beach’s “Christmas Boat Parade” has delighted spectators with a “Christmas-sea” feeling all its own. A fine flotilla of some 200 vibrantly decorated vessels, from multimillion-dollar yachts right down to simple canoes, glides through Newport Harbor as holiday music and costumed carolers fill the air with melodious merrymaking. The brilliant boat parade (it’s the oldest one in the country) attracts close to a million viewers; it’s held nightly from December 14 through December 18 and lasts about 2.5 hours – show up on the closing night for a fireworks finale. Viewing areas for the beaming 14-mile boat route are on the public beaches and establishments bordering the Balboa Peninsula, the Fun Zone amusement area (where you can hear live commentary from Captain Mike Whitehead, the official voice of the parade), and Balboa Island.
What’s more, many harbor-front homeowners and businesses participate in the annual “Ring of Lights” contest, showcasing their own elaborate holiday displays, while providing a striking backdrop to the boat parade (free; www.christmasboatparade.com). Well worth a detour, the historic Mission Inn Hotel & Spa in Riverside (set less than 50 miles away) is the setting for an extravagant showing of more than 3.6 million holiday lights in its “Festival of Lights” event; expect 400-plus animated figures, live reindeer, and even snow machine-produced flurries – come on opening night for a fireworks display, to boot (November 25-January 8; free; http://www.festivaloflightsca.com/).
3. Walt Disney World
It’s the happiest place on earth, and come Christmastime, it might just be the brightest place on earth, to boot! The Orlando area’s Walt Disney World Resort makes a business of holiday lights magic, with its coup de grâce event, “The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights,” unfolding at Hollywood Studios. The theme park is blanketed by a staggering 5 million bulbs that sync up with animated displays for choreographed interpretations of holiday tunes – not to mention the artificial snow flurries, 3-D effects, and colorful decorations that crop up around every bend.
The exhibit – which began as an Arkansas family’s home Christmas light display that had spiraled into a statewide attraction – was transported to the park in 1995 and Disneyfied to an almost unfathomable scale (now–January 7, closed December 8; standard park admission applies, $85 ages 10 and up, $79 ages 3 to 9, taxes additional). Tack on a visit to the Magic Kingdom, as well, where “Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party” delights with live entertainment, a jolly holiday parade anchored by Santa himself, snowfall on Main Street, a holiday-themed light show on the Cinderella Castle (which is already draped with some 100,000 snow-white lights), and a fireworks finale (select nights from now–December 18; day-of event admission ticket is $62.95 ages 10 and up, $57.95 ages 3 to 9, taxes additional).
One thing’s for certain: The old "'twas the night before Christmas" poem certainly doesn't apply here, because with all of these lights, it'd be impossible for a mouse (in this case, Mickey and Minnie both!) – or anybody else, for that matter – not to stir.
4. Denver, CO
If you can sneak in a Colorado ski vacation before the new year, don’t miss a stopover in Denver, decked out with downright dazzling light displays during their “Mile High Holiday” events. December 2 and 3 see the “9NEWS Parade of Lights” march from the festively illuminated City and County Building (the city’s largest lighting display, it’s lit November 25) through the downtown Denver area, featuring nearly a million shiny lights, a dozen twinkling floats, soaring balloons, marching bands, and more (free; http://www.denverparadeoflights.com/). Also pop by the Denver Botanic Gardens’ “Blossoms of Lights” exhibition, where more than a million colorful holiday lights are integrated into the gardens, and further enhanced by extras like glistening ice sculptures and a strolling choir (December 2–January 1; $9.50 adults, $6.50 kids ages 3 to 12; http://www.botanicgardens.org/). Meanwhile, the Denver Zoo’s “Zoo Lights” event invites visitors to embark on a holiday lights safari – its 38 acres are embellished with more than 150 animated animal sculptures (December 9–January 1; $9 adults, $5 kids ages 3 to 11; http://www.denverzoo.org/).
5. Chicago, IL
Chicago’s frosty winter weather, festive events, and glittering lights make it a hotbed for holiday spirit. The 20th annual “Magnificent Mile Lights Festival” is at the city’s celebratory epicenter, where more than a million lights on 200 trees flank the famous shopping strip, with hundreds of shop’s holiday window displays adding to the appeal.
Don’t miss stepping in to see Macy’s 45-feet-high Great Tree, whose lights remain up through March 1 (free; http://www.themagnificentmile.com/). Meanwhile, downtown’s sparkling Christmas tree in Daley Plaza has been prettifying this plaza for 98 years; a Santa’s workshop for the kids and German-style Christmas market ensure the square is positively brimming with holiday cheer (remains lit through January 8; free).
6. Branson, MO
Nestled in southwestern Missouri’s scenic Ozark Mountains, the city of Branson transforms into a veritable winter wonderland each holiday season, bursting at the seams with lavish light displays and dozens of Christmas spirit-infused shows and events. For the most gleeful glitz, head to the 1880s-style theme park Silver Dollar City, site of “An Old Time Christmas,” with an elaborate light-and-music show showcasing no fewer than 4 million radiant lights and 1,000 decorated Christmas trees. Highlights include the musically inclined 5-story Special Effects Christmas Tree, which, along with the surrounding square, beams with over a million lights that “dance” to select Christmas tunes; there’s also a holiday light parade with light-embellished musical floats that runs twice each evening (now–December 30, closed Christmas Eve and Christmas; park admission of $55 adults and $45 ages 4 to 11 applies; http://www.silverdollarcity.com/).
Shift gear for some yuletide cheer at the “Branson Area Festival of Lights Drive-Through,” a mile-long drive set aglow with some 175 luminous displays (now–January 2; $12 per vehicle; http://www.explorebranson.com/), or opt for the “Trail of Lights,” winding through a 160-acre historic homestead, complete with themed sections, holiday music, and more than 4 million colorful Christmas lights – don’t miss the “Santa’s-eye view” from the atop the 230-foot-high tower (now–January 2; $10 adults, $5 ages 4 to 16; http://www.trailoflights.com/).
7. McAdenville, NC
For nearly six decades, the little North Carolina town of McAdenville (with a population shy of 700) lures some 600,000 visitors to witness its transformation into what’s been dubbed “Christmas Town USA.” A high-spirited partnership between town residents and a local manufacturing company allows the hamlet to trim more than 375 fir trees (they outnumber the households!) with nearly a half-million red, green, and white holiday lights. The trees range in size from 6-footers adorned with 500 lights to 90-foot-high behemoths bedecked in some 5,000 radiant bulbs. Recorded Christmas carols broadcast from a local church add to the high-powered Christmas feel. This year’s event runs through December 26, kicking off with the official lighting ceremony at the town’s Legacy Park on December 1 (free; www.mcadenville-christmastown.com).
Tack on a visit to the “Holiday Lights at the Garden” at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden in nearby Belmont (just 5 miles away), where plants and trees are bedazzled with some half-million lights and are joined by a Christmas tree created by orchids, carriage rides, and more (November 25–December 31, closed Christmas; $12 adults, $6 children ages 4 to 12; http://www.dsbg.org/).
8. San Antonio, TX
San Antonio’s River Walk is always a hotbed of activity, but the holidays take it to new heights, particularly so in 2011, with the infusion of 20 times more Christmas lights (thanks to the city’s move to more energy-efficient LED lighting). You’ll find the bulk of the 1.8 million holiday lights garnishing nearly 200 trees (done up with 10,000 bulbs apiece) and on 20 holiday-hued bridges, all brightened up even further by carolers bellowing their tunes nightly from passing river barges (singers perform November 26– December 18). The festivities kick off on November 25 (and run through January 1), when the switch is flipped and the “Ford Holiday River Parade,” complete with an entourage of lit-up festooned floats, unfolds.
The quarter is also home to the luminous “Fiesta de las Luminarias” on select weekends (December 2–18), whereby some 6,000 luminarias (candle-lit paper lanterns) symbolically light the way for the Holy Family. Come by after December 3, and you’ll also get to ogle the “River of Lights” spectacle, featuring over 100 underwater lights and fiber optic-outfitted water features along the new Museum Reach section of the River Walk (free; http://www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com/). In conjunction with the amped-up display, the city is additionally holding its inaugural “Light Up Downtown Holiday Contest” in 2011, which has downtown business owners competing for the most creative holiday light displays – and your starry-eyed attention.
9. Virginia
Virginia is indeed for lovers – and holiday light lovers might just lead that pack! Coming together for one sparkling statewide spectacle, their “100 Miles of Lights” festival strings together illuminated extravaganzas between six cities (all set within a 100-mile span), including Richmond, Williamsburg, Newport News, Hampton, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach. Millions of holiday lights and family-friendly celebrations combine for this one-of-a-kind event, including Virginia Beach’s “McDonald's Holiday Lights at the Beach,” which refashions the boardwalk into a striking nautical- and holiday-themed light display, complete with a 40-foot-tall Christmas tree installed right on the beach – it’s the only time of year that vehicles can drive right on the boardwalk (now–January 1; $10 weekdays, $15 weekends per vehicle; http://www.beachstreetusa.com/).
On November 19, Norfolk’s “Grand Illumination Parade” unfolds, rolling out flashing floats, soaring balloons, marching bands, dancers, and a visit from Santa himself, all in celebration of the illumination of downtown Norfolk (lights stay up through January 1; free; www.downtownnorfolk.org/enjoy/hic). Another highlight is Newport News’ “Celebration in Lights,” an eye-catching, 2-mile, Yule-fueled drive past the forests, fields, and lakes of Newport News Regional Park, all beautified by more than 700,000 holiday lights and 200 illuminated displays (November 24–January 1; $10/vehicle; http://www.newport-news.org/).
10. Baltimore, MD
When it comes to Christmastime magic, it seems that “34th Streets” across the country are a bona fide breeding ground for just that. Just look to Baltimore’s Hampden neighborhood each holiday season, where for more than 60 years, a charming block of row houses on 34th street has been transformed into what’s been dubbed “Christmas Street” and the “Miracle on 34th Street.” Residents come together in a labor of love to bedeck their properties with a holiday hodgepodge of larger-than-life snow globes, flashing angels, musical trains, and blinking lights galore – a handful of the homes will even allow visitors inside to peek into their indoor Christmas wonderlands, as well (November 26–January 1; free; http://www.christmasstreet.com/).
Try and coordinate your visit with the colorful “Parade of Lighted Boats,” an event where more than 50 vessels festooned with holiday lights illustrate Baltimore’s nautical and Christmas spirit on December 3 (free; http://www.fpyc.net/). Plus, new for 2011, the harbor-front Power Plant building will shine with holiday lights, lasers, and 3D effects during early evening hourly show times (now–December 31; free; http://www.itsawaterfrontlife.org/).
http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-40883953
The holidays are just around the corner, and there’s nothing like an electrifying display of holiday lights to charge you up for the season and zap you with that jolly-good Christmas cheer. Luckily for us, there’s no place in the world that does holiday lights quite like the good ol’ U.S. of A., and we’ve rounded up a merry mix of small towns and sprawling cities that do it best.
From East to West, from dazzling Disney displays to brilliant boat parades, sparkling city skylines to mesmerizing megawatt-lined drives, when these top 10 destinations for holiday lights flip the switch, they mark the spectacular start to the holiday season, guaranteeing spectators a sparkling dose of over-the-top holiday spirit.
1. New York City, NY
The Big Apple is known for doing things bigger, better, and brighter, and the holidays are no exception, what with the city’s wondrous window displays, holiday concerts and events, bustling holiday markets, ice-skating rinks, chestnut-roasting street vendors, and seemingly endless street-to-street stream of shining holiday lights.
While you can hardly turn the corner without glimpsing a generous glimmer, some illuminations are simply not to be missed: Start with Rockefeller Center’s iconic towering tree, set aglow with some 30,000 bulbs that glisten down upon the ice-skating rink, bugling lit-up angels, and wide-eyed tourists through early January (lit November 30; free; http://www.rockefellercenter.com/). Tree-lighting fixes (all free) abound – try the South Street Seaport (lit November 25; http://www.southstreetseaport.com/), Lincoln Center (lit November 28, http://www.winterseve.org/), Washington Square Park (lit December 7; http://www.washingtonsquarenyc.org/), Bryant Park (lit November 29; http://www.bryantpark.org/), or the Metropolitan Museum of Art (lit November 29; http://www.metmuseum.org/); or, catch the lighting of the world’s largest Chanukah menorah – at 32-feet high and 4,000 pounds – on the southeastern corner of Central Park on December 20. Other highlights include downtown’s wonderful Winter Garden, where 45-foot-tall palm trees are offset by 100,000 white lights (lit November 29–January 8; free; http://www.artsworldfinancialcenter.com/) and the dangling dozen of illuminated 14-foot stars at the Time Warner Center (now–January 3; free; http://www.shopsatcolumbuscircle.com/).
Look to the city’s outer boroughs, too, for unique takes on holiday lights: We especially like the ostentatiously decorated homes (expect larger-than-life motorized displays, inflatable decorations, and a gargantuan gaggle of glaring lights) in Brooklyn’s Italian-American neighborhood of Dyker Heights (free). Overwhelmed on where to start? Sign up for an organized tour: CitySights NY offers 2.5-hour “Lights of the Holidays” tours of Manhattan (runs November 28–December 30, except Christmas; $44 adults, $34 kids ages 5 to 11; http://www.citysightsny.com/), while A Slice of Brooklyn offers a Brooklyn-based “Christmas Lights and Cannoli Tour,” on select dates in December ($55 adults; $45 children under 12; http://www.asliceofbrooklyn.com/).
For more than a century, Newport Beach’s “Christmas Boat Parade” has delighted spectators with a “Christmas-sea” feeling all its own. A fine flotilla of some 200 vibrantly decorated vessels, from multimillion-dollar yachts right down to simple canoes, glides through Newport Harbor as holiday music and costumed carolers fill the air with melodious merrymaking. The brilliant boat parade (it’s the oldest one in the country) attracts close to a million viewers; it’s held nightly from December 14 through December 18 and lasts about 2.5 hours – show up on the closing night for a fireworks finale. Viewing areas for the beaming 14-mile boat route are on the public beaches and establishments bordering the Balboa Peninsula, the Fun Zone amusement area (where you can hear live commentary from Captain Mike Whitehead, the official voice of the parade), and Balboa Island.
What’s more, many harbor-front homeowners and businesses participate in the annual “Ring of Lights” contest, showcasing their own elaborate holiday displays, while providing a striking backdrop to the boat parade (free; www.christmasboatparade.com). Well worth a detour, the historic Mission Inn Hotel & Spa in Riverside (set less than 50 miles away) is the setting for an extravagant showing of more than 3.6 million holiday lights in its “Festival of Lights” event; expect 400-plus animated figures, live reindeer, and even snow machine-produced flurries – come on opening night for a fireworks display, to boot (November 25-January 8; free; http://www.festivaloflightsca.com/).
3. Walt Disney World
It’s the happiest place on earth, and come Christmastime, it might just be the brightest place on earth, to boot! The Orlando area’s Walt Disney World Resort makes a business of holiday lights magic, with its coup de grâce event, “The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights,” unfolding at Hollywood Studios. The theme park is blanketed by a staggering 5 million bulbs that sync up with animated displays for choreographed interpretations of holiday tunes – not to mention the artificial snow flurries, 3-D effects, and colorful decorations that crop up around every bend.
The exhibit – which began as an Arkansas family’s home Christmas light display that had spiraled into a statewide attraction – was transported to the park in 1995 and Disneyfied to an almost unfathomable scale (now–January 7, closed December 8; standard park admission applies, $85 ages 10 and up, $79 ages 3 to 9, taxes additional). Tack on a visit to the Magic Kingdom, as well, where “Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party” delights with live entertainment, a jolly holiday parade anchored by Santa himself, snowfall on Main Street, a holiday-themed light show on the Cinderella Castle (which is already draped with some 100,000 snow-white lights), and a fireworks finale (select nights from now–December 18; day-of event admission ticket is $62.95 ages 10 and up, $57.95 ages 3 to 9, taxes additional).
One thing’s for certain: The old "'twas the night before Christmas" poem certainly doesn't apply here, because with all of these lights, it'd be impossible for a mouse (in this case, Mickey and Minnie both!) – or anybody else, for that matter – not to stir.
4. Denver, CO
If you can sneak in a Colorado ski vacation before the new year, don’t miss a stopover in Denver, decked out with downright dazzling light displays during their “Mile High Holiday” events. December 2 and 3 see the “9NEWS Parade of Lights” march from the festively illuminated City and County Building (the city’s largest lighting display, it’s lit November 25) through the downtown Denver area, featuring nearly a million shiny lights, a dozen twinkling floats, soaring balloons, marching bands, and more (free; http://www.denverparadeoflights.com/). Also pop by the Denver Botanic Gardens’ “Blossoms of Lights” exhibition, where more than a million colorful holiday lights are integrated into the gardens, and further enhanced by extras like glistening ice sculptures and a strolling choir (December 2–January 1; $9.50 adults, $6.50 kids ages 3 to 12; http://www.botanicgardens.org/). Meanwhile, the Denver Zoo’s “Zoo Lights” event invites visitors to embark on a holiday lights safari – its 38 acres are embellished with more than 150 animated animal sculptures (December 9–January 1; $9 adults, $5 kids ages 3 to 11; http://www.denverzoo.org/).
5. Chicago, IL
Chicago’s frosty winter weather, festive events, and glittering lights make it a hotbed for holiday spirit. The 20th annual “Magnificent Mile Lights Festival” is at the city’s celebratory epicenter, where more than a million lights on 200 trees flank the famous shopping strip, with hundreds of shop’s holiday window displays adding to the appeal.
Don’t miss stepping in to see Macy’s 45-feet-high Great Tree, whose lights remain up through March 1 (free; http://www.themagnificentmile.com/). Meanwhile, downtown’s sparkling Christmas tree in Daley Plaza has been prettifying this plaza for 98 years; a Santa’s workshop for the kids and German-style Christmas market ensure the square is positively brimming with holiday cheer (remains lit through January 8; free).
6. Branson, MO
Nestled in southwestern Missouri’s scenic Ozark Mountains, the city of Branson transforms into a veritable winter wonderland each holiday season, bursting at the seams with lavish light displays and dozens of Christmas spirit-infused shows and events. For the most gleeful glitz, head to the 1880s-style theme park Silver Dollar City, site of “An Old Time Christmas,” with an elaborate light-and-music show showcasing no fewer than 4 million radiant lights and 1,000 decorated Christmas trees. Highlights include the musically inclined 5-story Special Effects Christmas Tree, which, along with the surrounding square, beams with over a million lights that “dance” to select Christmas tunes; there’s also a holiday light parade with light-embellished musical floats that runs twice each evening (now–December 30, closed Christmas Eve and Christmas; park admission of $55 adults and $45 ages 4 to 11 applies; http://www.silverdollarcity.com/).
Shift gear for some yuletide cheer at the “Branson Area Festival of Lights Drive-Through,” a mile-long drive set aglow with some 175 luminous displays (now–January 2; $12 per vehicle; http://www.explorebranson.com/), or opt for the “Trail of Lights,” winding through a 160-acre historic homestead, complete with themed sections, holiday music, and more than 4 million colorful Christmas lights – don’t miss the “Santa’s-eye view” from the atop the 230-foot-high tower (now–January 2; $10 adults, $5 ages 4 to 16; http://www.trailoflights.com/).
7. McAdenville, NC
For nearly six decades, the little North Carolina town of McAdenville (with a population shy of 700) lures some 600,000 visitors to witness its transformation into what’s been dubbed “Christmas Town USA.” A high-spirited partnership between town residents and a local manufacturing company allows the hamlet to trim more than 375 fir trees (they outnumber the households!) with nearly a half-million red, green, and white holiday lights. The trees range in size from 6-footers adorned with 500 lights to 90-foot-high behemoths bedecked in some 5,000 radiant bulbs. Recorded Christmas carols broadcast from a local church add to the high-powered Christmas feel. This year’s event runs through December 26, kicking off with the official lighting ceremony at the town’s Legacy Park on December 1 (free; www.mcadenville-christmastown.com).
Tack on a visit to the “Holiday Lights at the Garden” at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden in nearby Belmont (just 5 miles away), where plants and trees are bedazzled with some half-million lights and are joined by a Christmas tree created by orchids, carriage rides, and more (November 25–December 31, closed Christmas; $12 adults, $6 children ages 4 to 12; http://www.dsbg.org/).
8. San Antonio, TX
San Antonio’s River Walk is always a hotbed of activity, but the holidays take it to new heights, particularly so in 2011, with the infusion of 20 times more Christmas lights (thanks to the city’s move to more energy-efficient LED lighting). You’ll find the bulk of the 1.8 million holiday lights garnishing nearly 200 trees (done up with 10,000 bulbs apiece) and on 20 holiday-hued bridges, all brightened up even further by carolers bellowing their tunes nightly from passing river barges (singers perform November 26– December 18). The festivities kick off on November 25 (and run through January 1), when the switch is flipped and the “Ford Holiday River Parade,” complete with an entourage of lit-up festooned floats, unfolds.
The quarter is also home to the luminous “Fiesta de las Luminarias” on select weekends (December 2–18), whereby some 6,000 luminarias (candle-lit paper lanterns) symbolically light the way for the Holy Family. Come by after December 3, and you’ll also get to ogle the “River of Lights” spectacle, featuring over 100 underwater lights and fiber optic-outfitted water features along the new Museum Reach section of the River Walk (free; http://www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com/). In conjunction with the amped-up display, the city is additionally holding its inaugural “Light Up Downtown Holiday Contest” in 2011, which has downtown business owners competing for the most creative holiday light displays – and your starry-eyed attention.
9. Virginia
Virginia is indeed for lovers – and holiday light lovers might just lead that pack! Coming together for one sparkling statewide spectacle, their “100 Miles of Lights” festival strings together illuminated extravaganzas between six cities (all set within a 100-mile span), including Richmond, Williamsburg, Newport News, Hampton, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach. Millions of holiday lights and family-friendly celebrations combine for this one-of-a-kind event, including Virginia Beach’s “McDonald's Holiday Lights at the Beach,” which refashions the boardwalk into a striking nautical- and holiday-themed light display, complete with a 40-foot-tall Christmas tree installed right on the beach – it’s the only time of year that vehicles can drive right on the boardwalk (now–January 1; $10 weekdays, $15 weekends per vehicle; http://www.beachstreetusa.com/).
On November 19, Norfolk’s “Grand Illumination Parade” unfolds, rolling out flashing floats, soaring balloons, marching bands, dancers, and a visit from Santa himself, all in celebration of the illumination of downtown Norfolk (lights stay up through January 1; free; www.downtownnorfolk.org/enjoy/hic). Another highlight is Newport News’ “Celebration in Lights,” an eye-catching, 2-mile, Yule-fueled drive past the forests, fields, and lakes of Newport News Regional Park, all beautified by more than 700,000 holiday lights and 200 illuminated displays (November 24–January 1; $10/vehicle; http://www.newport-news.org/).
10. Baltimore, MD
When it comes to Christmastime magic, it seems that “34th Streets” across the country are a bona fide breeding ground for just that. Just look to Baltimore’s Hampden neighborhood each holiday season, where for more than 60 years, a charming block of row houses on 34th street has been transformed into what’s been dubbed “Christmas Street” and the “Miracle on 34th Street.” Residents come together in a labor of love to bedeck their properties with a holiday hodgepodge of larger-than-life snow globes, flashing angels, musical trains, and blinking lights galore – a handful of the homes will even allow visitors inside to peek into their indoor Christmas wonderlands, as well (November 26–January 1; free; http://www.christmasstreet.com/).
Try and coordinate your visit with the colorful “Parade of Lighted Boats,” an event where more than 50 vessels festooned with holiday lights illustrate Baltimore’s nautical and Christmas spirit on December 3 (free; http://www.fpyc.net/). Plus, new for 2011, the harbor-front Power Plant building will shine with holiday lights, lasers, and 3D effects during early evening hourly show times (now–December 31; free; http://www.itsawaterfrontlife.org/).
What Really Happened to Strauss-Kahn?
December 22, 2011
Edward Jay Epstein
http://media.nybooks.com/strauss.html
May 14, 2011, was a horrendous day for Dominique Strauss-Kahn, then head of the International Monetary Fund and leading contender to unseat Nicolas Sarkozy as president of France in the April 2012 elections. Waking up in the presidential suite of the Sofitel New York hotel that morning, he was supposed to be soon enroute to Paris and then to Berlin where he had a meeting the following day with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. He could not have known that by late afternoon he would, instead, be imprisoned in New York on a charge of sexual assault. He would then be indicted by a grand jury on seven counts of attempted rape, sexual assault, and unlawful imprisonment, placed under house arrest for over a month, and, two weeks before all the charges were dismissed by the prosecutor on August 23, 2011, sued for sexual abuse by the alleged victim.
He knew he had a serious problem with one of his BlackBerry cell phones—which he called his IMF BlackBerry. This was the phone he used to send and receive texts and e-mails—including for both personal and IMF business. According to several sources who are close to DSK, he had received a text message that morning from Paris from a woman friend temporarily working as a researcher at the Paris offices of the UMP, Sarkozy’s center-right political party. She warned DSK, who was then pulling ahead of Sarkozy in the polls, that at least one private e-mail he had recently sent from his BlackBerry to his wife, Anne Sinclair, had been read at the UMP offices in Paris.1 It is unclear how the UMP offices might have received this e-mail, but if it had come from his IMF BlackBerry, he had reason to suspect he might be under electronic surveillance in New York. He had already been warned by a friend in the French diplomatic corps that an effort would be made to embarrass him with a scandal. The warning that his BlackBerry might have been hacked was therefore all the more alarming.
At 10:07 AM he called his wife in Paris on his IMF BlackBerry, and in a conversation that lasted about six minutes told her he had a big problem. He asked her to contact a friend, Stéphane Fouks, who could come to his home on the Place des Vosges and who could arrange to have both his BlackBerry and iPad examined by an expert in such matters. He had no time to do anything about it that morning. He had scheduled an early lunch with his twenty-six-year-old daughter Camille, a graduate student at Columbia, who wanted to introduce him to her new boyfriend. After that, he had to get to JFK Airport in time to catch his 4:40 PM flight to Paris.
He had finished packing his suitcase just before noon, according to his own account, and then took a shower in the bathroom, which is connected to the bed in the suite by an interior corridor. According to the hotel’s electronic key records, which were provided to DSK’s lawyers, Nafissatou Diallo, a maid, had entered the presidential suite (room 2806) between 12:06 and 12:07 PM (such records are only accurate to the nearest minute).2 Ordinarily, cleaning personnel do not enter a room to clean when a guest is still in it. According to DSK’s account, his bags were visible in the foyer when he emerged naked from the bathroom into the interior corridor. At this point, according to his account, he encountered the maid in the corridor by the bathroom. (The maid, for her part, says she encountered him coming out of the bedroom.) Phone records show that by 12:13 PM he was speaking to his daughter Camille on his BlackBerry. The call lasted for forty seconds.
What took place between DSK and the maid in those six to seven intervening minutes is a matter of dispute. DNA evidence found outside the bathroom door showed her saliva mixed with his semen. The New York prosecutor concluded that a “hurried sexual encounter” took place and DSK’s lawyers have admitted as much, while claiming that what happened was consensual. The maid has brought a civil suit claiming he used force. It is not clear when she left the room since key card records do not show times of exit. What is known is that DSK called his daughter on his IMF BlackBerry at 12:13 to tell her he would be late.
After DSK completed his call, he dressed and put on his light black topcoat. He carried with him only one small overnight bag and a briefcase (which contained his iPad and several spare phones) and took the elevator to the lobby. At 12:28 PM the hotel security cameras show him departing. He had to go eight blocks to the McCormick & Schmick’s restaurant on Sixth Avenue between 51st and 52nd Street. He was delayed by heavy traffic on Sixth Avenue. The restaurant camera shows that he arrived at 12:54.
Camille was with her new boyfriend. They had a quick meal, and at 2:15 PM, according to the restaurant’s surveillance cameras, DSK got in another taxi to go to the airport. Almost immediately, he discovered that his IMF BlackBerry was missing. It was the phone he had arranged to have examined for bugs in Paris and it was the phone that contained the earlier text message warning him about the interception of his messages. At 2:16 PM he called Camille, who had also just left the restaurant, on his spare BlackBerry and had her go back to the restaurant to search for it. Camera footage at the restaurant shows her crawling under the table. At 2:28 PM she sent him a text message saying that she could not find it. So DSK continued on to the airport.
Back at the Sofitel, meanwhile, Nafissatou Diallo, the maid he had encountered in the presidential suite, had told hotel security that she had been sexually assaulted by a client in that suite. A thirty-two-year-old immigrant from Guinea, she had been working at the Sofitel for three years. At 2:30 PM she was shown a photograph of DSK by the hotel’s security people. According to the official bill of particulars—the statement of the basic facts of the case filed by the prosecutors—the police had apparently not yet fully taken over the case, even though the encounter between DSK and Diallo had occurred over two hours earlier.
Part of the delay in bringing in the police may have been the result of Diallo’s not immediately voicing her complaint. After she had left DSK in the presidential suite around 12:13 PM—the time of his call to Camille—she remained on the VIP floor. The hotel’s electronic key records indicate that at 12:26 PM she entered 2820, another VIP suite on the same floor that she had already entered several times earlier that morning. Then, one to two minutes later, she went back to the now empty presidential suite. A few minutes after that, she encountered another housekeeper, her supervisor, in the corridor. In the course of their conversation, Diallo asked the supervisor what would happen if a hotel guest took advantage of a hotel employee. Initially, Diallo told her that this was only a hypothetical question; but then, when pressed further, she said that she had been assaulted by the guest in the presidential suite. The supervisor then brought her to the head of housekeeping, Renata Markozani, who reentered the presidential suite with Diallo at 12:42, according to the key records, and notified the hotel’s security and management personnel. At 12:52 PM, Diallo is seen arriving at the hotel’s security office on the ground floor, located near the 45th Street entrance. She is wearing a beige uniform, and is accompanied by Renata Markozani, whom she towers over. (She is five feet ten inches tall.)
Shortly thereafter the hotel’s own security team was augmented by John Sheehan, a security expert who is identified on LinkedIn as “director of safety and security” at Accor, a part of the French-based Accor Group, which owns the Sofitel. Sheehan, who was at home in Washingtonville, New York, that morning, received a call from the Sofitel at 1:03 PM. He then rushed to the hotel. While en route, according to his cell phone records, he called a number with a 646 prefix in the United States. But from these records neither the name nor the location of the person he called can be determined. When I called the number a man with a heavy French accent answered and asked whom I wanted to speak with at Accor.3
The man I asked to talk to—and to whom I was not put through—was René-Georges Querry, Sheehan’s ultimate superior at Accor and a well-connected former chief of the French anti-gang brigades, who was now head of security for the Accor Group. Before joining Accor Group in 2003, he had worked closely in the police with Ange Mancini, who is now coordinator for intelligence for President Sarkozy. Querry, at the time that Sheehan was making his call to the 646 number, was arriving at a soccer match in Paris where he would be seated in the box of President Sarkozy. Querry denies receiving any information about the unfolding drama at the Sofitel until after DSK was taken into custody about four hours later.
Another person at the Accor Group whom Sheehan might have alerted was Xavier Graff, the duty officer at the Accor Group in Paris. Graff was responsible that weekend for handling emergencies at Accor Group hotels, including the Sofitel in New York. His name only emerged five weeks later when he sent a bizarre e-mail to his friend Colonel Thierry Bourret, the head of an environment and public health agency, claiming credit for “bringing down” DSK. After the e-mail was leaked to Le Figaro, Graff described it as a joke (it resulted, however, in his suspension as director of emergencies by the Accor Group). Even jokes can have a basis. In this case the joke was made by the person who was directly responsible for passing on information to his superiors, including the head of security at Accor, René-Georges Querry—information that, if acted on by informing the American authorities, could have helped destroy DSK’s career. But like Querry, Graff denied receiving any calls or messages from New York until later that evening, telling a French newspaper that the failure to inform him was an “incredible miss” (“loupé”).
By the time Sheehan was called by the hotel at 1:03 PM, Diallo was seated on a bench in the hotel’s ground floor service area, just off the service entrance on 45th Street. Behind her was a “Dutch door,” with the upper half opened, that led to the hotel’s security office. Surveillance camera footage shows her entering the area with a tall unidentified man at 12:52 PM. She remains there until 2:05 PM. At 12:56, she is joined there by Brian Yearwood, the large, heavy-set man who is the hotel’s chief engineer. Yearwood had just come down from the presidential suite on the twenty-eighth floor, which he had entered at 12:51, according to the key records. Yearwood remained close to Diallo as she spoke to Adrian Branch, the security chief for the hotel, who remained behind the half-shut door of the security office. She can be seen gesturing with her hands for about four minutes, pointing to different parts of her body over and over again, suggesting she was telling and retelling her story.
At 1:28, Sheehan, still on the way to the hotel, sent a text message to Yearwood. And then another text message to an unidentified recipient at 1:30. At 1:31—one hour after Diallo had first told a supervisor that she had been assaulted by the client in the presidential suite—Adrian Branch placed a 911 call to the police. Less than two minutes later, the footage from the two surveillance cameras shows Yearwood and an unidentified man walking from the security office to an adjacent area. This is the same unidentified man who had accompanied Diallo to the security office at 12:52 PM. There, the two men high-five each other, clap their hands, and do what looks like an extraordinary dance of celebration that lasts for three minutes. They are then shown standing by the service door leading to 45th Street—apparently waiting for the police to arrive—where they are joined at 2:04 PM by Florian Schutz, the hotel manager.
A minute later, at 2:05 PM, the footage shows two uniformed police officers arriving and then accompanying Diallo to an adjoining office. It is unclear if the police officially took over the case at this time or later. There is so far no explanation for why the security staff had delayed the call to the NYPD that would lead to a scandal involving the possible future president of France. What is clear is that they did so just three minutes after receiving a message from Sheehan. Nor is it clear why the two men were celebrating.
The police arrived, according to the hotel’s security camera footage, at 2:05 PM. They then can be seen escorting Diallo to a room across from the security office. There is an unexplained discrepancy here concerning the information in the bill of particulars, which says that at approximately 2:30 PM, “a photograph of the defendant was shown to the witness [i.e., Diallo] by hotel security without police involvement.” If so, even after leaving the bench (and video surveillance) and going to a room with the police, she remained in the custody of Sofitel security. I asked both Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne and Deputy Inspector Kim Royster why, according to the bill of particulars, the police were not officially involved at this point, but they declined to comment.
More than an hour later, at 3:28 PM, the police took her to St. Luke’s Hospital, where she was medically examined and they then formally interviewed her. She described to them a brutal and sustained sexual attack in which DSK locked the suite door, dragged her into the bedroom, and then dragged her down the inner corridor to a spot close to the bathroom door—a distance of about forty feet—and, after attempting to assault her both anally and vaginally, forced her twice to perform fellatio. After that, she fled the suite. As has been seen, according to the electronic key information, and to the record of DSK’s call to his daughter showing him speaking to her at 12:13, we can reasonably conclude that any such actions could have taken place only within a period of six or seven minutes, between 12:06–07 and 12:13, when he called his daughter.
At 3:01 PM, as DSK was approaching the airport, he was still attempting to find his missing phone. He attempted to call it from his spare but received no answer. What he did not know was that at 12:51, according to the records of the BlackBerry company, it had been somehow disabled. At 3:29 PM, evidently unaware of what was happening at the Sofitel, he called the hotel from the taxi, saying, according to the police transcript, “I am Dominique Strauss-Kahn, I was a guest. I left my phone behind.” He then said he was in room “2806.” He was asked to give a phone number, so that he could be called back, after 2806 was searched for his phone.
When he was called back thirteen minutes later, he spoke to a hotel employee who was in the presence of police detective John Mongiello. The hotel employee falsely told him that his phone had been found and asked where it could be delivered. DSK told him that he was at JFK Airport and that “I have a problem because my flight leaves at 4:26 PM.” He was reassured that someone could bring it to the airport in time. “OK, I am at the Air France Terminal, Gate 4, Flight 23,” DSK responded. So the police rushed to the airport. At 4:45 PM, police called DSK off the plane and took him into custody.
DSK was then jailed and indicted by a grand jury on seven counts, including attempted rape, sexual abuse, and unlawful imprisonment. The court eventually dropped all the charges against him because the prosecutors found that the complainant, Diallo, had proven to be an untruthful witness. They wrote in the motion for dismissal that “the nature and number of the complainant’s falsehoods leave us unable to credit her version of events beyond a reasonable doubt.” They said that she “has given irreconcilable accounts of what happened,” and had lied not only to the prosecutors but under oath to the grand jury about her whereabouts after the encounter. She stated that she had hid in the hall after leaving the presidential suite, and entered no other room on the twenty-eighth floor until she told another maid about the attack (which was approximately fifteen minutes later).
When asked why she had not used her pass key to go into another room, she said they all had “Do Not Disturb” signs on the door. After her grand jury testimony, prosecutors discovered that this was false when the hotel belatedly provided them with the electronic key records showing that Diallo had entered room 2820 at 12:26 PM, after her encounter with DSK. The same record also showed that she had also entered room 2820 prior to her encounter with DSK at a time when the occupant had not checked out and may have been in the room. Why she concealed visiting 2820 was “inexplicable” to the prosecutors, who noted in their motion for dismissal that if she had mentioned her visits to 2820, it would have been declared part of the crime scene and searched by the police. But she did not do so.
Nor were DSK’s lawyers able to find an explanation. When they attempted to learn the identity of the occupant of 2820, Sofitel refused to release it on grounds of privacy. Given Diallo’s conflicting accounts, all that we really know about what happened in the nearby room 2820 is that Diallo went there both before and after her encounter with DSK and then omitted the latter visit from her sworn testimony to the grand jury. We still do not know if there was anyone in 2820 when she entered it again following the encounter with DSK or if, prior to the police arriving, anyone influenced her to omit mention of room 2820.
The Sofitel electronic key record, which the hotel did not turn over to the prosecutors until the next week, contained another unexplained anomaly. Two individuals, not one, entered DSK’s suite between 12:05 and 12:06 PM while he was showering. Each used a different key card entry. The key card used at 12:06 belonged to Diallo; the key card used at 12:05 belonged to Syed Haque, a room service employee who, according to his account, came to pick up the breakfast dishes. If he did so, he would have turned left and gone to the dining room. But Haque has refused to be interviewed by DSK’s lawyers, so his precise movements have not been made public. Since the key cards do not register the time of exit, it cannot be determined from them if both parties were in the room at the same time or, for that matter, at the time of Diallo’s encounter with DSK.
DSK’s BlackBerry, with its messages, is still missing. Investigations by both the police and private investigators retained by DSK’s lawyers failed to find it. While DSK believed he had left it in the Sofitel, the records obtained from BlackBerry show that the missing phone’s GPS circuitry was disabled at 12:51. This stopped the phone from sending out signals identifying its location. Apart from the possibility of an accident, for a phone to be disabled in this way, according to a forensic expert, required technical knowledge about how the BlackBerry worked.
From electronic information that became available to investigators in November 2011, it appears the phone never left the Sofitel. If it was innocently lost, whoever found it never used it, raising the question of by whom and why it was disabled at 12:51. In any case, its absence made it impossible for DSK to check—as he had planned to do—to see if it had been compromised. Nor was it possible to verify from the phone itself the report he received on May 14 that his messages were being intercepted. So we cannot confirm the warning to DSK that he was under surveillance on that disastrous day.
One vexing mystery concerns the one-hour time gap in reporting the alleged attack on Diallo. After she said that she had been the victim of a brutal and sustained sexual assault, it is hard to understand how the security staff would have ruled out that she might require immediate medical attention. But as has been seen, until 1:31, several minutes after receiving a message from Sheehan, the security staff did not make the 911 call. She did not arrive at St. Luke’s Hospital until 3:57 PM, nearly four hours after the alleged attack. We do not know what decisions were made during that one-hour interval or how they influenced what was to later unfold with such dramatic impact.
By the time the 911 call was finally made, the hotel’s management was presumably aware of the political explosion and scandal DSK’s arrest would cause. DSK could no longer be a challenger to Sarkozy. Such considerations, and the opportunities they presented, may have had no part whatever in the hotel’s handling of the situation, but without knowing the content of any messages between the hotel managers in New York and the security staffs in New York or Paris, among others, we cannot be sure. Meanwhile, several mysteries remain. Was there anyone in room 2820 besides Diallo during and after the encounter with DSK? If so, who were they and what were they doing there; and why, in any case, did Diallo deny that she’d gone to the room? Because she denied it, the police, according to the prosecutor’s recommendation for dismissal, did not search 2820 or declare it a crime scene. And where, if it still exists, is the BlackBerry that DSK lost and feared was hacked?
All we know for sure is that someone, or possibly an accident, abruptly disabled it from signaling its location at 12:51 PM. DSK himself has not explained why he was so concerned about the possible interception of his messages on this BlackBerry and its disappearance. According to stories in Libération and other French journals on November 11, 2011, DSK sent text messages on a borrowed cell phone to at least one person named in the still-unfolding affair involving the Carlton Hotel in Lille, a scandal in which corporations allegedly provided high-class escort women to government officials. (DSK denies that he was connected to the prostitution ring.) If DSK sent these messages, may he also have received embarrassing messages back on his own BlackBerry that could have been damaging to his reputation and political ambitions? Or his concern could also have proceeded from other matters, such as the sensitive negotiations he was conducting for the IMF to stave off the euro crises. Whatever happened to his phone, and the content on it, his political prospects were effectively ended by the events of that day.
1 These statements, along with others in this article, were confirmed by sources who prefer to remain anonymous but are known to the author, who has shared his information with the editors.
2 For this article, along with court and other legal documents, I had access to Sofitel electronic key swipe records, time-stamped security camera videotapes, and records for a cell phone used on the day of May 14 by John Sheehan, a security employee of Accor, the company that owns the Sofitel hotel.
3 I had access to the record of only one cell phone used by the Accor Group's security man, John Sheehan. Neither Sheehan nor the hotel's security director, Adrian Branch, returned my calls. Through an assistant Brian Yearwood, the hotel's chief engineer, said he had no comment.
Friday, November 18, 2011
UK bomb plot mask becomes Occupy symbol
'Very meaningful masks' have roots in 17th century attempt to blow up the British parliament
TAMARA LUSH, VERENA DOBNIK
11/4/2011
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45162958/ns/us_news-life
NEW YORK — Look at a photo or news clip from around the world of Occupy protesters and you'll likely spot a handful of people wearing masks of a cartoon-like man with a pointy beard, closed-mouth smile and mysterious eyes.
The mask is a stylized version of Guy Fawkes, an Englishman who tried to bomb the British Parliament on Nov. 5, 1605.
"They're very meaningful masks," said Alexandra Ricciardelli, who was rolling cigarettes on a table outside her tent in New York's Zuccotti Park two days before the anniversary of Fawkes' failed bombing attempt.
"It's not about bombing anything; it's about being anonymous — and peaceful."
To the 20-year-old from Keyport, N.J., the Fawkes mask "is about being against The Man — the power that keeps you down."
But history books didn't lead to the mask's popularity: A nearly 30-year-old graphic novel and a five-year-old movie did.
"V for Vendetta," the comic-based movie whose violent, anarchist antihero fashions himself a modern Guy Fawkes and rebels against a fascist government has become a touchstone for young protesters in mostly western countries. While Warner Brothers holds the licensing rights to the Guy Fawkes mask, several protesters said they were using foreign-made copies to circumvent the corporation.
Yet whether the inspiration is the comic, the movie or the historical figure, the imagery — co-opted today by everyone from Wikileaks founder Julian Assange to the hacker group Anonymous — carries stronger connotations than some of the Occupy protesters seem to understand.
'The real power of it'
While Fawkes' image has been romanticized over the past 400 years, he was a criminal who tried to blow up a government building. It would be hard to imagine Americans one day wearing Timothy McVeigh masks to protest the government or corporate greed.
Lewis Call, an assistant history professor at California Polytechnic in San Luis Obispo, said the masked protesters are adopting a powerful symbol that has shifted meaning through the centuries.
"You can seize hold of it for any political purpose you want," he said. "That's the real power of it."
Assault arrest highlights 'Occupy' security concerns
Fawkes was a Catholic insurrectionist executed for the bombing attempt. In the years immediately following his execution, Nov. 5 was England's official celebration for defeating Fawkes, said Call, who has written about the nexus of Fawkes, "V for Vendetta" and modern-day protests.
Call said over the next three centuries, people in England started using Fawkes' image in different ways. Some used Fawkes as a symbol for putting limits on state power. Others held him up as a freedom fighter.
Then came the comic book, a nihilistic story set in a futuristic England. And the movie. People began thinking of him as a libertarian or even anarchist hero.
"Gradually over the centuries, the meaning of Guy Fawkes has dramatically changed," said Call. "The reputation of Guy Fawkes has been recuperated. Before he was originally seen as a terrorist trying to destroy England. Now he's seen more as a freedom fighter, a fighter for individual liberty against an oppressive regime. The political meaning of that figure has transformed."
Nearly two years after the film "V for Vendetta" was released, the hacker group Anonymous wore the Guy Fawkes masks depicted in the movie during protests against the Church of Scientology. Then came Wikileaks and the Occupy movement.
Masks selling out
At Zuccotti Park in New York, the Guy Fawkes masks have been worn over the past month by Occupy protesters ranging from self-proclaimed anarchists to drummers to those impersonating "zombie" bankers. Few wore them Thursday afternoon because of the arrests of masked activists. But they weren't gone — just hidden.
One was in the left hand of 32-year-old Jason J. Cross — right under a protest sign. He had 20 more stashed in his tent, to be sold at $5 apiece.
"I had 10 here yesterday, and I sold out!" he said.
Cross said he'd purchased 100 of the Chinese-made masks online.
"The origins of this mask comes from the idea of rising up against the government," he said. "Guy Fawkes represents the fact that the people have the real power."
A man at the Occupy London protests on a recent day said the mask has become a potent symbol.
"It's unifying the world under one symbol," said the 33-year-old man who asked not to be named because he claimed to be a member of a group accused of hacking into government and corporate computer systems.
Sleepy-eyed
"People hide behind the masks, put the masks on and their identity is hidden. Therefore they can do a lot more than they would if they didn't have the masks," he said, after emerging sleepy-eyed from his tent.
The London protester said his brethren are trying to counter Warner Bros.' control of the imagery.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
The 1% who get the gold mine (we get the shaft)
Greg Palast
[Wall Street, New York] No one here in Zuccotti Park is protesting "Wall Street." Wall Street is just an address, just a street sign on a post.
The 99% Movement is about Them: the 1%. The 1% who own Wall Street and all our streets and have posted a foreclosure notice on the entire planet.
The 1% who get the gold mine while we get the shaft.
For five years, I've been quietly working on a four-continent investigation about Them, the 1%.
I've put it all in a new book. I could have called it Lives of the Rich and Shameless, but I've chosen this: Vultures' Picnic — in Pursuit of Petroleum Pigs, Power Pirates and High-Finance Carnivores.
Vultures' Picnic hits book stores on November 14. Click on the images to see the films, the slideshow, the excerpts—and order it right now.
In Vultures' Picnic, my crew of journalist-detectives chase down British Petroleum bag men, CIA operatives, nuclear power con men — and "The Vultures," billionaire financial speculators who, through bribery, flim-flam and political muscle, take entire nations hostage for mega-profits.
The action begins when the Deepwater Horizon explodes in the Gulf of Mexico and a confidential cable arrives on Miss Badpenny's desk from a terrified insider. He has the real, hushed-up facts of the disaster—which can only be found hidden in the files of a Central Asian dictatorship.
I set off for Baku to investigate the whereabouts of millions of dollars in a brown valise personally delivered by Lady Thatcher and BP's CEO. Then I jump the globe to an Eskimo village after receiving an extraordinary note from the Chief of Intelligence of the Free Republic of the Arctic.
It doesn't stop: a nuclear industry executive's plane goes down with him—and his files of incriminating evidence.
It's a tale of oil company hit men, nuclear fraudsters and financial jackals.
But more, it's my own story; of an investigator on the hunt, not quite sure why I'm doing it—and honestly, failing as often as I succeed.
This week, Pacifica radio called Vultures' Picnic, "Palast's best; a real-life espionage tale, a detective novel—but it's scarier because it's all true."
It's pulp non-fiction. Columbo with marital issues and a dying father.
I'm asking you to order it today to get us back to the top of the bestseller lists.
The success of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy changed the way America looks at elections (yes, Virginia, they get stolen). Let's make Vultures' Picnic a "best spoiler," to spoil the feast of the 1% and expose the so-called "job creators" as the economic carnivores they are.
Read the excerpts, watch the films embedded in the eBook editions, and check out the slide show at VulturesPicnic.org
Join us on our 15-city tour which begins November 13. Info at: VulturesPicnic.org
Greg Palast's reports can be seen on BBC Television Newsnight, in The Guardian and on Democracy Now!
Subscribe to Palast's Newsletter and podcasts.
Follow Palast on Facebook and Twitter.
GregPalast.com
[Wall Street, New York] No one here in Zuccotti Park is protesting "Wall Street." Wall Street is just an address, just a street sign on a post.
The 99% Movement is about Them: the 1%. The 1% who own Wall Street and all our streets and have posted a foreclosure notice on the entire planet.
The 1% who get the gold mine while we get the shaft.
For five years, I've been quietly working on a four-continent investigation about Them, the 1%.
I've put it all in a new book. I could have called it Lives of the Rich and Shameless, but I've chosen this: Vultures' Picnic — in Pursuit of Petroleum Pigs, Power Pirates and High-Finance Carnivores.
Vultures' Picnic hits book stores on November 14. Click on the images to see the films, the slideshow, the excerpts—and order it right now.
In Vultures' Picnic, my crew of journalist-detectives chase down British Petroleum bag men, CIA operatives, nuclear power con men — and "The Vultures," billionaire financial speculators who, through bribery, flim-flam and political muscle, take entire nations hostage for mega-profits.
The action begins when the Deepwater Horizon explodes in the Gulf of Mexico and a confidential cable arrives on Miss Badpenny's desk from a terrified insider. He has the real, hushed-up facts of the disaster—which can only be found hidden in the files of a Central Asian dictatorship.
I set off for Baku to investigate the whereabouts of millions of dollars in a brown valise personally delivered by Lady Thatcher and BP's CEO. Then I jump the globe to an Eskimo village after receiving an extraordinary note from the Chief of Intelligence of the Free Republic of the Arctic.
It doesn't stop: a nuclear industry executive's plane goes down with him—and his files of incriminating evidence.
It's a tale of oil company hit men, nuclear fraudsters and financial jackals.
But more, it's my own story; of an investigator on the hunt, not quite sure why I'm doing it—and honestly, failing as often as I succeed.
This week, Pacifica radio called Vultures' Picnic, "Palast's best; a real-life espionage tale, a detective novel—but it's scarier because it's all true."
It's pulp non-fiction. Columbo with marital issues and a dying father.
I'm asking you to order it today to get us back to the top of the bestseller lists.
The success of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy changed the way America looks at elections (yes, Virginia, they get stolen). Let's make Vultures' Picnic a "best spoiler," to spoil the feast of the 1% and expose the so-called "job creators" as the economic carnivores they are.
Read the excerpts, watch the films embedded in the eBook editions, and check out the slide show at VulturesPicnic.org
Join us on our 15-city tour which begins November 13. Info at: VulturesPicnic.org
Greg Palast's reports can be seen on BBC Television Newsnight, in The Guardian and on Democracy Now!
Subscribe to Palast's Newsletter and podcasts.
Follow Palast on Facebook and Twitter.
GregPalast.com
Saturday, October 15, 2011
11 Facts You Need To Know About The Nation’s Biggest Banks
Pat Garofalo
Oct 7, 2011
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/10/07/338887/1-facts-biggest-banks
The Occupy Wall Street protests that began in New York City more than three weeks ago have now spread across the country. The choice of Wall Street as the focal point for the protests — as even Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said — makes sense due to the big bank malfeasance that led to the Great Recession.
While the Dodd-Frank financial reform law did a lot to ensure that a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis won’t occur — through regulation of derivatives, a new consumer protection agency, and new powers for the government to dismantle failing banks — the biggest banks still have a firm grip on the financial system, even more so than before the 2008 financial crisis. Here are eleven facts that you need to know about the nation’s biggest banks:
– Bank profits are highest since before the recession…: According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., bank profits in the first quarter of this year were “the best for the industry since the $36.8 billion earned in the second quarter of 2007.” JP Morgan Chase is currently pulling in record profits.
– …even as the banks plan thousands of layoffs: Banks, including Bank of America, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, and Credit Suisse, are planning to lay off tens of thousands of workers.
– Banks make nearly one-third of total corporate profits: The financial sector accounts for about 30 percent of total corporate profits, which is actually down from before the financial crisis, when they made closer to 40 percent.
– Since 2008, the biggest banks have gotten bigger: Due to the failure of small competitors and mergers facilitated during the 2008 crisis, the nation’s biggest banks — including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo — are now bigger than they were pre-recession. Pre-crisis, the four biggest banks held 32 percent of total deposits; now they hold nearly 40 percent.
– The four biggest banks issue 50 percent of mortgages and 66 percent of credit cards: Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup issue one out of every two mortgages and nearly two out of every three credit cards in America.
– The 10 biggest banks hold 60 percent of bank assets: In the 1980s, the 10 biggest banks controlled 22 percent of total bank assets. Today, they control 60 percent.
– The six biggest banks hold assets equal to 63 percent of the country’s GDP: In 1995, the six biggest banks in the country held assets equal to about 17 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. Now their assets equal 63 percent of GDP.
– The five biggest banks hold 95 percent of derivatives: Nearly the entire market in derivatives — the credit instruments that helped blow up some of the nation’s biggest banks as well as mega-insurer AIG — is dominated by just five firms: JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citibank, and Wells Fargo.
– Banks cost households nearly $20 trillion in wealth: Almost $20 trillion in wealth was destroyed by the Great Recession, and total family wealth is still down “$12.8 trillion (in 2011 dollars) from June 2007 — its last peak.”
– Big banks don’t lend to small businesses: The New Rules Project notes that the country’s 20 biggest banks “devote only 18 percent of their commercial loan portfolios to small business.”
– Big banks paid 5,000 bonuses of at least $1 million in 2008: According to the New York Attorney General’s office, “nine of the financial firms that were among the largest recipients of federal bailout money paid about 5,000 of their traders and bankers bonuses of more than $1 million apiece for 2008.”
In the last few decades, regulations on the biggest banks have been systematically eliminated, while those banks engineered more and more ways to both rip off customers and turn ever-more complex trading instruments into ever-higher profits. It makes perfect sense, then, that a movement calling for an economy that works for everyone would center its efforts on an industry that exemplifies the opposite.
Oct 7, 2011
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/10/07/338887/1-facts-biggest-banks
The Occupy Wall Street protests that began in New York City more than three weeks ago have now spread across the country. The choice of Wall Street as the focal point for the protests — as even Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said — makes sense due to the big bank malfeasance that led to the Great Recession.
While the Dodd-Frank financial reform law did a lot to ensure that a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis won’t occur — through regulation of derivatives, a new consumer protection agency, and new powers for the government to dismantle failing banks — the biggest banks still have a firm grip on the financial system, even more so than before the 2008 financial crisis. Here are eleven facts that you need to know about the nation’s biggest banks:
– Bank profits are highest since before the recession…: According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., bank profits in the first quarter of this year were “the best for the industry since the $36.8 billion earned in the second quarter of 2007.” JP Morgan Chase is currently pulling in record profits.
– …even as the banks plan thousands of layoffs: Banks, including Bank of America, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, and Credit Suisse, are planning to lay off tens of thousands of workers.
– Banks make nearly one-third of total corporate profits: The financial sector accounts for about 30 percent of total corporate profits, which is actually down from before the financial crisis, when they made closer to 40 percent.
– Since 2008, the biggest banks have gotten bigger: Due to the failure of small competitors and mergers facilitated during the 2008 crisis, the nation’s biggest banks — including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo — are now bigger than they were pre-recession. Pre-crisis, the four biggest banks held 32 percent of total deposits; now they hold nearly 40 percent.
– The four biggest banks issue 50 percent of mortgages and 66 percent of credit cards: Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup issue one out of every two mortgages and nearly two out of every three credit cards in America.
– The 10 biggest banks hold 60 percent of bank assets: In the 1980s, the 10 biggest banks controlled 22 percent of total bank assets. Today, they control 60 percent.
– The six biggest banks hold assets equal to 63 percent of the country’s GDP: In 1995, the six biggest banks in the country held assets equal to about 17 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. Now their assets equal 63 percent of GDP.
– The five biggest banks hold 95 percent of derivatives: Nearly the entire market in derivatives — the credit instruments that helped blow up some of the nation’s biggest banks as well as mega-insurer AIG — is dominated by just five firms: JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citibank, and Wells Fargo.
– Banks cost households nearly $20 trillion in wealth: Almost $20 trillion in wealth was destroyed by the Great Recession, and total family wealth is still down “$12.8 trillion (in 2011 dollars) from June 2007 — its last peak.”
– Big banks don’t lend to small businesses: The New Rules Project notes that the country’s 20 biggest banks “devote only 18 percent of their commercial loan portfolios to small business.”
– Big banks paid 5,000 bonuses of at least $1 million in 2008: According to the New York Attorney General’s office, “nine of the financial firms that were among the largest recipients of federal bailout money paid about 5,000 of their traders and bankers bonuses of more than $1 million apiece for 2008.”
In the last few decades, regulations on the biggest banks have been systematically eliminated, while those banks engineered more and more ways to both rip off customers and turn ever-more complex trading instruments into ever-higher profits. It makes perfect sense, then, that a movement calling for an economy that works for everyone would center its efforts on an industry that exemplifies the opposite.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
World's Most-Visited Tourist Attractions
Source: Yahoo Travel
http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-40711683
No. 1 Times Square, New York City
Annual Visitors: 39,200,000
Tourists flock to New York’s neon heart for the flashing lights, Broadway shows, megastores, and sheer spectacle. Pedestrian-only areas with café tables introduced in 2009 have only made it easier and more appealing to hang out here. Times Square can even be a convenient, if chaotic, base, thanks to hotels at every price point and easy access to public transportation: subways, rails, buses, and more yellow taxis than you can count.
No. 2 Central Park, New York City
Annual Visitors: 38,000,000
New York has larger green spaces, but none is more famous than Central Park, which stretches across nearly 850 acres of prime Manhattan real estate—an oasis for both tourists and locals. You can ride in one of the famous horse-drawn carriages; check out the modest-size zoo; climb to the top of 19th-century Belvedere Castle; or take a break from pounding the pavement to sprawl on the Great Lawn, gazing at the skyscrapers above.
No. 3 Union Station, Washington, D.C.
Annual Visitors: 37,000,000
Opened in 1907, this busy station shuttles some 12,500 passengers daily in and out of the city. But it also handles serious tourist traffic: 37 million who pass through to take in the impeccably mixed architectural styles throughout the colossal building: from Classical to Beaux-Arts to Baroque. More than 70 retail outlets make Union Station a shopping destination, and it’s also a jumping-off point for many D.C. tours
No. 4 Las Vegas Strip
Annual Visitors: 29,467,000
Sin City was hit hard by the recession, but don’t bet against this legendary destination, which got a boost from the summer 2009 blockbuster The Hangover. Last year, 79 percent of tourists (29,467,000 people) chose to stay at hotels right on the Strip like Caesar’s Palace—the choice of the movie’s zany four-pack. And why not? Roll out of bed and onto the Strip to catch the Bellagio fountains in action, shop, gamble, and, of course, people-watch (which can get especially fun later at night).
No. 5 Niagara Falls, New York and Ontario
Annual Visitors: 22,500,000
Straddling the borders of the U.S. and Canada, this massive waterfall spills about six million cubic feet of water—from a height ranging from 70 to 188 feet—every single minute. While there are about 500 taller waterfalls in the world, Niagara Falls is spectacular for its sheer power. It’s also more accessible than many major falls, a short flight or drive for millions of regional tourists.
No. 6 Grand Central Terminal, New York City
Annual Visitors: 21,600,000
Unlike harried commuters, visitors take their time in the main concourse of this Beaux-Arts landmark, pausing to view its glittering ceiling painted with a map of the constellations from the night sky. There are shops and events to distract your attention, and, a level below, the historic Oyster Bar—featured on an episode of AMC’s Mad Men—serves two million fresh bivalves a year.
No. 7 Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston
Annual Visitors: 18,000,000
Dating back to 1742, Faneuil Hall (“the Cradle of Liberty”) once hosted speeches by such greats as Samuel Adams and George Washington. Today, the downtown marketplace has more than 100 specialty shops and eateries and occupies a pedestrian-only, cobblestone area that swarms with tourists and street performers.
No. 8 Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Orlando
Annual Visitors: 16,972,000
The Most Magical Place on Earth is high on virtually every family’s to-do list and remains the most-visited theme park on the earth. The Kingdom’s most notable feature, naturally, is Cinderella’s castle—complete with a moat and built at special angles to appear even grander than its actual height of 189 feet. Paths branch out to classic rides (Dumbo, the Mad Tea Party) and newer additions like The Pirates of the Caribbean.
No. 9 Disneyland Park, Anaheim, CA
Annual Visitors: 15,980,000
Though not as massive as its Orlando counterpart, the original Disney park—which occupies about 85 acres of land—welcomes enough thrill-seekers to qualify as the second most-visited theme park in the world. One of its coolest rides is still Indiana Jones Adventure, careening over lava, past swarms of beetles, and under that 16-foot rolling boulder.
No. 10 Grand Bazaar, Istanbul
Annual Visitors: 15,000,000
Hand-painted ceramics, lanterns, intricately patterned carpets, copperware, gold Byzantine-style jewelry, and more eye-catching products vie for your attention within this 15th-century bazaar’s vaulted walkways. It has since expanded and become increasingly touristy, but locals, too, were among 2010’s 15 million bargain-hunters. If it all gets overwhelming, break for a succulent doner kebab or strong cup of Turkish coffee.
http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-40711683
No. 1 Times Square, New York City
Annual Visitors: 39,200,000
Tourists flock to New York’s neon heart for the flashing lights, Broadway shows, megastores, and sheer spectacle. Pedestrian-only areas with café tables introduced in 2009 have only made it easier and more appealing to hang out here. Times Square can even be a convenient, if chaotic, base, thanks to hotels at every price point and easy access to public transportation: subways, rails, buses, and more yellow taxis than you can count.
No. 2 Central Park, New York City
Annual Visitors: 38,000,000
New York has larger green spaces, but none is more famous than Central Park, which stretches across nearly 850 acres of prime Manhattan real estate—an oasis for both tourists and locals. You can ride in one of the famous horse-drawn carriages; check out the modest-size zoo; climb to the top of 19th-century Belvedere Castle; or take a break from pounding the pavement to sprawl on the Great Lawn, gazing at the skyscrapers above.
No. 3 Union Station, Washington, D.C.
Annual Visitors: 37,000,000
Opened in 1907, this busy station shuttles some 12,500 passengers daily in and out of the city. But it also handles serious tourist traffic: 37 million who pass through to take in the impeccably mixed architectural styles throughout the colossal building: from Classical to Beaux-Arts to Baroque. More than 70 retail outlets make Union Station a shopping destination, and it’s also a jumping-off point for many D.C. tours
No. 4 Las Vegas Strip
Annual Visitors: 29,467,000
Sin City was hit hard by the recession, but don’t bet against this legendary destination, which got a boost from the summer 2009 blockbuster The Hangover. Last year, 79 percent of tourists (29,467,000 people) chose to stay at hotels right on the Strip like Caesar’s Palace—the choice of the movie’s zany four-pack. And why not? Roll out of bed and onto the Strip to catch the Bellagio fountains in action, shop, gamble, and, of course, people-watch (which can get especially fun later at night).
No. 5 Niagara Falls, New York and Ontario
Annual Visitors: 22,500,000
Straddling the borders of the U.S. and Canada, this massive waterfall spills about six million cubic feet of water—from a height ranging from 70 to 188 feet—every single minute. While there are about 500 taller waterfalls in the world, Niagara Falls is spectacular for its sheer power. It’s also more accessible than many major falls, a short flight or drive for millions of regional tourists.
No. 6 Grand Central Terminal, New York City
Annual Visitors: 21,600,000
Unlike harried commuters, visitors take their time in the main concourse of this Beaux-Arts landmark, pausing to view its glittering ceiling painted with a map of the constellations from the night sky. There are shops and events to distract your attention, and, a level below, the historic Oyster Bar—featured on an episode of AMC’s Mad Men—serves two million fresh bivalves a year.
No. 7 Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston
Annual Visitors: 18,000,000
Dating back to 1742, Faneuil Hall (“the Cradle of Liberty”) once hosted speeches by such greats as Samuel Adams and George Washington. Today, the downtown marketplace has more than 100 specialty shops and eateries and occupies a pedestrian-only, cobblestone area that swarms with tourists and street performers.
No. 8 Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Orlando
Annual Visitors: 16,972,000
The Most Magical Place on Earth is high on virtually every family’s to-do list and remains the most-visited theme park on the earth. The Kingdom’s most notable feature, naturally, is Cinderella’s castle—complete with a moat and built at special angles to appear even grander than its actual height of 189 feet. Paths branch out to classic rides (Dumbo, the Mad Tea Party) and newer additions like The Pirates of the Caribbean.
No. 9 Disneyland Park, Anaheim, CA
Annual Visitors: 15,980,000
Though not as massive as its Orlando counterpart, the original Disney park—which occupies about 85 acres of land—welcomes enough thrill-seekers to qualify as the second most-visited theme park in the world. One of its coolest rides is still Indiana Jones Adventure, careening over lava, past swarms of beetles, and under that 16-foot rolling boulder.
No. 10 Grand Bazaar, Istanbul
Annual Visitors: 15,000,000
Hand-painted ceramics, lanterns, intricately patterned carpets, copperware, gold Byzantine-style jewelry, and more eye-catching products vie for your attention within this 15th-century bazaar’s vaulted walkways. It has since expanded and become increasingly touristy, but locals, too, were among 2010’s 15 million bargain-hunters. If it all gets overwhelming, break for a succulent doner kebab or strong cup of Turkish coffee.
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