100

I had a couple of extra hours yesterday afternoon so I went up to Grand Central Station to say Happy Birthday.  I got there just a a tour was starting, so I tagged along.  It was a short tour, and did not leave the exhibit space in Vanderbilt Hall.  A big chunk of time was taken up with a discussion about the efforts made to preserve Grand Central.  It almost got torn down like the old Penn Station.   I am glad we learned a lesson there.

He said that in NYC a 100 year old landmark is rare. (I could disagree with that), because NYC is such an active, growing city.  He said that many of the great places in NYC are being modernized instead of being preserved.  Yea, in other places they can put a fence around their landmarks, here we use them.  Grand Central would make a great museum even if it were an empty building.  But, it can't be empty.  750,000 commuters have to pass through it every weekday.

NYC's great landmarks consume themselves.  One of our greatest hotels, the original Waldorf Astoria  was knocked down to build the Empire State Building.

That is a great clock.  As I pointed out almost a year and a half ago.  It is very expensive. Solid opal.

The exhibit in Vanderbilt Hall it comes with a great website. and if you want to see more great photos of Grand Central click this.

I took some crappy photos.  I really did not want to be the tourist walking around with their camera out in Grand Central.

Some things have not changed,  100 years ago, they were hobos, when I grew up they were bums.  Now they are homeless.  They still keep warm in Grand Central










But Grand Central has changed.  It has robots sniffing the air.

and it is protected by the Army.

Neither of these things make me feel any safer.  They just remind me how unsafe we are.