No 9: There's always a bigger fish

I’ve always been fascinated by cities. All aspects of them - from the nerdy complexity of their transport systems and supply chains, to the intricacies of their social structures and how the geography of a place can define it's culture.

As a Londoner, there are very few cities in the world which fill me with a greater sense of awe than my home town. London is, after all, one of the greatest cities in the world and was, for hundreds of years, the largest, densest city on earth.

But New York… It leaves my mouth hanging open at the sheer scale of everything. Each time I come here I'm reminded - to quote an unpopular movie - "there's always a bigger fish". Bigger, taller, faster, busier, noisier, dirtier. It's even awake longer, 24 hours a day. As I wander the streets looking up, down and side ways, unable to take it all in I realise that only New York and Tokyo have this effect on me. I feel like a little fish in a small pond.

Today’s picture is of lower Manhattan as seen from the Empire State Building. The Empire State isn’t the tallest building in New York any more, but it’s still the most magnificent and since the fall of the twin towers, probably the most iconic (although fans of the Chrysler Building might contest that!)

Lower Manhattan, view from the Empire State Building, Sunday 9th November 2014

The second picture, is the opposite view, looking north towards central park (You can just about see the aforementioned Chrysler Building on the far right side of the image)

Midtown Manhattan, view from the Empire State Building, Sunday 9th November 2014