No visit to New York can ever be complete without a trip to the 9/11 Memorial. September 11, 2001 – A day which has probably left an indelible mark in our minds forever. The chain of events on that unfortunate day, have been described so aptly in the 9/11 Memorial & Museum that it will definitely give you gooseflesh. Probably, it was one of the worst attempts of terror attack in any country, which pulled down two of the tallest skyscrapers in the United States, along with thousands of innocent people. A True Story from the 9/11 Memorial This was such an emotional moment for me! It was a rainy day. An old man, who was seated on one of the benches for quite sometime, walked over and placed this pink rose on the Memorial. He silently gazed into the vicinity of the Memorial, then stared at the rose which he’d placed and walked away wiping his tears. I don’t know who he was, for whom he’d placed that rose or what his story was. His silent tears spoke a thousand words. 9/11 has definitely left an indelible mark on the lives of both families and friends of the victims. America has actually dedicated this whole area (occupied by the Twin Towers earlier) to the victims of the unfortunate attacks on September 11, 2001. They never built another building here. They have created a Memorial and engraved the names of each of the victims of that tragic day. The emotional dedication does not end here! The 9/11 Memorial authorities place a white rose on these victims’ engraved names, on their birthdays every year. Slowly, I walked along the massive memorial, built on the remnants of the Twin Towers. It had names of each and every victim who were present in the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, during the shameful terror attack on American soil. It was written on a signboard that – “If you touch their engraved names, you will be touching their souls and gifting them peace.” Something held me back and I walked alongside the whole memorial, trying to touch each and every soul. It’s already 17 years now, since that fateful day. But my heart shudders even today, when I think of the agony that the victims must have gone through. I clearly remember watching that disturbing visual of those gigantic Twin Towers collapsing within minutes of a plane crash. I was in Class 8 and that whole evening, our television in India roared with this tragic news from America. The whole world watched the distress in shock. 9/11 Museum – Unraveling the chain of events on that fateful day – 9/11/2001 When I first planned my trip to New York, a visit to the 9/11 Memorial was always a part of my wish list. But I was not too keen on taking a look at the 9/11 Museum, right next to the Memorial. Because, it’s a museum, right? And most of our eyeballs almost roll at the mention of the word ‘museum’. I keep thanking my stars for engulfing the New York city skyline with loads of clouds, which made visibility so poor that my scheduled trip to the One World Observatory got postponed to another day, in the last moment. Consequently, I had almost half a day to spare. So, I just decided to just hop in to the 9/11 Museum, which lies adjacent to the 9/11 Memorial complex. What an experience it was! Initially, I was very sceptical about visiting the 9/11 Museum, because mostly, I don’t have a knack for visiting museums and I even thought that reliving that tragic incident is too unpleasant as an experience. Nobody wants to remember and relive a bad past, right? But, I was so wrong. The 9/11 Museum not only highlights the minute-by-minute chain of events that led to the terror attack, but also puts the spotlight on countless unsung heroes of that day. Be it a firefighter who rescued people till his last breath — or a mother with her unborn child, who left a frantic voice message to her husband after realising that she can’t make it below the 95th floor — or that passenger who somehow managed to send out an alert that the plane was hijacked — or that police officer who chose to get reinstated even after his long leave was already approved. The heroics of these unsung heroes are beyond commendable. The least that could have been done to commemorate them, is by showering them with public adulation forever in a museum. The last remains – a torn shoe, a brave fireman’s helmet, burnt official papers, an abandoned bag, a metal piece from the plane which rammed into the Tower, one of the metal supports for the pillar of the North Tower and many many more such pieces – evoke countless emotions. Whatever happened on that fateful day should never have happened. And even if it did, hats off to the commendable support of every individual, which made New York stand tall again. Long live the spirit of America! Long live the spirit of humanity! I urge all my readers to say a silent prayer for the victims’ families and friends. Their suffering still continues! Travel Tip It is advisable to book your tickets online beforehand, to avoid the long queues in the ticketing counters at the museum. You can opt just for the Museum Admission tickets and take a tour on your own (if you don’t want to spend extra on guided tours). Book tickets here. Timings (General) : 9 AM to 8 PM (All days) Duration of Visit : 2 – 3 hours approx. Don’t miss out on visiting the Ground Zero Memorial, on your trip to New York! Read the full travel itinerary for New York here. Much Love, Wander Bird Related