You are a Manhattan tourist guide and work for the Gray Line Bus Company. Your company offers the best double decker bus tours and you are their best guide.
Tasks:
1.) Choose one loop on the map (purple, orange or green).
2.) Take notes of important information about each sight on your tour and learn them.
3.) Choose one from the following to learn 10 unknown vocabulary:
a) look up unknown words in a dictionary and write a vocabulary list
b) make mind maps about the sights and activities using the new words
c) or, group new words and information in grids (tables)
4.) Prepare the talk for your tour. You must inform the tourists about what they can see on the tour and give some information about the sights. You can use the example below as a start and the language support.
„Hello ladies and gentlemen, l’m happy to welcome you on our downtown loop bus tour through Manhattan. We start our wonderful trip at Times Square. Did you know that its nickname is ‚the crossroads of the world’? Here you can see …
You are allowed to make use of short notes / cue cards!
You may include (printed) pictures if you like.
Make use of the language support given!
Tip: Make sure you use a lot of adjectives and different sentence starters!
You can find different sentence starters here
Some information on NYC sights:
Flatiron Building
Original name: “Fuller Building” It is called Flatiron Building because it is shaped like an iron, an object you use to remove wrinkles from your clothes. It was built in 1902. Back then it was the highest building in Manhattan. Location: 23rd Street, Fifth Avenue and Broadway, facing Madison Square; Height: 22 storeys
Brooklyn Bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge spans the East River and connects the New York city boroughs of Manhatten and Brooklyn. It opened on May 24th, 1883 and was then the longest bridge in the world. It cost 15.1 million dollar. Almost 150.000 vehicles cross the bridge every day! Length: 1,825 metres, Width: 26 metres.
Ground Zero (World Trade Center Site)
This is the place where the World Trade Center once stood. Two of the four towers were destroyed by terrorists on September 11th, 2001. In 2006, the construction of the new “Freedom Tower” began. It was finished in 2011. Underneath Ground Zero is an underground railway which connects Manhattan and New Jersey.
United Nations Headquarters
The United Nations Headquarters opened in 1950. It is international territory and does not belong to the United States of America. The money for the land came from John D. Rockefeller Jr., a multimillionaire. It has appeared in many movies, e.g. “The Interpreter” (2005) and in computer games such as “The Animatrix”, “Half Life 2”, and “Sim City 3000”.
Location: on the east side of Manhattan, overlooking the East River
Yellow Cabs
There are over 12,000 yellow cabs in New York City. Taxi cabs are both loved and hated by New Yorkers. They are a quick and easy means of transportation but they also often cause traffic jams.
If you want a ride, you have to “hail” a cab and stick out your arm (like the Statue of Liberty). A cab is in use when the numbers on top of the roof are not lit.
Initial fare: $2.00; each 1/5 mile: $0.30 (=4 blocks)
Central Park
Central Park is a large public park In Manhattan. It is larger than the state of Monaco ! It is not a natural park, it was created around 1857.
There are walking tracks where people can jog or skate. You can also find two ice-skating rinks, a zoo and several lakes. Size: 4 km x 800 metres. Visitors per year: around 25,000,000
Location (borders): north: West 110th Street; west: Central Park West; south: West 59th street; east: Fifth Avenue
Metropolitan Museum of Art
“The Met” is one of the world’s largest museums with over two million works of art from all over the world.
It does not only show paintings, but also sculptures, musical instruments and weapons. It opened in 1872. The entrance fee is $20, but you don’t have to pay if you don’t want to!
Location: eastern edge of Central Park at 681 Fifth Avenue.
Chinatown
Almost 300,000 people live in Chinatown. Most of them are Chinese immigrants. Some can’t even speak English and they don’t need to as almost everything is written in Chinese! Even the local McDonald’s shows the menu in Chinese. You can buy freshly cut meat and all your favourite Chinese dishes as well as very inexpensive “Rolex” watches.
Location: lower Manhattan
St. Patrick’s Cathedral
St. Patrick’s Cathedral is the largest Gothic-style Catholic cathedral in North America. The location was bought for $11,000 in 1810 for a Catholic boys school, which was never built. They started working on this church in 1858. It took twenty years until the cathedral was finally finished. Length: 120 metres; Width: 16 metres; Seats: 2,200
Location: 50th Street and 5th Avenue. Across the street from Rockefeller Center.
Times Square
Times Square is the name of a place where Broadway and Seventh Avenue meet. It is famous for its lighted and animated bill-boards. ABC and MTV networks have studios here. There are many stores (like Toys ‘R’ Us, Virgin Records) and restaurants as well as big movie theatres. On New Year’s Eve almost 500,000 people come to see when the “ball drops on Times Square”. At the turn of the year, there is actually a ball that drops down a stick and marks the beginning of the new year.
Location: Between 7th Avenue and Broadway
MTV Networks
1515 Broadway is just another skyscraper at Times Square, except … that this is where MTV Networks America has its headquarters. This is where Madonna, Justin Timberlake, 50 Cent and Gwen Stefani walk in and out, greeted by the masses. It also houses the studios of Nickelodeon and VH-. It was built in 1972. Floors: 54
The New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”)
It is the largest stock exchange in the world. (Germany’s largest stock exchange is in Frankfurt.) At stock exchanges people sell and buy shares of companies. The value of the shares at the NYSE is about $21 trillion!
The NYSE started in 1792 with a small company. A bomb explosion in 1920 left marks on the walls which are still visible today. Location: Wall Street
Trump Tower
It is owned by Donald Trump, a billionaire. Although many offices belong to other companies, he lives in the penthouse (the top floor). The Trump Tower (opened in 1985) is also known for a very famous reality TV-show where Donald Trump decides who will become a manager in one of his companies. Floors: 58 stories Location: 725 Fifth Avenue and 56th Street
New York Subway
4.5 million people use it every day! It is one of the largest transportation systems in the world. About 38% of the subway runs above ground. Number of subway stations: 468 Length of all tracks: 1,356 km The first underground line was completed in 1904. he oldest structure is from 1885.
Chrysler Building
The Chrysler Building was built for the Chrysler Corporation. (Chrysler is an American car company.) The construction of the building was finished in 1930 within a very short time. The workers added an average of 4 floors each week! Height: 319 metres Location: On the east side of Manhattan, at the corner of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue.
Wall Street
Wall Street is a narrow street in lower Manhattan. It is the heart of the Financial District and it houses the New York Stock Exchange. When people talk about “Wall Street” they talk about the American financial market. The name goes back to the 17th century, when this street was at the Northern border of the New Amsterdam settlement. (New York was once called New Amsterdam.) Location: It runs from Broadway downhill to the East River.
Radio City Music Hall
This is the world’s largest indoor theatre. It is part of Rockefeller Center and home to big live shows such as the “Grammys” (the American music award) “MTV Video Music Awards” and even the “Emmys” (TV show awards). It opened on December 27, 1932. Seats: 5,933 Location: 1260 Avenue of Americas and 50th Street
Grand Central Station
It is the world’s largest railway station (67 tracks and 44 platforms on 2 levels). The Oyster Bar is the oldest business in the terminal, it opened in 1913. In the “lost and found” bureau there are about 20,000 items. It opened in October 1871. Location: 15 Vanderbilt Ave. (between 42nd Street and Park Ave)
Fifth Avenue
This one-way street runs through the heart of Midtown and along the eastern side of Central Park. It is a symbol of money and one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world It also has some of the most famous sights in New York: The Empire State Building, the New York Public Library. Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and the Met.
New York Public Library
It is one of the most important libraries in the United States of America. The first libraries in New York opened in 1849. Every day between 9am and 6pm EST (except Sundays and holidays) people can call 212-340-0849 and ask any question. They also speak Chinese. Spanish. German and some Yiddish. Location: Fifth Avenue
Trinity Church
In 1698 the first Trinity Church was constructed. However, in 1776 during the Great New York City Fire it was destroyed. They rebuilt it by 1790, and again by 1846, because the structure of the church was so weak that they had to knock it down and build it again. It has the only active cemetery (where they put dead people) in Manhattan. Bells in the tower: 23; Location: 74 Trinity Place at Broadway and Wall Street
Empire State Building
It was the world’s largest building from 1931-1971. After that the World Trade Center (Ground Zero) became the largest building. There are viewpoints on the 86th floor (visited by over 110,000,000 people) and on the 102nd, which may be closed because of strong winds.
Floors: 102 storeys Location: 350 Fifth Avenue
Lincoln Center for Performing Arts
It opened in 1962 and houses many arts organizations: The Chamber Music Society, The Film Society, Jazz, Lincoln Center Theater, The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet, New York City Opera, New York Philharmonic, The New York Public Library for Performing Arts, School of American Ballet and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Location: between Columbus and Amsterdam Ave. and between West 62″d and 661h Streets.
Ellis island
This is a small island in the Hudson River. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Ellis Island was the first place where the immigrants landed. 12,000,000 people entered the United States there. The immigration offices opened in 1892 and closed in 1954. From then on it was redesigned and became a museum.
Rockefeller Center
This center (built between 1921 and 1940) describes 19 buildings. NBC Networks owns a large part of it. At NBC you can go on a studio tour. Inside the Rockefeller Center is also the Radio City Music Hall. In summer you can sit outside in a cafe, in winter the area becomes an ice-skating rink with New York’s tallest Christmas tree next to it. Location: between 48th and 51st Street and between 5th and 7th Ave.
Manhattan Municipal Building
This is a government building where the mayor of New York and his offices are located. It was the first building with a subway station in the basement. Each year almost 30,000 New Yorkers get married inside. The building has 33 elevators for 40 floors. Height: 177m
Broadway Theater
When people talk about the Broadway Theater, they talk about one of the most important theatres in the world. Its name comes from its location on Man-hattan’s Broadway. There are 39 professional Broadway theatres. Many show musicals (e.g. AIDA, Mamma Mia etc.), others show stand-up comedians and theatre plays. If you want to buy cheap tickets, you should visit TKTS on Times Square.
The Statue of liberty (“Libby”)
It was given to the Americans by the French in 1886. It was created by Gustave Eiffel (Eiffel Tower). The statue is made out of copper, only the torch is covered with gold. The statue was constructed in France and it arrived on Liberty Island by ship. It greeted the immigrants who were shipped to Ellis Island. Costs: 2,250,000 Francs
Macy’s
This is an American department store where you can buy almost anything. It is called the “world’s largest store” with 198,500 m² Its sister chain department store is called “Bloomingdale’s”. It opened in 1924. Location: 7th Avenue 53
Madison Square Garden
“The Garden” is a large arena. Most sporting events (baseball, basketball … ) are held in the Garden, as well as big rock concerts. It opened on February 14th, 1968. Seats: 22,000 Location: at 7th Avenue between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.
