During this trip we were sometimes struck by the way things have changed over the years. Our first US holiday was in 1986, our first and only visit to New York was in 1987 and we were in Florida in 1987, 1993 and 1999.
What we noticed when entering the US was that after all these years the immigration and custom officers were friendly, previous times we felt like we entered a maximum security prison instead of crossing a border. In New York a lot has changed when visiting the sights. Strict security to enter the Liberty Island ferry, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building and UN. Some of the security measures are so annoying that they influenced what we visited. Rockefellers “Top of the Rock” doesn’t allow videocameras and was scrubbed of our list of things to see and do. Even on the steet we were told by a Rockefeller “rent-a-cop” not to use a tripod (on a public sidewalk!). New York was also the place where we were made feeling unwelcome most. The “officials” (police, customs, immigration, security at landmarks) however are doing their best to help out in a friendly way
In all, NY is not on our list to return soon. The hassle and inconvenience of checks is not worth it, holidays are supposed to be fun and carefree. This is no longer the case in this city that at certain places seems to be under siege. Police in full battle dress and heavily armed (Wall Street) does not give me a sense of security .