Although New York is not the capital of the United States, it is the biggest and most important city and seaport of the country.
New Yorkis situated on the Atlantic coast, in the northeastern part of the country, in the state of New York at the mouth of the deep Hudson River, one of the biggest in the USA. It is the financial capital of the world, the centre of the American cultural life and the national leader in fashion and entertainments. The «Big Apple» is the most popular nickname of the city.
New York, with the population of more then 16 million people, is the second largest city and the biggest seaport in the world.
Dutch settlers founded this city in 1613. That time, it was called New Amsterdam, In 1664, New Amsterdam was captured by British troops and renamed in New York. Nowadays New York consists of 5 large boroughs: Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Richmond.
Brooklyn alone has so many people that if it were a separate city, it would be the fourth largest city in the United States.
There are many places of interest in New York.
The most famous of them is The Statue of Liberty, presented to the USA by France in 1886. Its torch towers about 200 feet above the harbour and can be seen at night for many miles. It is the largest statue in the world.
The Empire State Building used to be the highest building, but now it is only the third. It is a 102- storeyed building.
Broadway is the longest street in the world. It is about 12 miles long. It is the centre of entertainments.
By the present moment, the Metropolitan Museum is the richest museum in the world in objects of Art, due to what had been bought from Europe after the World War Two. Besides, we can see the works of American painters there too.
The Central Park is the largest park in the world.
There are the best houses, hotels and fashionable shops on the Fifth Avenue. There is the Rockefeller centre of 15 skyscrapers, housing several large corporations. It is also known as «RadioCity».
The United Nations Headquarters was built in New York City in 1952. The building and the grounds around contain sculptures and other works of art, donated by member nations.
New Yorkattracts people from all over the world. You can see people of different nations and religions here: White, Black, Asian, Moslem, Christian and Jewish people. It is the city of contrasts and it is really so.