Happy New Year!  It's January in the Big Apple, and man, is it ever cold.  No snow on the ground right now, but the wind can really go straight to the bones.

None of that stopped us last weekend when we went back to the Statue of Liberty.  It was my third trip, but this one would be extra-special.  Mr. E. and I had tickets to climb up into the crown of the statue.  I had reserved the tickets back in September.
                                                               

It was the experience of a lifetime.  It was so amazing walking into the base of the statue through huge copper doors.  Since we held 'crown tickets', we were two of the day's 240 VIPs.  We were ushered to the front of every line (including two separate security screening lines), and put into a group of 10 for the climb up.

After a short introduction from the park ranger, we were on our way, 354 steps up the spiral staircase.  Except for the sturdy and narrow staircase, and the occasional piece of plexiglass safety wall, there's nothing between you and the copper skin of the statue.  I reached out to touch it many times.  I climbed slowly, wanting to see everything I could, marveling at the incredible achievement of the many artisans who built this back in the late 1800s.

Before you know it, you're at the top, in the crown.  There's a little platform right by the crown's windows.  There are also two park rangers stationed up there.  Their job isn't as cool as I first thought.  "She", as they refer to the statue, gets super hot in the summer and really cold in the winter.  No insulation up there.  She also 'dances' in the wind, swaying wildly back and forth. 

After we climbed back down, we went through the excellent museum in the base of the statue.  They have the original torch on display in the lobby.   It had become too corroded from the elements and was replaced in 1984 with the 24k gold leaf covered torch we see today.

My trip to the crown was most definitely one of the highlights of my extended stay in NYC.