Boy Scouts Visit 9/11 Memorial, Intrepid and Times Square

By Joseph Venables

On Saturday, April 13  Boy Scout Troop 27 went to NYC to visit the 9/11 Memorial that now stands where the Twin Towers once stood. We left from Union Station in New Haven and took a two hour Metro North train ride to Grand Central station in NY.

The troop then made their way to the 9/11 Memorial by subway. Across the street from the memorial is a plaque that is on the side of a fire station listing the names of those firemen that lost their lives in the buildings. The entrance to the memorial was packed with spectators who wanted to look at the memorial.

"Stay in single file. There's a lot of other people here and we don't want anyone to get lost," said the scout leader.

When the troop finally got into the memorial site, they saw the base of the over 100 story buildings that has been turned into small waterfalls filled with sparkling water.  The troop searched for the name of one of the scout's aunt who was one of the victims of the 9/11 attack and found it.

The troop then left the memorial site, traveling again by subway to our second stop: the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. The Intrepid is a famous aircraft carrier that served in World War II. The ship was decommissioned in 1974 and was turned into a museum.

Today it is permanently docked at Pier 86 on the west side of Manhattan Island in the Hudson River. There are about 15 fighter jets and helicopters on the top deck of the ship from different time periods. The space shuttle Enterprise was tied down on the back part of the ship, but was "off limits" because Hurricane Sandy damaged the enclosure that was to be put around the ship, delaying the opening of the ship tours.

The Intrepid also acted as a pick up for astronauts that would land in the Atlantic ocean. The Intrepid was hit by two kamikaze attacks, one in 1944, and the other in 1945. Troop 27 toured the inside of the great carrier and toured through the captain's quarters, the navigation room, bunks, and even the bathrooms. There is also a submarine to tour through that used to carry nuclear missiles.

There are also some entertaining things to do in the museum such as a flight simulator that puts the customer in a battle situation in a plane with a joystick that responds to what the aircraft does. The troop saw a NYC high school band playing Navy songs on the top of the ship.

At the end of the tour of the Intrepid, the troop walked to Times Square, the most crowded part of New York City. Street performers wander through crowds of people to take pictures with young kids  Huge, brightly lit advertisements stood on the sides of buildings. The troop split up and ate dinner in a few of the many restaurants lining Times Square. Several of us visited an M&M's store where the young scouts bought at least 1 pound of M&M's each!

The troop met up at a designated point at 8:30 PM to return by foot to Grand Central Station to catch the train back to Connecticut. It was a very busy and fun day!

Don't be bored! Troop 27 meets on Thursdays at 7 p.m. in the United Churches of Durham Hall.