Penny, Monika and I are sitting in a restaurant off Time Square charging up our cell phones and having a bit to eat. We expect the charge will cost us 9 glasses of wine, a pizza and a Caesar salad. Luckily there is a Starbucks WiFi in range so I can post this update. Sorry but I can’t get pictures to the iPad so they can be attached. I will try to this later.

Sandy went through New York with a fury. It was relatively calm here until about 5 o’clock when the wind and rain started to pick up. The streets around our place at 21st and 7th were pretty deserted when Monika and I took a quick trip outside to check things out. It was warm – about 55 degrees – but the wind was whipping down 21st in good strong gusts. A significant branch had broken off a street tree across the street and an entire tree was blown over a block up 7th. We ventured to the corner where steady winds were blowing. I would guess the speed but I would probably be a way out. The street was empty, only a couple of people taking in the last supplies from the very few corner stores still open. There wasn’t a lot of rain then but that certainly changed.

Mayor Bloomberg and the head of the power company announced they were shutting of power in the financial district about 6 o’clock. You may have seen the very erie pictures from Brooklyn of the south end towers in darkness. There was also talk of turning of the power south of 14th as a preventative measure. That is just 7 blocks – a 10 minute walk – below us.

I noted in the earlier update about the concerns of the “surge” in the harbour. By 7 the water was coming over the boardwalk in Battery City which is adjacent to the World Trade Center on the Hudson River. This is part of the area that was supposed to have been evacuated. There was real concern about flooding her and real concern that salt water would get into the subway system which has many stations in the area. There was also concern that the World Trade Centre site would flood and there are subway lines running through it as well.

Wine was consumed and dinner was cooked and just when it was ready the power in our apartment. We had seen pictures of flooding on 23rd Ave and 10th, just three blocks from us. Water was coming over the boardwalk and flooding the streets. Apparently a transformer was affected and our power went out. This morning we walked over that way. West of 10th Ave, there were flooded basements and closer to the water there were water marks 4 feet up the outside walls and corresponding marks on the wall inside the doors. Some places had pumps going but it was almost a hopeless cause.

We walked over to the major sports complex at Chelsea Piers and south along the waterfront. The Hudson River was very high and there were signs of flooding everywhere. Debris was scattered on the roads and sidewalks and garbage cans were everywhere. We walked up into the Meat Packing District and found more flooded basements. On underground parking lot was completely flooded to the street level and a car was half submerged in the entrance. Several owners stood and looked in horror while their kids played in the water. Not sure how they will every empty this out.

Very few places here are open because there is no power. A couple of delis with gas stoves were making coffee but there was nothing. Lots of people walking around taking in the spectacle, but otherwise dead.

We walked up to 8th Ave and saw the building I mention in the last blog where the front collapsed. Penny and I were in the deli next door just a couple of hours earlier.

We have subsequently walked up into Times Square looking for lunch and a place to charge the phones. Most stores are closed even though there is power above 25th. No buses and no subways but lots of people on the streets: Mostly tourists. The side streets are covered with debris: tree limbs and at once intersection a major piece of somebody’s roof. Sanitation workers are everywhere, sweeping and cleaning. Police and traffic authority are also in full force, driving up an down every street to ensure things are under control.

This is an very interesting time in New York. Communications is compromised: we only have had spotty cell service. It is really interesting to watch the people – okay us included – huddled at the Starbucks windows getting the free WiFi service. Even this blog is enable by Starbucks!

The restaurants that are opened are running short of supplies as there has been no deliveries since Saturday. We can’t even get dessert.

We are hearing from some sources that power may not be restored for three or four days and that it could take a week to get the transportation system up and running. We expect that some services will start to recover over the next few days and life will return to normal. New York will survive. We feel for those who have been affected because recovery will be much longer. We have food and light and the stove is gas so at least we can cook.

What we need now is a television set so we can get an update on what to expect. Who would have guessed when New York came up on the bucket list we would experience this?