An attempt on Mt Marcy, NY |
 New York was the first state I ever visited in the USA, when – as an 18-year-old AFS student – I landed at what was then called Idlewild airport at the start of a year-long stay in the United States. New York was one of the original 13 states, and for a long time it was the largest state in the union in terms of population – but it lost that title to California in 1962, and lost the title of second biggest state to Texas in the 1990s. The two women on the New York state flag represent liberty and justice, and the two ships on the flag represent foreign and domestic trade. |