By Vladimir Brezina
The Twin Towers, as they were.
All of these photos were taken in 2000 or earlier.
It’s hard to believe it’s already been 13 years…
... kayaked the waters around New York for more than 15 years in his red Feathercraft folding kayak. He was originally from (the former) Czechoslovakia and lived in the U.K. and California before settling down in New York. He was a neuroscientist at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. He died in 2016.
... is a kayaker and technology researcher at Nemertes Research. She's an erstwhile engineer, particle physicist, and science fiction writer. She was born in California and has lived in Italy, Norway, Hawaii, and a few other places. She currently resides in New York City.
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Wind Against Current 
great to have these photos to remember what was.
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Yes… And I wasn’t even trying to take photos of the Twin Towers specifically—they were always there on the skyline…
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Very nice. So much has happened in this time.
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Indeed it has…
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Thanks for sharing !
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You are most welcome!
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Time has really passed very quickly. Thanks for the pictures. I remember before the towers were built, then afterwards when they were the visual marker that let you know you had made it to New York … or, as I called it then, home. What a changed world we now live in.
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You could see the towers from forty or fifty miles off—from half-way down Long Island Sound, almost, and from way out in the Atlantic…
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Thank you for taking us back to the time before Vlad. Hard to believe indeed that it has been so long when it all seems so vivid, even here in Canada.
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And events have even accelerated, since…
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Thank you for your post.
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You are most welcome—thank you for commenting!
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Reblogged this on wwav and commented:
A tragedy we never will forget.
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Thanks for reblogging!
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Pingback: 9/11, Once Again | wwav
Yes it is hard to believe.
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Still very vivid in memory, though…
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it is hard to believe it has ben 13 years – my my! enjoyed this post :)
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Thank you!
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Reblogged this on oneulsaram and commented:
The Twin Towers of 2000 yr or earlier, 1 yr or more earlier of 9/11, 2011 yr, were, as they were, taken photographs of , by this blogger or not, twisted as one doubled or not. The (ex-) Twin Towers have had many rumours from 9/11.
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Thanks for reblogging!
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this is a wonderful tribute to 9/11! thanks for sharing! i can’t believe it has been 13 years!
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Still very vivid (if that is the right word), though…
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Rest in Peace
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Indeed.
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A good choice for the day. Like Marilyn above, I remember before they were built, too. I remember riding a bike down there the summer everything was knocked down to make room for the WTC. One or two old brick buildings were still standing and wildflowers appeared in the rubble piles that year. I picked them and brought them home. I was not a fan of the towers’ architecture. But they were the dominant mark of the lower Manhattan skyline and came to represent a certain anchoring of the New York gestalt. 13 years may have gone by, but the tears still happen because the wound of 9/11 was so deep, and for me (and so many others), working next door to the site from 2007-2011 meant constant re-triggering of the trauma of that day. My family is happy we got through another anniversary without a terrorist attack, and we mourn the loss of people who died or were hurt on 9/11, AND in the subsequent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Peace seems more elusive than ever – that’s why we go out on the water, into the woods, or up to the mountains, right? We need that!
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Architecturally and esthetically, the towers were certainly of an era. I quite liked them, actually. It must have been fascinating to have known what was there before, and to see them being built. That was before my time in NYC. Sounds like you were a witness to their whole dramatic life-cycle: the beginning as well as the end…
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I guess so! I grew to accept the towers…actually I’d like to see all the changes that are happening underground after expanding the subway stop nearby! Before too long I’ll get back. .
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I think there have been major changes in the last few years. The last time we were there was to visit the as yet unfinished 9/11 Memorial, two and a half years ago. We’ll have to go back to see the complete memorial and the underground spaces around it…
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A thought provoking post, Vladimir. Thanks.
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You are most welcome!
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