FRANK JUNIOR !

Seeing the snow for the first time, we (Carlos, Jorge and Matheus) got excited and started some snow-ball fights. After getting wet and exhausted of running after each other in the snow, we decided to build our own snow-man. It was our first snow-man, but it was not bad at all. After walking arround the hotel, we had our dinner in a restaurant and came back to rest for the following day. We`ll keep you informed of our icy adventures.While waiting, meet our trip mascot, FRANK JR.

Para papais e mamaes:
Vendo a neve pela primeira vez, nos (Carlos, Jorge e Matheus) ficamos animados e desencadeamos uma verdadeira guerra, de neve. Apos ficarmos enxarcados e exaustos de correr atras uns dos outros na neve, decidimos construir nosso proprio boneco de neve. Foi o nosso primeiro, mas nao ficou nada mal. Depois de andar nas redondezas, jantamos e nos recolhemos aos nossos aposentos para nos recompormos para o proximo dia. Voces continuarao a serem informados sobre nossas proximas aventuras no gelo. Enquanto isso, conhecam o mascote da nossa viagem, FRANK JR.

OBRIGADO, EM NOME DA EQUIPE CASA THOMAS JEFFERSON E DE TODOS OS ESQUIMOS, E ME DESCULPE PELA FALTA DE ACENTUACAO, POREM, O TECLADO DO HOTEL NOS PRIVA DESSE RECURSO. ADEUS, E ATE A PROXIMA.

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Empire State Building

The Empire State Building is cemented in both New York and U.S. History. Built during the Depression, the building was the center of a competition between Walter Chrysler (Chrysler Corp.) and John Jakob Raskob (creator of General Motors) to see who could build the tallest building.
From the time the construction began on March 17, 1930, the building's steel frame rose at an average rate of four and a half floors per week. To speed construction, the building's posts, beams, windows and window frames were made in factories and put together on the site. 60,000 tons of steel was brought in from the steel mills in Pennsylvania, 310 miles away, by train, barges and trucks.

William Lamb, an architect at the firm Shreve, Lamb & Harmon, was chosen to design the Empire State Building. His design was influenced by the perpendicular style of another architect, Eliel Saarinen. He happened to base most of his design on a simple pencil. The clean, soaring lines inspired him, and he modeled the building after it. He also decided that the columns of stone would be easier to put up if they were separated from the windows with metal strips. The strips covered the stone's edges, which meant the stone could be rough-cut at the quarry and then heaved into place without any final cutting or fitting, thus saving a great amount of time. The stonework began in June of 1930, and was completed in November. The windows were attached with metal brackets between the stone columns, with aluminum panels above and below each level.

By October 3, 1930, there were 88 floors finished and only 14 to go. These top floors took the form of a distinctive tower of glass, steel, and aluminum. The tower is about 200 ft. high and topped with a dome.