Jacqueline Daracha and her cousin talk to Scholastic News Online about their experience as tourists in New York during the Republican Conventioin. (Photo: Suzanne Freeman)

Tuesday, August 31—The Republican Convention isn't the only game in town. The U.S. Open has also drawn thousands of tennis fans to the Big Apple.

On day two of the convention, Ground Zero, where the World Trade Center fell on September 11, 2001, brought together tourists, delegates, protestors, and plenty of New York City police officers. The main group not represented were delegates, who had spent the morning volunteering at community organizations throughout the city. Also missing, seemed to be any New York City residents.

Protestors came to speak out about the war in Iraq.

"We are here to say that we don't want another four years of Bush in office, and we don't' want anymore war," said a resident of Upstate New York. "We want our troops to come home from Iraq."

Sports fans came to see their favorite tennis stars play in the U.S. Open in Queens.

"It's the best time I've ever had in New York," said Christina Broichevsky of Pennsylvania. "It's so easy to get around—unless you want to go near Madison Square Garden."

Some tourists came—not knowing the convention was in town—to experience the city.

Two young protestors from New York tell Scholastic News Online they will march in the protest, but do not plan to do anything to get arrested. The goal of the march from Ground Zero to Madison Square Garden was to block traffic. Officers were prepared to arrest anyone leaving the sidewalk and walking in the street. (Photo: Suzanne Freeman)

"It's different, with all the police here; it's a different sort of feel," said Joanne Wilson of Canada. "But it's not as busy."

Wilson's daughter was disappointed that they couldn't get into the Plaza Hotel to see where Eloise, a famous storybook character, lived. She was also a little scared.

"I got scared by the guns," said fifth-grader Jacqueline Daracha, "the really big guns the policemen in our hotel had."

Police officers were plenty visible at Ground Zero, just feet from Jacqueline and her family stood. They guarded the front steps of the Millennium Hotel across the street from the World Trade Center site and they lined the streets for several blocks. They were waiting for a protest march to start. Their goal was to keep the peace and make sure protestors did not block traffic.

Shortly after Scholastic Student Reporters left the area for their next appointment, the march and the arrests began.