Police barriers rise. Sidewalks become virtually unnegotiable. Occasionally, even a New Yorker or two join in. A well-pillowed Santa wields his ringer like a knife while soliciting money for Volunteers of America. Rockefeller Center security guards keep order, with a holiday assist from city cops, making sure no one sits on a ledge or gets too close to the tree.
Local students parade through, their teachers desperately trying to ride herd.
Carolers in tuxedos appear from nowhere and begin to sing. Technically private property, Rockefeller Center is the longtime home of, among others, NBC, The Associated Press and Time-Warner. So no more can one find New York Bound, a lobby bookstore that traded only in Gothamabilia. No more can one find Write on Time, where Hamilton watches and Sheaffer pens sat meticulously arranged under glass. Of course, the more traditional reasons to visit still remain.