I was one of the first to climb the Vessel, a $200 million sculpture in New York City's Hudson Yards.
Source: Hudson Yards, Curbed
Hudson Yards is New York City's new $25 billion neighborhood that includes office buildings, luxury residential towers, a seven-story shopping center, and a performing arts center. It officially opened to the public on March 15, but it won't be completely finished until 2025.
Source: Hudson Yards
The Vessel anchors a public plaza ringed by brand-new buildings that include the Shed, a performing arts center, the seven-story luxury shopping center, and residential towers 15 Hudson Yards and 35 Hudson Yards.
Source: Hudson Yards
Entrance to the Vessel is free, but you have to reserve a time slot online. It's open every day from 10:00 am to 9:00 pm.
I didn't need a reservation because it was opening day, so I walked right inside behind CNN's Anderson Cooper, who was a host of the Hudson Yards grand opening event.
Depending on who you ask, the Vessel resembles anything from a honeycomb to a giant shawarma.
Source: Washington Post, Eater
But standing inside the Vessel is a completely different experience than looking at it from the outside.
The sculpture's designer, Thomas Heatherwick, said it was partially inspired by Indian stepwells, which are wells or ponds where you take a step of steps down to the water.
Source: Walk Through India
It took me about 15 minutes to walk to the top, and that was with plenty of stopping to take photos.
Looking down from near the top, I couldn't decide if I felt like I was standing inside the rib cage of some kind of giant robotic creature or inside an alien spaceship.
Source: Hudson Yards
From the top of the Vessel, you can look out over Hudson Yards' remaining visible rail yards toward the Hudson River.
I've never seen anything like it.
It was a bit windy at the top, but because it was an unseasonably warm March day when I visited, I didn't mind. The Vessel is open regardless of rain or poor weather.
Source: Hudson Yards
I can see why some people might not find the Vessel's exterior particularly attractive, but the inside really blew me away.
The structure, which cost an estimated $200 million to build, was fabricated in Italy and arrived in New York in six separate shipments.
Source: Curbed
You can't climb Vessel after 9:00 pm, but it's still impressive to see the outside at nighttime when it's illuminated.
The Vessel's designer, Thomas Heatherwick, called it "one of the most complex pieces of steelwork ever made."
Source: Curbed
Related Companies CEO Jeff Blau compared the Vessel to the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center. "We said we want to design a 365-days-a-year Christmas tree, so that every single person who comes here has to come to Hudson Yards," he said on Bloomberg TV. "And that's the Vessel."
Source: Bloomberg