Back To Business On Liberty Island One Day After Statue Standoff

LIBERTY ISLAND, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A day after Liberty Island had to be evacuated when a woman scaled the base of the statue, it was back to business Thursday.

As CBS2's Ciny Hsu reported, you have to really want to see Lady Liberty to stand in the lines, especially in the summer heat. But once you get on the ferry, you're just 15 minutes away.

"I thought it was going to be bigger, I'm not going to lie, but I was still impressed," said British tourist Tk Makiwa.

Hsu found lots of visitors who didn't seem bothered Wednesday's drama.

"I mean that's kind of what she's all about is freedom, the ability to voice your opinion," said Nikki Bonomo, visiting from Detroit.

The visitors come from all over the world.

"It was cool, because a bunch of different people from different countries -- you could hear lots of different languages -- and I thought that was cool," said Texas tourist Miguel Miranda.

Deborah Brooke hadn't visited the statue since she was four years old when she moved to New York from Germany. Her father painted a sweet picture of America.

"He had told me the streets were made out of chocolate and Pepsi came on it of the faucet," said Brooke. "But that's the first time I remember seeing the statue of liberty, and this was the second time, so it was exciting."

The Seravallis grew up in New York, but, like many of us, didn't see the attraction when they lived here.

"I was working in Manhattan and didn't have the time to come down here," said Suzanne Seravalli.

So if you live nearby, try to make the time, because she is really incredible close up.

"Pretty amazing," said British tourist Ben Fell.

Just a piece of advice: The lines are much shorter in the morning. The first ferry heads out at 8:30 a.m.