By VERENA DOBNIK
Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK (AP) --  Crowds roared, church bells rang and streams of
paper rained down on Broadway as the New York Yankees celebrated
their 27th championship Friday in a way only this city can, with
a parade up the Canyon of Heroes.

The players, joined by a few celebrity fans and Yankees of the
past, drank it all in as they rode on floats and double-decker
buses through Manhattan's financial district.

It has been years since the city used actual ticker-tape to
celebrate its World Series wins, but the experience was still
authentic to the many thousands who crammed the sidewalks along
the three-quarter-mile parade route near Wall Street.

"I love it!" said city sanitation worker John Freeman, as he
raked up confetti and toilet paper rolls thrown from
skyscrapers.

Whole families skipped work and school to be there. Players
recorded the crowd with their cameras as they rode to a second
celebration at City Hall, where the mayor presented the team
with keys to the city.

Shortstop Derek Jeter carried the trophy, hoisting it high above
his head while the crowd screamed and "We are the Champions"
blasted on loudspeakers.

"It's been too long, hasn't it?" he told the crowd, a reference
to the team's eight-year absence from the top of the sport. "It
feels good to be back."

Fans and players brimming with classic New York confidence let
it be known that they didn't plan to relinquish their title
anytime soon.

The crowd at City Hall chanted "28." Manager Joe Girardi said he
had already talked on the phone with George Steinbrenner about
not letting up next year.

"He told me this morning ... the only thing greater than this
celebration is doing it two years in a row," Girardi said. "So
he asked me to remind everyone, pitchers and catchers report in
96 days. Be ready to defend it."

Brooklyn native Jay-Z capped the celebration with a performance
of his song "Empire State of Mind."

Yankees fans may be used to winning, but that didn't make the
day any less special for the multitudes along the parade route -
especially children living a championship for the first time.

"This is an experience of a lifetime," said Nicole Orrico, who
let her fifth-grade daughter, Koranda, skip school to attend.
"You have to mix life with learning."

The Yankees beat the defending champion Philadelphia Phillies to
win the best-of-seven series in six games. The title was the
team's first since beating the crosstown Mets in the 2000
"Subway Series," and came during the first season of the new
$1.5 billion Yankee Stadium.

"There's no better way to inaugurate a new stadium," said
Michael Rheubottom, a city jail guard, who attended with his
13-year-old son, Jason. "This is the house that Jeter built. We
don't even remember the house that Ruth built."

Pitcher Mariano Rivera, who waved a Panamanian flag as he rode
in the parade, called the outpouring of support "beautiful."

"The city of New York, the fans ... you can't put it into words.
It's magnificent," he said.

Alex Rodriguez, finally free of all the criticism that had been
heaped upon him for failing to win a championship, wore a black
hat and a wide smile.

"We waited a long time for this," he said. "I've never seen so
many people collected in one place. Excitement. It just seems
like they were as hungry as we were. The fans really wanted
this. They were hungry."

There was one notable absence: Steinbrenner. "The Boss" has made
few public appearances since his health deteriorated in recent
years. He attended the first two games against the Phillies,
returning to the new Yankee Stadium for the first time since
opening day.

His son, Hal, took over the day-to-day operations of the team
about a year ago.

"A magical day," Hal Steinbrenner said. "New York just has the
best fans in the world."

Yankee greats of the past, including Yogi Berra and Reggie
Jackson, were on hand for the celebration. Jackson urged the
players to enjoy the experience, noting that as players, "You
never know if it'll happen again."

Some fans were more confident the trophy would be back soon
enough on lower Broadway - the narrow Canyon of Heroes that has
seen some 200 ticker-tape parades for astronauts, foreign
leaders, sports champions and five-star generals.

"We're going for 28, baby," said Ulysses Coleman, of Manhattan.
"Next year it's ours, it's in the bag."

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Associated Press writers Colleen Long and Jay Cohen contributed
to this report.