  The asymptotic behavior of Einstein-Rosen waves at null infinity in 4
dimensions is investigated in {\it all} directions by exploiting the relation
between the 4-dimensional space-time and the 3-dimensional symmetry reduction
thereof. Somewhat surprisingly, the behavior in a generic direction is {\it
better} than that in directions orthogonal to the symmetry axis. The geometric
origin of this difference can be understood most clearly from the 3-dimensional
perspective.
