Here’s a very short recap of my time in NYC. Few pictures, because I kept forgetting to
take them.
December 27
(Weather was clear and cool in Ontario.)
I flew out of Pearson International Airport in Toronto, Ontario Canada on Dec 27. That’s
2 days after the attempted bombing of the airplane going into Detroit, and security at the
airport was stepped up. There was a huge backlog of travelers to be screened before
getting on the flight. One piece of carry-on baggage only that was
xrayed and physically inspected; metal detectors; everyone was patted down. This caused
a back-up out to US Customs and Immigration, and once you’d gone through Customs,
you couldn’t go back out to get food or use a washroom. No airline representatives were
available to advise about the status of planes. You could sit on the floor if you wanted,
but otherwise it was standing all the way. (My back was miserable through the whole
thing.) I arrived at 8:15am for the 11:40am flight, and it was 3pm when I got to the
departure gate. I was honestly surprised by how good-humoured people were around me.
Flights had been delayed by the back-up; mine left the airport at 4pm; the passengers
were from various flights that had been delayed since the morning. The flight to Newark,
New Jersey USA was 1 hour in length; we were not allowed to use the washroom once
the plane left the ground or have bags, coats, blankets, etc in our laps. Everything had to
go into overhead compartments.
Jack met me at the airport and got me home to the cozy house he shares with Judy in
Nutley, which is just north of Newark. It was great to finally arrive. Nutley is a
comfortable town within an easy commute of NYC. I saw holly trees 15 feet tall, which I
have never seen before.
December 28
(Weather was cold in Jersey; cold and windy in NYC. Weather in Ontario: Blizzard
conditions.)
Monday, Jan 28 we took a commuter bus ($10 round trip) into NYC, arriving at the Port
Authority. Subway took us to the American Museum of Natural History, as I’d wanted to
see the “Silk Road Exhibit”.
Jack and I arrived early and strolled through Central Park.
The little Swiss Cottage, where they do marionette plays.
This cockatrice is in a stained glass window at Belvedere Castle.
This apartment building overlooks the park.
Then we met up with Lars and Mark. Here's Lars and Jack.
And, inside the museum, Mark and Lars. (Note Lars' handknit sweater. I think he made it himself.)
The museum was crowded – Mark explained it’s the only Museum in NYC that’s open
on Monday, the schools were closed, it was high tourist season – and there were no
places to sit down. (I spent considerable time hoping for a misericord to prop my butt on
to rest my back which was still cranky from all the standing in the airport.) The “Silk
Road” exhibit is great; if you’re in NYC and can take it in, do so. I was very pleased to
see the video segment of Michael reeling silk and hear him talk about the process. (You can see the video here.) Supper
was at a "Mexican" restaurant and dessert was cheesecake from Eileen’s, 2 doors further
down the street.
December 29
(A cold, windy, wet day.)
We drove over the George Washington Bridge, and went to The Cloisters, one of the departments of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Given how developed the city of New
York is, it’s hard to believe that the Cloisters is actually in it. Part of the displays are a
number of tapestries dating from the last half of the 15th century. Some relate to “the hunt
for the unicorn” series, and there are others as well. ("The Unicorn in Captivity" is here. The image is very good, and you can play with the zoom function to see a nice level of detail.)
Two things struck me about the displayed tapestries. One is that they are huge.
I tried to take these 2 photos and “stitch them together” but was not able to get the angles
right. Click them both to enlarge.
The other thing is that these are hand-made. “You know,” I said very casually to Jack.
“All the yarns for these would have been spindlespun.” I think that’s true; someone can
correct me. Whether wheel- or spindle-spun, it’s a lot of yarn. Looking at the tapestries
and thinking about that is amazing.
(In many of the tapestries, the green colours had faded to blue. I assume that the yarns
were first dyed with blue (woad?) and then overdyed with yellow, which has faded out
leaving the blue. Does that seem reasonably possible?)
I expected these 3 heads to start talking to me. Again, click to enlarge.
The Cloisters is, I think, a place you want to visit in early summer when the gardens are
lush and accessible, and you could take picnic lunch and stand or sit and look at the
Hudson River flowing by. It is really an amazing installation.
We left the Cloisters and drove down the West Side Highway, which travels down the west
side of Manhatten Island. Jack has very good knowledge of the city, and was able to point
out many of the landmarks.
December 30
(Mild temperatures.)
We took the commuter bus into NYC, and the subway up to the Cathedral of St John the
Divine. I wish this fountain has been operating.
The Cathedral looks smaller from the outside than you’d guess from the inside. There are,
as rosesmama noted, all kinds of interesting nooks and crannies and side chapels. I also found
this postif organ. (5 octave keyboard – I think – with 5 ranks of pipes. Pedals were CC to
f with 2 ranks – I think).
After about 2 hours there we headed over to the Hungarian pastry shop across the street,
but it was full and we didn’t want to wait. (Next trip.) We took the subway down to West
72nd Street to walk past the Dakota Apartments and stopped at a chicken and ribs place
for lunch. (It's well established. Jack remembered taking his daughter there 20 years ago.) We walked down
Columbus Avenue to Lincoln Center, then made our way down Broadway Avenue, around Columbus Circle and along Central
Park South to 5th Avenue. Down 5th Avenue to Rockefeller Center. (Everybody else was
there as well: it was jammed with people.) Past Saks 5th Avenue which had a nifty display
of illuminated snowflakes that turned off/on, choreographed to a broadcast piece of
music. Very effective. (Jack told me the shoe department at Saks has its own zip code to
handle the volume of mail.)
Then continued down 5th Avenue to East 42nd Street and along to Grand Central Station
to look at the ceiling there. (Worth a look.) Then back along East 42nd to the Port
Authority, passing through Times Square.
I think we saw most of the touristy things? Somewhere along the way we saw Trump
Tower, the exterior of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Bryant Park (which in the winter is converted
to a skating rink encircled by a series of boutiques), and the lions in front
of the main branch of the Public Library. Jack couldn't remember their names: I thought they were Bert and Ernie, but Jack was fairly sure those names belonged elsewhere. (Wikipedia tells me the lions have been named several times and they are now "Patience" and "Fortitude".)
December 31 (New Years’ Eve)
(Thick, heavy, wet snow. Temps relatively mild.)
Jack had to work for part of the day, so I met up with Mar and we went to IHOP for
pancake breakfast, then over to her favourite yarn store. I napped for part of the
afternoon. Supper was at the home of friends of Jack and Judy, and then home to watch
the ball fall at Times Square on TV.
January 1 (Happy New Year!)
(Mild temps, sunny periods)
Jack and I took a drive through Newark, a city which has clearly seen better days. It was
a nice relaxing trip, with a stop at the catholic cathedral. A nice bulding both outside and
in.
That night we went to see the movie “Avatar” in 3D. (My first movie in 3D.)
January 2
(Cold and windy in Jersey; COLD and WINDY in Toronto.)
A leisurely morning; a visit to Barnes and Noble, then to the airport for 1 pm. No hitches
checking in, security required a metal detector and xray of all carry-on baggage. Multiple
pieces of carry-on allowed; you could stow stuff under the seat in front of you.
Washroom was accessible throughout the flight. Trip was uneventful.
I stayed overnight with family in Toronto, and drove home on Sunday January 3, in
daylight. Lots of blowing snow on the highway, but no whiteouts while I was traveling.
Folks have told me that it got lots nastier as the night set in, and we had about 6-8 inches of
snow the next morning.
All in all, a nice trip. I was glad that I didn’t stay in The City, because it is very large,
crowded and noisy, and I was glad to return to the calm of Nutley at night. I would
definitely visit NYC again, though next trip will be in warmer weather.
See you all later.
