Photo by myself in Brooklyn Bridge Park.
The view from Brooklyn Bridge Park of the East River and East Side of Manhattan.
The Brooklyn Bridge has been under renovation, lately. Parts have been covered with white cloth, which has moved along the length. This photo is from the stash, when the Manhattan end of the bridge was being fixed. The cloth is near the Brooklyn end, now.
Of course, the nice thing about taking photos of bridges is that they don't tend to move.
Related posts: Another View of the Brooklyn Bridge, The Brooklyn Bridge, in the Balance, and On the Brooklyn Bridge.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
In View of the Brooklyn Bridge
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Antiques Store, in Park Slope, Brooklyn
Photo by myself on Fifth Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
A humorous sign outside an antiques store in Brooklyn. Yes, they have everything, including medieval hatchet thingies to protect yourself with.
We're having a beautiful, unseasonably coolish stretch of days. Hooray!
Related posts: Store Closing, on Fifth Avenue, Outside Mxyplyzyk, in the Village, and A Tour Through the Winter Antiques Show, on the Upper East Side.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Business as Usual, in the Garment District
Photo by myself in the Garment District, around 39th Street and Seventh Avenue.
The Garment District has been reduced to a few streets around 37th to 40th Streets, between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. Stores sell fabric, thread, ribbon, elastic and the like on the ground floor. Above, are showrooms.
Often you will see guys pushing racks full of clothing samples. Some of the buildings are older, and if you go up in the elevators, the doors will open and you'll see rows of garment workers and sewing machines. It is less expensive to have garments mass-produced overseas, but designers need workrooms nearby to have one-off samples made.
Steinlauf and Stoller, straight ahead, is an older establishment known for its sewing notions. There you can get all sorts of tailoring supplies.
For an earlier photo of a supercool sweatshop space, click here.
Related posts: Moving and Shaking, in Midtown, A Snapshot from Midtown, and Peeking into Paron's Fabrics, in the Garment District.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Cooling Off, In Midtown
Photo by myself at 34th Street and Sixth Avenue in Midtown.
A gentleman sat on a folding chair during rush hour, wearing nothing but his boxer shorts and shoes. Beside him lay his pants.
Like many places around the world right now, it has been really, really, really hot and sunny here. People walk very slowly down the streets, then down stairs to stand on the very hot subway platforms.
Since most of the subway cars have air conditioning and they exhaust into the tunnels, the platforms are insanely hot. Some subway cars don't have working air conditioning at all (!). Inside, it is easily over 100F degrees, and a health hazard.
The summer heat is due to continue for the rest of the week.
Related posts: In the Shade, on Park Avenue, The Sign of the Rat, in Midtown, and Funky Chicken, in Park Slope.
Monday, July 15, 2013
Outside House of Oldies, in the Village
Photo by myself on Carmine and Bleecker Streets, in the Village.
The House of Oldies is a record store in the Village. As you can see, not every storefront in Manhattan is brand-shiny new. It was shuttered closed on Sunday but it is open during the week.
Founded in 1968, the storefront must not have changed a bit. There are supposedly over a million vinyl (yes, vinyl) records inside.
As with any store or restaurant, please do a little research beforehand. For the store's website, click here.
In late May, the magazine published 'The Ultimate Apartment', a story about a gorgeous apartment on 20th Street in Chelsea. A successful fashion photographer lived there and advertised the apartment as a sublet on Craigslist.
It just goes to show, however, that if anything is too good to be true, it is. People were lining up outside the door to live there. And the story only gets more interesting.
The article is available online, but only for subscribers. Click here for the synopsis on the New Yorker website.
Related posts: Genesis Mural, Soho, Mural, in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and 'Zodiac Heads', Outside the Plaza Hotel. Read more...
Friday, July 12, 2013
All Coiled Up, near the Flatiron Building
Photo by myself, around 23rd Street and Broadway, in the Flatiron District.
A striking metal sculpture stands at the foot of the Flatiron Building, at the moment.
A large stainless steel replica of the Met Life Tower looks like it's coiled up like measuring tape. The real Met Life Tower is just a block away, just beyond Madison Square Park.
The sculpture is part of the 'Park Avenue Project' by Alexandre Arrechea, a contemporary Cuban artist. Other parts of the project are installed along Park Avenue, each showing a different New York building.
Other buildings featured include the Empire State Building (coiled up at 64th Street), the Chrysler Building (wiggling at 66th Street) and the MetLife Building (balanced on a giant top at 67th Street).
A more straightforward view shows the MetLife Tower in context. As you can see, it's quite big!
Click here to see the other buildings represented in the project.
For a little more about the sculpture outside the Flatiron Building, click here.
Related posts: Genesis Mural, Soho, Mural, in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and 'Zodiac Heads', Outside the Plaza Hotel.
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Taxi of Tomorrow, Coming Soon
Photo by myself on Sixth Avenue in Midtown.
A 'taxi of tomorrow' coasted down Sixth Avenue, the other day. It was out for a test drive and was not available for hire.
I frankly cannot keep up with the different taxi models! For the longest time, taxis all looked alike. They were the sedan-type models, with a plastic sheet separating the front row seats from the back seats. There was a little hinged thing where you passed money to the driver.
Now, there are minivan type cabs with a couple rows of seats and doors that slide open. There are hybrid green cabs (though still painted the familiar orangey-yellow). There are cabs with the plastic sheets encasing just the driver, so you can sit in the passenger's seat.
These new taxis are designed to be wheelchair accessible; the bottom of the sliding door is about curb-height. They have charging stations in the back seat for recharging cell phones. But they aren't hybrids, which can run twice as far for each gallon of gas.
I've talked at length with cabbies about their hybrid cabs. The trouble is the parts are so expensive, when they break down, any cost savings they get from good gas mileage goes down the tube.
The new cabs are due out in a few months' time.
For more about the taxis of tomorrow, click here.
Related posts: Fixing Flats, in the Streets, Colorful Cab, in Midtown, and Evening, on Sixth Avenue.
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
The Crowds on 34th Street, in Midtown
Photo by myself, at 34th Street and Sixth Avenue, in Midtown.
There are people, people, everywhere, especially on this street corner in Midtown.
34th Street is just round the bend from the Empire State Building and steps away from Times Square. There are many, many clothing stores in this area, including the Macy's department store.
All the very popular chains like Uniqlo, the Gap and Zara have outposts here. It is a shopper's delight.
Related posts: The Crowds on Lower Broadway, A Glimpse of 42nd Street, Times Square, and Across the Crowded Sidewalk, in Midtown.
Sunday, July 7, 2013
A Brief Glimpse of Woodstock, New York
Photo by myself, in Woodstock, New York.
The main streets of the lovely little town of Woodstock, New York, are lined with wood guitars, each one with a distinct personality. Some are decorated with childrens' wood blocks, buttons or graphics. I liked the one above the most, with its artistic collage.
We thought that further north would be a good escape from the summer heat for a few days, but NO. It is just as hot and humid, with temperatures hovering around 90F. Fortunately, there are many little streams and lakes in Woodstock, which are perfect for humans and dogs to cool off.
People have been very laid back and friendly. Like typical city slickers, we completely forgot that things close earlier outside the city (!) and were almost stuck on July 4th without dinner.
A photo of one of the main streets, lined with little shops and restaurants.
Outside The Old Forge, one of the many antiques stores, which sells all sorts of music and psychedelic memorabilia.
A cardboard cut out of Jimmi Hendrix standing with his drummer, Mitch Mitchell. The town's main street is in the background, beyond.
The above photos were taken with my iphone. We'll be heading back to Brooklyn on Monday.
Happy weekend, everyone!
Related posts: A Last Look at Beijing, China, The Hotel Shangri-La, in Santa Monica, and Highlights from Japan, Part Two.
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Summer Days, in Park Slope, Brooklyn
Photo by myself in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
It is July 4th weekend, and everyone in the States is enjoying the long weekend. A peaceful chocolate lab in our neighborhood looked like he was thinking fondly of summers gone by. He often naps on his front stoop.
Many folks took the whole week prior to this weekend off. We are spending a few days in Woodstock, New York, about 2.5 hours north of Manhattan by car. Woodstock is a very charming town in the woods, filled with art, music and old hippies.
It is just as hot here as it is in the city, with temps in the 90s and high humidity. In our rush to leave, I forgot to pack the little gizmo that downloads photos from my camera. Drat.
I posted a photo of the same dog a couple years ago in black and white, here.
Related posts: Dog Days of Summer, at Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Four-Legged Co-Pilot, on Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn, and The Spray of Summer, in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
Monday, July 1, 2013
Below Times Square and a Rupert Update
Photo by myself, below Times Square.
Big posters about the musical 'Kinky Boots' decorated the walls below Times Square.
Most of the time, this space is packed to the gills with people. Very often, the posters here have people in them, so you get the effect of there being...even MORE people here.
To cool off, our dog Rupert swam in the dog pond in Prospect Park. Boston Terriers aren't known to swim, because they don't have much fur or fat to keep them buoyant. But he loves the water.
Here he is, still damp, with ball in mouth.
Related posts: Mimes, Below Times Square, The End is Near, in Times Square, and On Times Square and Our Rupert. Read more...
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