Parading Down Fifth Avenue

Photo by myself on Fifth Avenue around 40th Street.

I've been holding onto this photo for a while, since last year's Veteran's Day Parade.

Boy am I glad it's Friday? TGIF everyone!

Related posts: Fighting the Crowds, in Midtown, Lost in the Crowd and We the People.

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Out to Lunch, in Midtown

Photo by myself, somewhere in Midtown.

Spring has sprung here in the city. Unfortunately, not everyone works near a public park.

Some buildings are designed with public space in mind, offering areas to sit and enjoy the good weather. This bank of steps of various sizes also has planters for trees.

People can perch and eat, relax and have some alone time before slogging off to their desks.

Related posts: On Curvy Walls and Stone Slabs, The Royalton Renovated and Dusk Among Towers.

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Commuting in the Hood, on the Atlantic/Pacific Platform

Photo by myself on the platform of the Atlantic/Pacific subway station.

Just about everyone immerses him or herself in a handheld device during the daily commute. People were reading their Kindles, playing shoot-em-up games and listening to music Tuesday evening.

As you can see, all Brooklynites look like they shop at The Gap. The prevailing aesthetic is 'non-descript comfy'.

Once in a blue moon, you will spot someone in a fashion color or a suit.

Related posts: Waiting for the Train, at Atlantic/Pacific Streets, Passing the Time, Underground and On Shopping on West 4th and My Insider's Guide.

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Toy Shopping in the East Village

Photo by myself, somewhere in the East Village.

A fanciful display outside a toy store downtown, in the East Village.

Many stores welcome dogs and leave bowls of water outside for them in the summer. You can just see the water bowl to the left of Mr. Bear's foot.

Related posts: The Markets in Union Square, Christmas Shopping and On Shopping on West 4th and My Insider's Guide.

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On Visiting New Yorkers, in the Flesh and Online

Photo by myself in Madison Square Park, at 23rd Street and Fifth Avenue.

A musical ensemble charmed onlookers with their pop songs. Just about everyone was walking around outside, enjoying the Spring weather.

A woman smiled after giving the group a tip.

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Speaking of walking around, there are two very different ways to visit New Yorkers.

If you're in town this summer, Brooklyn opens its doors to lovers of historic architecture.

The Brooklyn House Tour showcases homes each week in various Brooklyn neighborhoods. You can walk through privately owned brownstones in Fort Greene, mansions in Brooklyn Heights and gardens in Clinton Hill.

Tickets are between $20 and $40. For more info, click here.

If you're not in town, join virtual tours of New York apartments at Time Out New York.

In a section dedicated to apartment living, you can visit studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments and their Manhattan and Brooklyn residents. It's real up close and personal.

I think I enjoyed the smaller apartments the most, since it's tough to squeeze variety out of a few rooms. Each photo essay is wonderfully staged, and includes a source list if you like anything you see.

For the virtual apartment tours, click here.

Related posts: Below the Ansonia on the Upper West Side, The Towers Near Riverside Park and An Oasis on Park Avenue.

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Big Red Monster, in Herald Square

Photo by myself in Herald Square, around 34th Street and Seventh Avenue.

Elmo, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, and Sponge Bob Square Pants were just some of the characters populating this busy area near Macy's, last week.

I'm not sure what the occasion was for the people in costume? Maybe they were just enjoying the nice weather, like everyone else.

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Mark is in LA for a few weeks for work, so I'm playing single mom right now to our cat and dog.

I've let myself go a little already. Breakfast this weekend has been Oreo cookies. Gone is the half bag of Doritos I swore I'd never lay hands on. Now I am eyeballing the can of Spaghetti-O's we've stashed in case of alien invasion. Horrible!

The nice thing is that we can video chat. Rupert starts howling when he hears Mark's voice, then cocks his head to each side, trying to figure out what the face on the computer screen is.

Anyway, kudos to those single parents out there. It's not easy!

Related posts: Big Green Monster, in Midtown, Step Lively and Santas on Parade, in Washington Square Park.

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On Fancy Cakes in the Financial District

Photo by myself at Stone Street and Hanover Square, in the Financial District.

I love this part of town near Wall Street, which has an 'ye olde' feeling about it.

Above, Financier is a fancy patisserie. Its name playfully alludes to the name of a French cake, as well as its location in the Financial District.

I regret not stepping inside, though I'm probably slimmer for it. Their assortment of elegant cakes and French pastries is impressive. Chocolate mousse cakes, sacher tortes, berry tarts and petit fours are just some of their decadent concoctions.

They also serve a large menu for breakfast and lunch, cater parties and create one-of-a-kind wedding cakes.

Lucky for everyone, they accept online orders, for pick up, only. (I doubt their perfect cakes would travel well in the US Mail).

For their website, which includes photos of their creations and menus, click here.

Related posts: On the Market, Trinity Church, at Dusk and Window Dressing, at the Little Pie.

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Outside The Sunburnt Cow, Avenue C

Photo by myself in Alphabet City, at Avenue C and 9th Street.

A playful sign hangs outside The Sunburnt Cow, an Australian-themed restaurant.

What is Australian cuisine, you ask? Well, the menu lists fresh shark, mutton stew, wild boar and a 'kangaroo shepherd's pie'. (No telling whether there is real kangaroo in the pie).

Their offshoot, called The Sunburnt Calf, is located on the Upper West Side. Both gastropubs feature fancy brunches for $18, with all the 'moomosas', 'moo marys', or screwdrivers you like.

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Thanks everyone for the comments on yesterday's photo! I'm absolutely tickled that people enjoyed it.

Thursday, I left my camera at home. Naturally, the best moments eluded me - two visitors with enormous backpacks crammed in the subway during rush hour, one girl walking in knee highs and tiny skirt, a woman sitting next to two giant teddy bears on a bench, street vendors and a man singing in the subway station wearing a tin foil crown.

Related posts: Cow Appreciation Day, Fifth Avenue, Now on Sale, in Midtown and Signs of Hope.

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Leg Lunges, Midtown 9:25 am

Photo by myself, somewhere in Midtown.

I took this photo Wednesday morning from a cab, on the way to a job site. I was somewhere around 27th Street, (I think?) trying to make it crosstown for a meeting.

A woman was doing leg lunges down the sidewalk. A man was walking his little dog. Daily life in Manhattan. Pretty ordinary. You can see my taxi in the reflection of the building.

The cab driver turned around and asked what country I was from.

'Brooklyn,' I said, and not being sarcastic. We really are a land of our own!



Related posts: Playing Ball in the Public Courts, Running Along the Brooklyn Bridge and Playing Ball, in Red Hook Brooklyn.

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Community Garden, on 7th Street

Photo by myself at 9th Street and Avenue C.

La Plaza Cultural is a community garden and open air performance space in Alphabet City. It's been there since 1976, when this neighborhood was very, very sketchy.

This is just one of many community gardens in this neighborhood. Some are tiny, others substantial, with seating and shady areas.

Members pay a $25 annual fee to share garden plots. Easter Egg hunts, birthday parties, weddings and performances are held here during the nice months.

If you're a tin can or an odd whirlygig in this area, beware! You might just end up on top of this fence.

Related posts: Shooting (Film) in the Park, The Getty Villa, in Malibu California and Community Garden, an Urban Oasis.

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New York's Finest, on the Hudson River

Photo by myself in Battery Park, along the Hudson River.

I'm not sure what was being discussed among the above fellows.

The weather? How many drug busts had taken place that morning? Dead body count? The latest Nicks game?

Good to know that our waters are being patrolled as often as our streets and subways.

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Ever wonder what happens to all the merchandise seized by the NYPD?

Rolex watches, cars, jewelry, electronics...you name it, are auctioned off to the public online, at propertyroom.com.

I have to say that getting jewelry or other valuables at this site is better than shopping on ebay, for example. On the Property Room site, you know the goods are real, since they've been verified by authorities.

In case you're wondering, there is photographic equipment up for grabs, too. Lenses, SLRs and digital cameras are available, though many items are untested and are sold 'as is'.

Last but not least, winners get bragging rights that their goods were 'hot'!

Related posts: NYPD Blues, NYPD in Action, Underground and Policing the Subway, Midtown.

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On the Steps of St. Stainislaus, 7th Street

Photo by myself at the steps of St. Stanislaus, on East 7th Street and First Avenue.

A small shrine for the late president Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria, on the steps of St. Stanislaus in the East Village. The President, his wife and many other high officials perished in a tragic plane crash last week.

St. Stanislaus is a Roman Catholic church that conducts its masses in Polish. The Polish community has long populated the East Village as well as Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

Related posts: What's New and Old in the East Village, Life Goes On, Almost and The Beginning of the End.

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Cluttered Sidewalks in the East Village

Photo by myself, somewhere in the East Village.

The sidewalks are narrow in most of the older neighborhoods in Manhattan. On trash pick-up days, there is little room for pedestrians to pass by.

New York is tidier than it used to be, but it still has a long way to go. Unfortunately, litter is a way of life. The sidewalks and subway tracks are often the place where wrappers, coffee cups, gum and other stuff winds up on a daily basis.

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In my early days as a New Yorker, I went through a personal crusade against littering (I wrote about it here in an earlier post). It's still shocking to see people, often kids, casually toss stuff on the street when there are trash cans everywhere.

As a dog owner, I really notice what's on the streets. Rupert will come very close to eating paper bags, jujubees and discarded chicken bones. Actually the quantity of chicken bones bewildered me. How is it that we eat so many chicken wings outside?

So when you see the litter in New York, please know that only a fraction of us treat our city poorly. The rest of us are completely disgusted.

Related posts: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, The View of Liberty and Tonight's Winning Numbers, in Sunset Park.

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Sunset Along the West Side Highway

Photo by myself from a car, along the West Side Highway around Pier 54.

There are all sorts of things along the West Side Highway.

Piers and old boats jut into the water. There is also an enormous sports complex, Chelsea Piers, which contains a running track, bowling alley, golf driving range, and courts for soccer, basketball and handball.

In the daytime, a paved walkway running along the water is visible. Runners, rollerbladers and strollers use the parks that runs along the west side, spanning from Riverside Park in the Upper West Side, all the way down to Battery Park City.

Related posts: Subway Sunset, on the Ride Home, Sunrise, Sunset and Strange Skies, Above Sunset Park.

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City Portraits - The Williamburgh Bank, Brooklyn

Photo by myself at the Brooklyn Flea Market, at One Hanson Place.

This past weekend Mark and I visited the Brooklyn Flea Market at the Williamsburgh Bank Building.

The Williamsburgh Bank is the tallest building in Brooklyn. You can see the building from just about everywhere. The exterior was recently restored, and the upper floors converted into fancy condo apartments. The interiors on the first floor are just incredible.




Light streams through one of the large windows on the mezzanine level.


A starry mosaic covers the arched ceiling of the lobby. Note the delicate iron work in the background.



Many of the original elements are still in the lobby, including tellers windows, light fixtures and the vault door.

Vendors were selling quality vintage clothing, art and furniture. Outside in the parking lot, you can get a host of different foods. There was a roaring pizza oven (!), handmade chocolate and ice cream.

Mark oogled at some of the vintage lamps offered, while I was just astounded by the building. Fortunately for us all, the Brooklyn Flea Market is open every weekend.

For the Brooklyn Flea website, click here.
The Williamsburgh Bank building is located just steps away from the Atlantic/Pacific subway stop in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

City Portraits is an ongoing, once-in-a-while installment featuring parts of New York.

Related posts: City Portraits - The High Line, Chelsea, City Portraits - Washington Square Park and City Portraits - Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn.

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Passing By, in Sunset Park

Photo by myself in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

Sunset Park is the equivalent of Chinatown in Brooklyn. Stores and restaurants are crowded around Eighth Avenue, since the word 'eight' in Mandarin sounds similar to the word meaning 'good fortune'.

As in Chinatown in Manhattan, many storefronts open directly to the street. This makes walking down the sidewalk slow, as people cannot help but look into each store.

I took this photo last year and it's one of my favorites. The blue light of the tv contrasts nicely with the store interior.

Related posts: Night View, Canal Street, Soap Bubbles, Chinatown and Fish Market, Chinatown.

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Beautiful People, the East Village

Photo by myself around St. Mark's Place and 1st Avenue, in the East Village.

For some reason, all the customers brunching outdoors this weekend were young, fashionable and female.

Brunch is a meal dear to the heart. As usual, New Yorkers are over the top with their menus. All the mimosas you can drink? Gigantic omelet with a side of home fries? Cheesy grits? Why, of course.

Above, at Cafe Mogador on St. Mark's Place, brunch is served between 9am and 4pm, Saturdays and Sundays. That's some window of time.

Mogador serves up various concoctions of organic poached eggs, with fresh orange juice, along with cappucino or tea. There is always, always a line of people waiting on the sidewalk. Often, customers resemble movie stars.

Time Out New York devotes a whole section to brunching in New York. Their lists include 'Outdoor Brunch Spots', 'Best Rooftop Brunches' and 'Best Brunch Deals'.

In NY-ese, 'brunch' means 'wake-up-late-because-you-spent-last-night-drinking-much-too-much'.

Related posts: Brunching on St. Mark's Place, Sharing a Moment and Summering in the City.

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On Blooming Trees and New York Apps

Photo by myself in Tompkins Square Park, in Alphabet City.

It seems like every tree is fully in bloom right now, a mass of yellow or pink. If you have any allergies at all, be sure to bring kleenex.

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This week in the Times, there is an article about new apps (application for the iphone) made just for New Yorkers.

Parking spaces are scarce in certain neighborhoods. Park Slope, where Mark and I live, is drastically short on parking space. (As a result, a high percentage of Mini Cooper owners live here).

StreetParkNYC and Roadify allow New York drivers to communicate when they're leaving their precious parking spaces. Meters cost 50 cents per hour and garage parking costs anywhere up to twenty bucks an hour. I'm sure New York will be one of many cities for such applications. I'm sure this will be a default part of navigation devices in the future.

Related posts: Happy Summer, Fall Foliage, in Prospect Park and Tell me about the Rabbits.

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The Writing on the Wall, on Avenue A

Photo by myself in Alphabet City, around 6th Street and Avenue A.

A large mural was going up in Alphabet City announcing a new comedy show with actor John Reilly. Below, some large illustration dedicated to the motorcyclists who frequent this area.

I walked by the crane later when it was closer to the ground. The workers were on their lunch break. I noticed they paint the murals the old fashioned way, working from a small copy of the image.

In the close up photo, you can see the framed image held by one of the artists. Pretty incredible!



Related posts: The Rat Pack, on Avenue C, Ninja Assassins, in the East Village and Painting by Numbers.

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Graffiti Gets Physical, on St. Mark's Place

Photo by myself in the East Village, around St. Mark's Place and 1st Avenue.

It's been a beautiful Spring weekend here in New York. People crowded the sidewalks Saturday for brunch and strolling about. Birdsong was in the air. Every street was graced with many green and pink flowering trees, and sneezing people.

St. Mark's Place is a street that runs east-west through the East Village. It is incredibly rich in content. Different restaurants and stores are located there, with the most touristy strip between Second and Third Avenue. This street was the first to show 'graffiti art' in a gallery setting. It has also been home to many artists and musicians.

The tiny vintage clothing store pictured above was featured on an old Led Zeppelin album called Physical Graffiti. It is just one of the colorful nooks and crannies on this popular street.

It seems that each building on this block has a story. For a detailed run down, click here.

Related posts: City Portraits - The East Village, Shopping on St. Mark's Place and On Eight Million Stories and St. Mark's Place.

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