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I did the touristy thing and walked around Times Square for an hour or so until my friend (whom I met in Ecuador, seriously good people) got out of work and told me how the subway worked. Surprisingly, the system makes complete sense. The transit system is genius. I enjoy riding the rails, and I used to immediately fear all public transportation (until I started riding it on my own, you see). She lives in TriBeCa (the triangle under Canal St), near some awesome pizza (Caruso's on Fulton St) and I think being welcomed into a home made this visit especially savorable. We went out to Ghenet that night and the next day I met another friend for lunch and a museum. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a place I probably was taken to as a child, but it looked just like the Natural History Museum in D.C. to me, so I can't be sure. The collection of this place is so totally overwhelming that I felt irresponsible giving each piece its due time. As my generous host and hostess told me, you could spend a week in the Met. And I rather thought it odd to find Benny Goodman's clarinet in the same wing as the Washington Crossing the Delaware, but maybe I shouldn't expect media to be the only classification of art. And is a clarinet art because of whose spittle is on it? Before I get into semantics, let me say how much I enjoyed everything there (except maybe the gun room my friend begged us to go into), and that I have no faculty to discuss art knowledgably. If it was created to be appreciated by a certain group of trained artists and critics, I am not going to understand it. OK, that said, two days later we went to the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art), and I totally loved it. That museum was made for my brain, and that art was (save for the top floor abstract pieces that are totally beyond me) accessible in its brilliant layout. The photography section was particularly stimulating. Museums are not only a great source of culture points and people-watching, but an excellent activity in the city. I should have dedicated more hours to both.
After the Met I had a dinner in, the best Indian food in the city, cooked for my palate in a residence, how lucky am I? The next day I met my friend at her work, where her views are staggering, especially from her boss' windows, where the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges are visible from a single frame, and the cityscape sprawls beautifully over the bay. We took pictures inside the ceremonial courthouse, then braved the cold for some big salads. They live up to their rep on Seinfeld. And I was lucky enough to get a heart next to my price from the guy tossing it.
Then I went shopping in SoHo. Sorry to say, I was nervous and didn't try out many boutiques, they're a little unnerving when you can't actually afford anything in them. I stuck to the larger stores and enjoyed walking around, then headed home by foot back to the apartment by way of Chinatown. I love the simplicity of Broadway, it seems to connect everything. Another night in, with leftovers and a slice of Caruso's.
The next day was another big salad then the MoMA, after which we went to Carino's or a similarly Italian name, for some dinner up around 2nd and 89th. The place felt like real New York, like you see in the Godfather, and that was totally what they were going for. But the food was excellent, best manicotti ever, thanks to the marvelous ricotta and herb stuffing. After dinner we had a drink around the block at Sabor, a Cuban place with cocktails that reminded me of Ecuador. I guess the tapas are good too.
Saturday was a little extra sleep and Avenue Q (see review), then dinner at Pepolino's. It was my first meal alone in the city, but I called and could get a table last minute on a Saturday so I feel like I won. The food was actually really good, Zagat rated and everything. Meals alone go by fast! But I was craving alone time, and so I took it, my last night in the city. It is time for the road again.
I'm all filled up on friends, but must return after the rest of the road has been conquered. How strange to spend a family weekend that fused into a friend-filled week as my first days of the road trip. My family is precious and my friends are more wonderful than words, thus I'm restored, having indulged so before I pursue this solitude in my beautiful country by the open road.
previous travel blog entry
abrahamshahalam says:
Yeah, Queenstown rocks! I’m still getting over the fact that I went sky diving at 200 kph! I even got a certificate and a video to show for it! Yup, yup