Location | New York City

I’ve had a fantastic day. I decided to go on a date with myself. It began with a trip to H&H Bagels, which, if you have never gone there before, you must. I was incredibly happy with my favorite toasted everything bagel w/ lite lox spread (delectable!). Sat there enjoying my lovely bagel and writing in my journal.

Then I walked across town and got on the M4 bus to go to the Cloisters. The bus ride literally took more than an hour. When I got there, I decided to take some shots outside first because the daylight was perfect. Then I went in and walked around. It’s really a lovely museum. A lot of courtyards and places to rest and just enjoy the museum.

I definitely need to return in the spring when the gardens open up.

Then afterwards, I walked through Fort Tryon Park (the museum is located in the middle of the park). I walked through snowy pathways and to the entrance where there was a playground. Of course, me, being the child I am, totally went on the swingset.

The bus came and I took the hour and a HALF long ride back to the city where I stopped off at Book-Off and then Zaiya before running 10 blocks to meet up with my coffee date, and specified lover from SF, Albie. We sat around and had 2 coffees, fries and sweets before he walked me back home.

I believe tomorrow I may be going to the opera with Albie. Soooo excited to finally go!

*humming opera songs

Location | New York City

One thing I’m always thankful for is that I live in a city where there’s plenty to explore. My cousins are currently visiting from Michigan, so I took them on a mini tour of New York. We went up to Central Park to walk around. The lighting was perfect, but I wish I had someone who enjoyed shooting as much as me there. The weather was beautiful, it was around 50 degrees, beautiful clear blue skies and sunny.

We strolled through the section of the park known as “The Mall” over to where the Bethesda Terrance & Fountain, where we found that the fountain had been drained. We walked up to where the sailboat pond (known as The Conservatory Water) is and found that it too had been drained! Earlier in the summer Greg and I had visited to go inside the Kerbs Memorial Boathouse where the Central Park Model Yacht Club houses their boats.

We walked upwards toward the Met and over to Belvedere Castle. I’d never gone there before and this was a treat. The view is pretty breathtaking up there. Although when you look south, you can only see treetops, but when you look north you get an amazing view of the Turtle Pond below, then over the Great Lawn and into the Upper East Side.

After spending some time there, we walked through The Ramble over to Strawberry Fields near the Upper West Side. I’d never seen the Imagine memorial (for John Lennon) and stopped a second to take a picture.

After that we exited the park and took the train down to Midtown and walked over to Rockefeller Center to see the big tree. The crowd was insane. They blocked off the roads because there were just too many people flocking to see the tree. It took us about half an hour just to get through the crowd.

We walked down Fifth Avenue (a bad idea during the holiday season) toward the New York Public Library on 42nd street. We sat in front of the library for a bit to rest before we went around to Bryant Park. They had their holiday shops up and their lovely little tree and ice skating rink. They rename the winter version “The Pond.” We took a bunch of pictures around the tree and watch the Zamboni go round and round on the rink.

After that we walked over to Grand Central where I showed them the inside and then we went our separate ways.

Location | New York City

If there’s one place I’ve been meaning to visit for awhile, it’s The High Line. Sometimes I just love being a tourist in my own city! Yesterday was a chilly 17 degrees while also the calm before the biggest snowstorm of 2009 (well the end of 2009). We accumulated around 12-15 inches last night.

Yesterday, in snow and cold wind, my friends Yaya, Matty and Steve walked from my apartment to The High Line. The High Line is a park built on the remnants of an elevated rail line that lifted freight cars 30 feet above the streets in the west side of Manhattan. It runs from the Meatpacking district (Gansevoort St) up to 34th Street.

So The High Line is a cemented sidewalk with some wildlife on each side. At night they light it up so it is a really beautiful setting against the backdrop of the city.

Location | New York City

I’m thinking about starting an explorer’s club where we can be tourists in our own city. There’s so much to learn and see in New York City that I’m amazed that I don’t spend more time walking around and reading books about the rich history of this fantastic city.

This weekend, Oct 10-11th, was Open House New York Weekend. It’s when many not usually open-to-the-public places becomes a big “open house” for free.  There were over a hundred different events and it was a little overwhelming to pick ones that I wanted to attend. Unfortunately I didn’t plan my weekend very well so I only saw 3 sites. At least in the end it became a very eventful and fun weekend.

Saturday began with breakfast at Clinton Street Baking Company (not part of OHNY, but worth speaking about). If you are visiting NY or live in NY you must try Clinton Street Baking Company at least once AND you must get their pancakes. They are my absolute favorite pancakes ever. Although I normally get the banana walnut pancakes, this time was the first time I did not. I ordered the special, which was a waffle with pear and sour cream and wine reduction. Or that’s how I remember the description, although in reality it was a fantastically fluffy waffle with plum coloured pears and a whipped and sweetened sour cream topping that had some spices in it. Delicious! Greg ordered the banana walnut pancakes (I reiterate, my absolute favorite) and Amy ordered the farmer’s plate (yummy, but I still prefer their pancakes and waffles).

After breakfast, we wandered around until it was time for the East Village Walking Tour. The walking tour is sponsored by the Lower East Side History Project, which hosts many other tours if anyone is interested. The tour was led by Andrea Coyle, who, although slightly awkward, was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the East Village.

The tour was 2 hours long, and we actually didn’t do much walking in the first hour. We saw the birthplace of punk rock, the world’s smallest opera house, one of the last remaining cast iron buildings in the E. Village, shop with the best egg cream in Manhattan, spot where Abraham Lincoln’s famous Cooper Union Address earned him the Republican nomination, Warhol’s last residence, and the Merchant House, the last family home to be completely intact from the 19th Century ! I know, information overload right?

If you get the chance, take the tour. The one I took runs every Saturday and Wednesday at noon. If you don’t have time (or can’t), read more about the history of the E. Village at this site. There’s some pretty remarkable stuff.

After the tour I went to Washington Square Park to chill a little bit, but then walked through Washington Mews (my favorite street in New York) to take some pictures. Then a stroll through the Union Square Greenmarket ended my OHNY Weekend Day 1.

So then Sunday was day 2. It began early (9:30am) where I arrived at Cafe Pedlar in the Cobble Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn. There I had a delicious Stumptown latte, complete with adorable heart shaped foam (European style lattes are THE BEST!). After coffee, was the 11am Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Tour. Read about the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Tour in my “Underground” post.

When the tour finished, it was already 2 pm. We were supposed to meet Greg’s friend, Robyn Lee (who is also an amazing food blogger and does just about everything that I can only dream of in an awesome career) at the Newton Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant. Unfortunately the tours were booked full, so we decided to head over to the Belltel Lofts. We thought there would be some sort of architecture tour, but instead they sent us to the 19th floor’s roof deck. (The building is really 27 stories high, but the open decks were on the 19th floor). There were some so-so views of Brooklyn, but it was very hard to see the Manhattan due to many high rises blocking the view.

Afterward, I was starving since the only thing I had eaten since 8:30 am was a latte. We ended up at Char No. 4. I had been wanting to go since reading about it on Serious Eats and I became a very very happy camper afterward. For the $16 prix fixe, you get a poached egg, slice of ham, onion and chives potatoes (which were droolworthy amazing), a biscuit with cranberry jam, homemade chunky apple sauce, coffee and juice. YUM! I will post a picture once I get a copy from Greg (he took the pictures of the food).

After eating, it was already 4pm. We decided to head over to the Financial District to the U.S. Custom House. It’s a great looking building. Inside there’s a beautiful rotunda with a very large skylight. The Custom House also houses the National Museum of the American Indian. We walked around for awhile, but the doors closed at 5pm. We then left and I saw the Wall Street Bull for the first time. The last time I went looking for it was in 2007 right before I officially moved to the city and my dad and I wandered around but couldn’t locate it (we didn’t have a map at the time).

Then Greg took me on a mini-tour of the FiDi. I’d never really taken the time to explore it, but since Greg works in the area he actually knew quite a bit (thanks Greg!). We looked at One Broadway, which used to be known as the “International Mercantile Marine Company.” Although now it’s a Citibank (eek!), the building still has the markings of its history. You can still see “First Class” and “Cabin Class” passenger signage over the doorways because the building used to be for receiving passengers.

After that, we took a walk down Stone Street, then to Federal Hall (where George Washington was inaugurated). We sat there for awhile observing all the tourists. Then it was up the street where I spotted… *GASP*… SAD PANDA! Most of you probably have no idea what I’m talking about, but there is this person dressed up in a giant panda costume that frequents the Financial District seeking tips. I’m obsessed with Sad Panda, but so is the Daily Intel Blog from New York Magazine. Anyway, the reason why he is called “Sad Panda” is because he, indeed, looks sad. Spotting him made me really happy and I was lucky enough to get a picture with him! YAY!

Then Greg and I walked without aim. We walked by Century 21, the giant J&R, the Woolworth Building, stopped at Korin (a knife store which closed minutes before we arrived), and then made our way up through TriBeCa. We got sidetracked when we saw this GIANT building with no windows. We found out it was the AT&T Long Lines Building. Apparently it is filled with telecommunications equipment and each floor is 18 feet high. After figuring that one out, we walked through part of Chinatown where there were tons of vendors selling knock-offs on the sidewalk. It was incredibly congested. Then we were in SoHo. We made stops at Muji, CB2, Topshop, UNIQLO and tried Sur la Table and Banana Republic, but they closed.

Then it was up through SoHo, NoHo then back over to the East Village. We made a quick stop at Japanese Premium Beef Company. They only sell premium Washugyu beef (a kobe-like beef).

Finally it was back to Astor Place where Greg proved that the cube could spin… (I didn’t believe him because I’d seen people struggle to push it, but apparently it’s just VERY heavy).

So that ends the day. It was a great weekend to explore New York. Beautiful weather, not too hot and a lot of fun things to do! Hopefully I’ll do more “explore New York” type things in the future so look out for more blog entries if you managed to even finish reading this one!

Location | Underground, Brooklyn

We’re underground and I wanted to get a few facts in here. [I started this post earlier today.] So while on the tour I typed away furiously the facts that our guide, Bob Diamond (the one who discovered the tunnel again) spoke about. So here is the story of the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel with many stories as told by Bob Diamond (and their supporting evidence). So underneath Atlantic Avenue in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, lays a tunnel approximately half a mile long. Opened in 1844, closed in 1861.

Bob Diamond and others give tours of the tunnel twice a month, and as part of the Open House New York Weekend, I was able to secure 2 spots on the tour along with 120ish others. The tour begins at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Court Street next to the Brooklyn Trader Joe’s. A line snakes against the sidewalk. You can only enter the tunnel 20 at at time since the entrance to the tunnel is actually a manhole in the middle of the intersection. In groups we cross halfway to a cordoned off portion of the street and wait our turn to climb down a (short) ladder about 6-7 feet in the ground.

Then it’s a careful maneuvering as you walk across a short plank, under a large beam wrapped in bright yellow caution tape and then through a small-human sized hole in a cement wall labeled “WATCH YOUR STEP.” On the other side of the hole is a wooden staircase that leads you into the very humid subway tunnel.

The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel is considered the oldest subway tunnel in the world. It was built in 1844 by Cornelius Vanderbilt because Brooklynites (pedestrians and wagons alike) were getting run over by the train system that ran along Atlantic Avenue (since apparently the trains had no brakes and came barreling out of the then-forest without warning.) Too bad, according to Bob Diamond, Vanderbilt didn’t build the tunnel to save lives, but to save time in when they had to clean up the streets of carriage and pedestrian carnage.

Anyway, so the railway, and then tunnel, were built because during that time they needed a way to get shipments from the New York Harbor to Boston via train. The tunnel began construction in May of 1844 and they were given 4 months to complete construction. Of course, it wasn’t completed until December 1844 (well opened, according to Wiki, fully completed in 1845). During this time, because Brooklyn and the rest of Long Island is actually a pile of soil due to debris left by glaciers that had traveled across the North American landmass, it is impossible to dig a tunnel. So they used the “cut and cover” method, where you dig a trench, roof over the area then cover again.

To try to meet the deadline of 4 months, apparently they hired an overseer who is a cross between a construction foreman and a slave driver to make the (mostly Irish) sandhogs (those digging and making 13 cents a day) work everyday of the week (yes, including Sunday, the Sabbath). The workers did not take too kindly to this and apparently they shot and killed the overseer, chopped up his body and buried it in the walls of the tunnel.

Love it. So much fun history in this tunnel.

So fast forward, the tunnel closed in 1961 due to Lynchfield Brothers who wanted the LIRR to leave Brooklyn. After a controversial ruling that banned underground trains, the tunnel shut down in 1961. The tunnel was to be filled in, but in reality the man hired (strangely enough, a Lynchfield) only sealed off the ends, filled in some space with dirt and the tunnel lay forgotten (although appearing occasionally in random news articles) until 1979 when then-19 year old Bob Diamond went looking for the tunnel.

Luckily, despite being discouraged, he found the tunnel and now tours are given and he is trying to preserve the history with the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association.

There’s a lot more history to the tunnel, but you can go hear about it on the tour (or check out the BHRA’s website).

You can also read more details at:

• Curious Expeditions
• Forgotten New York