Friday August 10

I'm behind again on the blog!  I'm just going to outline each day for now and add a few pictures.  I've been doing so many things that the only way I know when I did what is by looking at the pictures!

Friday-

Email and reading morning.  Finished "Maine" finally!

Whitney Museum with Sara- contemporary American Art but their permanent gallery on the top floor was closed for renovation!  Some odd work, but very enjoyable.  Sara gave me a NY City Pass with free tickets for 5 museums!  Thank you, Sara!  I'm going to go to them all!

I got to the Whitney early, so I was early in the line for "pay what you wish" tickets.  

Waiting in line!  Always waiting in NYC.

Good thing- here was the line after we got finished!

But not as long as these poor people....

Sara had plans with a friend, so we parted ways and I continued on to the Pierpont Morgan Library.  This is easily one of the most magical places I have ever been.  Morgan was an extremely rich financier at the turn of the 19th century, and he built this place on Madison Ave. and filled it with rare books and art.  A few highlights:

           
 Made my way to Midtown for a meal at Sapporo, my favorite Japanese restaurant and one of my favorite restaurants in NY, period.  The homemade noodles are incredible!  Wonderful dumplings as well.

 It's down by Times Square, so I checked out tourist central, and was appalled to see this sitting on a street corner on Broadway.

Walked to the theatre where "Book of Mormon" is playing to ask about lottery tickets, since it is completely sold out.  2.5 hours before curtain there is a lottery.  Not sure it is worth it, but I'll consider it if I'm in the area.  Home again, ready for a great day on Saturday.

Thursday- Coward, laundry, and opera

Thursday was a very eclectic day!  I had finally so run out of clothes that I could put it off no longer, so I arose early and carried my three bags of laundry down to ET Laundry, all the while weighing my options:  have them do it for me (only 85 cents a pound!) or figure out the system myself.  In the spirit of trying new things, I decided to do it. Get a card, put money on it, locate the right machines, figure out how in the world to get the card to work, wait in the hot laundromat with complaining lady right next to you, take clothes to the driers which are big enough to put Smart Cars into them, by now I'm a pro with the card, 20 minutes later done!

Frustrating to figure out how to do it, simple once I know what I'm doing.

Walked to the Crosstown Diner for a California Omelette (lots of veggies, including avocado!) and lots of coffee.  Continued to read my book "Maine," which still is the only book I've read while I'm here.  I gotta get a move on!  Put on clean clothes (YAY! Note to self, don't wear khaki in NY:  it never gets clean again!), purchased my unlimited Express Bus and Metro pass--which I'm never leaving home without again-and went into the city.  The bus ride was very stressful for those of us in the front seats and probably the driver too, as people were driving AND BIKING like complete morons.  It was a miracle we didn't collide with anyone.  The weekend must start on Thursday here, as the people, taxis, and cars were out in droves.  Once we got past Central Park I could have walked it faster that we could go.  The trip ended with a traffic jam caused by a New Jersey driver colliding with an ice-cream truck.  Yup.  It closed 5th Ave. down to one lane, to the jeering of many New Yorkers.

To Lincoln Center for a couple of very pleasant hours in the New York Performing Arts Library- nice music collection (I'll take one of these upcoming rainy days and go sit and work there on opera workshop program of French literature) and a really lovely Noel Coward exhibit.  Actor, director, playwright, man about town.  The exhibit made me curious to learn more of his songs, and to get a silk dressing gown of my own in which to greet visitors after shows!  Magnificent.  Sadly, couldn't take pictures in there, so you'll have to imagine silk tie dressing gowns with sophisticated prints and matching shoes (one pair of shoes with his name embroidered onto them!).  To the Juilliard Bookstore, and didn't really find the windfall that I did in the spring, but did get "The Mastery of Music: Ten Pathways to True Artistry" by Barry Green, which looks really good.  I think the two things I like about the bookstore are 1. There just aren't print music stores left that are devoted to classical music, 2. the energy, passion, and greatness that Juilliard stands for is so inspiring.  However, students are the same everywhere, and I heard two tenors at the checkout counter circling around each other, trying to figure out what their package of five (arias) was.  One plays coy, the other desperate.  How annoying.

It starts to rain, but I am optimistic as I head for Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens where I will attend a Met Opera in the Park concert with my friend Seonaid.  She got stuck in traffic, so while waiting for her, I talked with a weird looking guy on the street handing out fliers who turned out to be a decent guy, and decided to travel to Sweden at the end of the summer.

Yup, you heard me right.

After mulling it over for a few days and conferencing with my mom, I decided to travel to Sweden at the end of August with my friend Nancy.  She found the tickets, she reasoned that since she was already going whether I went or not, my only costs would be food and the ticket over there.  Now, those of you that know me know that it is impossible for me not to spend money while traveling (not when there are books to buy, jewelry to oggle, and foods to eat-although apparently Sweden serves lots of FISH. Ick) so that was an optimistic statement :)  but I want to go.  I know nothing about Sweden except the people are blond, beautiful, and bundled up in handknit sweaters.  And Swedish meatballs, chefs, reindeer (?), and some type of massage?...... Anyway, it's time I learned something about Sweden!  What a great cap to an unforgettable summer, which was my goal back in May.  To make the most of every day, which I have been trying to do.

SO, called Nancy and let her know, Seonaid came and we walked the 8 blocks to the "park." More of a clearing by the river really, and it kind of smelled like dog-doo doo, but the concert was lovely, the audience appreciative, the river view lovely, and there was a van there selling picnics!  I bought a one person picnic and shared it with Seonaid- yum!  We sat and talked after it was done until we got kicked out of the park.  When we got kicked out, we defiantly went over to the water's edge for pictures and made jokes about the Astoria Assaulter (the best we could come up with- violent A words are few and far between) since it was pitch black there and the park used to be very dangerous before it was cleaned up.  Missed the bus on the way back home, so had about 40 minutes to windowshop on Madison Ave. and 5th Ave.  All the jewelry was out of the windows, but there were still beautiful displays to look at, and it was interesting watching people go through the garbage outside the frufru stores (Dior was a popular one).  I wasn't above picking up two brand new fashion magazines that had been put in the recycling (hey, they were on top- I didn't dig!)- reduce, reuse, recycle man!

Home again, couldn't sleep for some reason.  I really think I'm dehydrated and on a strange diet here, and I'm pretty sure I didn't sleep until near dawn.

I'm about to head out to go to the Whitney art museum and the Morgan Library, and I'll probably eat Japanese noodles tonight.  Sara and Seonaid may or may not join me, depending on weather and schedules.  I feel like less of a tourist now, and am developing a love/hate relationship with the city.  The horribly humid weather and all the pokey TOURISTS as well as how long it takes to get anywhere are maddening.  Then you see the view of the river, you hear up and coming opera singers for free, you watch a small child dancing to "Largo al factotum," you discover the Botanical Gardens.  Then in takes two hours to get home-a distance of four miles.

Bronx Zoo and Botanical Gardens

Wednesday was a lovely day- sunny, not too hot (but still pretty hot to be outside all day) and I used it to its full advantage.  I braved the city bus system, and not knowing really how to get there, I somehow ended up at the Bronx Zoo.  In the process, I rode three buses, learned what a transfer is, how to get it and how to use it, and paid in quarters since my metro card ran out.  I just sucked it up and asked for directions at every point, and it worked!  It didn't even take that long to get there.  Wednesday is the free day at the Bronx Zoo, and it opens at 10.  I got there by 10:10, and it wasn't busy at all.  A man told me which things to do in the morning while the animals were active (gorillas) and before the lines get too long (monorail).  I bought the All-Inclusive ticket (entry is free, but special exhibits such as The Congo and the Butterfly Garden require extra tickets) so I could go to whatever I wanted.  Here are a few highlights of the day.

Interspecies interplay.  This gorilla later threw herself flat against the window in response to the heckling children.    It was slightly terrifying.  I heard one boy, about 9 years old, say "That was the best experience of my life!" right after another gorilla threw up on the window.

Flamingos

Sleeping Tiger-only one per mountain

The sea lion doesn't get annoying at all :)

By the afternoon, it was completely hectic at the zoo and you really couldn't get near many of the animals.  I tell you, if you don't like crowds or children, don't go to the zoo on "pay what you want" day!  I loved watching the little kids get excited about the animals (sometimes the wrong one--one little kid on the monorail ride said "Daddy, look at that bird!" over and over when we were passing the elephants.), and if you want to see a New Yorker out of their element, put them around large animals and lots of nature! It was pretty comical to hear such complete naiveté about wildlife!  At one point, one lady said when the tiger was sleeping:  "He's sleeping!!! Give me back my $2!!!")

I really liked the zoo, and it seems largely set up for children, which is wonderful but not as sophisticated as some zoos I've been to.  It is amazing that it is in the middle of the bustling Bronx, though and a priceless resource both for teaching kids to love animals and conserving many that are endangered.

About a .5 mile walk away is the New York Botanical Gardens.  Wednesday is also free day there, so I decided to spend a few hours there to see what I might want to come back to on another day with more time.

 I may have discovered one of the most beautiful places on earth.  The pictures absolutely do not do it justice as the iPhone doesn't zoom in well at all, but you sort of get the idea.

These placards with French impressionist poems on them were scattered throughout the gardens.

One of my favorites: a garden for the senses

By then, the weather had cooled down, the sun was behind clouds, and there was a delicious breeze.  And almost no one in the gardens.  There is a fantastic garden store there, and it was sad and also fortunate that I only had 30 minutes to peruse the books, plants, stationary, prints, etc.  I did buy three books (that I really, really needed! Come on!). This place is splendid, and if today was any indication, not the literal and figurative zoo of the Bronx Zoo (Suri and Katie Holmes were at the zoo two days ago!).  I love it here.

Had to ask a number of people for directions home.  When I finally figured it out after a long walk, it took almost two hours on a local bus to get the 4 miles home.  One of the downsides of living here.

Today, I did laundry at the laundromat, went to the Crossroads Diner, and am now headed in to Lincoln Center for the Noel Coward exhibit and the Juilliard bookstore.  Then I'm meeting Seonaid at Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens for a Met recital.  Ciao!
M

Tired Tuesday, complete with headache

Oy.  I do not feel good today.  Didn't get to sleep in either, as I was woken up at 6:45 accidentally.  So, I worked on the computer, watched Olympics, and sent tons of pictures to friends from Songfest, as I promised I would a month ago.  I am also going back through the past month's posts and adding pictures, so go back if you are interested.  I also finally posted on the Luther Camino Blog-- I'll put the link here in case you'd like to see it.

http://luthercamino.wordpress.com

That's about it.  Ouch- I just watched Gabby Douglas fall off the balance beam.  Oh well- she has two golds already.  :)

Tomorrow, Bronx Zoo.

Later gators,

M

On the plane to Spain (where the rain falls mainly on the Pilgrims)

Lazy Monday in NYC

I need a break from all the running around I've been doing.  Slept in, made some arrangements for the day, and went to lunch in the Bronx at Throgs Neck Clipper, an Irish Sports Bar.  I got there early enough that it wasn't loud and busy, and I had some nice brushetta (that's how they spell it, folks) that had lettuce in it (?), and a really good Shepherd's pie.  I drank four cups of coffee, 2 glasses of iced tea, and a glass a water. I think I'm dehydrated...) The entire bill was about $20!  I left a $10 tip in appreciation.

Stopped at Rite Aid on the way home for laundry detergent, etc. I was so tired that I tried to open a Duane Reade card account there.  Caroline told me that the name of this store used to be "Genovese" when they moved here--yup, that family.  Prices were good, and there was a sale on Snickers :)

Now I'm on the couch watching the Olympics, only the second time I've done that.  Catching up on the blog.  Was going to do laundry today, but I think I'll do it in the morning at ET Laundry (hee hee!).  Tonight, I am going into the city for a comedy show at "Dangerfields!"  Called this morning and made a reservation.  3 comics performing, none of whom I've heard of, but Rodney's club doesn't allow any amateurs, so I'm sure they'll be good.  Found a coupon for free cover, and there is a 2 drink minimum.  I told them I don't drink alcohol (usually) and asked if other beverages were available and they said yes, that's fine.  The guy sounded gruff at first, but was actually really nice.  Something I'm learning about New Yorkers.

So, gonna read, etc., for a couple more hours and then will head in to Midtown.  Today is the last day on my unlimited Metro pass, and it has definitely paid for itself!

Tired.  But excited about all the possibilities.

UPDATE:  Headed to midtown and waited for Sara (oh yeah, Sara wanted to go to the club, too, so I had a partner in crime!) sitting at the fountain on Central Park W. and 5th.  The weather was gorgeous, there was a strong breeze, and there were relatively few people out and about.  It was heaven.  I read my book "Maine," which I got at a small bookstore in Bronxville the first day.  It's light reading, but I love it!  My brain seems too fried for Camus.

Met up with Sara and we strolled to the Dangerfield Comedy Club.  It is down by the Queensboro Bridge, and first we went into the Food Emporium under the bridge- I love how they use unlikely spaces in New York for interesting things.  Got seated in the front row on the side, next to two other single girls, so every single comic made comments about the four of us being there together, and looking like we were having a good time!

Sara at the grocery store under the bridge

I got called out for looking at my watch- it was fun.  We heard 4 or 5 comics, all pretty funny but only two of them that really got us laughing.  I left just a little bit early so I could catch my bus, and I did.  Got home and fell asleep immediately.  So tired!

Sunday, sweet Sunday in NYC

Decided to only do two things today--lunch with Seonaid, who I know from EC--in Hell's Kitchen at Empanada Mama (YUMMMMMMMMM!) and The Strand Bookstore.  Relaxed in the morning, met Seonaid at 2:30 for delicious empanadas and guacamole with plaintain chips (and terrible iced tea) and we talked and talked.

Seonaid took voice with me in preparation for her move to NYC.   She is working and auditioning and commuting from Queens.  Sweet girl!

Walked around that area a bit and then took the subway to the East Village and THE STRAND!!!!!!!!!  The best bookstore in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I warned Seonaid that The Strand is a destination for me and that I was going to spend several hours there so she shouldn't feel bad if she wanted to leave.  She hung in there for quite a while but evenually needed to leave.  I bought some novels (surprise!!!!), Sarah Silverman's autobiography (which actually is a surprise since she isn't my favorite, but somehow her sense of humor reads better than it sounds to me.  The obscenity is less shocking I guess), and The Artist's Way.  After years of putting it off, I am going to try it.   Anyway, I was in HEAVEN and I am going to go back one more time before I leave. I am very near a post office in the Bronx, so I'll just ship the books home media mail.  Afterwards, went to "The Bean" next door for a mocha, which actually was not very good, but there was a very funny young guy at the cash register who made me laugh.  You find all kinds here, that's for sure.

Right when I got to the bus stop, the skies broke open and the rain poured down on us.  I got to the bus stop shelter just in time and I also had my umbrella so I stayed pretty dry, but I can't say the same for countless others.  Actually, after so many really hot, humid days, the rain felt so good.  I had flip flops on, which I was glad about.  I saw a man right after he had slipped off the bus (I think) and his forehead was bloody and he was dazed.  At least 6 "tough" New Yorkers were helping him, calling his family, helping him walk and lay down, and staying with him until someone showed up for him.  Truly nice.

Threatening skies

Got home, talked to roommate Rolf, and fell asleep early.  I'm not feeling entirely like myself- I think too many days in the heat and not drinking enough water.  Taking it easy on Monday for sure.

I love NYC!  And I love books!

Swingin Saturday in NYC!!!!!!!!!!!

Saturday I figured out how to get to Astoria, Queens.  Sara Olson, who was a UWEC student, lives there and we met at one of her favorite restaurants for lunch.  The iphone told me it would take me 2 hours to get there, and it actually only took one, so I had an hour to walk around near the subway.  Bustling main roads with lots of small bodegas, hair and nail salons, restaurants of all stripes, discount clothing stores, and cell phone/electronics stores.  Just one block off the main road are nice apartment buildings and brownstones and the area is pretty quiet.  Queens was less than 30 minutes from Midtown, as opposed to 40-60 from the Bronx to Midtown.  I think I'd like Queens.  It was great to meet up with Sarah- prix fix lunch that was yummy and came with two drinks.  It is so hot and I don't really know where I'm going, so I opted for no alcohol  :)  People are drinking at all times of the day here, though, which I'm not used to.

Queens in Queens!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 After hearing about what's up with Sara (she has been doing background TV work, on shows like CSI and Blue Bloods- she said Tom Selleck is tall, handsome, and humble) I hopped back on the subway and headed to Greenwich Village for the volunteer rally for Fringe Festival.  Fringe Central is an empty cement space with no airconditioning, but they have put together a fantastic menu of theatre, music, and dance in 19 venues around the city.

I bought a ticket for "Mahmoud" because I don't want to miss it (Canadian-Iranian female comedian dealing with anti-Arab racism, etc.) and signed up to help at 4 shows, which means I'll get 4 show vouchers!  The people seemed interesting, and if I were going to be around longer this would be a place I could make some interesting friends.

After the meeting, I walked around the NYU campus and then went to sit in Washington Square Park.  Fun people watching, including a street musician who rolls his grand piano into the park and plays Liszt, Chopin, etc.  He wasn't bad and he had a lot of people gathered around.

You can see NYU in the background

This dude tried to get me to hold a pigeon.  Uh UH!

Found my way to the subway, passing a true NYC wedding with a stretch Hummer limo and a huge wedding party blocking the sidewalk, and went up to Lincoln Center.

Watch out for express on weekends!

Got on an express train by accident and sailed past Lincoln Center.  Now I've pretty much got uptown/downtown right, but got tripped up on weekend/evening express trains.  Argggg.  I really am getting much better, though.

Got a ticket to Mostly Mozart at Avery Fischer Hall, and then walked to Magnolia Bakery for a HUGE piece of Devil's Food chocolate cake and a mocha which were DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!

YUM!!!!!

Then walked back to Lincoln Center where I watched about 45 minutes of an outdoor dance performance--the same one I saw rehearsing earlier in the week!  The company is called "Gimp" and half the dancers have physical disabilities and they do not shy away from exploring the challenges and beauty of all the dancers.  

It was packed, and I sat on the cement wall on the side so I could actually see.  A number of grand New York ladies sat around me and I served as their "hostess," trying to help them find a place they could see from.  Left at 7:45 for the concert at Avery Fischer.  I've never been in there before, and it is a stunning hall.  I had a ticket in the orchestra (thank you guy at the ticket booth for telling me that for just $5 more, I'd move out of the top balcony and into the orchestra!).  

My own dorky self-portrait from the balcony terrace of Avery Fischer

And a much better photo by a nice dude who was in the right place at the right time!

They played the Beethoven 2nd Symphony and the Haydn "Lord Nelson Mass" and the conductor was Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who was awesome and so full of charisma and energy (kind of reminded me of the actress that played Judy Garland actually.....).  The orchestra was wonderful, the chorus rich and full (prepared by James Bagwell, who I went to graduate school with), and the soloists good.  I want to be around art at that level!  

 Sometimes I almost forget that music at that level of mastery exists, and that makes me sad.  I have a lot of thinking to do.