New York

It’s my favorite city in the whole world. Mr. Van would be able to testify that.
He lovingly agreed to go to New York for 24 hours. To get there, he had to survive a 14 hours flight in a pretty uncomfortable upright position with limited leg space (Mr. Van is rather tall you might say), full fare and surrounded by screaming babies. All was just to satisfy the wish of Mrs. Van to-be to spend New Year’s Eve and Night on the streets of New York. And so we did, frozen but happy, at midnight in Times Square – actually on a small street close to Times Square that offered a view of a quarter – ball dropping. But being there made me ecstatic. The crowds, the energy of the place, the lights, kissing my darling at midnight and even the frozen nose, just did it for me. Thank you honey!

It was all followed by our first vacation. On the way to and from Antigua, we had to stop over in Big Apple for couple of days. Mr. Van even flirted with the idea of proposing there, in a secret location I have yet to discover. Again strolls in the city, museums, parks, shops, my first burger ever and riding the subway.

Not to mention that every time I have a 24 hours in JFK, they become the most organized hours in my life: how long on the train to get to Manhattan (yes, we stay in Long Island), how long walking to and from whatever I want to see, when does the museum open, is the shop open on Sundays (most do) and which shoes are most comfortable for walking.

I can’t even start the non-exhaustive list of WHY I love New York.

And recently I had the amazing work opportunity to be there for 3 full days. I was so excited I started packing 2 days before the departure. We stayed in Manhattan this time, just walking distance from (almost) all I love in New York:

Central Park - is a testament that nature can be present even in the middle of one of busiest cities in the world. It is the first landscaped park done in US and opened for public in 1859 after many years of work. It was designed by architect Calvert Vaux. Siting in the park, just taking it all in and admiring the skyline of the city, a location that has been so extensively used in the movies, I was almost feeling in a movie myself. Squirrels are roaming freely in the park, and my favorite part, the benches! In 1986 the ‘Adopt a bench’ program was launched to assist with the maintenance costs of the park. For quite a considerable amount, one can adopt a bench for as long as the park exists. Whoever has done it puts up a small placard on the bench with a personal message. Reading these inscriptions is like being part of those people lives:

          ‘To Bil, I will love you always, all ways’

          ‘For Marty, who loves this park

          From Barbara, who loves him. Happy Anniversary’

‘Patience with life, a loved one, or even ourselves is, in the end, an art. To David, our brother, son and husband’

If ever one of you wins the lottery, all I want is a bench in Central Park. J

Museums – are so many to choose from, with collections that would make any connoisseur giggle with excitement. MoMA, Museum of Modern Art is excellent for testing your taste in the ‘new’ forms of art. When we were there, we quickly agreed on what we like and what is too much for our eyes and ears. Guggenheim, still is and will always be a visionary architecture (design by Frank Lloyd Wright) and museum concept hosting contemporary art and special exhibitions. Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met) is so extensive, you need a week pass to explore it. Museum of Natural History is the next on our list. Everyone would find their interest represented in there, but for the sake of naming, Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum, American Folk Art Museum, New York Transit Museum and International Center of Photography are just a few examples of what ‘cultural capital’ means.

Shopping – is a general craze in that part of the world anyway, but is even more crazily expressed in NY. Pretty much everyone you encounter on 5^th Ave has a shopping bag in their hands. From tourists with small bags with souvenir t-shirts with I heart NY, to fashionistas carrying their body weight in bags from Macy’s, Saks, Bloomingdale’s and designer shops. It is all a parade. My favorite experience was a trip to Tiffany’s, 4 levels of bling and glamour, but in my mind, Audrey Hepburn in ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’, and all the old movies where shopping at Tiffany’s meant money and class. I notice more and more how money doesn’t necessarily mean class anymore, and class not always means money, but that’s a whole new discussion which I will cover in a different post. Back to shopping… Century21, the downtown shop where you have to dig deep, but you may capture amazing stuff - 70-80%off from everything, including labels. And my new found hobby is window and non-window shopping in the small boutiques in Soho and gently used books and antiques shops in the Village that make me lose track of time and notion of acceptable luggage weight.

Buildings – from the skyscrapers in the business districts, to the imposing buildings with gloved doormen on Park Ave, to the small ‘Carrie like’ houses on Upper East Side and to the spacious studios with outside collapsible stairs for fire escape in Soho, Tribeca and the Village, looking at the architecture in NY is a fantastic experience.

Yellow Cabs – are a typical NY sight, however they are a better view (and sometimes smell) from outside then from inside. A ride is compulsory at least once in a lifetime.

Broadway – a show or a musical or even ‘Cirque du Soleil’ is still in the to-do box. Somehow, no matter how hard we tried, we never made it to a show. The closest we got: Mr. Van and myself, on the day we were due to fly back, running (for real) from theatre to theatre to find the last minute ticket deals, which we discovered to be double the regular price and disappointingly abandoning the idea. Second try, again on the day of departure Wintuk Show at Madison Square Garden Theatre, at 2pm. Show up all excited one hour before the show just to find out that it actually started at 11:30. Unbelievable, but maybe next time we post about NY we will be telling all about the Broadway experience.

City Energy – indescribable, but for me, the most powerful from all the cities ever visited.

With all the praise and my non-ending excitement, there is still one thing that I really don't like in NY: the tipping system. We have experienced all over the world service charges. Either included in the bill, in which case we still tipped a bit if the service was good. Or not acceptable, like in Japan, where offering a tip is an offence as big as throwing garbage on the floor. But nothing compares to New York. Tipping is compulsory and if you don’t do it or do not provide a satisfactory amount, you risk to be: shouted at, dirty looked at and cursed in multiple languages. No service charge is included, so on your bill, the suggested gratuity(read tip) is printed at the bottom. It starts with 15%, 20% and 25%. 25% tip!!! Do not imagine that the service is outstanding. It is efficient, but mostly rushed. Water is free, but is tap water (questionable quality). And the portions are huge, but rarely healthy. Let’s say that we get over all of that. But my last experience was a waiter who actually circled the gratuity he wanted. He probably had some experience with people who think that rounding up the amount or just 10% is acceptable. Isn’t that outrageous?

But even with all bad waiters, I still think that New York is the most beautiful city in the world, and I would absolutely love to live there for couple of months (maybe after the kids leave to college, promised my loving husband).

There will be pictures coming soon.