More of New York City!
I just couldn't get enough of it.
One afternoon was spent roaming around Central Park with my niece, who is a complete fangirl (she's here on LJ) and has the most encyclopedic memory for all sorts of lovely fannish trivia about New York City. Every place she stopped she pointed out an interesting fact. She showed me the rocks where they filmed scenes from "Doctor Who" (Angels Take Manhattan), regaled me with a story about being bumped out of Bethesda Terrace because they were about to film a scene from "Person of Interest" and so on. She knew which building they'd used for Ghostbusters and on and on. She was a most entertaining companion.
So, here's Bethesda Terrace and the lovely Bethesda Fountain. I'm sad that I forgot to take a lot of pictures, because we were so busy yakking. And there were at least three weddings that we saw. Two of them may just have been the photographs being taken, but one of them was the actual ceremony under a tent.
The famous Bow Bridge, the most filmed locale in Central Park (or so I am told). Which is a stone's throw from the Bethesda Fountain.
Rocks! New York, like the rest of the Northeast, has real rock underneath, as opposed to our southern clay soil. I was flabbergasted by how many huge rock outcroppings there were in the park. (I can't remember if one of these is a photo of the Doctor Who rocks. Er.... did that really come out that way?)
It was an overcast but warm day and you can see the park was being enjoyed by many, many folks.
We walked across the Strawberry Fields and came out on Central Park West opposite the Dakota building (no picture, sorry). And wandered down Central Park West for a ways then cut back into the park.
This adorable couple walked in front of us, holding hands: an older gentleman and his younger companion, both dressed to the nines in expensive suits. I so wanted to get a picture of them but couldn't manage a clear shot. Then I took this picture and lo and behold, there they were! Kind of visible if you squint.
It was just time for the sea lion feeding at the Central Park Zoo, so we headed over there and enjoyed the sea lions act, hiked up the hill to see the Balto statue (my niece's favorite) and then watched the Delacorte clock at the zoo play its nursery rhyme tunes while the figures revolved around.
The grand old Plaza Hotel sits at the corner of Grand Army Plaza and Central Park South. The exterior was being cleaned but the "coverup" was a replica of the exterior facade. Kinda cool. We did pop inside the lobby, but most of it was closed off to all but registered guests. Bummer. I've wanted to see the Plaza ever since the Beatles' first trip to the US. They stayed at the Plaza on that first tour.
Fifth Avenue, the shopping mecca of the eastern seaboard.
I didn't realize I was making a social commentary on a materialistic culture when I took this photo. :) Van Cleef & Arpels and Bergdorf Goodman might not appreciate the irony I captured here.
Prime real estate investment opportunity on Fifth Avenue. Even if it is only 20 feet wide.
There were some gorgeous churches tucked in amongst the soaring skyscrapers and ritzy stores. The first one I saw was the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church. Right across the street from Trump Tower.
Then there was the St Thomas Episcopal Church, with its gorgeous rose window.
The last church we encountered on Fifth was St. Patrick's Cathedral, which sadly was under renovation both inside and outside. The church itself was open so we did go inside, but everything was pretty much draped for protection. The side chapels were open, so we did get to see a few lovely bits.
Tomorrow: Rockefeller Center and Top of the Rock!
One afternoon was spent roaming around Central Park with my niece, who is a complete fangirl (she's here on LJ) and has the most encyclopedic memory for all sorts of lovely fannish trivia about New York City. Every place she stopped she pointed out an interesting fact. She showed me the rocks where they filmed scenes from "Doctor Who" (Angels Take Manhattan), regaled me with a story about being bumped out of Bethesda Terrace because they were about to film a scene from "Person of Interest" and so on. She knew which building they'd used for Ghostbusters and on and on. She was a most entertaining companion.
So, here's Bethesda Terrace and the lovely Bethesda Fountain. I'm sad that I forgot to take a lot of pictures, because we were so busy yakking. And there were at least three weddings that we saw. Two of them may just have been the photographs being taken, but one of them was the actual ceremony under a tent.
The famous Bow Bridge, the most filmed locale in Central Park (or so I am told). Which is a stone's throw from the Bethesda Fountain.
Rocks! New York, like the rest of the Northeast, has real rock underneath, as opposed to our southern clay soil. I was flabbergasted by how many huge rock outcroppings there were in the park. (I can't remember if one of these is a photo of the Doctor Who rocks. Er.... did that really come out that way?)
It was an overcast but warm day and you can see the park was being enjoyed by many, many folks.
We walked across the Strawberry Fields and came out on Central Park West opposite the Dakota building (no picture, sorry). And wandered down Central Park West for a ways then cut back into the park.
This adorable couple walked in front of us, holding hands: an older gentleman and his younger companion, both dressed to the nines in expensive suits. I so wanted to get a picture of them but couldn't manage a clear shot. Then I took this picture and lo and behold, there they were! Kind of visible if you squint.
It was just time for the sea lion feeding at the Central Park Zoo, so we headed over there and enjoyed the sea lions act, hiked up the hill to see the Balto statue (my niece's favorite) and then watched the Delacorte clock at the zoo play its nursery rhyme tunes while the figures revolved around.
The grand old Plaza Hotel sits at the corner of Grand Army Plaza and Central Park South. The exterior was being cleaned but the "coverup" was a replica of the exterior facade. Kinda cool. We did pop inside the lobby, but most of it was closed off to all but registered guests. Bummer. I've wanted to see the Plaza ever since the Beatles' first trip to the US. They stayed at the Plaza on that first tour.
Fifth Avenue, the shopping mecca of the eastern seaboard.
I didn't realize I was making a social commentary on a materialistic culture when I took this photo. :) Van Cleef & Arpels and Bergdorf Goodman might not appreciate the irony I captured here.
Prime real estate investment opportunity on Fifth Avenue. Even if it is only 20 feet wide.
There were some gorgeous churches tucked in amongst the soaring skyscrapers and ritzy stores. The first one I saw was the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church. Right across the street from Trump Tower.
Then there was the St Thomas Episcopal Church, with its gorgeous rose window.
The last church we encountered on Fifth was St. Patrick's Cathedral, which sadly was under renovation both inside and outside. The church itself was open so we did go inside, but everything was pretty much draped for protection. The side chapels were open, so we did get to see a few lovely bits.
Tomorrow: Rockefeller Center and Top of the Rock!