PLEASURES and TREASURES in NEW YORK CITY,

DURING the PANDEMIC

by David Christopher

(Part Two)

Chapter 7	Rockaway Beach
Chapter 8	Green-Wood Cemetery & Industry City
Chapter 9	Highline
Chapter 10	Circle Line
Chapter 11	Grand Concourse & Bronx Museum
Chapter 12	Governor’s Island
Chapter 13	Whitney Museum

Chapter Seven: Rockaway Beach

A long ride on the East River Ferry took us to Rockaway, on the wrong day.

When we took our first trip to DUMBO, we went to the Wall Street pier and got on the wrong, extremely long line. It was a Sunday and we finally realized that it was full of beachgoers going to Rockaway Beach and changed lines. So, on a weekday, we decided to travel on the ferry, with much less crowds, to see Rockaway Beach. The trip took a little more than an hour. It was a cool, cloudy day (much to my disappointment), but we sat on the upper deck anyway (out in the air), and it was scenic and enjoyable. The ferry passed by Coney Island Amusement Park, which was, of course, closed. I particularly enjoyed passing by Riis Park, which is a gay, nude beach, that was a part of my youth in the city. The city of Rockaway is not much to look at, but it was interesting because it is a community filled with NY Fire Fighters. Therefore, there were several monuments and memorials about 9/11. But it certainly wasn’t a “beach day”.

Chapter Eight: Green-Wood Cemetery & Industry City

One Sunday we thought it would be interesting to go to Brooklyn to see the Green Wood Cemetery. The R train was supposed to take us directly there, but due to weekend construction, we had to get out at the Barclay Center and get on a free shuttle bus, which was uncomfortably crowded.
Here’s what the brochure says about the place: Founded in 1838 and now a National Historic Landmark, Green-Wood was one of the first rural cemeteries in America. By the early 1860s, it had earned an international reputation for its magnificent beauty and became the prestigious place to be buried, attracting 500,000 visitors a year, second only to Niagara Falls as the nation’s greatest tourist attraction. Green-Wood is 478 spectacular acres of hills, valleys, glacial ponds, and paths, throughout which exists one of the largest outdoor collections of nineteenth- and twentieth-century statuary and mausoleums. Four seasons of beauty from century-and-a-half-old trees offer a peaceful oasis to visitors, as well as its 570,000 permanent residents, including Leonard Bernstein, Boss Tweed, Charles Ebbets, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Louis Comfort Tiffany, Horace Greeley, Civil War generals, baseball legends, politicians, artists, entertainers, and inventors. Well, that sounds exciting! But when we finally got there, we realized 2 things: 1: The place was way to huge to explore on foot. 2: It was very cold that day, and I wasn’t dressed for it. So, after walking up and down some of the hills and viewing some impressive monuments, we called it a day and left the park.
Ready for lunch, we’d heard that there was some sort of mall in the area, which we decided to seek out. Well! What a find that was! Industry City was once a huge manufacturing district called Bush Terminal, established in the 1890’s. But by the 1960’s it had declined, and became mosly empty buildings. But starting in 2010, it has undergone a $450 million redevelopment, into a “vibrant venue of hip eateries, shops, art galleries and outdoor events”. We found a charming, hip restaurant for lunch, and explored the buildings in the afternoon. And it was mostly indoors, so it was warm! I’m so glad we discovered this place, and will probably return some day. As well as, getting a guided tour of Green Wood Cemetery.

Chapter Nine: The High Line

One of New York City’s true treasures is The High Line. We have walked on this amazing park many times and were pleased when we heard that parts of the park were reopened. Only the southern part, however, and it was “one-way only” with the entrance at the bottom, at Gansevoot Street and ending at 23^rd Street. Also, timed entry tickets were needed to be purchased in advance.
This elevated train trestle was running trains from the 1930s until the 1950s. When the trains stopped running, plans to demolish the structure were made, but not implemented. Finally, in 1999, the lower section was taken down, but the rest remained and became an over-grown, jumble of wild plants.
“Friends of the High Line” advocated making this into a park, but it wasn’t until 2004 that actual work began. When it was completed, in 2006, the New York Times declared, “A Frog of a Railroad has become a Prince of a Park”. One morning we got our tickets, and began the wonderful walk up the park. Normally, on a beautiful day it is jammed with tourists. So, it was rather nice having the park sparcely populated, for a change. There are beautifully landscaped areas, with wooden benches and stone walkways. Often the train rails are incorporated in the design. All the plants are wild, but obviously well cared for. Normally, there are food and tourist trinket venues, but they were all closed. Along the way, there are wonderful views of city buildings seen from the park. Many art projects are strewn around the park, some permanent and some temporary. The painted arches, seen below, were a special installation for this summer only. Even thought the park was extended to go around the Hudson Yards up to 34^th St., that day it was necessary for us to exit at 23^rd Street. I hope soon the whole park may be open again, and filled with tourists.

Chapter Ten: Circle Line

At the west end of 42^nd Street is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city, The Circle Line. It takes passengers all around the island of Manhattan, going around the tip from the Hudson River to the East River, passing the Statue of Liberty. Then across on the North River and back to the Hudson. It goes under all the bridges that connect Manhattan to Brooklyn, The Bronx and New Jersey.
Early in our return (before we took the East River Ferry), we learned that it had re-opened for business, so, we thought this would be interesting trip to take. They were only running a few boats a day, during this time, but we booked one in the early afternoon. I think I had done this trip many years ago, but it was quite interesting seeing how much the skyline of Manhattan has changed since then. I was particularly impress with the interesting new architecture that has been built in the recent years. Frankly, the trip was a bit too long, particularly around the upper parts of the island, (and the chairs weren’t that comfortable) but it was restful and I’m glad we did it.

Chapter Eleven: Grand Concourse and Bronx Museum of the Arts

One day we decided to take a trip up to 167^th Street to view the Grand Concourse area and Bronx Museum of the Arts. Interestingly, the art outside the museum, was better than the art in it.
First, we were very impressed with the mosaics in the subway station. There were many large mosaics depicting prominent black figures, with rainbow stripes. Then on the streets around the Grand Concourse, there was some astounding wall art. The museum itself was small and it was mostly taken up by an exhibit of an artist who worked with antique quilts, cutting them, reassembling them and painting them. I liked the work, but it didn’t deserve to be practically the only thing in the museum. When we left the museum, we had a scrumptous, greasy, Kennedy’s Chicken lunch in Joyce Kilmer Park. Then over to the new Yankee Stadium. Obviously, nothing was going on there. We caught the subway back at 161^st Street (with no interesting mosaics).

Chapter Twelve: Governor’s Island

A short ferry ride from The Battery takes to you to the beautiful, historic Governor’s Island. A little history: 1800 – began the use of the island as a Military base. 1806 - Fort Jay and Castle William were built as fortifications for British invasions. 1878 – US Army moved headquarters to the island, building general’s houses, Colonels Row. 1966 – the Coast Guard took the island as its headquarters. 1995-96 - Coast Guard closed and the island became a National Historic District 2003 – Designated and re-developed as a National Park. 2006 – Open to the Public
We had come to Govenor’s Island several times and were pleased that it was re-opened to the public. Again, timed tickets were necessary, and the ferry ride was much less crowded than earlier times. The first thing we did was rent a bicycle buggy for 2, as we had done in the past. It’s a large enough island that walking everywhere was difficult. In the past, art shows have been around the island, but there weren’t many this year. There is a food court where a lovely lunch was purchased and eaten under a tree. It was a relaxed and pleasant day.

Chapter Thirteen: Whitney Museum

One of the best modern/contemporary art museums in NYC is the Whitney Museum of American Art.

It’s located on Gansevoort Street, between the Hudson River and the entrance to the High Line,

and an easy walk from the now chic Meat Packing District.

When the museum re-opened its doors, it became a “hot ticket”,

because they were limiting entrance to only so many every hour.

So, after we got the tickets online, we still had to wait in a long, slow line.

Inside we saw several new works that we hadn’t seen on our last visit.
But some of the old favorites were still there, like some wonderful Edward Hoppers.

I’ve only included a few photos, but I hope they speak for themselves.

Public Art Interlude #2

At the end of each Part of this book, I will share photos of Public Art. Here are more examples of “Street” and “Public” Art that I’ve seen around the city.

Click here for Part One

Click here for Part Three