PLEASURES and TREASURES in NEW YORK CITY,

DURING the PANDEMIC

by David Christopher

(Part Three)

Chapter 14	Staten Island & Battery Park
Chapter 15	Hudson Yards
Chapter 16	Modern Museum of Art
Chapter 17	Central Park
Chapter 18	Times Square, Bryant Park & Rockefeller Center
Chapter 19	Wave Hill

Chapter Fourteen: Staten Island and Battery Park

We took the #1 subway to South Ferry, for the Staten Island Ferry. After the trip to Staten Island and back, we walked up through Battery Park, until we reached the World Trade Center.
Although the trip on the Staten Island Ferry is always enjoyable, there is not much to do once you get there. So, we just had a lunch in the terminal and headed back on the next boat. Battery Park is quite wonderful, and I don’t remember walking in it before, at least with all the improvements. The parks that have been created are splendid, with art works and some beautiful buildings. I was very impressed with the Museum of Jewish History building (although it was closed.) At the top of the park is the World Financial Center, with the Brookfield Place Mall. We have explored this mall many times before, but it’s always impressive, although most of the stores were closed. Walking over to the World Trade Center to get the subway home, we passed the NYC Police Memorial, which I’d never seen before. Heading to the subway through the magnificent Oculous at WTC was jarring, because it was so empty.

Chapter Fourteen: Hudson Yards & Edge

A fabulous new complex has been constructed over the Hudson Rail Yards.
A little History: For much of the 20^th Century, Manhattan was a manufacturing center fed by rail connections through the Pennsylvania Railroad tunnels. The area that would become Hudson Yards was a rail yard for handling this freight taffic, which pretty much evaporated by the 70s. At that time the Long Island Railroad needed a storage facility for passenger trains, so they wouldn’t have to take every train back to Long Island City. The MTA constructed Hudson Yards for this purpose. Needless-to-say, this much empty land in Midtown Manhattan was an irrisistable opportunity for developers. After several failed ideas, a plan was developed to build a huge complex over the rail yards. These buildings are entirely supported by a bridge, which was built over this active rail facility, without interupting it’s train traffic. It is absolutly amazing to stand on the High Line and see that these huge buildings are suspended over the working train yard.
Besides the impressive, tall buildings, there are 3 interesting places for tourists to explore. The Shed, the Vessel, and the Mall. The Shed is the bulbous, white building that is called, “A New Arts Center for the 21^st Century”. Inside is a huge performance space for concerts or theater – indoors or outdoors. The large wheels (pictured below) enable the outer shell to slice away, opening up the venue. The Vessel is the large staircase structure that is strictly ornamental. Tourists can purchase a ticket and roam up, down and around the stairs that go nowhere. The Mall is large, with very high-end shops. Sadly, due to the pandemic, it is doing poorly with the lack of tourists, and I fear for it’s survival.
And then there’s The Edge! At the top of this stunning building, on the 100^th and 101^st floors, is a 360 degree observatory. Protruding out of this is a glass-enclosed shelf, with a section of glass flooring. The views are spectacular! In the photo with the four 57^th St. towers, right under the tallest, note the building with the green, pointy dome. The small version of that, to it’s left, is our condo building. I can safely say that it is the most thrilling, tourist experience I’ve ever had in this city. (even though I couldn’t quite stand on the glass floor)

Chapter Sixteen: MOMA

One of New York’s treasures is the, recently expanded and renovated, Museum of Modern Art. I had not visited the new MOMA, so I was happy to hear that, with timed tickets, we could see it this year.
I was extremely impressed with the “new” museum. Their long-standing collection of “modern” works were displayed beautifully, so although I’d seen them many times in the past, they had a new verve. I was also pleased that more recent, contemporary works were shown, that I hadn’t seen before. (Obviously, I can only show a small portion of their huge collection.)

Chapter Seventeen: Central Park

No treasure of Manhattan can beat the magnificent Central Park.
In 1857, landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition for the park with their "Greensward Plan", and the park was completed in 1876. After a period of decline in the early 20th century, New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses started a program to clean up Central Park in the 1930s. The Central Park Conservancy, created in 1980 to combat further deterioration in the late 20th century, refurbished many parts of the park starting in the 1980s.
The park is easy walking distance from our condo, so it was a perfect place to take our walks. Of course, I know the park extremely well, having lived on the Upper West Side for many years, but it’s always full of beautiful things to see, over and over again. To begin my favorite walk in the park, we took a C subway to 81^st Street and Central Park West (not far from where I once lived). Entering the park there, leads to the Delacorte Theater, where free Shakespeare-in-the-Park happens most summers, but not this one. Walking up the hill, past the Shakespeare Garden (where every plant mentioned in his plays is planted) is Belevedere Castle, once a weather station, now a popular photo-op for tourists. Then down the other side of the hill, into The Brambles. This amazing part of the park has a wild forest feeling, beautifully designed by Olmstead. In my day, it was a notorious cruising ground for gay men, and may still be. Then down toward the lake, with the Loeb Boathouse, which had a restaurant, open in better days. Then to the Model Boat Sailing Pond with the wonderful Alice in Wonderland stature. Next to Bethesda Terrace, with that gorgeous fountain. From there one can go back toward CPW through Strawberry Fields. Or down the Mall, with the statures of Literary figures, like Shakespeare. Recently added is the stature Women’s Rights Pioneers. I have taken this walk many times, partially or in full, and it always is a joy.

Chapter Eighteen: Rockefeller Center, Herald Square, Bryant Park & Times Square

Four popular spaces in Manhattan.
Rockafeller Center
Rockefeller Center is located between 48^th and 51^th Streets, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Built in 1939 by the Rockefellers to house 14 Art Deco commercial buildings, with sculptures. On one corner sits Radio City Music Hall, “temporarily closed”. In the center (between 49^th and 50^th) is the Rockefeller Plaza, a tourist’s joy, with the sunken terrace, that has ice skating in the winter. In spring and summer it is a restaurant. At this time it was set up with widely separated tables, but the restaurant was closed.
Bryant Park
Bryant Park fills half a city block behind the New York Public Library. The park is on Sixth Avenue, between 41^st and 42^nd Street. Around a large lawn, there are many tables and chairs, with a library of books to read, games to play like ping-pong, and several café kiosks. Events, like concerts and movies, are shown in summer months on the lawn. But as far as I know, nothing was scheduled this summer.
Times Square
Times Square is the intersection of Broadway and Seventh Avenue, between 42^ndand 47^th Streets. Recently much of the square has been made into a pedestrian mall, so that chairs, tables, costumed cartoon characters, and food kiosks abound. The huge, electronic billboards are still surounding the square, and some are, sadly, advertising closed Broadway shows. Obviously, since it is known for being the center of the Theater District, the lack of theaters takes much of the thrill away from this wonderful square. It was particulary hard to see all the marquees and advertisements for the plays, entirely still in place. The, usually crowded, Tickets Booth with the red staircase, was deserted. In our early visits, which were quite depressing, the amount of visitors was sadly sparce. Later in our stay, more and more tourists did arrive, and it became somewhat livelier.

Chapter Nineteen: Wave Hill

A subway ride into the Bronx brings you to the gorgeous Wave Hill Public Gardens.
We took the #1 subway up to 231^st Street, which was a little under an hour’s trip. Then we had a pizza lunch at a local restaurant. Being in this kind of neighborhood, is so exciting, because of the primarily ethnic population. We felt, as we often did, like foreign tourists. We loved it. After lunch we boarded the BX-7 bus, which took us up into Riverdale, where the garden is located, and walked the rest of the way up to Wave Hill. Here the homes were large, and very sububan looking, unlike below. Wave Hill is a 28-acre estate, overlooking the Hudson River. The original Wave Hill House was built in 1843, and inhabited by several prominent New Yorkers over the years. In 1960, the house and property were deeded to the City of New York, and the in 1983 is was put on the National Regestry of Historic Places. The botanical gardens are now maintained by the city, and the House has become a Cultural Center with an extensive Art Gallery. When we were there, in the Art Gallery there was an incredible display of botanical paintings. I was very glad that late summer blooms were still visible, and spending the afternoon there was really special.

Public Art Interlude #3

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 Four