After I finally agreed to make the trip, with plans to do some job hunting and networking while there (via my laptop and with a list of positions that needed resumes and cover letters), I received a call for a real live job interview in NYC with the national office for a position in their DC office.
Note: good things happen unexpectedly when you make decisions and stop hesitating to make travel plans!
With the interview set, this trip was no longer an indulgence and I could keep my costs down thanks to my friends.
Note: good things happen unexpectedly when you make decisions and stop hesitating to make travel plans!
With the interview set, this trip was no longer an indulgence and I could keep my costs down thanks to my friends.
I traveled on the BOLT Bus from DC for a total cost round trip of $35. The electricity and wireless connections on the bus enabled me to post a blog on the 4.5 hour trip there and edit photos all the way back. It was great.
Things I had forgotten about New York
- It is noisy. I slept restlessly the first night due to the constant street noises.
- The architecture is so interesting and the tops of buildings are so high. I got a stiff neck from constantly looking up; I love the lions and historical figures in the facades - many were several stories high.
- Depite how close everything is, it takes a while to do anything. There are people everywhere. Someone is always in the way. Buses are crowded and it isn’t always easy to get a cab.
- Steam heat is warm. Despite the very cold temperatures outdoors, you really need to be able to strip down to short sleeves inside some buildings. Thank goodness for coat check at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- Something is always going on. I saw hundreds of 20-somethings bar hopping in the interesting event called “Santa Con” . I have never seen so many jolly Santas and in such creative get-ups. My one photographic regret is that my camera was packed in my backpack and I couldn’t catch these red-clad euphoric celebrants in all of their drunken glory. http://nycsantacon.com/
- Even the familiar is different is New York. I shopped at Trader Joe’s for ingredients to make dinner. The store was packed at 10 am on a Thursday. It was large and much more crowded with three times more checkout stands, all open for business. I waited in line for more than 20 minutes to check out. I noted that for $9.99 you could have all of your purchases delivered – a bargain.
- Although often crowded, the bus is a good way to travel. When I am not at home, I want to see the sights so I do not like to travel the subway. Usually I walk and take cabs, but this trip I saved money by taking the bus.
- Suggested admission fees are for those who can afford them. I gave $10 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art when the suggestion was $20. Unemployment counts for something and I made up for it by buying my lunch in their cafeteria. I was pleased that my Smithsonian Contributor Membership got me in free at the Cooper-Hewitt museum in the lovely old Andrew Carnegie mansion.
Important things to see at Christmas
Fifth Avenue. The store windows and decorated buildings are so interesting and dazzling.
Metropolitan Museum of Art: See the Christmas tree and its eighteenth century Neapolitan Baroque Creche. Photographs of the tree and creche are not allowed ,but you can visit the website http://www.metmuseum.org/special/Christmas2009/christmas_more.asp. The dome of the entrance hall is lovely and from the second floor you can look over the mass of humanity or up at its graceful arches.
Rockefeller Center - Follow the crowd. Watch the skaters and see the beautiful tree and decorations.
Chelsea Market - The market is located on the site of what was originally the National Biscuit company in the 1890’s and became the New York Biscuit Company where Uneeda Biscuit, Premium Saltines, Vanilla Wafers, Fig Newtons, and Barnum's Animal Crackers were once manufactured before production was moved to New Jersey. In the 1990’s, the main building was renovated to create an unique marketplace that incorporates many of the original features including weaving old floors, ducts, heavy industrial metal pieces and signs, creating what the website calls a “post-industrial theme park”. The market is filled with eco-friendly holiday decorations including trees decorated with used CDs with creative lighting, wreathes made from old plastic cups, and snowflakes made from plastic forks and knives. It is a good place to shop for holiday items and features cafes and shops full of gourmet and baked goods, seafood (The Lobster Place), and Bowry Kitchen Supply selling an amazing array of kitchen necessities. http://chelseamarket.com/history/
Union Square Park - This park is surrounded by beautiful architecture and lots of shopping. In the park you can buy your Christmas tree, beautiful wreaths, maple syrup, fruits and vegetables and gifts.
Central Park
After walking north on Fifth Avenue to look at the stores, visit Central Park South and see the horse-drawn carriages, the living statues of liberty and enter the park by the zoo. It is a pretty walk and, even in the winter, there is much to see. I enjoyed the park in the late afternoon after a big rain.
Chelsea Market - The market is located on the site of what was originally the National Biscuit company in the 1890’s and became the New York Biscuit Company where Uneeda Biscuit, Premium Saltines, Vanilla Wafers, Fig Newtons, and Barnum's Animal Crackers were once manufactured before production was moved to New Jersey. In the 1990’s, the main building was renovated to create an unique marketplace that incorporates many of the original features including weaving old floors, ducts, heavy industrial metal pieces and signs, creating what the website calls a “post-industrial theme park”. The market is filled with eco-friendly holiday decorations including trees decorated with used CDs with creative lighting, wreathes made from old plastic cups, and snowflakes made from plastic forks and knives. It is a good place to shop for holiday items and features cafes and shops full of gourmet and baked goods, seafood (The Lobster Place), and Bowry Kitchen Supply selling an amazing array of kitchen necessities. http://chelseamarket.com/history/
After walking north on Fifth Avenue to look at the stores, visit Central Park South and see the horse-drawn carriages, the living statues of liberty and enter the park by the zoo. It is a pretty walk and, even in the winter, there is much to see. I enjoyed the park in the late afternoon after a big rain.
SURPRISES
Hoboken, NJ
We took the PATH train and arrived quickly. The faces on the train were all young and fresh; Hoboken seems to be the spot for the young professionals who want an easy commute and not the hassle or expense of living in Manhattan. Our dinner at Tutta Pasta was excellent and the mild weather allowed us to walk and marvel at the choices of local shopping, restaurants and bars.
We enjoyed an early breakfast at this Chelsea authentic diner. Their delicious hot coffee and omelets fueled us for a long walk in the cold.
Constructed in the 1930’s to elevate dangerous freight trains off of Manhattan’s streets, The High Line is today an innovative park providing unique city views, innovative uses of the old railroad tracks, a safe pet-free walking trail and attractive natural plantings and creative architectural design. Running from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District to 34th Street, between 10th and 11th Avenues, the first section is open to 20th Street. http://www.thehighline.org/
After a long 40-block walk up Fifth Avenue from Bryant Park to the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, I stopped a block shy of the museum to peek into the Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest and enjoy coffee and a delicious blackberry scone at their cafe, the Heavenly Rest Stop. After fighting crowds all morning, the lovely church and the quiet cafe made a particularly nice respite. http://www.heavenlyrest.org/
Their attractive Flatiron District Home Depot has holiday window displays!
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