Day 7 - Great Run - Last Day

On my final day in NYC I decided to go for a run up the west side of Brooklyn and photograph the new, amazing, park they are installing. Then I ran over the Brooklyn Bridge and ventured down to Pier 17 a touristy spot with some old ships docked there.

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The playground equipment in this new park is spectacular. I wish Beanie could play on it. She would love it.

This would be so much fun to climb on.
There is a whole section dedicated to slides.

Note the view in the background!

This is part of the swing area. The blue flooring is rubbery soft stuff.

Water Lab!

This is the view of Manhattan from the park that is a mile from the apartment in Brooklyn.

As I jogged over the bridge, I watched the people in their automobiles stuck in the congestion on the bridge and moving VERY slowly. Running is certainly a faster option.
The Pier from the bridge.

Ships at the pier.

Old tug boat with HUGE mop on the front!?!

I think you can charter a ride on this sail boat.

Brooklyn Bridge, Neon plastic palm tree and No Parking sign.

After my 7+ mile run, I freshened up and packed my things and headed to the airport a few hours early. I was that anxious to get home and see my family. I missed them like crazy!!

Day 6 - Monday - East Village

Today we decided to explore the East Village and take in some of the less touristy sites.

Colorful wall / florist shop.

We had lunch here. Yes, they only serve french fries.

We had to stop and get a beer at McSorley's Old Ale House.

McSorley's, is the oldest "Irish" tavern in New York City. Located at 15 East 7th Street in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, it was one of the last of the "Men Only" pubs, only admitting women after legally being forced to do so in 1970. The aged artwork, newspaper articles covering the walls, sawdust floors, and the Irish waiters and bartenders give McSorley's an atmosphere that many consider, correctly or not, reminiscent of "Olde New York." No piece of memorabilia has been removed from the walls since 1910, and there are many items of "historical" paraphernalia in the bar, such as Houdini's handcuffs, which are connected to the bar rail. There are also wishbones hanging above the bar; supposedly they were hung there by boys going off to World War I, to be removed when they returned, so the wishbones that are left are from those that never returned. Two of McSorley's mottos are "Be Good or Be Gone", and "We were here before you were born". Prior to the 1970 ruling, the motto was "Good Ale, Raw Onions and No Ladies"; the raw onions can still be had as part McSorley's cheese platter.


Sign in McSorley's - note the second to last item.

Check out the BIG K.



I like this photo I took of a red building with soft edges.

This is the Merchant's House Museum. We did not pay the $10 each for the tour and probably should have. They have a great web site at http://www.merchantshouse.org/.

The Merchant's House Museum is New York City's only family home preserved intact — inside and out — from the 19th century. Built in 1832 just steps from Washington Square, this elegant red-brick and white-marble row house on East Fourth Street was home to a prosperous merchant family for almost 100 years. Complete with the family's original furnishings and personal possessions, the house offers a rare and intimate glimpse of domestic life in New York City from 1835-1865.



Fire Station - still operational - very old.

Car Park.

This building captured my imagination. I think they are renovating it.

Odd sign at old cemetery. What do you think.....was his name Preserved Fish?

Day 5 - Empire State Building

When I was a kid I fell in love with King Kong and I was deeply disturbed by his untimely and unnecessary death. So, when I was in NYC I HAD to visit the Empire State Building!

Afternoon sun sure made the building look pretty.


We got lucky and the wait was not bad. This is the small crowd we had to deal with to get up to the top of the building.


View looking south towards the business district. You can see the Flat Iron building and the arch at Washington Square.


Looking North.


I see Macy's.


We live here. The top of the Empire State Building is almost better than Google Earth!

Look, it's me. "I'm sorry King Kong.....it was so wrong."

United States Post Office.

Side view....it is enormous.

Brian wanted to go to B&H to buy film. I am so glad we did. It was an adventure itself.

B&H Photo Video, founded in 1973 is the largest non-chain photo and video equipment store in the United States. B&H opened as a storefront film shop on the Lower East Side run by Herman Schreiber and his wife, Blimie (the store's name comes from their initials). The store quickly outgrew its space. B&H moved to a large loft on West 17th Street in the Photo District in the 1970s. Catering to the needs of neighborhood artists, B&H expanded to selling film equipment as well as photo products. In 1997 the store moved to its present location. It now has a staff of over 1,500 employees. B&H's flagship store is located in West Midtown Manhattan at 420 Ninth Avenue (at the intersection with 34th Street). On Tuesday October 30, 2007, B&H opened a second floor above its original sales floor making a total of 70,000 sq feet of sales space. The first floor encompasses pro lighting, binoculars and scopes, video, audio, darkroom, film, and both home and portable entertainment; the second floor focuses on both analog and digital photography, computers, printers, scanners, and related accessories. Schreiber and many (most) of the store's employees are observant Satmar Hasidic Jews who close the store on Shabbat and Jewish holidays. The website is open but orders are not taken or shipped between Friday evening and Saturday evening and on Jewish holidays. Surpassed only by the Diamond District in terms of Orthodox employment, the company is a vital part of the community's financial health, with hundreds of Orthodox Jews on staff.

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See the overhead conveyors. When you purchase something they put it on the conveyor which takes it up to the front. You then have to stand in line and pay the checker then stand in another line to show your receipt and pick up your merchandise.

The store is massive and I am sure this system is in place for a good reason.

Yes, all the employees were wearing yarmulke. (aka traditional Jewish beanie hat)

Day 4 - Ikea - Central Park - Guggenheim

This morning, while the boys slept in, I ventured out to walk the Red Hook area and visit the big Blue Ikea store.

IKEA (Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd) is a privately held, international home products Swedish corporation that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture, appliances and home accessories. The company is now the world's largest furniture retailer. IKEA was founded in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad in Sweden, named as an acronym comprising the initials of the founder's name (Ingvar Kamprad), the farm where he grew up (Elmtaryd), and his home parish (Agunnaryd).

On my walk down to the Ikea store (it is about 1.5 miles from the apartment) I grabbed a bagel and coffee. Once I got in the store, I discovered they have a very nice cafeteria. Oops.

Love this faucet.


And this kitchen.


2 hours later, after browsing the whole IKEA store I returned to the apartment.

Next on the agenda..........Central Park.

We visited the John Lennon memorial named Strawberry Fields.


We also walked across the street to the Dakota, the actual place where he was shot. There are no signs there because they are trying to discourage site seers.

We walked all around Central Park and found that Belvedere Castle is open on the weekends so we could go up on top. This really excited Brian because he had never been up there before.


Belvedere Castle is a building in Central Park in New York, New York, that contains exhibit rooms and an observation deck. Built as a Victorian folly in 1869, the castle caps Vista Rock, the park's second-highest natural elevation. Constructed of Manhattan schist quarried in the park and dressed with gray granite, it tops the natural-looking woodlands of The Ramble, as seen from the formal Bethesda Terrace. As the plantings matured, the castle has disappeared from its original intended viewpoint. Its turret is the highest point in the park.

View from the top.

Then it was a short walk to the Guggenheim.

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan just across the street from Central Park. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions throughout the year. Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, it is one of the 20th century's most important architectural landmarks. The museum opened on October 21, 1959, and was the second museum opened by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. It recently underwent an extensive, three-year renovation.

We didn't pay the $25 to see the whole museum, but they do allow visitors to view the building from the ground level for free. Way cool.

Next stop was the Neue Galerie New York on Fifth Ave. It is a museum devoted to early twentieth-century German and Austrian art and design.

We had coffee at the Café Sabarsky,

which bears the name of Neue Galerie co-founder Serge Sabarsky, draws its inspiration from the great Viennese cafés that served as important centers of intellectual and artistic life at the turn of the century. It is outfitted with period objects, including lighting fixtures by Josef Hoffmann, furniture by Adolf Loos, and banquettes that are upholstered with a 1912 Otto Wagner fabric.


Then we took a very, VERY crowded bus ride to the subway station so we could get home. The bus was no fun and it was the only time we ever took it.