On top of the world (2)

It’s Saturday when I decide to go to the top of Sears Tower, and the “skydeck” that we hear so much about. So I have breakfast in a restaurant along Michigan, and then walk the few blocks to Adams and along there to the tower. Being Sunday, down town is quiet and only a few hardy souls are out and about this morning. But the wind still makes its presence felt - the sign outside the Tower advertising the skydeck is being bent over by the strength of the wind!



This starts off as a hurry up to wait occasion - first we wait to get into lifts that take us down - yes down - to the first basement. Then we wait in line to but our tickets. Then we queue up to get into the lifts that will take us up to the 103rd floor. This observatory is totally enclosed, and with somewhat annoying music playing when I went. But it also has some interesting exhibits about the history of Chicago around in the middle.



This is not a totally clear day, and the horizon from up here is indistinct, but the view gives me a different perspective from being on the ground. Down there it feels very built up and crowded, but from up here there seem to be many open spaces and lots of green. And lots of water too - not just the mighty Lake Michigan, but also the jetties and waterways. I watch fascinated as a boat, one of the water taxis I assume, but looking like a small toy, moves along the river and under the bridges.



Further round and I watch a freeway intersection - all connected and crossing roads, and having a beauty, somehow, in its simple grace. All around you see sparkling new office buildings, and the incongruously, even among these, you can spot the occasional old building, often a church, still standing proud.



An interesting effect that we can see is the shadows of the occasional cloud passing by, making dappled dark and bright areas over the city.



While I’ve been here the deck has filled up more, and there is a really long queue to get the lift back down. As well as the normal collection of tourists, there are a number of young looking soldiers here, sightseeing with their parents on their last leave before departing for a tour of duty. Waiting in line does give me the opportunity to look at all the pictures that are here about Chicago history, and then eventually I get the lift back down to the basement. This leads us through the inevitable souvenir shop, before getting the stairs up to the ground floor, and out once more into the windy city.

A tail of four corners

I like to walk. And when I walk I notice things.

So here I am staying in New York in the spring of 2008, and I just walk the streets randomly, and then I find The Perfect Intersection. It's just another place where two streets cross, but this particular crossing produces 4 very different corners.



The Church.
On the first corner stands an old and impressive church building - The Church of the Holy Name. In the 1800's they knew that this was what a church should look like - full of arches and pulling your eye up skywards, it was constructed as an exultation to God. The architecture screams that it is a church building - what else could it be?



The Bank?
Opposite the church is another building that shouts out why it was built. The solid upright stance and pillars show that wealth and stability were the main things on the minds of the people building it. Of course, appearances can be deceptive - although built as a bank, it's now a Pharmacy.



The Pharmacy?
The third corner has a oddly dated look that the previous two - although older - did not. A late 20th century built tower, with a retail outlet at the bottom. A local tells me that the shop was originally a pharmacy, and I can see how that would have fitted in with the architects view of the use of his design. However, in a strange twist to the way buildings are used, it now operates as a bank.

The Red Brick
To me, the red brick apartment block is the architecture that really defines Manhattan, and here we see one, complete with store at street level. And that store was a pizzeria, complete with ATM for those who didn't want to cross the street to the bank

I don't think you could get 4 more diverse looks and feels - and usages! on any street corner, but there it was. And in the background you can see even more styles, showing the real melting pot that is New York, NY.

(Pictures taken 15 April 2008 at the intersection of Amsterdam and 96th, New York.)

Looking for the stars

Where I’m staying in New York is really near the top end of Central Park, and I’m going to explore it and see what there is to see. So this morning I set out after breakfast (at the Diner again - I’m going to have to watch that!!) and this is another cool, bright spring morning - ideal for a walk in the park!


(Central Park reservoir)

My first view as I cross the road and enter the park is of the reservoir - the first of many pieces of water in the Park and as I stand to take pictures, I’m passed by a jogger - there are also a lot of them in the Park!


(A Castle? In Central Park?)

Walking further along, I see in the distance a castle - yea - I thought that was odd too!!! Actually this is the “Belvedere Tower”, a lookout tower built in the late 1800’s, but now a meteorological observatory, and tourist attraction. The sighting of the tower shows a lot about the island of Manhattan's foundations - the hard bedrock which juts out from the land, and give the island its distinctive geology. Here there is a natural high spot, and the “castle” is built on the top. As I get nearer, I see that there is even a “moat”! Well, in reality, a small area of water called “Turtle Pond”. The sign here says it’s a quiet zone, March to November, 11am to dusk. So, am I to assume that it gets louder after dark? I’m not brave/foolish enough to want to come back in the dark to find out!


(Belvedere Tower)

From the top of the tower you get more neat views over the park - for such an overbuilt city, this part of the island give us space to breath. It’s also a place where it’s nice to bring kids, so my quiet time does not last long!


(Across the park)

From here I walk on further down the park, past a building called the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre, and along tree-lined walkways full of joggers. It’s early spring, and some trees are still just bare branches, with others in full blossom. This and the water that is everywhere gives the immediate area a feel of real countryside, but you only have to lift your eyes to see the buildings that surround the Park. As you walk there are constant surprises - round each corner there is a different view, and it makes the place have a unique feel - somewhere between crowded in by the buildings, and having open space and air.


(Spring is sprung)

As well as this wilder side of the park, there are also a lot of formal areas, and as I walk around a lake I come to a formal fountain with sweeping steps leading up to a Terrace - another 19th century piece of ornamentation that the modern New Yorkers take full advantage of. Around here are also a lot of sculptures and then there is sign I just have to follow - Strawberry Fields! This is a memorial to John Lennon - a circle in the ground with “Imagine” shown in the centre, and red and yellow roses arranged around it. People were coming to look and write on the books left there for that purpose, And this is what one said; “JOHN - always said flower power didn’t work START AGAIN!”. Hmmmmmm


(Strawberry Fields)

From here on the west of the park I walk over to the east side, and round another, smaller boating lake, and some more whimsical statuary - a larger-than-life statue of Alice-in-Wonderland, sitting on a huge mushroom, playing with her cat, while the Hatter and the March Hare close by - and any number of real children amusing themselves by climbing all over it! Also here is a bronze of Hans Christian Andersen - and I like this one as he is sitting reading, with a bronze duck looking up quizzically at him!


(Hans Christian Andersen - and duck!)

As we are now over on the east side of the park, we are next to the really expensive apartments, with views of the park. Not to miss any opportunity to make a buck - there are also telescopes set up so that we can look into the expensive apartments! I forgo that experience, but find it interesting that it’s just there and accepted.


(Looking for the stars)

I’ve mentioned the joggers, but on the roads there are also people on bikes, and as I am about to cross over to the Rumsey Playfields, I’m passed by someone on a unicycle - now that is not something you see that much in many other cities! There are a few people playing ball, but mostly the area is not used too much this midweek daytime. I am impressed, though, by what is called the Summer Stage - but looks to all the world like a flying saucer just about to land! Just below this is an area of bark covered ground with small plaques in between the trees. I then see the main sign for this area - it is a memorial “To our valiant brothers who died in the service of our country in World War 1. Knights of Pythias - State of New York”


(A flying saucer?)

The feel of the park changes again as I carry on along a paved, tree lined avenue to another building, and as I approach, I hear what sounds like fair-ground music being played. Now, who would have thought that? It’s a carousel!


(Central Park carousel)

I’m nearing the other end of the park now, and here there is a playground and more of the open rock formations, with people sitting on top of them - now that must be uncomfortable!

I’ve been walking for a long time, and by now I’m really foot weary, so I find a place to buy a cup of coffee, and sit, watch people come and go for a while, and think about the Central Park that I’ve just experienced.


(A formal park)

City parks are all different, but Central Park is lots of different parks all in one, with formal, “wild” and fun areas. There is a lot of open space and water and wild-life, but never do we get to forget we’re in a busy city - even on this mid week early spring day there are a lot of people around. And everywhere you go the New York sky line is a constant companion. I’ve walked the length of the park, but I still feel that there is more to see and do here. But for now I’m walked out, and will just enjoy the sun on my face and the coffee in front of me.

Departing & Arriving

Travelling is always an experience.

It was on a cool April day that I set out from North East London on my adventure. The first part of the journey was the slowest and most uncomfortable - being dropped at the tube station I had to negotiate the automatic barriers pulling a suitcase on wheels, carrying a backpack, holding my coat and trying to use the tickets to keep the barriers open long enough.

After that, most things seemed simple.

For those not used to travelling in London, it’s sometimes difficult to comprehend the correlation between distance and time. My destination - Heathrow airport - is less than 30 miles away, but it will take me over 2 hours to get there. Not that there isn’t plenty of public transport in London - there is! But it takes all the time because of the many lines and many stations that are needed to get anywhere. My trip is relatively easy with just one change of tube train, and so I settle down on the Central line to start my journey. The connection at Holborn is OK, but involves pulling my suitcase up and down stairs to get to the Piccadilly line; the Victorian builders of this network did not seem to believe in ramps or slopes - nothing as easy as that for them!! So today I have to haul cases up and down the stairs, much to my, and other passengers, frustration.

And then to Heathrow, and the long walk that you always have there. Check in and passport control go easily, and then I get to go to the BA lounge - one perk of having been a business traveller for a number of years is a Gold Card that lets me in there - although my current work-free state will mean that this doesn’t last long.

I sit by an indoor fountain and have a drink - and think about the time ahead - 3 months - well, 89 days - of being in the USA - of some travel, and some staying still, of adventure and excitement, of contemplation and thought. I’m not sure who the person leaving really is, and I suspect that the person coming back will be very different.

But I have little time for introspection, as the normal “hurry up to wait” business of travel means I need to go and rush to the gate, so that I can wait there again. And then I am on the plane - I chose an outside of 3 seat on the right of the aircraft. I really prefer to have a window seat, and that really works well if you get at least one spare seat next to you. But I’ve been on some awful transatlantic flights where I’ve been cramped in next to 2 people who seem to use up all the air, so I think that an outside seat gives me a better option. As it turns out, the middle seat next to me is unoccupied, which gives me and the person in the far seat some room to stretch out.

I do the thing we are told to do, of putting my watch to the time of the place we are to arrive at, which means it’s now early morning again, and my feeling of hunger should be for breakfast, rather than lunch. But it will be a while till any food is provided, and so I sit and look at what films there are going to be shown.

There is very little delay in our take off, and soon we are in the air, and the service begins - first I say yes to a drink (diet coke). I have ordered a “low calorie” meal - what this normally means is I get the same as everyone else, but less fatty stuff and more salad - it also means I get the food first before the other people, and I’m not sure if this is good or bad, but it sure makes me feel the odd one out. In any case I get lunch/breakfast (depending on which time zone I choose to be in), say yes to another drink (a glass of wine) no to coffee, no to another glass of wine, no to duty free - and then, following that excitement, we are left to contemplate the 6 remaining hours of the journey... what to do?

It is always a struggle for me to know how to occupy myself on these long flights. There are options; to watch one of the many movies they show, listen to music, sleep, read, stare vacantly out the window or into the middle distance (that is one of my favourites). There is also the pastime I hear others using of shouting at children or continually whining - I’ve never tried these myself, but given enough flights I might.

The sleeping option is what I logically think I should do, so I put on my eye shades to keep out the light, headphones to keep out the noise, and pull a blanket over myself to keep warm. And I fall into a deep and pleasant sleep for what feels like hours, only when I wake and check my watch, it’s actually only five minutes later.

So, with the sleeping thing not working, I decide to watch a movie - they have quite a selection of new and old movies, which seem really good and interesting to watch. The only trouble is I’m on a plane - I get to watch it on a tiny individual screen with bad resolution, and listen through a cheap headset where I alternate between having it so loud that it hurts my ears, or so low I can’t actually make out what is being said. Nevertheless, I do watch a film. At least, I put it on, and adjust the volume to barely understandable, but find myself drifting off in a reverie, and not actually concentrating enough to even remember the title of the film, much less the plot.

Eventually I give this up, and put on the travelling map on the screen, I actually like this a lot - watching our slow, slow progress out over the Atlantic, skirting Greenland, and seeing that our course will take us over Canada before getting to the eastern seaboard of the USA. It’s constant flicking between the maps, the outside temperature and our height, the time in the UK and the US, our remaining flying time and expected time of arrival, and then back to the maps again is relentless and hypnotic, but even that pails after a while, and there are still hours to go

So I get out a book to read, but that hurts my eyes and my brain, and I eventually give that up too, and go back to trying to sleep and - the one that always works! - staring aimlessly into the middle distance. The time goes by slowly, but it goes by.

And suddenly there is bustle and activity again, as we get closer to landing, and they serve food once more!! This time a “snack” which I could count as a kind of lunch/dinner - on these transit days it’s difficult to work out which meal you are eating. We get to fill out immigration forms, and just generally hurry to wait again until that blessed moment when we touch down.

And then once again, the miracle of travel has happened, and I’m about to step out into a new adventure, in a new city, in a new country.