Central Park
I wouldn't exactly call myself a "nature person" but sometimes there's nothing I love or need more than a walk in the park. I guess what I most prefer is manufactured nature, and is there any better place to experience a good, old-fashioned, man-made, fully-designed "natural" expanse than Central Park?
I've pretty much walked the entire park over the years, sometimes all in one day. This past Sunday was beautiful here — sunny, 40/50 degrees — and I'd heard so much about the impending, freezing doom that was headed our way, so I decided to spend as much time outside as possible.
I entered the park at the 81st street entrance, which is my favorite place to do so. This is where we entered the park at 4am to join the line for Mother Courage tickets in 2006, and it will always be a very special place to me. I usually pay my respects to the Delacorte, wander around the Shakespeare garden and take in the wonderful views from Belvedere castle.
On Sunday, however, my ultimate desitination was Bethesda Terrace, so I headed south, rambling my way through the Ramble. I stopped at the Ladies Pavillion, which funny enough, contained two actual ladies having a gossip-y conversation, which I imagine to be exactly the kind of thing that should be happening there, although in my head the ladies would have been dressed in far fancier attire, with maybe even a parasol or two.
This was obviously not what the Mall looked like last weekend, but isn't it heavenly in the summer? [source]
Anyway, I then exited the park at 72nd street, walking past the Dakota to check out 72nd street bagel (would you look at that logo??). I hadn't had a genuine New York bagel since I got here, and I had read good reviews of theirs, so I got one and took it to go. I went back into the park and headed to one of my favorite people-watching spots: the Mall, and ate while I watched people and hoped they weren't watching me back. I really hate watching other people eat, and I as a result I'm self conscious about people watching me, but more often than not my hunger trumps my social anxiety. Luckily, the bagel was everything a NY bagel should be — crunchy, chewy, soft and salty — and only $2.50.
Post-bagel I walked to Bethesda Terrace, which is one of the first places I remember visiting when my parents took 14-year-old me to the city for the first time. I just re-watched Angels in America, so I wanted to pay my respects to the Angel of the Waters on a "sunny winter's day, warm and cold at once." There was a long time when the underpass was closed for tile restoration, but thankfully it's open now, and it seems like every time I go there's a couple taking wedding photos, even in January.
I said bye to Bethesda, and kept walking south — passing Wollman Rink
(which is now apparently owned by...Donald Trump), Umpire Rock and Sheep Meadow. When I realized that I was in the same spot from which one of my favorite photographs had been taken, I tried to recreate it — it's pretty awesome to see how much the city has grown and yet stayed the same, even in such a tiny slice of the skyline. The only thing I'm missing is two dapper gentlemen and several inches of snow — I've yet to experience a New York snowfall, but I'm hoping it's every bit as magical as it looks in pictures (although in reality it's probably a nightmare, I'm sure I'll find out soon enough).
Of course now it's like not even degrees here, and the unseasonable warmth of last weekend seems like another lifetime. I probably won't get another chance to explore the park for at least a few weeks so I'll be looking for some (warm) indoor activities — a visit to the New York Botanical Garden's Tropical Paradise show sounds most appealing. What are some other things I can do in the city that won't cause immediate frostbite?
Are you as cold as I am, wherever you are? Probably not, because you probably look cute in a hat, unlike me, which doesn't matter anyway because there is literally not one decent winter hat left in all of New York City. Believe me, I've looked.
