Roosevelt Island

Sunday was one of the best days I've had so far in the city. Aside from the obvious joy of seeing Meryl (albeit briefly) present at the Oscars, the first half of my day was pretty much perfect. I got up early and started the day with a walk through Central Park. My ultimate destination was Roosevelt Island, and I had planned to ride the tram, which is on the east side.

Since I'm on the west side, I took the subway halfway down and then walked the rest of the way through Central Park, stopping at a cute diner, Gene's Coffee Shop, for breakfast. I had a delicious mushroom and feta omelette, but I was especially smitten with their coffee. I think New York is turning me into a huge fan of diner coffee, and Gene's served a quintessential cup — for a dollar, no less (nothing here is a dollar).

From Gene's it was only a short walk to the Roosevelt Island tram, which quickly shot to the top of my "ways to commute in New York" list. It's easy to get to (just a few flights of stairs), comes frequently (I waited maybe 30 seconds), and accepts Metro Cards, so it's no different than riding the subway. Except of course, instead of speeding through a dark and smelly underground tunnel, you're suspended above the city in a cute little tram car,  that takes you smoothly over the East River into Roosevelt Island in less than five minutes.

The views are great, and the novelty of it all is totally worth it, although you can still get to and from the island by subway as well if you're into that. There's also a bus service that will take you all around the island for 25 cents, but I decided to walk. It was a beautiful day, and I was in an exploring mood. There's a beautiful walking path around the whole island, and it took me less than two hours, walking at a leisurely place and making stops along the way.

The views of Manhattan are spectacular, and I'd never really given the Queensboro bridge much thought, but it's quite lovely. The views of Queens on the other side are decidedly less majestic, but I was pleasantly surprised when I turned a corner and was greeted with a close-up view of the Pepsi sign that I'd previously only seen in miniature from atop the Empire State building.

At the southern tip of the island is a Franklin D. Roosevelt memorial that just opened in October. It's pretty sparse as far as monuments go, but it's a beautifully designed space. Right next to the memorial is the Smallpox Hospital ruins, which are the only ruins to have designated landmark status in the city.

The area is fenced off, but you can still get a good look at the crumbling structure which is super creepy even in mid-day. I'm fascinated by creepy old medical things like asylums and hospitals and Roosevelt island has its share of history in that department.

Unfortunately the Octagon (once the main entrance to the New York City Lunatic Asylum) is now the lobby of a luxury apartment building, but it's still pretty to look at. On the northern tip of the island is a charming little lighthouse and another small park, which was fenced off due to damage from Hurricane Sandy but looked like a cute place to have a summer picnic (I'll be back!).

There's not much in the way of shopping or dining on Roosevelt Island, as far as I could see it's mostly residential (and there's still quite a few medical facilities). I've read that it's a great place to live because it's convenient to the city, but quiet and peaceful. At times it felt as if I had the whole place to myself, which was kind of awesome, but I imagine it gets a bit more crowded in the summertime. I stopped at the Starbucks (of course they have a Starbucks) for my weekly coffee-and-Sunday-Times tradition, and it's worth noting that they had the best music selection of any Starbucks I have ever been to. It was a wonderful interlude to my walk, and I was sad when I realized that I had pretty much seen all of the island and it was time to go.

Luckily, it's harder to be sad when you're taking a tram through the sky and back into Manhattan. I absolutely loved Roosevelt Island and I highly recommend taking a day to explore it on your own. It almost felt as if the whole thing was a bit of a secret — not too commercial or touristy but perfectly interesting, peaceful and pleasant. I'll definitely be back and it's nice to know that if I ever need a break from the city, it's only a tram ride away.