Tuesday was a beautiful day - sunny and temperatures in the 50's. This, in February! The bikes were calling and Stacey suggested we ride to Central Park to see Christo and Jeanne-Claudes' orange gates. We hadn't been out riding for a long time. One thing or another, not to mention the weather, had gotten in the way. The one constraint was the need to be at JFK airport at 4 pm to pick up my aunt, returning from a vacation in Florida. So off we went at 10:30. We're living much closer to Manhattan now and a bike ride there to our usual destination, SOHO, is a scant five miles. It used to be 12! What a pleasure.
Our first stop was a little coffee shop on DeKalb Avenue, just off the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue: Tillie's. We're discovering that Fort Greene, the neighborhood just north of ours, is very much to our liking. It has a very laid-back flavor, a nice mix of people, good restaurants and interesting shops. And then there are those brownstones - some of the most beautiful in Brooklyn.
Welcome to Tillie's on DeKalb Avenue.
Stacey looks out at Dekalb Avenue from Tillie's.
The window sign at Tillie's coffee shop.
The coffee shop was just a few minutes from the Manhattan Bridge - our entree into Manhattan. On-street bike paths are popping up all over the place - a sign that our DOT is paying more attention to walkers and bikers than ever before. The beauty part is that they are more and more connected, giving cyclists a real network of paths that can be used for commuting of just touring but with real destinations in mind. New Yorkers are now blessed with bike/ped paths on each of the East River crossings: the Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges. The latest has been an additional path constructed on the north side of the Manhattan Bridge, exclusively for cyclists. The path on the south side, open for a number of years, is now exclusively for walkers. Nice.
The sign shows the way to the bike path to the Manhattan Bridge.
Stacey, that red spot in the distance, heads up the long, sloping approach to the new cyclists-only path on the Manhattan Bridge.
The only thing negative we can say about the DOT's approach to these new bridge paths is their insistence of lining them, and thus blocking the fabulous views, with ugly, prison-like chain link fence. They claim this prevents vandals from throwing objects off the bridge but offer no evidence that this has every been a problem (which it hasn't). The views from these bridges are breathtaking and riding or walking across them should be an intensely uplifting experience. Instead the fences are real downers, blocking one's view and making you feel like you've been locked-up instead of liberated. Fortunately, although plans exist, bike advocate organizations like Transportation Alternatives have stayed the DOT from erecting these monstrosities on the much-used, historic and beautiful Brooklyn Bridge path.
Riding the new bike path on the Manhattan Bridge. Note the chain link fence on the right, blocking the view to the river and the skyline.
View of the Brooklyn neighborhood, DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. Oy!) from the Manhattan Bridge.
In Manhattan, we quickly made our way to SOHO and stopped at two of our favorite haunts: the Sullivan Street Bakery, with its fantastic artisanal breads. We bought a few to stock up for the week. Next, a quick lunch stop at Once Upon A Tart, also on Sullivan Street a block or so north of the bakery.
A quick stop at our favorite bakery: Sullivan Street at number 73.
Lunch at Once Upon A Tart on Sullivan Street in SOHO.
We had lunch outside at one of the little tables set up out front - it was that nice a day. But it was also getting late and we had a bit more to go before we reached Central Park at 59th Street. We headed through Greenwich Village up West 4th Street which meanders northward and westward, avoiding the heavier-trafficked avenue blocks. Because it doesn't follow the usual city grid of streets and avenues, West 4th is a cute little NYC anomaly. No other numbered street crosses over other numbered streets, since they're parallel to each other. And that's how puzzled you might be if I asked you to meet me at the corner of West 4th and West 12th streets. Huh??
You figure it out - the intersection of West 4th Street and West 12th Street??
West we continued to pedal until we crossed the former West Side Highway, now just West Street. The city has done a lovely job downtown, blending the highway, which used to be elevated and is now at street level, with a fabulous new riverside park and bike/ped path. The path is beloved by New Yorkers and heavily used. It's a great place to hang or walk, jog, ride or skate, admire the Hudson River or ride the length of the borough from tip to tip.
The much-used and lovely bike path along the Hudson River now runs the length of the island.
We rode until 59th Street and then headed back east to Central park and The Gates. I have mixed feelings about this whole Christo thing. To me, it's certainly not art. Yes, a fantastic media event that brings a lot of people out to see what all the hoopla is about. And, as our billionaire Mayor pointed out in yesterday's papers, a lot of money will be spent as well, perhaps $80 million. OK, but art? Let's agree to disagree. I don't care for the color of the so-called gates either. A garish orange, like the color of Jeanne-Claude's hair. The Gates looked more like highway warning signs. I think it would have been a little more impressive had they been a softer, billowing white rather than this atrocious neon. Just one man's opinion.
Every foot of Central Park's paths had been covered with the Gates and it was in that regard, aside from my previous comments, a very impressive sight. The day was lovely, the weather a respite from the cold. People were out strolling and gazing, sitting in the outdoor cafe at the Boathouse and just enjoing themsleves mightily.
Every inch of Central Park has been gated by Christo and Jeanne-Claude.
Horses, bikes and gates ... oh my!
The Gates - Blowin' In The Wind. (This photo by Stacey.)
Another view of The Gates - looking south at the Essex House.
Me, camera, helmet and gates. (Photo by Stacey).
Looking to Central Park West from Turtle Pond.
It was late now, too late to bike back to Brooklyn and then make it on time for my aunt's arrival at JFK. So we cruised around the park a bit longer and then took the bikes on the subway and the quick trip back to Brooklyn. A splendid day in the Big Apple!
No comments:
Post a Comment