Journal 2
Lower Manhattan and Captivating Chelsea
Today was perfect day, weather-wise! It was gorgeous out! First stop, City Hall! Here we met Pam our guide for the afternoon. She was extremely informative. City Hall was constructed dung the opening decades of the19th century (1803-1811). Though the building depicts a Federal architectural style it also adopts some French classical details. (BG, 84) Pam explained that this is the third City Hall in New York. Originally when they built the building they did not pay attention to the back as behind City Hall at the time was swamp land. So they thought, why put money into something nobody was going to see. Wrong! Eventually they had to make the back of the building look just as good as the front as New York was changing quickly! Once we got inside we noticed the gorgeous dome on the top of the ceiling. The way the natural light beamed down on the floating staircase was lovely. Everything was very pristine and white. I was hoping to see Mayor Bloomberg walk down the stairs as this is where his office is, but not so much. We then heading to the this green room when some major parties, gathering and important document signing went down. President Washington’s desk lives here. We then were able to sit in on a city council meeting, in the balcony. The place is stunning. The architecture and design, is amazing.
Before heading to the 9-11 Memorial Site we walked though St. Paul’s Chapel. Here, you were able to see very touching posters, signs, cards and other items reflecting love and hope, focusing around September 11th. After getting my eyes all teary we went to the 9-11 Memorial. To this day, every time I see something on the TV or hear someone one talking about it, my eyes well up and I get very emotional. I knew several people who passed on that tragic day and what hurt me the most was how many fallen fire fighter friends my dad lost. Luckily he was retired already from the FDNY because if he wasn’t I’m sure he would have been there. Ugh, now I’m crying thinking about this. Anyway, the reflecting pools are so elegant and peaceful that I did not get as upset as I thought I was going to get. Perhaps there were so many people around or the fact that tranquility emits calmness, either was I was glad I was there.
Then we headed to Wall Street where we walked by the NYSE building and headed in to the Federal Hall National Memorial. Here we were able to use the public bathrooms. Definitely the most important part of the day! And, also here is where George Washington took oath in office in 1789 (BG 69).
After all that history, we were ready for lunch. We took the subway from Rector Street to Chelsea to have lunch in Chelsea Market. Then we headed to the High Line. Originally it was a railroad built in the mid-19th century for freight trains. But when freight trains gave way to trucking the last train was used in 1980. (BG 188). Lucky for us the city was too cheap to pay for demolition and an advocacy group fought to use it as public space. We checked out the Standard Hotel while we ere up there, hoping to see a little action, but no dice. Then we walked along to about 21st Street. Here is where we check out some art galleries. We popped into the Gagosian Gallery where Jeff Koons is having a show. He had several paintings and some sculpture. I’m not a big fan of his paintings nor am I a fan of conceptual art but I have to say his balloon animals were pretty awesome. Not only were they massive but they were shiny too! It really doesn’t take much to excite me! The last stop of the day we went to an opening at the Nancy Margolis Gallery. Here they were exhibiting work by several different artists all painters except one sculptor. I enjoyed the painting by Willem Andersson the best. There seemed to be only three colors in the painting yet it looked so deep. The painting, to me, represented a man drowning in sorrow and the world closing in around him. Who knows though!
Today was a good day!
Before heading to the 9-11 Memorial Site we walked though St. Paul’s Chapel. Here, you were able to see very touching posters, signs, cards and other items reflecting love and hope, focusing around September 11th. After getting my eyes all teary we went to the 9-11 Memorial. To this day, every time I see something on the TV or hear someone one talking about it, my eyes well up and I get very emotional. I knew several people who passed on that tragic day and what hurt me the most was how many fallen fire fighter friends my dad lost. Luckily he was retired already from the FDNY because if he wasn’t I’m sure he would have been there. Ugh, now I’m crying thinking about this. Anyway, the reflecting pools are so elegant and peaceful that I did not get as upset as I thought I was going to get. Perhaps there were so many people around or the fact that tranquility emits calmness, either was I was glad I was there.
Then we headed to Wall Street where we walked by the NYSE building and headed in to the Federal Hall National Memorial. Here we were able to use the public bathrooms. Definitely the most important part of the day! And, also here is where George Washington took oath in office in 1789 (BG 69).
After all that history, we were ready for lunch. We took the subway from Rector Street to Chelsea to have lunch in Chelsea Market. Then we headed to the High Line. Originally it was a railroad built in the mid-19th century for freight trains. But when freight trains gave way to trucking the last train was used in 1980. (BG 188). Lucky for us the city was too cheap to pay for demolition and an advocacy group fought to use it as public space. We checked out the Standard Hotel while we ere up there, hoping to see a little action, but no dice. Then we walked along to about 21st Street. Here is where we check out some art galleries. We popped into the Gagosian Gallery where Jeff Koons is having a show. He had several paintings and some sculpture. I’m not a big fan of his paintings nor am I a fan of conceptual art but I have to say his balloon animals were pretty awesome. Not only were they massive but they were shiny too! It really doesn’t take much to excite me! The last stop of the day we went to an opening at the Nancy Margolis Gallery. Here they were exhibiting work by several different artists all painters except one sculptor. I enjoyed the painting by Willem Andersson the best. There seemed to be only three colors in the painting yet it looked so deep. The painting, to me, represented a man drowning in sorrow and the world closing in around him. Who knows though!
Today was a good day!
IMMIGRANT NEW YORK (LOWER EASTSIDE, THE BOWERY, LITTLE ITALY, AND CHINATOWN)
Today I met the class at the Essex Market on the Lower East Side. This market sells a variety of products. Some including, specialty meats, fish, fancy cheeses and some run of the mill groceries. I was able to grab an awesome freshly juiced juice. Yum! After some time wandering around the market, we met our tour guide, Jim. This was the same dude that gave us the tour of Harlem. Man this guy knows a lot about Manhattan. OUr tour was going to consist of the Lower East Side. Like the rest of downtown Manhattan, the Lower East Side, long an immigrant neighborhood, is in the midst of rapid change. (BG 118) He took us around such streets as Sullivan, Eldridge, Orchard and Rivington, explaining how these neighborhoods are changing. He pointed out a massive new building that was completed a few years ago on Clinton Street. It was very modern and very out of place in my opinion. We then heading up Rivington and popped our heads into the most amazing place on earth... Economy Candy! I felt like a kid again buying an Astropop and Fun Dip! According to Jim, this is one of the oldest candy stores in all of Manhattan. We then headed over to NY’s oldest Romanian Church. I believe it’s been there since the 1830’s. Before we lunch we lunch we saw the Tenement Museum but did not go in. Everyone went to lunch at Congee Village, I did not. I am not a fan, as I have been there before. So, Jazz, Jada and Colleen went for Italian food. We then all met up and headed east over the Williamsburg Bridge. I was pretty excited about that, seeing that I have never walked over that bridge before. I loved all the street art the bridge had to offer. So many stories were told. Another thing that made that walk special, my husband joined me and it was a wedding anniversary. Double whammy! Once we got over the the 1.38 mile bridge, Mike explained how Williamsburg has changed over the years. There’s that word again, gentrification. the last stop on our daily tour was the Brooklyn Art Library. This place was very cool. It’s basically a library of artists’ sketchbooks. I ended up buying one for my husband. What a neat concept. It then started raining and I needed to get back to the city in a jiffy. There weren’t any cabs so I ended up renting a Citibike. the bike was crappy but the ride was fun back over the bridge. I huffed and puffed but I did it!
Besides it bing a million degrees that day, it was a lot of fun!
Besides it bing a million degrees that day, it was a lot of fun!
QUIXOTIC QUEENS
I have to say, I was not so psyched to go to Queens today as I’m a Brooklyn girl! However, I was excited for certain aspects of the day. Today was a fully packed day and no time to get left behind as we saw. When we left Penn Station we walked uptown, stopping at Bryant Park and The New York City Public Library. According to Mike, is where many famous authors wrote their novels. The building is just tremendous, the marble is exquisite and the design is magnificent. We were required to write a haiku, here is how mine went:
The heat’s killing me
I want to stay inside
But the show goes on
We got to hang out there for a little while but then we were off. We stopped at The Daily News Building, The Chrysler Building and Grand Central Terminal all before we jumped on the tram to Roosevelt Island. Fun fact, my friend Sheryl declares herself the unofficial Miss Grand Central.
Anyway, so we got to take the tram to Roosevelt Island and it was all what I expected. It was so cool, however, Roosevelt Island, not so much. Roosevelt Island is a two-mile slice of land that was long used as a place of exile for madmen, criminals, and incurables. (BG 382) We walked a lot to not see anything very exciting in my book. But I’m glad I can say that I’ve been there.
Next stop, lunch! We took the F train to Jackson Heights to the Jackson Diner for some Indian grub. It was so good and I’m glad that most of my classmates came along to try something out of their comfort zone. We had a whole 35 minutes for lunch before we headed back to the subway. Next stop, Astoria and the Museum of the Moving Image. This museum was rad. Jada and I made some short movies and did sound over for Coming to America and the Wizard of Oz. The museum was very hands on, which made it a lot of fun. I also got to see my friend Mike’s work from Black Swan and The Wrestler. That was very cool. The museum was full of costumes, props, old video games and games. Honestly, I can’t wait to take someone there, I feel like I didn’t see everything. After that, back on the subway to Long Island City. At first we weren’t going to go inside of MoMA PS 1, which would have been a shame as I love this museum but after some convincing, we were able to go in. PS 1 is full of contemporary art, some thing you get, some you don’t. But then again, that’s art. Apparently they were having an opening that night outside, which looked super exciting. Too bad we couldn’t have stayed for that. After sweating our buns off in the museum we headed over to 5 Pointz. It’s basically an old factory that allows for legal graffiti. Street art blows my mind, it is so gorgeous, colorful and detailed, that it’s unfathomable that it’s so temporary. After people tag up the building in a few weeks it is painted over for someone else to tag up. Crazy but very cool.
Just when I though this LONG day was over we walked about another mile to the waterfront of Long Island City where gentrification is happening before our eyes. LIC is a lot like Williamsburg with it’s factories and old closed down businesses, turning into high rises and cool spots to live. We ended the day Gantry Plaza State Park, where the famous Pepsi Cola sign lives. It was gorgeous there! Very similar design to the High Line with the beach grass and the wood lounging seats. Very hip and very modern. Glad we got to head there, though it would have been more calming if Mike wasn’t still rushing us! hahah
All and all it was a very long day, lots of sights, TONS of walking but I saw things that I never would have done on my own.
The heat’s killing me
I want to stay inside
But the show goes on
We got to hang out there for a little while but then we were off. We stopped at The Daily News Building, The Chrysler Building and Grand Central Terminal all before we jumped on the tram to Roosevelt Island. Fun fact, my friend Sheryl declares herself the unofficial Miss Grand Central.
Anyway, so we got to take the tram to Roosevelt Island and it was all what I expected. It was so cool, however, Roosevelt Island, not so much. Roosevelt Island is a two-mile slice of land that was long used as a place of exile for madmen, criminals, and incurables. (BG 382) We walked a lot to not see anything very exciting in my book. But I’m glad I can say that I’ve been there.
Next stop, lunch! We took the F train to Jackson Heights to the Jackson Diner for some Indian grub. It was so good and I’m glad that most of my classmates came along to try something out of their comfort zone. We had a whole 35 minutes for lunch before we headed back to the subway. Next stop, Astoria and the Museum of the Moving Image. This museum was rad. Jada and I made some short movies and did sound over for Coming to America and the Wizard of Oz. The museum was very hands on, which made it a lot of fun. I also got to see my friend Mike’s work from Black Swan and The Wrestler. That was very cool. The museum was full of costumes, props, old video games and games. Honestly, I can’t wait to take someone there, I feel like I didn’t see everything. After that, back on the subway to Long Island City. At first we weren’t going to go inside of MoMA PS 1, which would have been a shame as I love this museum but after some convincing, we were able to go in. PS 1 is full of contemporary art, some thing you get, some you don’t. But then again, that’s art. Apparently they were having an opening that night outside, which looked super exciting. Too bad we couldn’t have stayed for that. After sweating our buns off in the museum we headed over to 5 Pointz. It’s basically an old factory that allows for legal graffiti. Street art blows my mind, it is so gorgeous, colorful and detailed, that it’s unfathomable that it’s so temporary. After people tag up the building in a few weeks it is painted over for someone else to tag up. Crazy but very cool.
Just when I though this LONG day was over we walked about another mile to the waterfront of Long Island City where gentrification is happening before our eyes. LIC is a lot like Williamsburg with it’s factories and old closed down businesses, turning into high rises and cool spots to live. We ended the day Gantry Plaza State Park, where the famous Pepsi Cola sign lives. It was gorgeous there! Very similar design to the High Line with the beach grass and the wood lounging seats. Very hip and very modern. Glad we got to head there, though it would have been more calming if Mike wasn’t still rushing us! hahah
All and all it was a very long day, lots of sights, TONS of walking but I saw things that I never would have done on my own.
Post Impressions of New York
I really adored this class! I got to see things that I normally would never go see on my own. The only time I get to be a tourist in my own city is when people come from out of town. I learned so many fun facts and useful/not-so-useful information. I don't think the image of the city changed in my mind but it certainly made me appreciative of where I live.