The New York Buzz
When I walk out of the building, I realise what an amazing area Laura’s apartment is in. It’s two blocks from Central Park in a leafy, green street lined with what I think are called ‘brownstones’ – lovely old apartment buildings in a range of colours. I walk through Central Park, which is about five times bigger than I expected. There is a lake with paddle boats, large lawn areas where people lie in the sun and secluded shady spots. The park ends at Columbus Circle, with a few large statues heralding the start of downtown Manhattan. This is where I notice there is a ratio of five yellow cabs to every car on the road.
I walk along Broadway to Times Square, which is not a square at all. It is an oddly shaped wedge of land where a few streets converge. It’s packed with neon signs and surrounded by theatres and souvenir stores. There are huge numbers of people milling around. They have recently blocked off part of the road and placed sun chairs in these areas. A lot of people sit in these trying to work out what they are meant to be looking at. Times Square also houses a half-price ticket booth for Broadway shows. As it’s Sunday, there are matinee performances available, so I pick up tickets to a show.
I walk in the direction of the Empire State Building, taking in the vibe. I already like New York. It has an energy about it that implies there are interesting things around every corner. I hear an evangelist warn people of the devil on Fifth Avenue, which makes me want to go there. It is the gay pride parade, so I stop and watch. There are some incredible costumes, my favourites being a group of young Latinos wearing angelic feathered wings. By the time I get to the Empire State Building I don’t have a lot of time before the show, so I decide not to go to the top.
Post-theatre, Laura calls and we pick another show for the evening. Gregg also calls as he’s decided as he has some free time due to work complications, he’ll come to New York for a few days, arriving the next morning. After the show, Laura recommends a yakitori restaurant (Japanese chicken skewers). It is authentic, with Japanese staff and the genuine feel of Japan, which feels somewhat strange in the middle of New York.
Liberty and Burgers
Gregg arrives and we head to Battery Park, at the bottom of Manhattan island, to catch the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. We have to go through some intense security before we are crammed onto a crowded ferry. The views of the Manhattan skyline are impressive. The Statue of Liberty is impressive too. She towers over everything. Included in the ticket is a stop at Ellis Island, one of the main immigration stations that processed millions of people. It is now a museum. We skim through before jumping on the ferry back to Battery Park.
Lunch is at Faunze’s, the oldest tavern in New York, then we walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. The bridge is quite an engineering feat, with cables all over the place. A lot of people walk to the half way point and back, while cyclists zip past threatening to run them over. We walk all the way over to Brooklyn and catch the subway back.
In the evening, Laura and Aaron suggest we go to a bingo event being hosted by a famous transvestite – unusually, a female who dresses as a man. When we arrive, the place is packed to the rafters, so we move on to a trendy little bar round the corner to think. This bar has an interesting drink concept – you order either vodka or gin and it’s served with a spoonful of flavoured jam on top that you stir in to add flavour. Raspberry and yuzu is a winner.
Our next stop is dinner at GBDB. GB is a three-star Michelin chef, who has opened a gourmet burger and hot dog joint that at the moment is the place to be in New York (I don’t think it’s open anymore though). It’s a free-for-all in the dining area, with people lurking over tables, waiting for others to leave. Laura is an expert at this and snares us a table within minutes. Somehow the menu is written so alluringly it makes me want a hamburger, even though I don’t eat them. This will be my first full burger ever. I order a piggy, topped with pulled pork. It is cooked medium rare and is mouthwateringly good. So good that I no longer understand why I don’t like mince. I devour every morsel. As I’ve never had Baked Alaska, the four of us share one for dessert. It is three flavours of ice-cream – green tea, raspberry and vanilla – wrapped in fluffy meringue, then doused in alcohol and set on fire.
Jersey Shore
Gregg meets me in the morning again and we head to the Rockefeller Building, where Laura has organised free entrance to Top of the Rocks, the observation deck at the top of the building. It’s about 70 stories high and the views of the city are superb. You can see all of Manhattan and marvel at the true extent of Central Park, as well as Brooklyn, New Jersey and the Empire State Building.
We are heading to Hoboken, New Jersey next. It’s another state, but only a short train journey (and huge mental leap for New Yorkers) away. We meet up with Nick, a friend from Tasmania who I last saw in Tokyo. He moved to China and got married, then moved to America a year ago with his wife and young son. He has been made redundant recently and will be heading back to China, so it is fortuitous for us to be in the same country at the same time. He treats us to lunch where I have a hard time deciding whether I would like another burger. I order pasta, as I’m not sure any other burger can live up to the high standards of the piggy. The five of us then wander around the shoreline, admiring the views of Manhattan.
We return by ferry and just as we arrive at the terminal, so does a storm. The ferry still runs, despite the deluge. We get soaked, so take time out to change, then meet again to grab dinner at a Brazilian restaurant, where we have sizzling steak with a mushroom sauce and rice with black beans.
We move on to Swing 46, an old-style jazz venue that hosts swing dancing. We sit at the bar and listen to the band play until 9.30pm, when they have an informal swing class. It’s a similar style to the Jitterbug class we did in Norfolk and they rotate partners, so we get to meet a few people and line up potential dance partners for the freestyle session. It’s all good fun it knocked the salsa “Side, back, step” count out of my head for a while.
Balancing Calories
This is a bonus day in New York – I was meant to leave today, but my plans for Toronto have fallen through, so I’m happy to hang here an extra day. Laura and I go to Juniors for lunch – a New York institution – and I opt for the signature dishes. I have Matzo Ball Soup, which is basically chicken noodle soup with a lump of soft dough mixed with salt and chicken fat among other things (sounds disgusting, but is actually quite tasty) and Pastrami on Rye with Swiss Cheese. I’m glad the sandwich is only a half serve as there is at least three inches of pastrami crammed between those two slices of bread. To top it off, Laura and I are obliged to share a slice of the famed New York Cheesecake. We choose the Devil’s Cheesecake with a side order of strawberries, which is half deliciously soft creamy cheesecake and half chocolate layer cake. Devilish indeed. The slice is so big that even between the two of us we can’t finish it. It may possibly be the most decadent thing I’ve ever tasted.
Laura has an appointment, so I walk with her from Times Square up to 70-something street, then continue to 81st to go to a second hand bookstore. I’m then walk around five blocks east, past the Dakota Building where John Lennon was shot, into Central Park, then back down to 42nd Street. There I buy tickets to another Broadway show, then catch the subway to the huge bookstore on 12th street, walking another six blocks into the bargain, then back to meet Laura and Gregg at Times Square. By now, my feet are aching, so I’m pleased we take a seat in Virgil’s BBQ house, where Laura and I, still full, share an unnecessary side order of delicious ribs.
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