Sweet home Chicago

I had to work during Mum and Dad's recent visit to New York, but I was fortunate to secure a couple of days of vacation so that we could disappear to my old sweet home Chicago. I spent a very happy 4 years there from 2005 to 2009 and while Mum visited me during that period, Dad had never been.  Given that Mum was hell-bent on seeing snow during her US visit, I was fairly confident that Chicago would deliver the goods.

Our American Airlines flight left around 9am one Friday morning, and while the sun was shining on our descent into Chicago, you can see for yourself the frigid conditions awaiting us below.  The ice on Lake Michigan stretched back as far as the eye could see, and snow covered most of the houses and city buildings we flew over.

Chicago O'Hare is the busiest airport in the United States, in terms of flight traffic, but whenever I disembark there I always feel like I'm home again.  I led Mum and Dad through the push and shove of passengers, cabin crew, and airport staff and we headed straight to the baggage claim.  Luggage safely in hand we headed down the escalators to the Blue Line train.

New York has the subway system, but Chicago has the "El" train.  Short for "elevated train", the El is a network of 8 elevated train lines serving over 140 stations.  Like the New York subway system, the El system is colour-coded and clearly marked, and features express and local trains.  The Blue Line runs from Forest Hills (the western terminus), through the City, and out to O'Hare and it is a fantastic way to get to and from the airport.  Not only is it an easy, fuss-free way to travel, but it's inexpensive too.  A one-way taxi fare from O'Hare to Chicago Downtown will cost you about $50 and takes about 30 minutes.  A one-way trip on the Blue Line will only cost you $3 and granted it will take you a little longer, but if you haven't got a heap of luggage, and you're not in a rush, the choice is pretty easy, no?

Another advantage of the Chicago Blue Line train is that it literally stops underneath the baggage claim terminal.  You don't even need to go outside the building to catch it - so handy.  When we got to the station downstairs, I discovered that the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) had replaced its old travel cards with a new Ventra Card system that are like Mastercards (they're credit card sized, and they're rechargeable just like NYC's Metrocards).  In the end, we purchased 3-day Ventra cards from the vending machine to last us for our visit.  The cards can be used on the El trains, as well as on the city buses, so they are a fantastic and flexible way to travel.

Looking back on it, I suppose I was a bit mean making Mum and Dad travel downtown by train, because when we got to the Thompson Center station at Clark/Lake, we had a bit of a walk to get to our hotel.  In fine weather, this would not have been a problem, but winter in Chicago is something else.  You may be aware that Chicago is known as the Windy City.  This nickname actually originated to describe the puffed-up, wind-bag politicians of Chicago's early history, but over time it has also come to capture the heinously cold breezes that come off Lake Michigan, as well as the frozen Chicago River, which winds its way through the Downtown area.  And it was these weather conditions that greeted us as we emerged from the stuffy warmth of the El station.

Needless to say we dragged our suitcases the few blocks to the hotel in basic silence, pausing only to admire the majestic Trump Hotel and also the historical Wrigley Building and the Tribune Tower, that dominate the skyline and Michigan Avenue.

We checked into the beautiful Intercontinental Hotel, where Johnny Weissmuller, Olympic gold medalist and film's original Tarzan, used to train in the gorgeous Olympic-sized swimming pool.  We didn't have time for a dip though because we needed to defrost and have a feed.

For this purpose, we chose the Michael Jordan's Steak House in the lobby of our hotel.  I had neglected to tell Mum and Dad that there is a New York site of the restaurant upstairs at Grand Central Station, overlooking the concourse, and it's a fantastic place to eat and to people-watch. But in Chicago, to be honest, we chose this restaurant not out of any Chicago Bulls loyalty; but rather in part to avoid having to step outdoors in the freezing cold again, but also so we could see my former room mate Lexie, who works in an office building just across the road.  I've been friends with Lexie for 10 years but my Dad had never met her, and Mum had only met her once. It was fantastic to just sit in the restaurant and have a proper catch up with Lex where none of us were actually in a rush or needed to be anywhere in particular.

Food and friends.  This is exactly what our return visit to Chicago was all about, but it was only the beginning!

Cruise with me, baby

I know at times I can be Billy Joel's Uptown Girl, but I also have to confess that every so often, there is something special about escaping New York City to spend the day with Mother Nature.

At 42^nd Street and the Hudson River, you’ll find the dock for Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises.  The company’s fleet offer cruises around Manhattan that vary in duration, and they even have a speedboat called “The Beast” which I suspect is for people much braver than me.

Inspired by the Circle Line's own blog  I took a cruise with the company on Sunday, but mine was a special seasonal adventure.  It took me on a direct journey up the Hudson River to Bear Mountain State Park, which is home to 50 hiking trails, stunning fall foliage, and a fantastic Oktoberfest celebration.

We set off at 9am on Sunday in crystal clear conditions, and as we put-putted up the Hudson River our tour guide pointed out the significant sites along the Manhattan shoreline (including the Cloisters, The Little Red Lighthouse, and the Tappan Zee Bridge – and trust me, these are all future ABCs of NYC adventures).  I have to confess, my attention was repeatedly drawn to the shores of New Jersey on the other side of the river, where there is less infrastructure, and where the fall foliage had definitely taken hold.  Such beautiful colours and gorgeous houses built right into the hillsides.

Arriving at Bear Mountain I was really happy to spot this beautiful yellow tree from the boat; a wonderful omen of the autumnal colours to come.  It had rained all the day before, so I was a bit nervous that the terrain would be slippery but we had no trouble at all.  We hiked up a couple of gentle hills and in less than 15 minutes we walked into the parking lot of the Bear Mountain Inn.  It was exactly the sort of Mountain Man architecture you'd expect to see in a State Park - so much wood, so rugged and unspoilt.  I just loved it!

Bear Mountain got its name because in profile, it apparently looks like a big bear laying down.  The Park hosts about 3 million visitors per year and in fine weather, the place is perfect for hiking (the first section of the Appalachian Trail is up there), but you can also have picnics, row boats, and swim.  There is also a zoo on the site, which actually started as a bear den, but now it hosts a rehabilitation center for a range of injured wildlife.  Come wintertime though, and the ski fields and ice skating rinks are wonderful drawcards for cold weather fans.

On our sunny Sunday visit, the Bear Mountain Inn was doing a fairly quiet trade compared with the raging Oktoberfest happening outside.  So of course, we wandered over to join in the fun.  How relaxing it was to enjoy a bratwurst, with sauerkraut and mustard washed down with an icy cold beer while staring out at a calm lake and the leaves on the trees starting to change into their rust and gold colours.  The trees probably have another week or so to be at their peak of fall brilliance, but they are already looking really beautiful.

So many families had come to the free Oktoberfest celebration and were also enjoying a lake-side picnic in the sunshine.  It was easy to fall into relaxed conversation with the people next to you.  Nobody was in a particular rush to be anywhere, or to do anything in particular.  Manhattan really did feel like half a world away, but I didn't miss the skyscrapers once.

As the afternoon wore on, a polka band entertained the hardcore party people, as lines for the waffles and beer coiled like the giant German pretzels that were also on sale.  I was almost dragged into an impromptu conga line at one stage, but I stood my ground and declined to lose my place in the beer queue.  Watching people do the chicken dance never gets old though, does it?

We all had to be back at the boat for a 3.20pm departure and I am pretty sure we didn’t leave any passengers behind.  Compared with the exuberance of the morning, our boat ride back to Manhattan was much more subdued affair, and I don’t mind admitting that I snoozed for part of the journey.  But fortunately I woke up in time to capture some photographs of the beautiful Manhattan skyline in the fading daylight.  I don’t think I’ll ever tire of those views.

Winter is definitely on its way and we won’t have many more sunny Sundays this year, so I was really glad I could take advantage of this one.  I got to visit a beautiful part of New York State, and peep at the leaves in this beautiful part of the world. 

If you’re coming to New York I would definitely recommend a cruise with Circle Line Sightseeing, but particularly the seasonal Oktoberfest adventure to Bear Mountain.  It’s such a stress-free way to get out of the City for a day and do something a little different with your time here.

A bridge, a square, and some pretty great waffles

Philadelphia-born artist Anne Bascove is most often credited in exhibitions under just her surname (a mononym, for the clever types playing along at home).  Born in 1946, Bascove's work has appeared in books, on posters, and on the walls of museums and art galleries all over.

The New York City scenes in Bascove's more recent works are richly-coloured and (to my untrained eye) almost look like art deco designs, or the sorts of images you'd see in a graphic novel.  Bascoe has especially devoted a lot of time and creativity to capturing the great bridges of New York City.  And I don't just mean the bridges that connect Manhattan with other parts of the country; even the smaller inner-city bridges get a mention - like this one:

Pershing Square Bridge, 1993 - image credit here

If you can't immediately place it, this is the Pershing Square Bridge.  In spite of the lovely bright colours that Bascove has used, you'd be forgiven for thinking this was a post-apocalyptic interpretation of the Bridge - I mean, it's NEVER this quiet here.  The bridge is located outside the 42nd Street entrance of Grand Central Station (around Park Avenue).  It's often known by its technical name, the Park Avenue (or Pershing Square) Viaduct, and it's the ramped roadway that allows Park Avenue to extend from 40th Street, around Grand Central Station, and up to 46th Street.

The square beneath the bridge was built in honor of the splendidly-named General John Joseph "Black Jack" Pershing, the Commander in Chief of the American Expeditionary Force in WW1 and the only person in history to have been promoted to the position of General of the Armies within his lifetime.  That's the highest you can go in the ranks of the US Army and you report directly to the President of the United States.  Pershing was originally a teacher, with no desire to enter the armed forces at all.  But he took the entrance exam at the beautiful West Point Academy on the Hudson River and he passed (by just one point!).  What he lacked in academic skills Pershing more than made up for in "soldierly qualities" and before long he won the admiration of his peers, his commanding officers, and ultimately, Presidents.  For services to his country, General Pershing has been honored with monuments and plaques spread across the United States - including this bridge and square in Midtown Manhattan.

When the City first planned the square in Pershing's honor, it was supposed to be an open space with lots of freedom to move.  But before long, some cheeky entrepreneur sold a portion of the earmarked land to a real estate developer who promptly put up a 24-floor office building and dashed anyone's hopes of peace and quiet.

So in 1939 the City followed suit, and built a steel and glass-brick structure to sit directly underneath the bridge and serve as a tourist office - but ultimately it was converted into the Pershing Square Cafe.  This shiny eatery remains a very popular place for a sit-down breakfast - a lovely bistro, and a nice break from the nearby diners and "get it to go" places.  The waffles are pretty great here, and the cocktails must be worth a try too because the fully-licensed cafe gets packed on Friday nights, particularly between April and October when you can sit outside.

While it might be hard to appreciate the architecture of the Pershing Square Bridge in real life, you can always retire to the cool sanctuary of the Museum of the City of New York because you'll find Bascove's oil on canvas waiting for you there.

Atlantic City: ocean, emotion, and lots of promotion

I came back to work yesterday after two weeks of annual leave.  I had initially planned a “staycation” in New York but instead, I made a couple of impromptu trips interstate, including to Atlantic City in New Jersey.

Once I had battled the madness of the Port Authority Bus Terminal, my express bus trip to Atlantic City last Monday only took about 2.5 hours.  There isn’t much to see along the freeways between New York and New Jersey, but I was too excited to sleep or read, so I just stared out the window and watched the world go by.

Long before Atlantic City’s giant casinos came into view, we passed billboards advertising all sorts of gaming venues, fine dining restaurants, and entertainment options.  I was on the edge of my seat by this point, but I had also started to wonder whether two days would really be enough time to see everything.

I’m not much of a gambler – or at least not a lucky one – so my motivation for coming to Atlantic City had very little to do with the casinos per se.  I definitely wanted to see how Atlantic City compared to Las Vegas (which I absolutely love); but I was also keen to visit the town that inspired the HBO series “Boardwalk Empire”.

Both Atlantic City and Las Vegas have large casino hotels, fine dining options, and outlet shopping malls.  They both also offer high-quality entertainment events.  Michael Buble, Aerosmith, and even Queen will play at Atlantic City’s historical Boardwalk Hall this month.  Live music shows pop up at the beachside bars, and I loved the “Le Noir” theatre spectacular that I saw at the giant Harrah’s complex (think “Cirque de Soleil”, only sexier). 

 But where Las Vegas has the lush greenery, non-stop neon sparkle, and the absurd excess, Atlantic City has a beautiful beach, historical boardwalk, and a long tradition of being a family-friendly holiday and recreation destination by the sea.

 The Atlantic City boardwalk was the first of its kind in the United States and opened on 26 June 1870.  The boardwalk is still lined with many old, art-deco buildings that would have looked magical in their day.  Sadly they’ve now been re-purposed to house souvenir shops and fast food outlets.  If you want to buy an icecream, or you need a pair of sunglasses for 99 cents, you’re in luck.  Development progress and bad weather (including Super Storm Sandy in 2012) have played a part in redefining the look of the Atlantic City boardwalk, forcing the closure of some of the luxury hotels or literally washing away some of the iconic architectural treasures of the past.  But every now and again you see glimpses of old-time Atlantic City, such Fralinger’s, where you can buy original recipe sweet and chewy salt water taffy, which has been sold on the boardwalk since the 1880s.

Atlantic City remains justifiably proud that the Miss America Pageant started there about 70 years ago, and they’ve hosted it ever since.  Steel Pier has jutted off the boardwalk for decades and remains a drawcard for daredevils looking to enjoy sideshow amusements and roller coaster rides.  Garden Pier has the Atlantic City Historical Museum and Art Center, and the Abescon Lighthouse and the Atlantic City Aquarium are within relatively easy reach of the boardwalk.  Atlantic City may not be as bright and brassy as Vegas, but it’s not a sleepy town by any stretch of the imagination.

Throughout my stay, the Atlantic City sunshine was consistently fierce, and there is very little shade along the boardwalk.  I suspect this is intentional, because you’re probably meant to fend off sunstroke by seeking refuge in the air conditioned casinos.  What I didn’t realise until I got home is that Atlantic City also operates a Jitney mini-bus service that will take you to various places in the area so you don’t always have to walk.    Had I known about the Jitney during my holiday, I suspect I would have arrived places looking much less bedraggled.  Had I been a little braver, I might also have taken one of the push-carts/rolling chairs, which are pretty much strollers for grown-ups.   They go up and down the boardwalk and I really wanted to ride in one, but I was too chicken to haggle with the driver and set a price.  Lame, I know. 

Atlantic City is advertised to have amazing dining options but most of the top-shelf restaurants are actually closed on Mondays (and sometimes Tuesdays too).  Other than a truly amazing sub sandwich at the 60 year old, jam-packed White House Sub Shop (which rendered dinner unnecessary), as well as a predictably delicious watermelon margarita at Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, I didn’t get to have any life-changing meals or cocktails.  I just visited at the wrong time of the week; perhaps I will get back to Atlantic City one weekend and remedy that.  And maybe then I’ll be brave enough to engage a rolling-chair driver to deposit me back at my hotel in style.

My new digital camera also got a bit of a workout in Atlantic City and you see my photo album here:

Post by The ABCs of NYC.

Transiting through the tenth circle of hell

Located just off Times Square at 8^th Avenue and 42^nd Street, the Port Authority Bus Terminal is the main gateway for interstate bus services into and out of Manhattan.  It opened in 1950 and is currently the largest and busiest bus terminal in the United States.  There are 223 gates at the terminal, servicing about 8,000 buses and 225,000 passengers every weekday.

But what you can learn only from first-hand experience is that the Port Authority Bus Terminal is also the one place in all of Manhattan that can drive a sane, able-bodied person to the brink of a total nervous breakdown in almost no time at all. 

I discovered this for myself last week when, on the spur of the moment, I decided to take the Greyhound bus from Port Authority to Atlantic City in New Jersey for a mini-break.  My return bus fare was only $44 and I thought that was a real bargain.  It all seemed like such a wonderful and cost-effective adventure.

But first I had to catch the bus and that, dear friends, is where my adventure truly began.

When I emerged from the subway and entered the Port Authority slipstream, I saw a number of departure screens that informed me what gate my bus would ultimately leave from, but they didn’t give me any idea how to find the bus office to print my ticket in the first place.  In fact, signage that would be remotely helpful in any regard is either displayed sporadically, or not at all.  Everywhere I looked, rush-hour crowds swarmed the Terminal, and trying to find 30 seconds to clear my head and get my bearings was pretty much impossible. 

After long, frustrating minutes of dragging my suitcase around the Terminal, I was desperate to find an information booth, or even just someone official who looked like they might work in this crazy nightmare.

By some miracle of the universe, I actually found the Greyhound bus office all by myself.  As expected, the ticket agent was as broken-spirited as I was starting to feel, and he wordlessly printed my tickets for me.  With a listless wave of his hand, the ticket agent dismissed me and I made my way downstairs to the labyrinth of bus departure gates. 

When my eyes finally adjusted to the dim subterranean lighting, I encountered the most colourful cast of characters I’d seen in a long time (even by New York standards). 

Squealing children ran riot through the corridors.  Obese women had shoe-horned themselves into tank tops and short-shorts.  Beer-bellied, sweaty-chested men refused to button up their grimy cotton shirts.  A Chinese woman loudly screamed in rapid-fire Mandarin at anyone who dared to get too close to her.   

Oh God, was this the queue to Atlantic City?  I had never felt more inclined to abandon a holiday so quickly in my life. 

There are about twelve chairs in the entire downstairs waiting area, all located next to the bathrooms, which you can smell from at least 20 feet away.  To preserve whatever vestige of sanity that remained, I stood in the vicinity of my bus departure gate, trying not to stare at the motley crew of passengers that filled the departing buses. 

After what seemed like an eternity in the tenth circle of hell, it was finally time to board my and I got on the end of the queue.  I stood behind two lovely ladies who seemed to find great humour in the depressing chaos around me.  One of the ladies was fanning herself with her ticket and I noticed that she and her friend were actually booked on an afternoon departure from New York.  Fearing I might actually be in the wrong queue after all, I asked the ladies how they were able to get seats on the 11am departure.  They explained that because none of the Greyhound bus seats are actually assigned, it’s a first-come, first-served thing.  You’re actually welcome to line up and squeeze onto an earlier departure, if you arrive in time.  You don’t even go on standby or need to get a new ticket or anything – you just line up and if there’s a seat on-board, you can have it. 

It appears the early bird gets to worm their way out of the Port Authority Bus Terminal first. 

When I was finally in my seat, next to the window and alongside a lovely young mother and her (mercifully) sleeping baby, the journey to Atlantic City was uneventful and actually quite pleasant.  It just seems that for those of us interested in cutting interstate travel costs, Port Authority Bus Terminal is a necessary evil. 

But there is a happy ending to this story.  The Port Authority Board recently approved a $90 million makeover for the whole terminal.  There is rather widespread disagreement on how the funds will be spent, but if they can just improve the lighting, signage, seating, and quality of the toilets, interstate bus travel from the Port Authority Bus Terminal will be a much more pleasant experience for everyone.

Boston: it gives you more than a feeling

I have just come back from two days in Boston and it was just beautiful.  I worked out that it's the first time I've been to this great city in good weather.  The last three times I've been met with snow, high winds, and rain.  But having said that, every trip I've made to Boston so far has given me a fantastic holiday - there is something for everybody here, at any time of year you're fortunate enough to visit.

South Street Station, Boston

In a little over three hours, the Acela Express trains on Amtrak can get you from New York's Penn Station to the impressive South Street Station in Boston.  You can often get cheaper fares on some of the budget airlines of course (and I've flown them too), but generally speaking I like to travel by train, so I will always do that if I can.

This time around I came to Boston on the spur of the moment.  One of my oldest friends is a commercial airline pilot and he was flying into Boston and invited me to visit.  In one of life's happy accidents, given that I was on holidays already, I could make the mid-week trip without any problems.  My Amtrak train was 25 minutes late getting into Boston however, so I dragged my suitcase straight to Captain's hotel and met up with him and the flight crew for a few drinks at their hotel's Irish bar before they turned in for the evening.

The airline's hotel of choice is on the Boston waterfront, right by the super-modern and enormous Convention Center where, on previous visits, I've attended both a classy wine expo, and then a crazy motorcycle expo - with bonus beef jerky!  There must have been another convention in town this week, because hotel rates were astonishingly high at all the hotel properties on that side of the river.

Omni Parker House

Not to be deterred however, I used this as an excellent opportunity to splurge on a fantastic hotel room at the Omni Parker House Hotel in Boston's historical precinct.  Rooms here aren't cheap either; however, the hotel has been operating since 1855 which makes the Omni Parker House the oldest hotel in the United States and boy, has it seen some action over the years!  Charles Dickens, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Ralph Waldo Emerson used to convene here for catch-ups, and Dickens wrote & gave his first public reading of "A Christmas Carol" here.  JFK hosted his bachelor party in the Hotel, and announced his candidacy for Congress here, several years before.  And John Wilkes Booth stayed here 11 days before he assassinated President Lincoln (and was allegedly sighted having target practice near the hotel during his stay).

The Omni Parker House chef also invented the state dessert of Massachusetts in the Hotel's kitchens.  It is called the Boston Cream Pie  and it's actually a cake, not a pie - but of course I had to have one during my visit.  Delicious!  I also made the somewhat fateful decision to enjoy the hospitality of the award-winning whiskey bar located in the hotel lobby, called The Last Hurrah.  They certainly know their way around the whiskey bottles, and they're very generous hosts, let me tell you.

I was nursing a somewhat sorry head early the following morning, when Captain met me at my hotel and we set off for our sight-seeing adventure.  I put Captain in charge of the map immediately, and we wandered over to the tourist drawcards of Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market, as well as the site of the 1770 Boston Massacre, and we did some souvenir shopping along the way.

The grave of Mary Goose, who
inspired the "Mother Goose" myth

History is everywhere you look in Boston, and nowhere is it more obvious than on the headstones in the Granary Burying Ground.  Founded in 1660, this is actually Boston's third oldest cemetery.  A lot of leading figures from the Revolutionary War era are buried here (as well as Mary Goose, who allegedly inspired the "Mother Goose" myth).  When we arrived, we were also lucky to meet Jimmy, a local resident who has prepared little manila folders of trivia for visitors to the site.  You borrow a copy of the folder when you walk in, and return it to Jimmy at the end.  The folder is an excellent resource to guide your walk around the site.  Just by reading the trivia that Jimmy has pulled together, you learn about the origins of the "skull and wings" motif that is popular on a lot of the gravestones you see (where age and weather has not worn away the writing).  Jimmy's folder also shows you the location of some significant graves on the site, including that of John Hancock (first signatory on the US Declaration of Independence), and also explains the history behind the imposing Franklin family cenotaph, which marks the spot where Benjamin Franklin's parents are buried.

Our walk from the Granary Burying Ground led us directly into Boston Common, a free public park spread out over almost 50 acres.  Kids were splashing around in the Tadpole Pool, where the water only comes up their ankles, and there was a popular playground and carousel getting a lot of attention too. Hard to believe that public hangings used to take place here (up until 1817) and livestock used to graze on the lush, green lawns until as recently as the early 1830s.  These days however, joggers and cyclists make full use of the many well-tended footpaths around Boston Common, and there are historical monuments and sculptures to look at along the way.

The swan boats in the Public Garden,
across from Boston Common

If you leave Boston Common and cross over Charles Street you come into the Public Garden, which was the first Botanical Gardens in the United States.  Here you'll find a tranquil duck pond where people and their kids were feeding the ducks, ducklings, and swans.  Continuing the bird theme, there is also a lake where tourists can ride on the famous swan boats, which have been around for about 130 years.  The boats are obviously only out in fine weather, so I got to see them for the first time on this visit.

All our walking around had worked up quite a thirst, so it was logical that we would call in to the famous Cheers bar.  If you're a fan of the TV show, as I am, you will definitely recognise that exterior shot. I indulged in a delicious icy-cold beer which went down a treat, and the gift shop isn't bad either.

At this point in the day I had been talking up a fantastic seafood restaurant that I felt we needed to visit for lunch.  Fortunately Captain's map-reading skills far exceed my own (but whose don't!?) and before long we pulled up to the wonderful Barking Crab restaurant, right on the Boston waterfront.

I came to this great little restaurant on my first visit to Boston and had my very first taste of clam chowder.  It must have made a real impression because I bought my cousin here on a subsequent visit, and I was really keen to share it with Captain too.  Fortunately he was quite taken with the rich and creamy clam chowder and the enormous Alaskan king crab legs, and my lobster roll was just the perfect meal for me.

Captain's flight out of Boston was later that evening, so we parted ways after our lunch and I headed over to the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum, which we could see from the Barking Crab.  I didn't buy a ticket to the Museum itself which I do regret, now that I've seen the website for the place.  But nevertheless, I did relax for a while in the Abigail Smith Tearoom upstairs, and I sampled three delicious teas - including the recreation of two varieties that had actually been dumped into the Harbour in the Boston Tea Party incident of 1773.  While I sipped the tea from my lofty vantage point, I could hear Museum visitors and the rowdy tour guides re-enacting Tea Party scenes, with frequent and resounding HUZZAHS!  This Museum is a definite must-see for history buffs and their families.

Left in charge of my own navigation from here, I trudged back over the bridge in the general direction of my Hotel, stopping off at the historical Old South Meeting House.  Given where I'd just come from, it was actually quite appropriate to call in there, as the Old South Meeting House was where the Boston Tea Party actually began.  Colonists used to gather there for public meetings that would challenge British rule.  As their gatherings grew larger, and anti-British sentiment grew more fervent, the American Revolution gathered steam.  There are a couple of really interesting display boards inside the museum, and even some shout-outs to the women who helped shape the Revolution, at a time when women were really just seen but not heard.  I was particularly taken by the gift shop downstairs, as well as the adjacent second-hand book store, where some books were only one dollar.  Bargain!

You wouldn't think it was possible to still be hungry after all the eating and beer-drinking I had done up until this point.  But clearly we have to get to know each other better because, frankly, there is always room for more food!

I was so proud of myself on Thursday evening, to consult my tourist map and actually get myself to The Union Oyster House, the oldest restaurant in the United States.  In fact, such was my excitement to find the place, I even high-fived the hostess upon my arrival.  Bless her heart, she didn't think I was weird at all.

The Union Oyster House has officially been operating as an oyster restaurant since 1826, but records suggest it was a dining establishment for at least 100 years before that.  The place is now a national historical landmark, for obvious reasons.  I came here on my most recent visit to Boston (a work trip) and dined like a queen in the upstairs dining room, where lucky patrons can still snag a seat in JFK's permanent booth.  This time around, however, I just needed a half-dozen local oysters, and an icy-cold beer to take the edge of my appetite.  Sitting at the tiny oyster-shucking bar just inside the front door, I had a lovely chat with a retired couple next to me, who are doing their "grey nomad" tour through the northeastern US, and had actually come back to the restaurant for the second night in a row.  We were clearly kindred spirits.

On previous trips to Boston, I've been to the beautiful Museum of Fine Arts; I've cheered the Celtics to basketball victory at the TD Garden; and I've done a tour of Fenway Park - home of the famous Red Sox.  I've also done a Samuel Adams brewery tour, which was a great way to see how the tasty local beverages are produced.  As so often happens, time was just too short to see these places again, but I would never hesitate to come back to this wonderful city.  Tourists call Boston "Bean Town" for the famous baked beans recipe that comes from here.  But can you believe I still haven't tried them?  Reason enough to come back, wouldn't you say?

If you want to see some more photos of my Boston adventure, please visit the link below:

Post by The ABCs of NYC.

Hugging the Hudson in the Sunday sun

The Fourth of July weekend closed out in spectacular fashion.  The weather on Sunday was especially beautiful but rather than bear the heat of the concrete jungle, I set myself the goal to basically "Hug the Hudson" and walk from my neighbourhood all the way along the westside of Manhattan down to Battery Park.  A distance of nearly 7 miles (11 kilometres)?  Piece of cake, right?

I set off around 11am and walked underneath the High Line, and past many of the art galleries of Chelsea, ending up at the intersection of 23rd Street and 12th Avenue (also known as the West Side Highway and also known as the Joe Di Maggio Highway).  This busy spot is also the gateway to the Chelsea Waterside Park and my closest entrance to the beautiful, 550-acre Hudson River Park.  If I hadn't been on a mission yesterday, I would definitely have brought my picnic blanket and book down and just sprawled on the lawns somewhere.  The lush, green grass has been well-tended in recent months, and it looked very inviting.  No surprises that they have outdoor cinema and even yoga classes here during the warmer months.

History was made not far from this entrance actually, because the survivors of the Titanic disaster were brought to nearby Chelsea Piers after their rescue at sea.  My walk yesterday took me past this amazing section of the City, now home to a state-of-the-art fitness facility, golf driving range, marina, bowling alley and more.  I took a bit of a detour from the runner/bike path and basically walked through the Chelsea Piers development and it is a really impressive place ("awesome" in the original sense of the word).

The midday sun was pretty fierce yesterday but there were still plenty of people getting their exercise, including a man who was doing squats with his girlfriend on his shoulders.  Show offs!  But having said that, there were just as many people lolling around on the grass, or sitting under the shade of giant trees and around the sculptures dotted along the paths.

Across from the NYC Department of Sanitation (administrative offices) is the new headquarters of the Whitney Museum of American Art which will formally relocate from the Upper East Side to this spot in 2015.  It’s not much to look at right now, but I suspect with some landscaping and modern signage it will end up looking great.  I’m sure it will be a real draw-card for the area too.

There are a number of playgrounds along the path, all fenced in so the kids are safe and a couple of the playgrounds even have a water feature/sprinkler, which the kids were very much enjoying yesterday.  You'll need to trust me on the quality of the playgrounds though, because I really didn’t want to linger too long and be that weird lady who takes photos of other people’s kids.  Having said that, I had no such qualms about hanging out to watch the dogs playing in the numerous dog parks along the route.  There is a lot of space for them to run and play, and they were really enjoying themselves yesterday.

Ahead on the horizon, I could see the Freedom Tower at One World Trade Center dominating the skyline and it was nice to see it get steadily bigger as my walk was coming to an end.   It's quite an iconic part of the skyline now.

With the serene Hudson River and the shoreline of New Jersey on your right, and the roar of Manhattan traffic on the Highway to your left, it can be tricky to work out how far you’ve come on the walk along the Island.  So I was pretty pleased to notice engravings on the ground that tell you what street you’re level with, so you can get your bearings.  Once the footpath signs had told me I had crossed over Houston Street and then Canal Street, I knew I was off my familiar grid, and I was rather pleased to be bypassing the web of nonsensical streets that make up Tribeca and the Financial District.

Rounding the corner into Nelson A Rockefeller Park (site of another popular playground and family picnic area), I could finally see the Statue of Liberty.   She was only tiny from where I was, but she was definitely out there in New York Harbour, and being hounded by the tourist-laden cruise boats that visit her every day.

There are a number of museums along this part of the Park (like the Museum of Jewish Heritage) and a couple of historical monuments too (including the Irish Hunger Memorial) but I didn’t want to detour too far from my mission to go sightseeing.  Plus, it was about this point in the journey that I’d started thinking about an ice-cold beer.  Of course this thought occurred to me pretty much at the same time as I passed the leafy patio area at PJ Clarke’sbar, which sits out the front of the large, glassed-in headquarters of AmericanExpress.  I pressed on, confident I would find a cold ale soon enough.

I thought my entrance into Battery Park, one of the oldest parks in the City, was going to be as simple as following the riverfront path all the way along, but it was not to be yesterday.  There are extensive renovations being done to Battery Park at the moment, including the establishment of a really cool urban farm.  From what I can tell, it has been set up to teach school kids about organic farming and where their food comes from.  It was all fenced off yesterday so I couldn’t poke around for a closer look.  Instead, I followed the plodding tourists around the construction site, along the walkway, and into Battery Park proper.

Battery Park was an important site in the early days of Manhattan.  It was here that the Dutch forces mounted their first “battery” of cannons to defend New Amsterdam.  Castle Clinton was constructed in anticipation of the war of 1812 but was later converted into the City’s first formal outdoor entertainment venue (and renamed the more genteel “Castle Garden”).   In 1896 it was again transformed into the New York Aquarium but these days, Castle Clinton (or Castle Garden) is basically a giant ticket booth for cruises to Liberty Island and Ellis Island, and I’d highly recommend you visit both sites.  There’s also a pretty good gift shop within the Castle walls, which I am glad I avoided yesterday because it was full of people. 

Speaking of which, the cruise boats were jam-packed yesterday and you couldn’t have got me on one of them for anything.  But while I marveled at the contortions being undertaken to fit everyone on board, I noticed there were sailboats and even acouple of tall ships and speedboats out in New York Harbour.  Now, that wouldn’t be such a bad way to cruise, would it?  Rather civilized, I should say, and definitely something to keep in mind for a future visit.

I stopped to take some photos of “The Immigrants” statue as well as the East Coast Memorial, which has the names of all 4,601 American WW2 servicemen who died during combat in the Atlantic Ocean engraved on it.

I contemplated buying a couple of yummy churros from the food vendors onsite but I ultimately decided against it.  I was too focused on making a beeline for the excellent Table Green Kiosk (there are actually two of them along this part of the Park).  Icy-cold beer in hand, I sat at one of the kiosk tables in the shade and read my book for a while all under the watchful gaze of Lady Liberty.  It was a very good day.

I was a bit snap-happy on this seven-mile walk, and you can see all my photos at the link below:

Post by The ABCs of NYC.

Tuning in to New York's largest music scene

From 10am to 10pm on Saturday June 21st, Make Music New York returned to the city for its summer solstice program.  Musicians of all ages turned over 400 public areas across New York into their own performance spaces.

I had a look at the website during the week but had no idea how I was going to make sense of a 1,300-concert program.  Should I confine myself to one particular neighbourhood or genre of music, or should I seek out the participatory gigs, the ones where I could actually join in and contribute to the noise?

Ultimately the event website made my decision for me, suggesting a "World Tour: By Sea" itinerary, with performers dotted along the East River Ferry route from Midtown Manhattan, across to Queens and Brooklyn, and then concluding in Lower Manhattan.  I could have done a different tour by land, of course, but Saturday's bright sunshine just seemed to lend itself perfectly to a self-guided East River cruise.

After a delicious diner breakfast back in my old Midtown hood, I wandered over to the East River Ferry terminal at 34th Street.  The queue for the ticket machine was already really long, but I could see the first band of the day playing for the small but appreciative crowd.  I couldn't exactly hear the band of course, owing to the jackhammers and construction activity across the street from the ferry.  But once I'd got hold of my ferry ticket, I came in for a closer look and listen.  Pangean Orchestra are a global ensemble based in New York that play instruments from all over the world, and they perform folk songs and traditional music.  Their rendition of "This Little Light of Mine" was a fun and bouncy start to my Make Music New York experience.

The first stop on our ferry tour was Long Island City in Queens.  I think South African performer Toya Delazy had the best backdrop of all, as she played her set in front of the sprawling Midtown Manhattan skyline.  The ferry terminal in Long Island City has a great little cafe and lots of seating right along the riverfront.  I have never disembarked the ferry in LIC before, and even though I was only here to listen to Toya's performance, I think it's definitely worth a visit back to look around (beyond the high-rise apartments going up).

Back on the ferry, we headed to Williamsburg in Brooklyn, where Jarana Beat had set up in the East River State Park next to Smorgasburg.  The band's Mexican tunes were lively, and upbeat - perfect for the young crowd, and somewhat of a subliminal influence on my dining choices (the beef and pork tacos were spicy and amazing).  As much as I like the diversity of the giant Smorgasburg food market, there isn't much in the way of shade there.  And with the Saturday sun at its hottest, I was more content to head back to the ferry and press on with the tour.

What a treat to pull up to the Fulton Ferry Landing in Brooklyn Bridge Park!  There were people everywhere, but unlike the congestion of Williamsburg, this crowd had more room to move and we were all taking full advance of the riverfront walkways, playgrounds, dining areas and some people were even having a go at canoeing.  But of course I was here for music, and so I peeked in at the unique Bargemusic venue to hear some classical music.  Known as "New York's floating music venue", Bargemusic really is just that: a barge that sways with the movement of the East River.  Throughout the year, the venue hosts a bunch of music concerts - mostly classical - and their Summer Concert series offers free concerts on Saturday afternoons at 3pm in June, July and August (though the catch is, you don't know what the concert will be until you get there).  I hardly think it matters though, because a free concert in a great venue like that, coupled with a refreshing glass of sparkling rose at the nearby Brooklyn Bridge Garden Bar will get your summer weekend off to an amazing start.

We weren't as pressed for time by this stage in the day, so I might have squeezed in a couple of glasses of sparkling rose in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge.  I am not sorry for it.

But Manhattan beckoned, and we took the ferry over to Pier 11 (Wall Street) and the short walk to South Street Seaport for the final music performance on our itinerary.  The seaport took a real battering after Super Storm Sandy and things are taking time to return to normal.  But events like the Make Music New York Festival are a great way to attract people back to the area and keep the businesses bustling.  We arrived at the seaport just as Gamelan Dharma Swara was taking its break, but we had a great time watching young kids from the crowd jump in and have a go at playing gamelan (Balinese percussion instruments).  The noise was about as deafening and uncoordinated as you'd imagine.

Feeling very proud that we managed to tick off all the performances on our suggested itinerary without getting lost once, we rewarded ourselves with a few beers and some dinner The Beekman pub.  The Irish bar has been open in the Financial District since 1936, and the bartender was playing a great 1970s playlist so clearly we were not going anywhere else.  It was a lovely way to finish up our music-filled sunny day.

The Make Music New York winter solstice program will take place on December 21st, when a similar 12-hour line up will be organised.  I will be in Australia that day, otherwise I know I would be braving the cold to hear some more great tunes.  But if you're going to be in NY then, try and get along to some of the gigs.  You definitely won't regret it.

The photos on this page are just a small selection of the ones I took during the day.  You can see the whole album by clicking here.

Wandering Williamsburg

When it's a warm, sunny day and you don't have anywhere in particular to be, it pays to get outside and just walk this amazing city.  But if randomly roaming is not your style, you can always latch on to a professional tour guide to shepherd you along and help you explore.  Such was my experience today over in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

I was up early this morning and walked over to the subway station at 14th Street and 8th Avenue, and took the L train over to Brooklyn.  My ears popped as we left Manhattan behind, and sped far under the  water of the East River.  Surfacing at Bedford Avenue, I walked on the sunny side of the street  until I arrived at the meet-up point.  Before long, Jeff Stirewalt from Brooklyn Unplugged Tours arrived and our small group set off on the company's signature two-hour walking tour of the area.

Joining me on today's adventure was a friend from home who works for a travel agency, and neither of us know Brooklyn very well at all.  Under Jeff's guidance we wandered the streets, and heard stories about the demographics of early Brooklyn (before it was officially part of New York).  We learned about "The Great Mistake of 1898" which resulted in the merger of the five boroughs to comprise New York - refer the great article here.  We talked about the opening of the Williamsburg Bridge in 1903, which finally made it possible for thousands of impoverished immigrants from the Lower East Side tenements of Manhattan to get to the rich, gentrified neighbourhoods of Brooklyn - and neither place was ever the same again.

 But we also celebrated the modern-day artists, artisans and craftspeople of Williamsburg, passing by some great street art.  Jeff told us that there are three types of street art in the City:  no-permission, which is the illegal graffiti; permission, which is when a building owner gives an artist approval to paint their mural on the building's facade; and commission, which is when the building owner actually commissions the artist to put some work up, and then pays them for it.  Jeff showed us examples of all three types of street art today, but my friend and I agreed that the "permission" works were our favourites.  I just loved all the colours - some people are so clever.

Speaking of clever artwork, we called in to the sculpture workshop of Israeli-born artist Boaz Vaadia who does some really impressive work with pieces of slate (many of them life-size, but also smaller ones that I think might look just right on my mantlepiece).  By chance, we found the artist in residence today, and he was kind enough to share some of his memories with us about what it was like to live in the neighbourhood when he bought his building in the 1980s.  We talked about the Mob dumping bodies nearby, that prostitution was everywhere, and drug use was rampant.  What a difference 30 years makes!

We had some tasty chocolate treats at Mast Brothers Chocolate, who hand-craft their delights on-site.  I chose this moment to use the restrooms at the fantastic German restaurant and beer hall next door (of course). This place only has a narrow frontage, but is really sprawling inside and is a wonderful vintage throwback to the original German immigrants who settled here and kicked off the craft beer-brewing industry that is now so popular in Brooklyn.

As we headed towards the East River, we passed the fantastic Brooklyn Brewery, and found ourselves opposite an old barrel-making factory - a cooperage - which  has now been restored and repurposed into the Wythe Hotel (with a great restaurant downstairs and fantastic rooftop bar upstairs).  To our left we could see the old Domino sugar factory which is currently home to an amazing art installation by Kara Walker, but which will soon be turned into a hideous modern apartment complex (trust me - I saw the artist rendition drawing).

Before we knew it, we had arrived at the waterfront, bustling with people enjoying the tasty delights of the outdoor food festival, Smorgasburg.  When our tour ended and we said our goodbyes, my friend and I found a shady spot along one of the brick walls and enjoyed some delicious treats and refreshing lemonade from one of the nearby stalls.

With the sun warming me all the way down to my bones, we finally parted ways at the East River Ferry and I made my way back to the subway.

It was great to have Jeff walk us around the Williamsburg neighbourhood, giving us the inside scoop on places I've only ever walked past before.  Jeff has lived in Brooklyn his whole life and his expertise is obvious - we really enjoyed the visit.

I've only posted a couple of photos from today's walking tour on this page, but you can see the other ones in the photo album here.