The train ride into Manhattan each day has quickly become my bed. I had every intention of using this hour of quiet time to blog or read but with all the early starts and late nights that dam rocking sensation kept lulling me to sleep. Sleeping or snoozing for an hour on a train kind of knocks you for six when you now have to go full swing into the madness that is the Manhattan business borough *no the for yawns*. So stock standard each morning when mom and I emerged from the grandness of Grand Central we’d go straight across 42nd street to the famous grand central cafe for a coffee before we start our excursions falling instep with all the locals – HA! We don’t even wait like the tourists do for the lights to change when crossing the street *learning fast*.
To date we have explored pretty much everything in Downtown and Uptown Manhattan my favorite few places being Times Square which is so major because its the junction between Broadway and Seventh Avenue so there’s this mix of restaurants, entertainments, clothing stores (that are 5 stories and stay open till 2am!!!) and it is totally insane at night. I mean it’s bright and colourful and busy and nonstop flashing in your face during the day but at night it turns into this illuminated wonderland that becomes (if even possible) more crowded. To give you an idea of how many people bustle in and around I came across a survey done in 2011, Times Square is the most visited tourist attraction in the world with over 39 million people visiting annually and approximately 300,000 people passing through daily! Mother F, they weren’t kidding when they said daily. 20 minuets in and I was ready to running klap the next person who walked into me the only problem being that I would land up klapping the whole of Times Square. So what did I do? I stood in the middle of the road while the traffic light was red and took pictures without fools getting in the way of my shots. A boer maak a plan neh!
Exploring Central Park was divine and by far a lot quieter. Well I’m a tourist and it is winter after all but you really do feel like you’ve left the madness of the city because you can no longer hear the streets only birds. We actually sat down for tea / lunch / holiday eating all the freaking time… and we’re joined by about 10 fat little finches. Not shy at all flying right up to my plate to peck at my bagel.
Central Park is 843 acres or 3.4 km’s and I think we only walked about 1 km while following little pathways that wound around a pond taking pictures of all the almost blossoms on the trees and daffodils starting to show themselves – so relaxing to just wonder around. I did feel like tripping a runner after my tea / lunch / stuff my face session out of jealousy and guilt. There are so many runners and foreign nannies pushing strollers. My best view of the park was from the top of the Rockefeller building, Top of the Rock as the locals say.
Apparently the views from the top of the rock are better than the Empire State building and they were… Scary being so high up, those of you who know me know that I’m not a fan of heights especially when there is no protective glass or boundary. I now understand why NYC has so many jumpers – my God those buildings are high! The cars looked like the size of my baby toe nail and I couldn’t make out a single person on the streets! Yikes!
Next on my agenda was the MET. The Metropolitan Museum of Art baby and I almost ran the last block of Central Park dragging my Mother along to get there! I got such a fright when I rounded the corner and saw all the renovation scaffolding, I would seriously have been mortified if it was closed! A 5 year old whirlwind of a tantrum would have ensued big time.
Each touristy thing I’ve been to I has kinda left me feeling a bit like Ebenezer Scrooge being that I kept converting back to Rands and at some places feeling a bit ripped off but not here, here I was more than happy to pay the 25 Dollars (which I think is very little for what you get to see actually) and I could have spent days in this place. Funny, I’m not by any means religious and no amount of staring at the millions of Jesus and Mother Mary Renaissance paintings could turn me BUT each museum I have been to throughout the world has always made me feel like I’m in a holy place or my holy place and the MET – Wow, the MET is everything I wished I could have been talented enough to become and how the world has been shaped. No amount of books or googling can teach you what you learn from the great art from the ages. And please not just drawing and painting but sculptures, architecture, carpentry, printing, textiles, lighting gosh just about everything!
I spent 3 glorious hours in here and it wasn’t enough. I felt like I was running from room to room trying to see everything I could but the MET is just too huge and we were on limited time unfortunately but I can’t wait to go back and do it all over again! I bought the most stunning book on all the Art in the MET and devoured it in one sitting. Bliss!
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