The Big Apple

We got back from Manhattan yesterday afternoon after an all-day flight that took us through four airports. I don't know where to start so thought I'd start with the first photo I took, from the dining room window looking over the Hudson River to New Jersey and a tiny bit of Washington Bridge on the upper right.

Ian's brother and sister-in-law bought this apartment years ago when Neil was back in New York a lot. We are fortunate that they have been so generous with us. It was rather bittersweet that we observed the 5th anniversiary of Neil's death date while we were there. He absolutely loved New York.
I was fascinated by all the shipping activity on the Hudson and took a lot of photos that I won't attempt to blog, but I will bore you with NYC for another week or until I get the laundry done and my house clean. On this particular day, the forecast for rain was 100%. I have never experienced that forecast before. It rained all day and we took our umbrellas out into that forecast. I also have never poured water from a folded umbrella before.
Though he couldn't swipe a subway pass on the first time to save his life, Ian fell in love with the subway system.

A whole culture exists below ground in this maze called the subway - shops, clothing stores, and the odd ball street entertainer. With so many art institutes nearby, many are genuine artists. We heard a baritone singing "Ave Maria" and I thoroughly expected to see a large black man (think "Old Man River") and so I was surprised to finally come upon a small Korean man with this huge voice. Little Sharon was with us and teased me about being a racist.
There's a reason why it's called Rush Hour. There's room on the subway cars for everyone waiting for that train, every last one.

In her book, The Girls Guide to Hunting and Fishing, Melissa Banks records the Burma Shavesque poem on the overhead beams at the Time Square transfer point: "Overslept. So Tired. If late, Get fired. Why bother: Why the pain? Just go home. Do it again." I had seen it a few years ago and now it's there but now in a permanent form and I was thrilled to see it.