Saturday morning New York is quiet - for New York. Chris suggested an early morning walk in Central Park which is less than a block away.
Chris and Bill in front of Bethesda Fountain.
This from centralpark.com website: "The Bethesda Fountain is one of the most well known fountains in the world, and the statue at its center was the only sculpture to have been commissioned as a part of Central Park's original design. The angel carries a lily in one hand while the other remains outstretched, poised in the action of delivering a blessing on the water pouring from around her feet and into the basin at the bottom of the fountain. This is to commemorate the 1842 opening of the Croton Aqueduct, which supplied New York City with fresh water. Angel of the Waters was designed by Emma Stebbins in 1868 and dedicated in 1873, at which point Stebbins became the first woman to receive commission for a major work of art in the city of New York."
From another view.
At 7.00 am in the morning we saw wedding photos being taken. Good to get in early before everyone arrives in the park?
Here's an intro on Central Park from http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/park-history.html, it's huge. "Visionary New Yorkers: On July 21, 1853, the New York State Legislature enacted into law the setting aside of more than 750 acres of land central to Manhattan Island to create America’s first major landscaped public park; they would soon refer to it as “the Central Park.” Many socially conscious reformers understood that the creation of a great public park would improve public health and contribute greatly to the formation of a civil society. Immediately, the success of Central Park fostered the urban park movement, one of the great hallmarks of democracy of nineteenth-century America."
From 1902, "Central Park has twenty-eight miles of pedestrian paths, six miles of undulating drives to be shared by both equestrians and carriages, and a rural bridle trail exclusively for horseback riding. Central Park’s six-mile tree-lined perimeter offered an urban promenade that acted as a buffer between the city and the Park. To ensure the safety and psychological peace of mind for all Park visitors, Calvert Vaux and/or assistant architect Jacob Wrey Mould created a series of ornamental bridges that separated walkways for quiet strolling from the faster horse and carriage traffic. Central Park was also designed as a vital cultural resource, offering flexible spaces for music and the visual arts, passive recreation such as sketching and birding, and active sports such as boating, ice skating, baseball, tennis, and croquet, and an outdoor classroom for the appreciation and study of botany." There are 29 sculptures in the park now. This archway is a sculpture.
I love this Alice In Wonderland sculpture. From Wikipedia: "José Mariano de Creeft (1884 -1982) was a Spanish-born American artist, sculptor, and teacher known for modern sculpture in stone, metal, and wood, particularly figural works of women. His 16 ft bronze Alice In Wonderland climbing sculpture in Central Park is well known to both adults and children in New York City."
An interesting tree.
Then we heard the peloton coming. There was an early morning race on.
Captured on video on another lap.
One path.
The walkers at one of the 9 bridges.
This is the lake and NY skyline I captured.
And on that path we had an interesting exchange with a NYer. We were three abreast and she ranted to us we that we were "inconsiderate, you are taking up too much of the path, others like to use this park, you are obviously not from NY" etc. I apologised and moved back and that seemed to give her more permission to raise the bar with more rant. "You are selfish. you are just.... (I can't repeat)." Up till the time I moved back I thought the lady could have a point. After her continuous rant I wondered whether she was on drugs!
After a coffee we walk back to Chris and Renee's, and then lunch. This picture was taken outside a favourite restaurant of theirs.
We were given chocolates at the end of lunch, they were fern shaped. Chris a proud kiwi.
We say goodbye to Chris and Renee. We prepare ourselves for 'The Play That Went Wrong'. We walk there through Central Park again.
And past the Met Museum. We went another time to visit this museum with the family and I remember Lachie did not want to leave! He said he wanted to stay the whole day and would come back again and again.
Then 'The Play That Goes Wrong'.
I would not recommend The Play That Goes Wrong. It was slapstick comedy. While it was clever - the set caught fire, and the set fell in, and I was surprised at times - but it was a try-too-hard to be funny, and in my opinion wasn't very funny. Maybe I need to go to slapstick comedy more often to get it. A lady in front of me was laughing the whole time - she looked like she could have gone every night. A dozen people laughing at everything.
An example of funny is that it wasn't The Play That Goes Wrong - it was really the Murder at Haversham Manor. HA HA.
