T’Other End of 42nd Street

Posted June 21, 2008 by Famous Ankles
Categories: Manhattan, Mid-town, Wanderings

In yesterday’s post, I showed the east end of 42nd Street. It’s only fair that I now show the west side of the same street. Balance is restored in the universe. Whew, it was close.

And here it is; the point where 42nd Street drivers would plunge into the Hudson River…providing they weren’t shunted to the side onto 12th Avenue by lots and lots of obstacles.

And the view from 12th Avenue of the intersection.  You may note some of the obstacles starting here.  If nothing else, lots of traffic.  In NYC, you see a lot of drivers push through a red light by following the car in front.  It seems to be nearly a requirement at this intersection.  I saw it more here than at most intersections…and I see it all the time at other intersections.

It’s true that the area doesn’t have a lot of retail.  But apparently it is getting a new entertainment complex.  Yes, bowling comes to NYC.  Okay, okay; there’s lots of bowling in NYC already.  But we’re getting more.

Here’s the other obstacle.  A marina.  Not just any marina, but the Circle Line.   I’ve said it before in this blog:  if you visit NYC, take the Circle Line tour of Manhattan.  In fact, take the longest tour you can and circle the island.  I think it’s about three hours long.  “A three-hour tour”?  Shades of Gilligan’s Island!

Of course, that’s Mid-Town West behind it.  Ain’t New York grand?  I’ll say it is.

-H

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The End of 42nd Street

Posted June 20, 2008 by Famous Ankles
Categories: Manhattan, Mid-town

42nd Street is one of the most famous streets in all of NYC. (Okay, Broadway and Wall St. have it beat, and maybe 34th Street…and maybe 57th and a few others…)

42nd Street cuts across Manhattan pretty much right in the middle of the island. At the east side (which is what the below picture shows), the street goes right past the United Nations and then plunges into the East River as it tries to link into Queens. Okay, scratch that. It actually merges into FDR Drive which runs north-south.

I was looking at it the other day and just thought it was interesting that the street at this point is really mundane.

-H

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A Small Spalding Gray Memorial

Posted June 19, 2008 by Famous Ankles
Categories: Celebrity Points, Greenwich Village, LES, Manhattan, Wanderings

I’ve been to the area about five to seven times; Tompkins Square Park. One of my favorite spots is the Temperance Fountain. That fountain was established a hundred years ago to provide fresh water and (hopefully) wean people away from alcohol.

I had never noticed that the pavers around the fountain had dedications. Not all of them, but a bunch. As I circled it and looked (‘cuz I’m that kind of guy), I spotted a familiar name: Spalding Gray.

I never knew him or met him.  I best remember him in the movie “Swimming to Cambodia”.  He was something of a mezmerizing storyteller.

The paver reads “To The Best Dad in The World Spalding Gray All our love Marissa, Forrest Theo”.  According to Wikipedia, Marisa was his stepdaughter and the other two were his sons.  (And Wikipedia spells Marissa with one “s” whereas the paver has two.  I don’t know the right one.) [UPDATE:  Spalding Gray webmaster John Boland has provided the correct spelling:  “Marrisa”.  So the paver ought to read “To The Best Dad in The World Spalding Gray All our love Marrisa, Forrest Theo”.  This would correct the spelling of Marissa/Marrisa.]

But I do know that I enjoyed his monologue in Swimming to Cambodia.  Absolutely riviting.  I saw parts of “Monster in the Box” and enjoyed that, too.

-H 

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Wall Street Subway Stop

Posted June 18, 2008 by Famous Ankles
Categories: Manhattan, Wanderings

Strange as it may seem, one of the first subway stops I ever used in NYC was the Wall Street stop.

It’s strange because I’ve only been through it about five times in four years and it was perhaps the second stop I used (having started from Grand Central). And as grand and huge as Grand Central is, the Wall Street stop is tiny and blech.

It’s about as small a station as you’ll ever find in NYC. You think about how many people must come here, and how tiny the space is next to the tracks.

But then, they don’t come to this stop to wait around and enjoy the view.

-H

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Re-Visiting the Berlin Wall

Posted June 17, 2008 by Famous Ankles
Categories: Manhattan, Mid-town, Wanderings

I’ve posted on the New York City Berlin Wall exhibit before.  I was walking by it again last Sunday and knew it was there.  I just peeked over and noticed it was deserted.  No big deal.  I had my camera and took a quick snap.  Once again, no big deal.  I doubted I’d get a post about it…or rather, I doubted I could figure out an angle to share some more pictures of the Berlin Wall in the blog.

But I have.

It’s one of the rules of tourism.  Nobody sees nothing until somebody sees something.  After a few moments, I walked over to the wall, and all of a sudden at least three groups of people converged on the spot.  They may have seen me taking a picture or just staring at the Wall and then joined in, having noticed the Wall themselves.  Or they saw other people watching me looking at the Wall. Or maybe…

Or maybe they wanted to take a look at the Wall themselves and had come thousands of miles to see it in solitude and couldn’t ’cause some guy spoiled the one moment that the Wall was undisturbed.  (Not pictured, a Japanese couple who had me take their photo up against the Wall.)

-H

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