Walk in the park

In the South, summertime means beating sunshine, stifling humidity, and sweating.  In the North, summertime means eating and drinking outdoors whenever possible, sunbathing on an emerald lawn, and evenings that look and feel like daytime.  This past weekend, we escaped from the suffocating heat in the South and took a trip up north for Bryan’s first trip to NYC to do just those things.  The forecast had called for rain but instead we got a cloudy, cool 70 degree day, which I welcomed with open arms.


I had somehow persuaded Bryan to join me in visiting my old friend the Metropolitan Museum of Art by baiting him with a stroll through Central Park on the way.  It was the best weather to be walking around the city and people watching.  Most New Yorkers must have felt the same way because the fountains at Central Park were lined with people, and a lot of the city was wrapped up in World Cup mania and kicking soccer balls in the available green spaces. 


The last time I had visited the Met was in 2006, and it never fails in impressing even the most uninterested patrons.  The exhibits are always precisely curated and the building knows how to show off its open atriums and large exhibition spaces.  The Costume Institute’s “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination” exhibit was on display in the Medieval Sculpture Hall and was about as dramatic as you’d expect it to be after the hubbub around the Met Gala - it was beautifully shown and the space was perfect for it.  Bryan’s favourites were the Egyptian exhibit and the Arms and Armor exhibit which are the old faithfuls of the Met.  He was entranced by some Van Goghs in the European Paintings galleries, and we ran through the last part of the museum trying to find View of Toledo (my favourite painting).  Both of us left the museum knowing that we hadn’t seen it all and promising that we would have to come back again someday.

Bryan’s cousin lives in Brooklyn, so we took the subway down and spent the afternoon hanging out with her and her boyfriend, wandering around the waterfront.  Having tour guides take us to their all-time favourites - Grimaldis and hipster bars - is the best way to see a city, in my opinion.  All told, we walked 11 miles that day and the only souvenir we picked up were black & white cookies, nabbed from an upper east side deli.

In conjunction with the trip, I dropped Bowie off for his first overnight boarding experience at the vet’s office.  I won’t say I wasn’t a little concerned as to how he’d react to being taken, but he pulled the handler away from me, en route to inspect new smells, and my concern evaporated just as quickly.  The vet emailed us a few pictures of him while we were gone, and he didn’t look too thrilled about being left behind but he looks just as grumpy when you wake him up from a  nap as well.

It has been way too long since I’ve done a quick weekend trip like that and even though it was tiring to spend all that time traveling to get to the destination and then not stop moving once you arrive, getting a mental break and physical separation from “home” was wonderful.   You can bet that I will be on the lookout for more opportunities to run away that crop up.


Comments

  1. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is my favorite place in NYC too

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    1. I wouldn't mind doing an entire weekend in NYC just devoted to museums

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  2. Aaaaw...that's great to hear you guys got some time off to yourselves and went to NYC, Ruth:) Going to MoMA is on my bucket list, and your post just made me wanna go NOW! Can't believe I've never been to the city. And yay that you went when the weather was good:)

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  3. What a fun weekend! I've been to NYC a bunch but never to the Met. We went to MoMa last Christmas and that was really amazing.

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  4. I've never been to NYC & I really want to go sometime! Glad that y'all had a good little getaway & that Bowie had a successful stay at the vet!

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  5. I've never been to NYC & I really want to go sometime! Glad that y'all had a good little getaway & that Bowie had a successful stay at the vet!

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  6. You really lucked out with the weather. It has been crazy in NYC lately. We're in the midst of a gross heatwave that will be carrying over this weekend and beyond. It has been a year since my last visit to The Met and I'm so overdue :D

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    1. Spending a day in the museum is the best for poor weather conditions - they were pumping the AC pretty hard

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  7. Ain't nothing like a quick weekend trip!

    Happy 4th of July!

    Blue

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  8. I grudgingly admit the Met is pretty awesome. The Smithsonian's little Cooper-Hewitt design museum in NYC can't compete. But if you ever want to see a Carnegie mansion, it's worth a few minutes. I would have agreed with Bryan on the favorites. Which reminds me, I need to find a place to hang my favorite poster--it is a suit of armor that promoted an old exhibition. I found it in a storeroom and no one else wanted it. So I do have a few "treasures" of my own--though most fit in a small drawer. :)

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    1. You could hang the poster in your office!

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  9. I haven't been to New York City in a loooong time but I want to go back someday. I wouldn't want to live there permanently, but I'd love to trade lives with a big NYC socialite for a week or two to see how different our lives are.

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    1. It's really fun to visit and then go home to a place that isn't nearly as crowded

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  11. Sounds fun! I love exploring NYC!

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  12. Your description of summertime in the North was so familiar, from my days in Michigan! I love Michigan summers. I was just talking to a friend about how I feel I don't spend as much time outdoors here as I'd like...it's just tough to be in the sun when it's that hot out! Glad you guys had a great getaway! It's so worth it to just go on an adventure somewhere else once in a while!

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    1. We're heading to Michigan in August and I'll make sure to soak up the northern summer for you there. I understand how you feel about hiding inside during the summertime - that's what I've been doing most weekends now

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  13. I don't know about the rest of the north, but in New England I'm pretty sure summer fridays were made for day drinking at an outdoor bar. I'm glad you had fun in NYC, it can be such a fun place!

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  14. Luckily the weather cooperated, although one single weekend was not nearly long enough. Now Bryan wants to go back!

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