Back to NYC

We moved this morning from Newark to Harlem with all our luggage and it took us almost two hours by trains and walking. As always, we enjoyed a warm welcome at our friends' historic brownstone house – it feels like a home away from home and, it's good to be at the same place for 4 nights after having had 16 hotels! Early afternoon we went out again to explore parts of the city which were on our list to check out for a soon due NYC guidebook update. Thanks to our 7-day-Metro Card (still $ 32!) we are able to use the subway quite frequently, but nevertheless, it's always a lot of walking in NYC, climbing stairs up and down to/from stations and waiting for trains. Also, still have to get used again to the hectic, the noise, the many people (and tourists).

Just a couple of pictures following: the first ones from the new Hudson Yards project, a conglomeration of modern highrises which are supposed to form a new Midtown skyline once they are accomplished, from about 800 to 1,300 ft. (240-390 m) high from well-known architects like Diller, Scofidio + Renfro, Bjarke Ingels Group or Foster + Partners, SOM or Kohn Pedersen Fox. It will be a multi-purpose complex with apartments, shops, a cultural center (The Shed), a park, hotels, restaurants, and an observation platform on top of one of the skyscrapers. Almost accomplished is the "Vessel" a public artwork by Thomas Heatherwick, a 150 ft (50 m) high construction, called "Stairway to Nowhere". Once in the future it'll be surrounded by a public park. Architecture is not really eye-catching or unique here, rather uniform: lots of glass, boxes with some twists or changes in shape, but not really "inventive" anymore.

The Shed & The Vessel:


And, again the whole complex with the Empire State Building in the background:

Afterwards we walked along the High Line opened in 2009 as a public "boulevard" on raised former railroad tracks where visitors can experience nature, art, and design. It's lined by (more creative) architecture, e.g. by Zaha Hadid (pic) or Frank Gehry. Lots of construction going on here, too!


Art?, too, on the High Line:

And, finally, we ended at Union Square on the market to buy Peter's beloved pretzels, dark bread, cheese and cider. The variety and quality of the produce offered here is always fascinating. On the way up to Harlem we stopped at the new Whole Foods there (an organic supermarket, comparable with "Basics" in Germany, but much larger) and got us some other food items for breakfast and some beer.