Today was the Winter Jam Festival in Central Park (a winter sports program hosted by the NYC Parks Department to get people out and exercising) so we rugged up and went west to check out the action. The ‘jam’ turned out to be good fun if you’re into snowboarding or quidditch but we enjoyed our walk around the lake that was now (for the first time this winter) completely frozen over. We had a light lunch with the rich and famous at the Boathouse before setting off for Roosevelt Island.
Note - there is a great little bar at the Boathouse with a cosy fireplace overlooking the lake that looks worth checking out more thoroughly next time we’re passing.
Saturday seems to be the day that the locals do their shopping here but generally NYC is reasonably deserted on the weekends (except that is for guys doing repairs to the roads). No big trucks zooming down the avenues and few taxis on their horns. It does seem to be true what they say about the aftermath of 9/11 – New Yorkers are more tolerant of each other and feel closer (or at least less combative) after facing disaster and more willing to work with each other in the face of adversity to build a more cohesive sense of community.
The cable car ride to Roosevelt Island was interesting and provided a great vantage point from which to take photos of the East River. The island has a fascinating history – from vegetable patch for the Dutch, to a smallpox hospital, to a jail (where Mae West was put once for ‘lewd behaviour’ on stage), to a ‘lunatic asylum’ and now to low cost housing co-ops. We did the 25 cent circular tour on the ‘Big Red Bus’ and then took the return trip on the ‘ariel tramway’ that gave a great view of a massive traffic jam over the Queensboro Bridge – oops so much for the no honking agreement!
That's our place just in front of the big black building on the left. |