Small Town Bumpkins...Big City Adventures
Awakening to a hazy day, we got a late start deciding what we would do today. Deciding to go to the city again and see where the day would take us, we caught the 11Am ferry from Liberty Landing Marina to the World Financial Center/Brookside dock.
New York was our principal destination for this trip up the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, and after some 1800 nautical miles, we are settled in to the Liberty Landing marina. Over the past week or so, we have been exploring New York City and Jersey City NJ across the Hudson (where the marina is located.) We've had a great time, enjoying the two-part Harry Potter play, the irreverent and hilarious Book of Morman, and caught the final performance of Escape to Margaritaville.
Jimmy Buffett arrived at the end and treated the audience to a great encore performance with the cast. At the end he opined that the show was cut early and his disappointment was palpable. Marvin took to Facebook with a little poem:
Buffet responded only to this posting among all of the congratulatory messages, so we believe it got through to him. We hope so. Recognition of his gravitas and accomplishment is perhaps constrained by the laid-back beach persona he has cultivated so well.
The ferry ride through the haze gave us a different view of the city and landmarks than the mostly clear skies we've had since arriving in NYC. It's interesting to hear the complaints of the locals about the heat and humidity that, while uncomfortable, is no match for the North Florida summer. We're glad to have the A/C on the boat though.
Walking south through the financial district we sought out a landmark building that the Kaufman group had built in the late 80s. We met Mel Kaufman through his then-wife Lucia Mercer - both were remarkably interesting people. Marvin served on the board as a director of a short-lived foundation focused on marine science and underwater archaeology that they set up to benefit the Florida Keys and IU. Lucia was fun and eccentric and passionate about the environment - an accomplished designer with Knoll Studios.
Mel was a visionary builder with many signature properties in Manhattan. All were infused with art and whimsy.
( http://www.thecityreview.com/Kaufman.html )
After wandering the walkway around the shore through Battery Park we looked for the charging bull - a cultural icon that has come to symbolize Wall Street.
The sculptor, Arturo di Monica ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arturo_Di_Modica ), was not commissioned to do the piece or even authorized to place it there. We met him on San Salvador Island in The Bahamas where we were looking at a site for him to place a Columbus landing celebration sculpture. He told us the story of how he did guerilla-art, arranging lookouts to find a 4-minute window in the wee hours of the morning between police patrols to set up a crane and offload his 3 ton bronze bull. A controversy erupted after the installation, eventually gaining support and acceptance and collapsed the political will for its removal. He paid for his art by selling copies of the sculpture to other people and places (like China) in all different sizes. Fortunately, the Columbus sculpture idea never got traction as the monument to the 1492 invasion of the New World was a little out of sync with Bahamian values and suggesting government pay for the monument was a non-starter. While The Bahamas takes pride in San Sal being the site of the Columbus landing, they also are realistic about the consequences to the Lucayans.
Passing by the waterfront at the North Cove Marina, we were intrigued by the docking of a 80-foot schooner. We'd seen the boat at our marina getting fuel a few minutes earlier as we boarded the ferry to cross the Hudson to NYC. Chatting up the crew we wondered if they were doing a 4th of July fireworks cruise and remarkably they were and still had three spaces. Taking it as a fateful sign, we bought passage and will be sailing on the Hudson and East River to see both the NJ and Macys' extravaganzas, with an open buffet and open bar.
With good fortune visited upon us we caught discount tickets for very good seats at Once On This Island - a Tony award winning musical. We'd seen a local Little Theater production of the musical years ago and were intrigued to see how Broadway would stage the production.
On the long walk up to 50th Street we sought out Rudy's Guitars and had a good time looking at vintage and custom guitars. Fortunately, there were none that were both affordable and a "must have". Marvin has determined that the problem with his playing may be more of an issue of software than hardware. Rivington Guitars, another vintage shop, also didn't have that perfect addition to the collection, but was a walk down memory lane with viewing Martin R-18 and R-17 archtops and a Gibson J-45 that was just like one Marvin had and sold for way too little a long time ago.
We stopped at the Empire State Building and ate dinner at Heartland Brewery. It was sprinkling rain so we thought we'd wait it out while eating.
After dinner, on the way to the play, our charmed excursion took a turn for the worse. Our luck ran out as Lee's cell phone was nowhere to be found when she tried to use it to verify where the theater was. As we arrived at the theater, panicked and stressed, we searched for the phone.
Eventually using the Find My iPhone app we discovered it moving up from 50th to 53rd, then stopping at 54th and 8th Ave. We rushed to catch up with the phone. It was somewhere in the vicinity of the TD Bank. We looked in the trash containers and behind the ATMs without success. Then we noticed 2 police cruisers parked on the street. Could it be in one of these? Calling Lee's number we could not hear a distinct ring tone in the sonorous city din.
Deciding to punt, we returned to the show to get seated three minutes before the "curtain". The play was fabulous, but we were preoccupied with worry over the lost phone and potential compromise of our accounts.
After the play we returned to the scene. One thing NYC should be noted for is the lack of public toilets, so we detoured to find a head. Then, we could see that the phone was still in the same location as the app had showed earlier. How frustrating to be in the location, but so far away, possibly vertically in the towering high-rise or in the locked police cruisers parked on the street.
Finally, we sought out the local police precinct, a mere block away. It was like a visit to a TV show set. The well-worn fiberglass chairs, functional desk furniture and noisy hustle and bustle of cops coming in and out and no air conditioning. (Imagine having all that body armor, uniform, belts, and paraphernalia, including guns, and not being in air conditioning.) After starting a police report and checking the lost and found, a nice officer was assigned to accompany us back to the scene and try to locate the phone so clearly shown on our 'Find iPhone"map. To no avail, we returned to complete the report of a lost phone and put a block on access to data - wiping the phone clean upon connecting to the internet. At least our accounts and passwords would be safeguarded from some nefarious scammer, if it has fallen into the wrong hands. But most folks are honest and nice, so we hope for the best and will make arrangements for a replacement, suffering only the inconvenience, stress, and expense. We also reported the lost phone to AT&T to deactivate the phone from our account. So now the person who has the phone has a usable phone by simply replacing the SIM card.
After a day of heat and humidity, panic and marathon walking, we took a Lyft ride back to the marina. We're grateful for showers and the comfort of our little boat at the marina. Rain had washed the air and refreshed the docks. Tomorrow's another day, and as the sun rises, so too will our luck.
6.27 to 7.2
 |
| Box seats for both Harry Potter performances! |
Jimmy Buffett arrived at the end and treated the audience to a great encore performance with the cast. At the end he opined that the show was cut early and his disappointment was palpable. Marvin took to Facebook with a little poem:
It's nice to get the accolade,
confirmation you're adored.
But the love you give away
counts more than things you horde.
For on that final single hand,
the measure of you, man,
will be in the works you have done,
and not tony trophies you have won.
Put Broadway in the wake: Breathe in, breathe out and sail on!
 |
| Cuban music with dinner Havana Central - no tres? The leader argued his mandolin was just like a Tres Cubano! |
Buffet responded only to this posting among all of the congratulatory messages, so we believe it got through to him. We hope so. Recognition of his gravitas and accomplishment is perhaps constrained by the laid-back beach persona he has cultivated so well.
The ferry ride through the haze gave us a different view of the city and landmarks than the mostly clear skies we've had since arriving in NYC. It's interesting to hear the complaints of the locals about the heat and humidity that, while uncomfortable, is no match for the North Florida summer. We're glad to have the A/C on the boat though.
 |
| 17 State Street at Battery Park |
Walking south through the financial district we sought out a landmark building that the Kaufman group had built in the late 80s. We met Mel Kaufman through his then-wife Lucia Mercer - both were remarkably interesting people. Marvin served on the board as a director of a short-lived foundation focused on marine science and underwater archaeology that they set up to benefit the Florida Keys and IU. Lucia was fun and eccentric and passionate about the environment - an accomplished designer with Knoll Studios.
Mel was a visionary builder with many signature properties in Manhattan. All were infused with art and whimsy.
( http://www.thecityreview.com/Kaufman.html )
 |
| Can the Bull bear the attention? |
After wandering the walkway around the shore through Battery Park we looked for the charging bull - a cultural icon that has come to symbolize Wall Street.
The sculptor, Arturo di Monica ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arturo_Di_Modica ), was not commissioned to do the piece or even authorized to place it there. We met him on San Salvador Island in The Bahamas where we were looking at a site for him to place a Columbus landing celebration sculpture. He told us the story of how he did guerilla-art, arranging lookouts to find a 4-minute window in the wee hours of the morning between police patrols to set up a crane and offload his 3 ton bronze bull. A controversy erupted after the installation, eventually gaining support and acceptance and collapsed the political will for its removal. He paid for his art by selling copies of the sculpture to other people and places (like China) in all different sizes. Fortunately, the Columbus sculpture idea never got traction as the monument to the 1492 invasion of the New World was a little out of sync with Bahamian values and suggesting government pay for the monument was a non-starter. While The Bahamas takes pride in San Sal being the site of the Columbus landing, they also are realistic about the consequences to the Lucayans.
Passing by the waterfront at the North Cove Marina, we were intrigued by the docking of a 80-foot schooner. We'd seen the boat at our marina getting fuel a few minutes earlier as we boarded the ferry to cross the Hudson to NYC. Chatting up the crew we wondered if they were doing a 4th of July fireworks cruise and remarkably they were and still had three spaces. Taking it as a fateful sign, we bought passage and will be sailing on the Hudson and East River to see both the NJ and Macys' extravaganzas, with an open buffet and open bar.With good fortune visited upon us we caught discount tickets for very good seats at Once On This Island - a Tony award winning musical. We'd seen a local Little Theater production of the musical years ago and were intrigued to see how Broadway would stage the production.
 |
| Rudy's Guitars now in Soho |
We stopped at the Empire State Building and ate dinner at Heartland Brewery. It was sprinkling rain so we thought we'd wait it out while eating.
After dinner, on the way to the play, our charmed excursion took a turn for the worse. Our luck ran out as Lee's cell phone was nowhere to be found when she tried to use it to verify where the theater was. As we arrived at the theater, panicked and stressed, we searched for the phone.
Eventually using the Find My iPhone app we discovered it moving up from 50th to 53rd, then stopping at 54th and 8th Ave. We rushed to catch up with the phone. It was somewhere in the vicinity of the TD Bank. We looked in the trash containers and behind the ATMs without success. Then we noticed 2 police cruisers parked on the street. Could it be in one of these? Calling Lee's number we could not hear a distinct ring tone in the sonorous city din.
Deciding to punt, we returned to the show to get seated three minutes before the "curtain". The play was fabulous, but we were preoccupied with worry over the lost phone and potential compromise of our accounts.
After the play we returned to the scene. One thing NYC should be noted for is the lack of public toilets, so we detoured to find a head. Then, we could see that the phone was still in the same location as the app had showed earlier. How frustrating to be in the location, but so far away, possibly vertically in the towering high-rise or in the locked police cruisers parked on the street.
Finally, we sought out the local police precinct, a mere block away. It was like a visit to a TV show set. The well-worn fiberglass chairs, functional desk furniture and noisy hustle and bustle of cops coming in and out and no air conditioning. (Imagine having all that body armor, uniform, belts, and paraphernalia, including guns, and not being in air conditioning.) After starting a police report and checking the lost and found, a nice officer was assigned to accompany us back to the scene and try to locate the phone so clearly shown on our 'Find iPhone"map. To no avail, we returned to complete the report of a lost phone and put a block on access to data - wiping the phone clean upon connecting to the internet. At least our accounts and passwords would be safeguarded from some nefarious scammer, if it has fallen into the wrong hands. But most folks are honest and nice, so we hope for the best and will make arrangements for a replacement, suffering only the inconvenience, stress, and expense. We also reported the lost phone to AT&T to deactivate the phone from our account. So now the person who has the phone has a usable phone by simply replacing the SIM card.
After a day of heat and humidity, panic and marathon walking, we took a Lyft ride back to the marina. We're grateful for showers and the comfort of our little boat at the marina. Rain had washed the air and refreshed the docks. Tomorrow's another day, and as the sun rises, so too will our luck.
6.27 to 7.2
Comments
Post a Comment