Magda Love: Global Street Artist

Magda Love: unfinished mural at Hudson and Clarkson, lower Manhattan

In my daily trawl across the internet, I am constantly finding interesting snippets of news, information, videos, and events, that catch my eye and make me wish I was right there where the event was taking place.

The global street artist Magda Love is a perfect example of the serendipitous nature of web surfing. This talented New York based artist (an Argentinian by birth) has been creating vibrant paintings and murals right across New York City, as well as in cities and galleries around the world.

As a traveling artist, a single mother and a mentor to students throughout New York City, Magda (like most other artists) struggles with finding the perfect work/life balance. The short video below documents this struggle, while grappling with her biggest project yet – a massive six-storey wall on the corner of Hudson and Clarkson streets in lower Manhattan. 

As you can see from the Google Maps screen shot illustrating this post, the mural project is only partially completed. I got in touch with Magda yesterday, and in a message to me just this morning she writes that she recently signed the last contract to complete the mural, and that, “…hopefully, soon I’ll get back to it.”

Readers interested in seeing more of Magda’s art work will find plenty online with a simple “magda love graffiti” Google search. You can also connect with her via her Facebook page…

More information:
Magda Love online...
Magda Love: From Buenos Aires to Brooklyn...

UPDATE: After uploading this blog post, I went in search of more of Magda Love's work and found the following video that I thought I just had to add to this post. If you are interested in graffiti art in particular, and even art in general, I urge you to do your own Google search for Magda's work.

New York City Round-Up #1

LinkNYC by The Numbers

Last year when I was in New York City, I began to notice a number of tall, futuristic-looking kiosks located on Manhattan pavements. I soon learned that they were part of a bold new experiment, funded (and owned) by Google. The kiosks provide free WiFi access to users as well as allow people to make free telephone calls, use USB ports to charge devices, access maps, and initially at least, use the built in browser for the usual online purposes.

Unfortunately, I never got a chance to use the kiosks since those that I did find, seemed to have been commandeered by one of the many street people in the city. Not that they didn’t have a right to use the kiosks, but from what I could see, they would sit by the kiosks, sometimes for hours, listening, watching, reading, and accessing who knows what content. Well, as it happens, we do know what some people were accessing (although not necessarily street people), with the result that the internet browser function of the kiosks has now been disabled after complaints that people were using the kiosks to watch pornography.

The installation of the LinkNYC kiosks was just a few months into its schedule when I visited New York over the summer of 2016. After a full twelve months of ongoing work, the system continues to be expanded across the city. Michael Garofalo, in this online article provides the following statistics about the program. All data is current as of the week of February 27, 2017.

• 631 LinkNYC kiosks currently active, of a planned 7,500

• 1,256,450 unique devices connected to the Wi-Fi network to date, approximately one for every seven New Yorkers

• 115 million Wi-Fi sessions served to date

• 870.86 terabytes of data transferred to date, the rough equivalent of streaming 33 years of high definition video on Netflix

• 150 feet wireless signal range of each kiosk

• 600,000 Wi-Fi sessions served in year one by the city’s most popular kiosk, at 1313 Broadway in Herald Square

• $0 spent by New York City taxpayers on the system, which is operated by a franchisee and generates revenue through advertising and sponsorships

More Information

LinkNYC Website…
Here are the current LinkNYC locations...

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Native American Art at The Met, Fifth Avenue

Housed in the old Customs House close to the foot of Manhattan, and across the road from the Bowling Green (4 and 5 trains) subway, is New York City’s National Museum of the American Indian. There is also another National Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC, and no doubt there are more museums touting their own collections in cities across the United States. 

Not to be outdone or ignored, is the collection of Native American artefacts housed at the Metropolitan Museum on Fifth Avenue. 

Mary Gregory reports that: A small but extraordinary collection of Native American masterpieces is in its final days at the Met Fifth Avenue. Consider a visit to this show as a concise course in Native American art history. From the second century to the 20th, from the Plains to the Southwest to the Northwest Coast, “Native American Masterpieces from the Charles and Valerie Diker Collection” highlights some of the best works ever made in each age and place. It’s like a greatest hits compilation, and not a single piece disappoints.

The exhibition ends in ten days—March 31, 2017—so be quick. See it before it ends.

Read more here…

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Leslie-Lohman Museum reopens with 250-work Exhibition

A bit less conventional for some, perhaps is a new exhibition which opened this month at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art in New York’s SoHo neighbourhood.

Clair Wang writes: The large, wooden cross hibernating in the back corner of the spacious studio resembles a cactus from afar. Pinned against a white wall, its body is punctured by dozens of colorful glass vials, each containing an assortment of objects that represent a day in the life of mixed-media artist Edward A. Hochschild.

The “Vial Cross” is one of roughly 250 works displayed at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art’s current exhibition, “Expanded Visions: Fifty Years of Collecting,” which opened March 10. The exhibit is the Wooster Street museum’s first following an expansion that nearly doubled the size of its original space. The effort, begun in October, will allow the museum to operate year-round, offering a mix of ongoing and future exhibitions, film screenings and artist lectures.

IF YOU GO

The Leslie-Lohman Museum…

26, Wooster Street, New York City

Ph: +1 212-431-2609

The New York Wheel: Myth or Reality

The New York Wheel is a 625-foot (190.5 m) tall giant Ferris Wheel planned for construction in St. George, Staten Island. The wheel will have 36 passenger capsules, each carrying up to 40 passengers, and a total maximum capacity of 1,440 people per ride. Up to 30,000 passengers per day and about 4.5 million per year are expected to ride what is said to be the largest Ferris Wheel in the United States, and one of the largest in the world. A single ride is expected to last about 38 minutes.

The official New York Wheel website states that “The Wheel is expected to begin construction in First Quarter, 2015”, with “a target opening date of early 2017.” As of this post, we are fast approaching the third quarter, 2015, and as far as I can ascertain construction has yet to begin on the proposed site. 

There have been many engineering and architectural renderings depicting the views from the top of the New York Wheel, with the above image being just one of many. Will the New York Wheel even get built? I certainly hope so. I for one would be more than happy to line up for an opportunity to enjoy a unique view of New York harbor, the Manhattan skyline, and Staten Island itself. Apart from the architectural renderings, it is hard to image what an actual ride on the Wheel might be like. However, one enterprising drone operator has recorded a two minute film over the proposed site which seeks to give a realistic view from one of the massive passenger capsules.

The footage seems to have been recorded early one morning as the sun rises over Brooklyn, and one can see freighters entering New York harbor, a ferry entering the St George terminal, distant views of the Statue of Liberty, and of course the Manhattan skyline.

Irish Hunger Memorial, New York City

The Irish Hunger Memorial is located on a one-half acre site at the corner of Vesey Street and North End Avenue in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Manhattan.

I stumbled across the memorial during my 2008 trip to New York City and was fascinated by this strange but wonderful memorial to the millions of Irish people caught up in the terrible famine that swept across Ireland during the mid-1850s. The memorial is dedicated to raising awareness of the Great Irish Famine - referred to by the Irish as 'The Great Hunger', which killed over a million people in Ireland between 1845 and 1852.

The Great Hunger" began in 1845 when a blight destroyed the Irish potato crop, depriving Ireland of its staple food. By 1847 millions were starving and dying. Between 1847 and 1852 the famine led to an exodus from the Irish countryside as hundreds of thousands of Irish immigrated to New York. Today, some 800,000 New York City residents can trace their ancestry back to Ireland.

Construction of the memorial began in March 2001, and despite its proximity to the World Trade Center, the memorial was completed and dedicated on July 16, 2002.

Click to enlarge

The site utilizes stones, soil, and native vegetation brought in from the western coast of Ireland and contains stones from all of the different counties of Ireland. Some of these can be seen in the video below. The memorial also incorporates an authentic rebuilt Irish cottage of the 19th century.

The size of the cultivated area of the Memorial, one-quarter of an acre, is significant. In 1847, Sir William Gregory proposed an additional clause to the Irish Poor Law stipulating that no person occupying land of more than one-quarter acre was eligible for any relief. This law had a devastating effect and contributed to the suffering.

Nearly two miles of text have been installed in illuminated bands that wrap around the base of the Memorial. The text includes some 110 quotations, including autobiographies, letters, oral traditions, parliamentary reports, poems, recipes, songs and statistics.

My chance discovery of the Irish Hunger Memorial was one of the many serendipitous moments I had as I wondered around Manhattan in 2008, and this and many similar moments are what I enjoy most about travel and visiting new places.

The song in the video is The Old Northern Shore, and appears on the wonderful Tom Russell album, The Man From God Knows Where. 

More information

Irish Hunger Memorial Brochure (PDF)…

Wikipedia…
Battery Park City…

The Bridges of New York City

On each of my visits to New York City, I have made a point of getting out on the water and examining the city from a different perspective than most visitors enjoy.

This has involved joining Circle Line Cruises that either circumnavigate the whole island of Manhattan, or by joining the wonderful Hidden Harbor Tours that explore parts of  the lower New York harbor that very few people, visitors or New Yorkers, ever get to see up close. The three cruises/tours listed below are all aboard the beautiful replica 1920s style yacht, Manhattan. The tours are run by Classic Harbor Line, and depart from Pier 62, at the Chelsea Piers.

New York City Bridges, Infrastructure and Architecture tour

This weekend sees one of those on water excursions taking place under the auspices of the New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIANY): the New York City Bridges, Infrastructure and Architecture tour.

           

On Saturday, March 29th, 2014, the AIANY will be sailing under all 18 bridges that link Manhattan to each of the other four city boroughs. John Kriskiewicz, a professor of Architecture and City Planning, will provide informed and relevant historical details and information about each of the 18 bridges, as well as other commentary throughout the tour. To quote from the email I received:

“Step aboard the luxurious yacht Manhattan for a full round-Manhattan cruise that takes an in depth look at the engineering marvels of New York City's fantastic, historic and wildly different bridges, tunnels, infrastructure and mass transit feats!  Tour includes content on city planning, Robert Moses, housing and architecture as well! 

Being low to the water and designed for comfort and small groups, guests are sure to have excellent views and photo opportunities. There is room for all in our elegantly appointed, cushioned and climate-controlled observatory, or guests may enjoy the outer teak decks when weather permits.”

If you are unable to make it to this weekend’s tour, don’t despair, the tours will continue right through until December 28, 2014. You can view the full list of available dates and make your bookings here…

When: Saturday March 29th

$76 per person | Buy Tickets

DISCOUNT CODE: Use the online code EBLAST10 to receive a $10 discount off the price of each ticket! NOTE: This code is only good for the AIANY bridges tour this weekend (March 29, 2014). It does not apply to the two tours listed below.

AIANY Lower Manhattan Boat Tour

The 1920s style yacht, Manhattan.

If you can’t make it to one of the New York City Bridges, Infrastructure and Architecture tours, you might want to join one of the Lower Manhattan Architecture Tours which begin in April. Again, informed commentary is provided by members of the American Institute of Architects' (AIA) New York Chapter.

The information provided is general enough for the casual visitor, yet detailed enough for the locals, design students and professionals! Again, your craft will be the elegant 1920s style yacht, the Manhattan. Tour participant will experience a comfortable and unique tour through the Hudson and East Rivers from the climate-controlled and enclosed back-deck observatory or (weather permitting), you can promenade on the outer decks for fresh air and unobstructed views of the lower Manhattan skyline.

When: April 20-October 30, 2014.

$46 per person | Buy Tickets

           

NYC Sunset Cruise Champagne Sunset Cruise

For the romantically inclined, why not get out on the water and experience a beautiful New York City sunset. You will also have a chance to enjoy the illuminated cityscape during a comfortable and unique NYC Harbor cruise along the Hudson and East Rivers. A full bar and specialty NY State wines by the bottle are available for purchase aboard the Yacht Manhattan, and one complimentary drink is also included.

Currently, tours are scheduled to take place from March 28-May 28, 2014. I would assume that more date will be added for the summer and autumn months.

$52 per person | Buy Tickets.

The Brooklyn Bridge

So much has been written and said about New York City's iconic Brooklyn Bridge that there is nothing new I can add to the thousands of books and articles already out there. I would venture to say though, that no visit to New York City is complete without at least going to look at the bridge.

If time allows, a walk across the bridge (Manhattan to Brooklyn) is highly recommended, if only because once you get to the Brooklyn side - especially if you make your way down to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade - your efforts are rewarded with some of the best views of Manhattan's skyline.

Better yet, time your visit for either early morning, or late afternoon/early evening (my favorite hours) to catch the light and shadows that play over skyline and East River. Yes, it’s a cliché, but the term ‘magical’ is entirely appropriate.

For the record, the Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River. It has a main span of 1,595.5 feet (486.3 m), and was the first steel-wire suspension bridge constructed.

The bridge was initially designed by German immigrant John Augustus Roebling. While conducting surveys for the bridge project, Roebling sustained a crush injury to his foot when a ferry pinned it against a piling. After amputation of his crushed toes he developed a tetanus infection which left him incapacitated and soon resulted in his death, not long after he had placed his 32-year-old son Washington Roebling in charge of the project.

Washington Roebling in turn suffered a paralyzing injury as a result of decompression sickness shortly after the beginning of construction in January, 1870. This condition left him unable to physically supervise the construction firsthand.

Roebling conducted the entire construction from his apartment, aided by his wife Emily who provided the critical link between her husband and the engineers on site. Under her husband's guidance, Emily studied higher mathematics, the calculations of catenary curves, the strengths of materials, bridge specifications, and the intricacies of cable construction. She spent the next 11 years assisting Washington Roebling, helping to supervise the bridge's construction.

When the Brooklyn Bridge opened for use on May 24, 1883, it was the only land passage between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Fittingly, since Washington Roebling was too ill to leave their apartment, Emily Roebling was the first to cross the bridge.

Despite my opening comments regarding having “nothing new” to add to the volume of material already extant about the Brooklyn Bridge, here, set to the music of Frank Sinatra, is my personal tribute to this magnificent feat of engineering:

More Information

Wikipedia: Brooklyn Bridge entry…

This Is The Bitter End

Sorry, but I could not resist the play on words. I have written about New York City’s famed music venue, The Bitter End on more than one occasion on The Compleat Traveller, and I am returning to the topic again today.

During my August 2012 visit to the venue I recorded the Israeli singer, Bat-Or Kalo kicking off the fortnightly Bitter End All Star Jam, along with drummer Mark Greenberg, and bassist, Tony Tino. I recorded most of the opening set, and now, almost a year later, I have finally gotten around to editing the footage and producing half a dozen clips of the performance.

I spoke to Bat-Or Kalo at the end of the evening to give voice to my appreciation for her musicianship and performance, and she immediately handed me a flyer promoting a crowd funding campaign for a new album she was hoping to record. She just happened to be using Kickstarter to raise money for the CD, and since I had supported other crowd funding campaigns via Kickstarter, I promised to make a donation. A promise I honoured the next day.

I'm delighted to say that Bat-Or Kalo's Kickstarter campaign was a great success, and that she continues to work on the album, while touring and performing across the United States.

I have not embedded all the videos here, but I have included two of my favourite performances from the night, Bat-Or Kalo singing Blue Chevy, and the eight minute rocker, Like It Or Not.

Blue Chevy

Recorded at The Bitter End on Sunday, August 12, 2012. Video features Bat-Or Kalo (guitar/vocals), Mark Greenberg (drums), and Tony Tino (bass),.

Like It Or Not

Recorded at The Bitter End on Sunday, August 12, 2012. Video features Bat-Or Kalo (guitar/vocals), Mark Greenberg (drums), and Tony Tino (bass),.

You can see more videos on my YouTube page.

More Information:

The Bitter End…

Bat-Or Kalo…

Mark Greenberg…

Tony Tino…

Kickstarter…

TED on Tuesday: Philippe Petit, High-Wire Artist

Philippe Petit during his 1974 Twin Towers walk

Philippe Petit is a French high-wire artist who gained fame for his high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, on 7 August 1974. Petit, who was born in France, discovered magic and juggling at an early age, and at 16, he took his first steps on the wire.

"Within one year," he told a reporter, "I taught myself to do all the things you could do on a wire. I learned the backward somersault, the front somersault, the unicycle, the bicycle, the chair on the wire, jumping through hoops. But I thought, 'What is the big deal here? It looks almost ugly.' So I started to discard those tricks and to reinvent my art."

World Trade Center walk

On August 7, 1974, Petit stepped onto a wire strung between the Twin Towers. Balancing 110 stories in the air, Petit played on the tightrope for 40 minutes to the wonder and amazement of the people watching on the ground. Petit was arrested as he left the wire, but as the police cuffed him, he had a huge grin across his face—for he had achieved a feat everyone, including himself at times, had thought impossible.

“The impossible — we are told — cannot be achieved,” Petit tells the TED blog in a Q&A about his new eBook. “To overcome the ‘impossible’ we need to use our wits and be fearless.”

The story of Petit’s walk was brilliantly told in the documentary film, Man On Wire, by UK director James Marsh. Petit has told the story in his own words, in his book To Reach The Clouds, also republished as Man on Wire.

In this TED talk, Philippe Petit recalls the walk, talks about finding your passion, and makes the case for confronting your fears and attempting the ‘impossible’.

Today, Petit shares his time between New York City where he is an artist in residence at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, and a home in the Catskills.

If you are unfamiliar with Philippe Petit and his walk between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, this YouTube video includes a number of images of Philippe taken during the event.

More Information

Philippe Petit on Wikipedia... [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippe_Petit]

Buy the Man On Wire DVD at Amazon.Com... Man On Wire [DVD]

Buy the Man on Wire book at Amazon.Com... Man on Wire

On Ya Bike, New York!

Rue Rossini bike share rack in Paris, France

Well, it has been a long time coming, but New York City has finally caught up with many other major cities around the world with the recent introduction of the new Citi Bike, bicycle sharing program. The system will see 10,000 bicycles spread among 600 bike racks ― most of which will initially be located on Manhattan below 59th Street, and in Brooklyn in an area roughly bordered by the East River, Atlantic Avenue, Nostrad Avenue and up around the Williamsburg Bridge (see map here…).

Alta Bicycle Share, is the company running the program, while Citigroup has paid $41 million for naming rights over the next five years―hence the name, Citi Bike.

It may seem counter-intuitive to introduce bicycles onto New York City’s traffic clogged streets, but in fact since 2007, the city has added more than 250 miles of bike lanes, and the number of New Yorkers commuting to work by bike is now approaching 20,000 people, according to Department of Transportation statistics.

Recently, around 32,000 cyclists took part in the TD Five Boro Bike Tour, organised by Bike New York and the New York City Department of Transportation. The event gave participants the opportunity of riding along a 40 mile, car-free route through all five New York boroughs.

Current Citi Bike rental fees

Annual membership to use the Citi Bike system is US$95.00. So popular was the initial offering that it sold out all 5,000 “founding memberships” in less than 48 hours. Annual membership signups for Citi Bike have now passed 8,000 participants, and this number continues to increase slowly but steadily.

If you are planning to make use of the bike share program, I strongly advise you to read through the relevant sections of the City Bike New York website, especially the FrequentlyAsked Questions and the Pricing section.

The city's Department of Transportation has been pushing the bike share concept for years as an affordable commuting option, however the program stalled twice over the last year―once due to a programming glitch, and again after Superstorm Sandy damaged many of the bicycles and stands late in 2012. Despite this, the push to create bike lanes and rental programs has propelled New York into seventh place in Bicycle Magazine's list of bike friendly cities.

An Accident Waiting To Happen?

So much for the good news. The less than good news is that riding bicycles around city streets―any city street―can be a very dangerous enterprise, and riding on New York’s streets may be even more so. According to a Rutgers University study New York City had the highest fatality rate from bike accidents in North America (from 2004 to 2009). In 2010, there were 368 bicycle related crashes, 19 of which resulted in a fatality. The Department of Transportation reports that in 97 percent of fatal bicycle accidents in New York City, the rider was not wearing a helmet.

Clearly it is incumbent on all bike riders to exercise great caution while on the road, whether they use Citi Bike or have their own bicycles.

Citi Bike share station (Image: Nancy Borowick)

So how do you stay safe?

• Be aware of your surroundings at all times.
• Wear a well secured helmet.
• Obey road signs and traffic laws.
• Don’t try to beat changing traffic lights.
• Be aware of other road users who may not notice your approach. Some of the worst offenders are people getting out of parked cars, and pedestrians talking or texting on cell phones.
• Don’t wear headphones, you want to hear approaching vehicles―especially those behind you.
• Use lights for night riding. I have a flashing white headlight, a flashing red tail-light, and always wear a bright yellow safety jacket fitted with reflective strips at night.
• Ride with the flow of traffic, not against it.
• Use bike lanes — that’s why they are there!
• Make yourself visible and audible. Equip your bike with a bell and lights, and wear bright colors.

I know some of these safety tips may not make you look trendy or fashionable, but they will increase your visibility and ability to stay safe. And just because the use of bicycle helmets is not mandated by law in New York, does not mean it is safe to ride a bike without one. Do yourself a favor―be seen and be safe.

For a real world look at how bike share systems work, take a look at this video from Melbourne, Australia: How To Use Melbourne Bike Share

More Information

City Bike New York…

Bike New York…

Melbourne Bike Share...

New York City, Six Months After Sandy

Image courtesy Wikipedia. Author: Hybirdd

~ The modern, relentless 24 hour news cycle, has a voracious appetite. Most news stories, unless on the scale of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City, and Washington, DC, quickly disappear from the front pages of newspapers or as the lead story of nightly news bulletins.

At least 285 people were killed along the path of the storm in seven countries. In the United States, where media organizations and some U.S. government agencies nicknamed the hurricane "Superstorm Sandy," the storm affected 24 states, including the entire eastern seaboard. The most severe damage occurred in New Jersey and New York, when the storm surge hit New York City on October 29, flooding streets, tunnels and subway lines, and cutting power in and around the city. Damage in the US was estimated at over US$71 billion.

Six months after Hurricane Sandy made landfall in Cuba, and worked its way up the east coast of the United States to New York City and beyond, devastating coastal communities in its path, little if anything is heard about the ongoing recovery efforts still underway in these coastal communities. In New York City for example, vast stretches of beach front along the Atlantic reaches of Staten Island and Coney Island in particular still look much like they did soon after the storm struck.

Clipping from amNY...

While I don’t have a complete list of locations and infrastructure that are still closed or under repair, six months after Sandy, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Immigration Museum remain off the tourist circuit. The Statue of Liberty is due to open by July 4, but no date has been set for the reopening of Ellis Island.

Of the numerous subway stations and tunnels that were flooded by the almost 14 foot storm surge, the new South Ferry station seems to have suffered the most, when 15 million gallons of salt water poured into it, causing around US$600 million in damage. In response, the old 108-year-old South Ferry station has been reopened while the new station is repaired―a process that may take as long as two or three years!

To my knowledge, the one remaining subway line to be affected by Hurricane Sandy is the A-train. This currently runs as far as the Howard Beach station, with free shuttle buses operating non-stop between this station, and Far Rockaway-Mott Avenue. I assume, rail service is also affected at the other end of the Rockaways, at Rockaway Park Beach. More information about this service can be found at the MTA.INFO site…

Elsewhere along the coast, work is continuing apace to get New York’s beaches ready for the 2013 summer season. Despite being one of the worst affected areas, Coney Island is already open for business―or most of it anyway. The main outlet for Nathan’s Famous, a Coney Island business famous for its hotdogs, and for the annual hotdog eating contest they run remains closed, although its other branch location on Boardwalk West is open. 

Photo: M.T.A. / Patrick Cashin / via Wikipedia

The nearby New York Aquarium at Coney Island was flooded, and will have a limited opening this spring, but there is no timetable for the re-opening of Nathan’s. Meanwhile, Rockaway beach and Jacob Riis Park should be open by May 25 (Memorial Weekend), but it looks like Fort Tilden will be closed for the summer.

And then there is one of my favourite New York City locations―the South Street Seaport area around Pier 17. After a long day walking the streets of lower Manhattan, I have spent many a warm summer evening relaxing and taking in the sights and sounds around the South Street Seaport.

The viewing ‘decks’ of the shopping mall on Pier 17 provide some of the nicest views of the Brooklyn Bridge―especially if you time your visit to coincide with the magic hour or two around sunset. Then the view and the wonderful photographic opportunities are unbeatable. Sadly, though, not only did the South Street Seaport Museum suffer extensive damage, but the Pier 17 area itself was badly affected by the storm.

Negotiations are currently underway with the Howard Hughes Corporation (which owns the Pier 17 area), to build a modern shopping mall, incorporating a rooftop garden and concert area, and other facilities. I can’t say I am excited by the new design for the building which features copious amounts of glass, and seems out of place at a ‘seaport’ location, but maintaining the seaport there is better than having yet another skyscraper dominating the skyline at the foot of Manhattan.

In the meantime, I understand the current shopping facilities at Pier 17 will continue to operate as best they can through summer 2013, until construction of the new building commences later this year. 

I am sure the above is just a small part of what remains to be done to repair and replace damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in the New York City area. But I hope it serves as a reminder that although the news cycle has moved on, thousands of people along the whole length of Sandy’s path are still dealing with the aftermath  of the storm every day, and will continue to do so for many years.

Touring New York Harbor

Image courtesy of Working Harbor Committee

~ It is good to see New York City’s Working Harbor Committee (WHC) emerging from winter hibernation.

I am on the organization’s mailing list, and their latest ‘On The Hip’ e-newsletter lists a number of forthcoming activities, including the very popular Hidden [New York] Harbor Tours.

I have joined three previous Hidden Harbor Tours (two in 2010, and another in 2012), and I consider them to be some of the best ‘hidden gems’ of any visit to New York. You can read my account about one of those tours here…

Image courtesy of Working Harbor Committee

Among events scheduled from now until the end of summer, are a series of narrated tours under the theme: Beyond Sandy: Keeping the Conversation Alive, as well as more Hidden Harbor Tours. 

Beyond Sandy, is described as a series of special Hidden Harbor Tours exploring the many issues and plans arising from Super Storm Sandy, that focus on the array of global warming and sea-level rise protection alternatives being discussed by government, private institutions and citizens. Special guest speakers will discuss and pose questions such as: Are Netherlands-style sea barriers the answer? How did various neighborhoods fare and why? Fight the ocean or retreat? And How did the working harbor fare and help?

Each tour will have two guest speakers from a number of sources: the maritime industry, government agencies, private industry, think tanks and universities, as well as other noted experts. The tours are two hours in length and visit Red Hook, Sunset Park, The Verrazano Bridge, Staten Island, Bayonne and Hoboken, the lower Manhattan shoreline and many points in between.

The tours leave from Pier 16 at the South Street Seaport District (itself heavily impacted by Sandy – under 6 feet of water) at 6:30 p.m. on the large three-deck motor vessel Zephyr

There will be three different tours:

Tour 1 - High Seas on the Inner Harbor: From Wall Street to Snug Harbor This tour is from the Verrazano Bridge to Hoboken, including Brooklyn, Staten Island, New Jersey, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. See where giant sea gates are proposed.Tuesday - 21 May, 2013Tuesday - 18 June, 2013

Tour 2 - Fire, Floods and Floating Containers: East River - Hell Gate to Governors Island This tour traverses the East River from Queens to Governors Island, including the East Side of Manhattan, Newtown Creek and Brooklyn Navy Yard. See the site of the giant electric sub-station explosion.Tuesday - 28 May, 2013Tuesday - 25 June, 2013

Tour 3 – Protecting Our Ports: From Red Hook to Newark Bay.This tour traverses Kill van Kull to Newark Bay, including container terminals, oil docks, tug yards, and rail yards. Learn how close we came to a goods delivery crisis.Tuesday - 4 June, 2013

Purchase tickets here…

North River Tour on June 11

Image courtesy of WHC. Inset: Bill Miller.

Hosted by Bill Miller, this tour will begin by passing around the southern tip of Manhattan and the large ferry terminals to Staten Island and Governors Island.

It will also travel north up along the west side of Manhattan passing the Battery and Castle Clinton, then most of Hudson River Park, including historic ships, ferry terminals, fireboat terminals, historic Pier 57, Chelsea Piers, excursion boats, the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum and finally the passenger ship terminals.

The tour will then cross over to the New Jersey side passing the historic Hoboken waterfront, scene of "On The Waterfront", another active shipyard, Morris Canal entrance and finally, as all tours do, it will visit the Statue of Liberty before returning to Pier 16.

The tour departs from Pier 16 at the South Street Seaport District at 6:30 p.m. on the large three-deck motor vessel Zephyr

TICKETS:

Adults: $39.00 | Children (3-12 yrs): $25.00 | Seniors: $32.00

WHC, South Street Seaport and THIRTEEN Members: $32.00

Purchase tickets here… 

Here is a short video I put together after my 2012 Hidden Harbor Tour:

I would dearly love to join one of the above Hidden Harbor Tours, but sadly, I won’t be visiting New York City this year. However, if I visit again in 2014 as I hope to do, a fourth tour will be definitely part of my trip.

Additional Hidden Harbor Tours including Port Newark/Port Elizabeth and Brooklyn are being planned for July, August and September. If you think these unique tours might appeal to you, I highly recommend you signup for ‘On The Hip’, the official e-newsletter of the Working Harbor Committee, and bookmark the organization’s blog for ongoing news and information.

National September 11 Memorial

~ I paid a visit to the National September 11 Memorial in New York City during August 2012. I expected to be much more emotionally affected by the site, but I wasn't.

On my way to the Memorial site, I also dropped into St. Paul's Chapel, a building I have visited on numerous occasions during my trips to New York, and here I was once more emotionally engaged with the Chapel and the displays there – although these seem to be shrinking as the years pass.

I think the difference between the two sites is that St. Paul’s Chapel connects with you on a personal level, partly because of its accessibility and scale, while the National September 11 Memorial is massive and almost impersonal - despite the almost three thousand names displayed there. Of course, the Chapel still stands, while the towers of the World Trade Center now only exist in our memories, and in the multitude of audio-visual artifacts that remain.

Clearly, visitors with a direct connection to the site will be much more emotionally engaged than myself, and indeed while there, I saw visitors making rubbings of the names of people they knew who were victims of the attacks. Also, once the museum, with its many artifacts and exhibits is finally open, I am sure the whole experience will be much more affecting.

I expect to return to the completed Memorial on subsequent visits to New York City, and I will be interested to see how the experience compares to my August visit. If you are visiting New York, a visit to the National September 11 Memorial is certainly worth the long queues and security checkpoints. Like other major memorial sites (war memorials, Holocaust memorials, and such), the Memorial serves to remind us of the tragedy it commemorates, and to keep alive the memories of the thousands of men, women and children (some unborn), who were victims of the attacks.

Here is a short video I made following my visit:

The song is Sweet Forgiveness, by one of my favourite artists, Iris DeMent… www.irisdement.com

When Travel is Just Like Coming Home Again

Victoria Square Fountain, Adelaide

~ For most of my life I have lived in Adelaide, Australia, and although I like to say that Adelaide is a nice place to come home to, the more I travel the more I am beginning to feel that I have roots in other countries and cities around the world.

My parents were Greeks who immigrated to Australia just prior to the Second World War, and of course I have visited the island my parents came from – Ikaria – on multiple occasions. 

Two of my sisters have returned to live on the island, and both have children and grandchildren growing up there. I consider Ikaria to be my first home away from home, having visited several times during the 1970s, and again in 2008 and 2010.

South Street Seaport, NYC.

New York City Dreaming

When I landed at New York City’s JFK airport following an exhausting flight from Australia, my return to that city in 2012 for my third visit in six years, also seemed like coming home.

When I boarded the A-train for the Washington Heights apartment (and two cats), I would be ‘house’ sitting for the second time, it was a great feeling, and it was all I could do to suppress an open smile. Let me tell you though, smiling openly on a 6:00am A-train full of sleepy New Yorkers heading into Manhattan for the start of the working day is probably not a good idea.

I first went to New York in 2008, and have returned every two years since. There more I go, the more I love it, and the more that city also begins to feel like home. I hope to return to the Big Apple again in 2014, which should pretty much cement its place in my mind as my second home away from home.

Federation Square, Melbourne

Wherever I Lay My Hat
I have been house sitting for friends in Melbourne for the past four years, and every time I return to that city, it too feels like coming home. Then there are my visits to an American cousin in Tucson, Arizona in 2010 and again in 2012. If I get a chance to visit again – and I certainly hope to – I know that Tucson will also join the list of cities that have become my surrogate homes as I continue to travel and occasionally retrace my steps around the world.

What all these locations have in common is the familiarity I have developed with them: knowing how to find my way around what were once strange cities and landscapes; knowing where the nearest supermarket, ATM, subway station or bus stop is to my home away from home; and knowing enough about a location to be able to offer advice and information to people who are themselves looking for assistance. Then there is the joy I get from returning to favorite locations within each of these cities: Federation Square and the crowded alleys of Melbourne; the South Street Seaport and Bryant Park in New York City; the tiny villages and summer festivals of Ikaria; and the giant Saguaro cactus plants that dot the dry desert landscape around Tucson, Arizona. But most of all, it is great to be able to continue my explorations in each of these locations to broaden my knowledge and understanding about each city, and the people who live and work there.

Adelaide is a great place to return home to, but I can’t wait to again revisit my various homes away from home, and add other countries and cities to those already mentioned here.

Have iPad – Will Travel

Just before my last trip, I made a decision to leave my heavy 15 inch Toshiba laptop behind. I simply could not be bothered dragging along the extra weight and other bits and pieces, such as the power pack, cables, and back up drive, etc. I did that in 2010 with my small Sony VAIO laptop (which finally gave out while I was in Greece), and that was bad enough. So this time I thought I’d at least try travelling lighter, and bought myself a pre-trip gift – a 64 gigabyte iPad 2 for AU$578.00.

One major drawback I had with the iPad was the fact that it was not SIM card enabled. This meant I could only make use of free WiFi hotspots whenever I needed to go online for any reason, and of course, when you are travelling, there are always reasons to be going online. However, since I knew that I would have access to WiFi in the New York apartment I was staying in, and also access in the numerous hotels I would be staying in, I figured that with some forethought and planning, the lack of access to WiFi at other times would not be a major issue.

I also knew that many businesses and government departments in America, seem to have recognized that providing free Internet access is good public policy. This meant that with minimal inconvenience I could get online at any number of Starbucks, McDonald’s, and other such establishments, as well as public libraries, city squares and parks (Bryant Park in New York City, especially), and many other areas of Manhattan.

As time went on, one other aspect of the tablet turned into something of an annoyance – I am a reasonably good touch typist, but no matter how I tried, I just could not get used to the iPad’s virtual keyboard. Eventually, like many other iPad users, I got around this issue by buying a separate Bluetooth keyboard which made writing my trip journal much easier and quicker. I eventually chose a Kensington KeyFolio Pro 2 Removable Keyboard which comes in a case with a built-in iPad stand.

Apart from the Bluetooth keyboard, one other small piece of equipment became indispensable throughout the trip. This was the iPad Camera Connection Kit. The kit enabled me to transfer images from my camera’s SD Card on to the iPad. I had initially planned to use the iPad as a back up device, hence the need to transfer images and video from my camera to the tablet.

It has always been axiomatic, that when it comes to technology, one should always purchase the largest capacity hard drive, storage device, SD Card – or similar, because you can be sure you will eventually need that extra capacity. And so it proved early into my trip. Despite having bought the largest capacity iPad available, it soon became apparent that I would run out of space on the iPad if I transferred all my images and video clips to the unit.

In the end, I decided to purchase extra SD cards for my digital camera, and only transfer images and video to the iPad in order to work on them before uploading them to Facebook or YouTube. That way, if I had to delete files from the iPad, I still had the original untouched files on the SD cards, and ‘enhanced’ files online. Of course, I also used the iPad’s built in camera to shoot video as well as my other camera, which also ate into the free storage space on the device.

Let me tell you, dear reader, that despite those few drawbacks, my iPad turned out to be the best pre-trip gift I have ever given myself, and it continues to give me hours of pleasure now that I am back home. I purchased the device eight weeks before my departure for America, which gave me more than enough time to familiarize myself with its idiosyncrasies and secrets, and plenty of time to research and download a bunch of apps which I thought might prove useful during my three month trip. I will write about the apps I found most useful in a future post.

By the time I take my next overseas trip in 2014, I expect tablet devices will be pretty much everywhere. If you are planning a vacation and you are tossing up between taking a laptop or purchasing a tablet device, my recommendation is to leave the laptop and go with the tablet. The convenience and versatility of the new tablet devices can’t be beaten.

Back in the USA

5:00am: Arrived as scheduled at JFK after an overnight flight from Los Angeles. By the time I got out of the plane and the terminal and onto an 'A' train, it was almost 6am. Just over an hour later the train pulled into the 181st Street station, and I was walking 'home' like I had never left. It was a great feeling, and it was all I could do to suppress an open smile. Let me tell you though, smiling openly on a 6am 'A' train full of sleepy New Yorkers heading into Manhattan for the start of the working day is probably not a good idea.

Yes, dear reader, I am finally back on the road and again visiting New York City during August, before taking an extended jaunt across other parts of the country.

After making sure I could log on to the wifi service, and checking emails, and Facebook messages, I headed out for breakfast at the little Greek owned diner around the corner in 187th Street. From there I went for a walk into Fort Tryon Park for an hour or so, which seemed like an appropriate thing to do on my first day back in New York. After all, my last activity on my final night in New York City back in 2010, was an evening walk in the same park.

I have prebooked a number of activities already, including a Hidden Harbor tour of the North River, a Roller Derby double-header at Coney Island, a major league baseball game between the New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers, and booked a visit to the National September 11 Memorial. I will be in New York for just over three weeks, and want to make the most of my time here.

It is good to be traveling again (what an understatement!), and it's good to be writing again.