NYC Days 39 & 40: In Which Hollywood Comes to Town and I Go To New Jersey

My local neighborhood supermarket.

Click images to view full sized.

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Well, wouldn't you know it, a light rain is falling over the city as I write, and the temperature has once again dropped down into the very cool 70s. Not for the first time have I noticed that the temperature is always cooler in Washington Heights compared to that at Midtown, especially at night. Last night for example, when I left the AMC25 cinema, Midtown was its usual hot, steaming self, as were the subways of course. But when I left the 181st street station the temperature was at least 10-15 degrees cooler. I'm tempted to buy a thermometer just so I can check the temp above and below ground in various locations. A little bit of empirical data can go a long way.

By the time the rain had eased off and then stopped completely, it was well into the afternoon, and there didn't seem much point heading downtown, so another day inside seemed to be the order of the day. In the end, I did pop out to do some more grocery shopping, which accounts for my total expense for the day.

When I went out, I immediately saw numerous brightly colored notices taped to trees and other convenient places along West 187th Street, my neighborhood shopping strip. Hollywood is coming to Washington Heights, and tomorrow is the filming day.

Hollywood comes to Washington Heights.

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The Internet Movie Database has a listing for a thriller called Asher with a synopsis that reads: "When an ambitious college student infiltrates a militant religious cult for his thesis paper, he befriends a young devout member - who he comes to suspect is plotting a terrorist operation."

IMDb gives a release date of 2017, and only provides the names of four male actors, one of whom is Danny Glover, an actor that seems to have been missing from the silver screen since his peak years in the Lethal Weapon series of movies. No other information is provided but I'm wondering if this may be a series being made for Amazon. Time will tell.

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Tuesday, July 25, 2017: Hollywood Comes to Washington Heights

The lifting apparatus in the image above, is providing lighting for an indoor shot. Why this particular apartment in Washington Heights? How do decisions like this get made? Below are just some of the production trucks and units lining both sides of W 187th Street where filming was taking place. I would have liked to have hung around to catch more of the action, but I had places to go and things to do.

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I caught up with my cousin Steve for lunch, after which I headed down to the Apple Store at the Oculus to take another look at the new 10.5" iPad Pro.

I figured that buying the device using credit (which I would need to do), might seem okay, but if I can't pay the card off pretty much immediately -- and I can't -- then the interest for say, two months, along with the currency conversion fees I would be charged will pretty much eliminate any 'savings' I might have made. On the other hand, I will have had a new iPad to work with, and surely that is worth the extra expense. Isn't it? If the Aussie dollar continues to go higher, I will be very tempted to buy. I will keep an eye on the exchange rate over the next week before taking the final plunge.

A 256Gb model will cost me the equivalent of AUD$1,025.00 here, whereas in Adelaide it would cost me $1,129.00. The young man I was speaking to seemed uninterested in encouraging my purchase, so I said I'd go have a coffee and think about it, and think about it I did. And decided not to buy at this point. I went to Brookfield Place for coffee, and then decided it was time to pay a visit to New Jersey.

Above and below: The views of the Manhattan skyline are quite spectacular from the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. Also below, pier supports for one of several long gone shipping jetties still visible on this side of the river. 

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I went looking for the longest ferry trip I could find but due to my ignorance, didn't quite make the right choice from the numerous ferry routes available. So instead of going to Edgewater, NJ, which is opposite 138th Street on the Manhattan side of the Hudson. I ended up going to the Port Imperial ferry stop (roughly opposite West 54th St.). Having disembarked there I decided to explore further. Sadly, the main road was bereft of interest, so I walked along the river front for just over a mile to the Guttenberg/North Bergen Waterfront Park at North Bergen.

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The walk along the river passes block after block of very fine looking apartment complexes, and I have to say I was very impressed with what I saw. The apartments facing the Hudson River (seen above), have great views of the Manhattan skyline, and the new developments are surrounded by lush flowerbeds, beautiful trees and shrubs, large areas of lawn, water features, and at least one development had its own swimming pool. I had to admit the location was perfect, except for one major problem - the awful stench of sewage that wafted over the neighborhood.

The foul odor could be noticed all along the section of walk I undertook, and I thought if this smell is here all year round, that would be a real bummer (no pun intended). There had to be an answer to the stink somewhere, and of course. Dr. Google provided it. A search for 'sewage works near Port Imperial' turned up not one but two sewage plants both within about half a mile of each other, and Google Maps provided the evidence.

In the image below at bottom left on Port Imperial Blvd (look for three circles that look like pearls), is one facility which seems to be nameless. At top right of the image you will find another three smaller pearl colored circles where the Woodcliff Treatment Plant is located at 7117, River Road, North Bergen, New Jersey. No wonder the air reeks with foul odors. And it was just my luck to have chosen the smelliest part of this lovely section of the New Jersey shoreline to take my walk! Some luck. I can only hope that these two facilities, and others like them are not pumping effluent (even treated effluent) into the Hudson River.

Above, a Google Maps screen shot of the offending facilities polluting the air along this section of the Hudson River. As for looking for places to eat - no thanks! 

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After a short rest at North Bergen, I walked back to the Port Imperial stop and caught what I thought would be the ferry back to the World Trade Center stop near Brookfield Place. Instead the ferry bypassed that stop and continued around to the ferry terminal at the South Street Seaport, which was a nice bonus.

This area seems to have become a very popular over the past couple of years, with new fashion outlets, restaurants, and cafes springing up close to the waterfront. There is much new development still taking place in the proximity of the old Fulton Fish Market and I expect within another year or two this area will have been transformed into a very hip part of Lower Manhattan.

I found somewhere to eat in the area, then headed back to the apartment. And that dear reader is how I spent my 40th day in New York City.

The South Street Seaport is going off! 

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Monday 24, July | Expenses $79.46 ($100.25)

Tuesday 25, July | Expenses $61.35 ($77.55)

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Any questions, comments or suggestions? How about complaints or compliments? Let me know via the comments box below.

Surfing The Web: Roller Coasters, Baby Elephants, Tips For The Travel Weary

A Shiny New Ride Above the Sand at the Jersey Shore

The repercussions of the shocking destruction wreaked by Hurricane Sandy late in 2012, is still being felt along the eastern seaboard of the United States, with some damaged infrastructure still waiting to be permanently fixed. Just in time for the coming summer season, one of these rebuilt projects sees the replacement to one of the Jersey Shore's most famous attractions. Nick Corasaniti takes up the story for the New York Times.

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. — It was one of the indelible images of the wrath of Hurricane Sandy: a famous Jersey Shore roller coaster reduced to a twisted, mangled wreck in the surf off Seaside Heights, its decades-old iron and steel slicing the coming waves.

It was removed months later, but the gash along the coast remained for years, the emptiness above the rehabilitated pier an ever-present reminder of the worst natural disaster to strike New Jersey in decades.

Now, perhaps quicker than some expected, there is a new coaster where the old one once stood. And this one is different. Gone are the classic dips and turns of the rickety old Jet Star, the thundering vibrations of its cars rippling through the boardwalk wood.

In its place is a shiny new ride that looks as if it was plucked from the fields in nearby Jackson, where the Six Flags Great Adventure theme park sprawls for acres. Called the Hydrus, it is a twisted green behemoth, featuring a steep inverted drop, a full loop and two more inversions. The coaster’s new tracks run eerily silent, the faint hums of the rail car often drowned out by the high-pitched squeals of riders.

Read the full story here...

Kenyans Work To Save Baby Elephants

Back in March, in a piece about ending the slaughter of elephants I wrote about the ongoing campaign to protect these magnificent creatures from poachers. The following article from the HuffPost continues the positive news about this vital fight.

“We take care of the elephants, and the elephants are taking care of us.” Jesselyn Cook, World News Reporter, HuffPost

Had the members of northern Kenya’s Samburu tribe encountered an injured or abandoned baby elephant a year ago, they likely would have left it to die. Today, with the support of the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, locals are working to save endangered calves.

Photojournalist Ami Vitale traveled to the baby elephant orphanage to document community relations with the animals for National Geographic. Reteti opened in August as part of a network of community groups in the region working to foster sustainable development and wildlife conservation. Elephant keepers there try to rehabilitate wounded calves and reunite them with their herds, when possible.

Elephants are ecosystem “engineers,” Vitale notes. They feed on low brush and bulldoze small trees, which promotes the growth of grasses and attracts other grazing animals.
But ivory poachers have caused elephant numbers to dwindle, with the African elephant population plummeting by more than 110,000 over the past decade, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. At least 33,000 elephants are killed for their tusks annually.

Read the full story here...

Travel Fatigue: 10 Tips for Road-Weary Travelers

My go to website for the Solo Traveller which I thought might be useful for those travellers who enjoy the luxury of extended travel.

To travel alone for two or three weeks is one thing. But to travel alone for two or three (or five or ten) months is quite another. It takes a different attitude and a different pace. And even when you do it well, it can result in you becoming road-weary.

Travel fatigue is a kind of rattled feeling. It’s a need for stability and a wish for home. Fortunately, there are things other than returning home that you can do to feel good. 

Among the eleven suggestions:

• Stay still: that is, settle into one place for a while.
• Settle where you can speak the language: the rationale is that you will feel more relaxed if you are not constantly struggling with language. Of course, if you are trying to learn the language of the country you are visiting, then the best way to do that is to immerse yourself in the life of the country you are in and work on those language skills.
• Repeat yourself: return to a city you’ve already visited and loved.

Read the full article here…

Shakespeare in The Parks

~ Image: Manhattan skyline seen from Hoboken, New Jersey

Where would the theatre world be without William Shakespeare? Surely productions of his many plays outnumber all others by a magnitude of… well, who knows? Ten to one, 100-1, 1000-1? Like I say, who knows? I certainly don’t, but I do know there are at least three theatre companies staging Shakespeare in New York this summer.

The Big Kahuna of productions is the one featuring Al Pacino as Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. This is being staged in Central Park. To get tickets to this potentially free performance you have to start lining up at the ticket office early in the morning and then face a wait of six hours or more. Failing that, you can buy a ticket, but even those are in high demand – and short supply.

For those of us who don’t have the patience or time to stand around in 90 degree heat (and 80 percent humidity) for six hours, we can make do with smaller, less prestigious productions. Like the one I saw last night at Sinatra Park, in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Image: The Freedom Tower rising high over the site of the former WTC

I found myself in Hoboken (the childhood home of Frank Sinatra) by indulging my habit of randomly taking some form of public transport, and discovering what lies at the end of the line. In this instance, having visited the 9/11 Memorial near the site of the former twin towers of the World Trade Center, I made my way over to the World Financial Center and its views looking down into the massive building site from where the new Freedom Tower has already risen some 20 floors above the ground.

On the Hudson River side of the Financial Center is a ferry terminal servicing various locations along the New Jersey side of the river. I bought a round-trip ticket ($11.00) to Hoboken and boarded the ferry for the quick 10 minute trip.

Walking along the park that lines the Hoboken shoreline I eventually found myself at Sinatra Park, and soon noticed something was afoot. All was revealed when a local theatre group, the Hudson Shakespeare Company, began setting up for a free Shakespeare in The Park performance of Much Ado About Nothing.

Directed by Tony White, who also takes on the roles of Dogberry/Verges, the 13 member cast battled valiantly to hold our attention against numerous distractions including helicopters, passenger jets, emergency service vehicles, buses and cars, and a spectacular lightning display from the massive rain-bearing clouds building up over Manhattan. At least the dogs where well behaved, and generally kept quiet throughout.

Image: Thespians prepare for Much Ado About Nothing

King Lear or Henry V it ain’t, but before a stage furnished with the barest of props (five chairs, and two sheet covered screens), the gallant company worked hard to overcome heat, humidity and lack of amplification to bring us this somewhat light piece of Shakespearean fluff. All cast members performed competently throughout, although Bjorn Pederson (as Claudio), and Mary Regan (working hard as Balthazar, Friar, and Watch) struggled at times to project their voices over the constant background noise.

After a performance last around two hours I headed back to the ferry for the ride back to Manhattan, only to learn that the last ferry had ceased running (sailing?) This was just after 10.00pm. And I had already paid for the trip! Luckily, the ferry terminal was located in the same area as the PATH train terminal, so I was able to board a train back to the WTC, and from there catch a train home – just as the skies over lower Manhattan began to open up and unload their contents onto the streets – and people – below.

Image: Spectacular cloud formations building up over Manhattan

Walking to New Jersey

Image: The George Washington Bridge looking towards Manhattan. For a while it laid claim to be the longest suspension bridge in the world.

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~ This entry could just as easily have been called: Walking the George Washington Bridge, or Walking Off My Jetlag, but let’s not quibble. What’s in a name, after all?

After heading to bed around 10.30 last night for a much need rest, I woke around 5.00am and could not get back to sleep, so I got up an hour later and wrote my earlier post (see below). I had a late breakfast (brunch) with my host, and then went off to perform a ritual I always undertake when staying in a new area: I explore my surroundings and try and orientate myself to the landscape by picking out obvious landmarks that will help me remember where my accommodations are, as well as where each point of the compass is facing.

Today I wandered aimlessly for an hour or so, but since I wasn’t achieving anything useful, I decided to walk part way across the George Washington Bridge which connects the upper end of Manhattan with New Jersey. The Manhattan end of the George Washington Bridge (or the ‘George’ as it is also informally called), is located in Washington Heights – where I am staying – while the borough of Fort Lee is on the New Jersey side.

It was a glorious morning for walking, and I have to say the view from the bridge was stunning as I set off down the pedestrian walkway running along the left side of the bridge’s upper level. A steady stream of joggers and lycra clad bike riders flashed past me as I ambled out to its mid-point.

The Wikipedia entry for the George Washington, states that as of 2007 the bridge has the greatest capacity of any bridge in the world, carrying approximately 106 million vehicles a year, and quite frankly that doesn’t surprise me. As I walked just a metre or two from roaring mass of steel, a constant flow of every type of truck, bus and automobile was pouring over the bridge into Manhattan, with maybe half that number heading in the other direction towards New Jersey. I wasn’t there to see it, but I’m sure the majority of the traffic flow would have been reversed during the evening rush hour.

Image: The view down the Hudson River, similar to the view that would have been facing Captain Sullenberger as he flew low over the George Washington Bridge.

Standing at the half way point, one almost gets the same exact view that presented itself to United Airlines pilot, Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger III, on January 15, 2009. Sullenberger, you may remember, rose to fame when he successfully ditched US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River off Manhattan. Captain Sullenberger had to fly low over the George Washington Bridge before he safely brought the plane down – in the process saving the lives of all 155 people on the aircraft.

Having reached the halfway mark, walking the full length of the bridge seemed to be the logical thing to do, especially since I could see an observation area high up on the New Jersey side – which turned out to be Fort Lee.

The Bridge is near the sites of Fort Washington (on the New York side) and Fort Lee (in New Jersey), which were fortified positions used by General Washington and his American forces in his unsuccessful attempt to deter the British occupation of New York City in 1776 during the American Revolutionary War. Washington evacuated Manhattan by crossing between the two forts [Source: Wikipedia].

The George Washington Bridge was even more stunning when viewed from the Fort Lee observation area than it was from the Manhattan side. Although I hasten to add, that I haven’t thoroughly explored the Manhattan side at all at this point – but then I’ve been here less than 24 hours!

However, ignoring the constant roar of the traffic, the view down river was spectacular to say the least. I watched as tug boats slowly pushed huge barges upriver. What was their ultimate destination and what, if anything, were the barges carrying? I saw sailing boats, pleasure craft, and numerous Circle Line passenger boats carrying sightseers on a full circumnavigation of the island of Manhattan. I was even fortunate to see a lone deer grazing quietly near the fort car park, and numerous squirrels, and small rodent-like creatures I didn’t recognize.

Image: 14 lanes of traffic ferry transport and people to and from Manhattan/New Jersey.

When it opened in 1931, the bridge had the longest main span in the world; at 1,067 m (3,500 ft), while the total length of the bridge is 1,451 m (4,760 ft). As originally built, the bridge offered six lanes of traffic, but in 1946, two additional lanes were provided on what is now the upper level. A second, lower deck, opened to the public in 1962. This lower level increased the capacity of the bridge by 75 percent, making the George Washington Bridge the world's only 14-lane suspension bridge [Wikipedia],

As you might imagine, with eight lanes on the upper level and six on the lower deck, the accumulated noise spilling off the bridge throughout the day is loud and constant.

Le Corbusier (Charles-Edouard Jeanneret) said of the unadorned steel structure:

"The George Washington Bridge over the Hudson is the most beautiful bridge in the world. Made of cables and steel beams, it gleams in the sky like a reversed arch. It is blessed. It is the only seat of grace in the disordered city..." [Wikipedia]

Well, Chazza, that’s a pretty sweeping statement to make about any bridge, but I have to agree that it is indeed wonderful to stand at the foot of either one of its two massive towers, and marvel at the extraordinary feat of engineering the structure represents. Maybe that is why the George Washington Bridge was designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in October, 1981, the fiftieth anniversary of the bridge's dedication ceremony.

Maybe it’s a ‘man/guy thing’, but a walk across the George Washington Bridge is well worth the effort. Especially when you are rewarded with sweeping views of Manhattan’s Westside, the vast expanse of the Hudson River as it flows towards the Atlantic Ocean, and the sight of towering skyscrapers reduced to the size of matchsticks far off in the distance, at the lower end of the island.

Unfortunately, I set out on my walk this morning completely unprepared for what might eventuate. This meant I had no water or hat with me, and worse yet, I had left my digital SLR behind, so I had to rely on the camera in my phone to try and capture the experience. Hence, the images illustrating this entry are not exactly award winning, but they will have to do until I explore the area further, and take some better photos.

So there you have it. My first full day in New York, and I can honestly say not only did I walk from New York City to New Jersey – but I also walked from New Jersey to New York. In the same day! Pretty impressive, I reckon.

Thanks to Wikipedia for the background information...

Images: Jim Lesses

Friday Photo#5 ~ Private Property

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I couldn’t resist taking a photograph of this tree, slowly devouring the Private Property sign, when I encountered it on State Street in Teaneck, New Jersey. I had gone to Teaneck to see one of my favourite American singer-songwriters, Steve Forbert, who was performing at the Mexicali Blues Cafe at 1409, Queen Anne Road (201-833-0011‎).

This tree gave me hope that maybe, just maybe, nature was not on the retreat. What if instead, nature was on the attack? What if nature, in a million surreptitious ways was slowly claiming back its rightful place on the planet, and we were too blind to even notice. Well, after all, it wouldn’t be the first time that people where so preoccupied with their own petty greed and jealousies, that nature was able to exact some type of revenge for years of neglect and abuse.

Or maybe this was natures way of saying, Neither this tree or this planet will ever by your ‘private property’. It belongs to everyone.

Photograph: Private Property Tree, by Jim Lesses
Location: Teaneck, New Jersey, May 18, 2008.