i and morgan were up early to meet our friends and go ice skating at bryant park. greg joined us to see the holiday decorations and to have a cup of coffee at the new whole foods on sixth avenue, which he hadn't been in yet.
we were surprised at the number of tourists already out and waiting to rent skates at the rink.
it was a typical grey december day . . but not cold at all.
you can see morgana skating here, in a gold scarf . .
my friend olga is in a red coat and i'm just to her left . .
whenever i skate, i whisper a big thank you to my mom and dad who purchased my ice skates years ago when the girls were little. we visited a special skate store at an ice rink on long island to get them. i chose the more expensive pair, and i'm so glad i did, for these skates are still very comfortable (and i've probably had them for almost twenty years now).
whenever i skate, i whisper a big thank you to my mom and dad who purchased my ice skates years ago when the girls were little. we visited a special skate store at an ice rink on long island to get them. i chose the more expensive pair, and i'm so glad i did, for these skates are still very comfortable (and i've probably had them for almost twenty years now).
looking south, past 40th street, to the empire state building on 34th.
afterwards, we went to maison kayser on 40th street for a hot chocolate . . greg joined us also, and shared a lemon tart with me.
we then visited the library, hoping to see the rose room, but that part of the building didn't open until 1 pm, and it was only noon.
instead we saw the original winnie the pooh and friends, on display in the children's library of the main branch. they had been absent for a few years, undergoing a textile renovation and were reinstated in 2016. (nyc has had them since 1987. they used to be exhibited at the donnell library on 53rd street and when that branch closed for renovation, they were moved to 42nd street.)
greg and i parted ways here with morgana and our friends (each going to their respective homes).
and we walked to rockefeller center to see the christmas tree. it was nicer this year as they closed off two side streets, allowing more room for the crowds of people that visit.
this year, the tree is a norway spruce, 77 feet tall, and hails from florida, new york.
it has a special story which you can learn about here, on the today show;
and you can see the tree rolling into rockefeller center on a big truck here.
we then walked through 30 rockefeller plaza . .
adorned with the american progress mural by catalan artist josep maria sert, which wraps around the lobby . .
and through the concourse to sixth avenue and radio city music hall . .
to the time and life building where greg worked for over twenty years. time moved downtown where rent was cheaper about 2014 or so.
much of rockefeller center is landmarked, including this pavement . .
and the lobby of the time life building (home to several murals by artists fritz glarner and josef albers). the entire building itself has been under renovation for the past two years. i'm not sure who the current tenants are, or who will occupy it once the construction is done.
on our way to the train, we passed by the giant christmas ornament display at 1251 sixth avenue,
and once down in the subway we were surprised when a vintage train pulled into the station!
every sunday between thanksgiving and new year's the transit museum ran their 1930's vintage trains along select lines. this year it was the f, d and a lines.
the cars were incredibly crowded with tourists, local people on their everyday way, and vintage fans, dressed in 1930's clothes celebrating the season.
you can see a few people dressed in 1930's garb in the window on the left in this video.
i remember my friend joanna posting a ride on the vintage trains last year on her facebook page. i'm not sure if she took a ride this year . . i was certainly excited to suddenly be on an old train, as were most of the people i saw today.
back in the neighborhood again . .
sixth avenue with the freedom tower in the distance.
