A NewYork state of mind

Welcome to New York City.

We decided that for our 30th anniversary we would explore Manhattan in 48 hours. Fat chance on that  but WOW, was it every worth every min. we were there.

Lets start the journey with the view from our subway stop in Queens (all Manhattan hotels were full). This is the view from the Queensbury stop, just over the river.

Here is the train pulling in. I really like the Stars and stripes showing through the blur at the top right of the train

The Fifth Ave. stop had this marvelous Mosaic work. Just had to get a shot

This is my favorite subway shot. Don't know why, maybe the colour, maybe it's balanced well. Hummmmm...

Not the graffiti filled, scary play you may have thought.

What is so, so cool about the NY subway system is it still looks like it's out of the 60's. Lots of metal, and jail like appearance.

Next stop, Times Square. Wow, look at all the people. Maybe we should have heeded the sign.

They have this bleacher stands area where lots of people just stopped to eat their lunch and people watch. This shot in no why shows the utter illumination and I am sure Greenpeace's worse nightmare for waste of electricity, but we loved just watching everything.

This fellow was selling tickets to something. There were hustlers on every street corner, selling everything you could imagine. And some you could not.

Check out this guy. Just sitting in the middle of Times  Square on  a lounge chair

The Godspell singers

Class picture anyone?

Love getting shots through windows.

He's no Johnny Depp

So it was getting a little late in the day and we wanted to see Central park. We really thought of taking a horse but this shady character came up to us with a binder and showed us all of the options we could have from horse drawn carriage to bicycle rickshaw ride.

The bike ride was a 2 hour tour for $125 where the horse was only 30 mins, so we said the hell with it and risked our lives on the bike. Was it every worth it. We saw so much of central park that I am sure you would miss with the horse.

This is Angel of the Waters fountain. The only sculpture commissioned in the original design of Central Park, the Angel of the Waters Fountain is also one of the most photographed fountains in the world. You may remember this fountain for its appearances in Angels in America, Ransom, and Stewart Little II

A little Zen moment under the angel

Underneath the bridge, you will often find performers. The ceiling is lined with fantastic mosaic's that you really need to experience in person.

We then went to Strawberry fields. This is where the John Lennon Mosaic is inlayed. Just up the path is the hotel where he was shot. Yoko still lives there and owns 80% of the building.

This next shot is taken from the rickshaw bike right in the middle of traffic. It's like the bikes are cars, weaving in and out of traffic. Not for the Faint of Heart.

Last stop for the day was the Radio City Music Hall. So many people there at Christmas time. Very difficult to get a decent shot. This one was taken with me standing on a light post, using the post as my tripod and hoping that I don't fall off.

Next up, Day 2.......