Theme inspired by Where’s My Backpack?
17 (Central Park) reasons to love Manhattan
Time to make your reservations for New York if you want to go in September. These photos are from a month in New York last year, half September, half October. You can rent an apartment through VRBO, one with Wi-Fi so you can work. Hopefully these photos will inspire you to try living in the Big Apple for a month, experiencing what it’s like to be a New Yorker.
28 (food) reasons to love Manhattan
Welcome to new followers of this blog! Here is a re-post of a popular topic. Loyal readers, thanks for your indulgence as I work up an interesting new series called: “Inside the author’s mind.” And don’t worry, it’s not my mind we will be exploring. My interviewees for this creative-process exploration are a lot more interesting.
Trip dates: 9/15 – 10/13/12
Pushkin Brasserie (near Museum of Modern Art),
Add to Pushkin Brasserie ambiance this and a spiked cappuccino and you’ll recover from exhausting museum going:
Share these from Crumbs Bake Shop:
(upper west side, 97th/Columbus.)
“Wine-dark in a shallow lemon sea, pelted with capers, the curl of octopus ($16) looked messy and primeval, as if just plucked from the deep. It is the dish that a Greek restaurant lives or dies by, simple yet exacting. Tenderness should be victory enough. But the octopus at Boukiés had gone a step beyond, the flesh undoing itself, achieving a texture, at its core, close to nectar.” Ligaya Mishan, New York Times 9/21/12
Looked scary, tasted heavenly:
For less money and a different though not lesser pleasure, a hot pretzel in Central Park: 
Do you love cheese? There’s a name for that.
A choice of Schmears (upper west side, Broadway):
Oyster bar in Grand Central Station:
Spinach and kasha knishes from Yonah Shimmel’s Knishery on East Houston Street (lower east side):
Pastrami and corned beef sandwiches at Katz’s Deli (near Yonah’s, lower east side):
Tiny cupcake:
Cappuccino in Tribeca:
Comfort food at The Eatery after a show (The Phantom of the Opera).
Elevation of a bagel:
Peruvian cuisine on the upper west side at Flor De Mayo (Broadway around 98th):
Simple repast at The Boathouse (Central Park):
Paris in the spring, series 5
Capitola and The Wharf Restaurant
In Capitola, you can park up on a bluff above the town at meters. These were filled so we parked on a side street beyond the meters then enjoyed the long walk down to the beach, the wharf, and the restaurant.
The light quality differs between the first photo and the rest. That’s because I white balanced and color enhanced the first one only. The others are as-is, straight off my Android phone camera.
The approach:
The restaurant:
The departure:
Paris in the spring series, 3
De Oude Kerk (The Old Church), Amsterdam
First, here’s some info about the church, from their website:
The Old Church
The Old Church is in the heart of Amsterdam right on the ramparts. It is the oldest building in the city and was founded by fishermen on the river Amstel. Around 1300 there was erected a stone church, dedicated to St. Nicholas. This church would become the imposing medieval monument that exists today.
The Old Church not only serves as a place of worship but also as a concert hall, wedding venue and exhibition and reception area. It is the living room of Amsterdam. That’s always been the case: Fishermen repaired their nets here, played the organ, and Sweelinck and Rembrandt went here to marry. Generations of Amsterdam residents, including the naval hero Van Heemskerck, are buried in this European monument.
Our experience in May 2013
We were walking, of course, as we walked so much in Amsterdam (afraid of getting in a bike crash) that I ended up with tendinitis in my hip at the end. On this sightseeing adventure, I was in front, picking my way around some construction work being done on the paving stones outside the church, and behind me, my husband was being propositioned by a “lady of the night.” Does that moniker still apply during the day? Well, you know what I mean. Now, this is a man who takes pretty much everything in stride, but he was startled enough to catch up and tell me what happened. His eyes were pretty huge! The lady in question managed to do this without me catching on. Pretty clever.
The church is right next to the red light district, we discovered.
The World Press Photo laureates from Russia and the Soviet Union were on display. These photos were fascinating and some of them were disturbing, as photojournalism can and should be, bringing to light experiences of people around the world, both positive and negative.
The church itself is amazing. You look at these tombstones on the floor and know that beneath them are people who lived in Amsterdam hundreds of years ago. And you think about their lives.
That was a lot of death, so here are some thrilling photos of life at its best from the Photo Laureates, Wei Zheng and Yongzhi Chu:
Looking at these photojournalism masterpieces reminds me of Leanne Cole’s post yesterday in which she discusses art and photography. I highly recommend it: What is Art?
Nicci Carrera 