New York Day 3: Museums & Eataly

If Tuesday was all about holiday markets, then Wednesday was all about museums. We started off our morning by heading to the Whitney Museum of American Art where we ate breakfast at the museum's cafe, Untitled. Frank had an omelette and I had lox and egg salad on an everything bagel. Everything was delicious and with our appetites sated we headed upstairs to see the Whitney's exhibits.

As a big fan of Edward Hopper (I have a print of New York Movie in my house) I was excited to see two of his works, Early Sunday Morning and Seven A.M., as part of the Real/Surreal exhibit. His paintings have such a lonely, haunting quality that always moves me. One of the most interesting things about our visit was the connection of seeing Man Ray's La Fortune as part of the Real/Surreal exhibit and then seeing Sherrie Levine's derivative work, "La Fortune" (After Man Ray:1-4), as part of the exhibit on her work on the floor above. Unfortunately, pictures aren't allowed at the Whitney, but I linked photos of the works from the Whitney website for anyone who is curious about them.

After leaving the Whitney, Frank and I walked through Central Park, stopping at Belvedere Castle. Built on Vista Rock in 1869, the National Weather Service has used measurements from atop the tower to report the weather in Central Park. Belvedere Castle has an interesting history but my favorite tidbit is that it has been used on Sesame Street for exterior shots of Count von Count's castle. 

After leaving Central Park we headed to the American Museum of Natural History for the rest of the afternoon. Neither Frank nor I had ever been there before and we were really impressed with the extensive collections in the museum. A person could spend a week or two if they went through and looked at and read everything the museum has on display. Among the many interesting things I learned was that the Native Americans in the plains area developped a system of sign language to communicate between tribes which spoke different languages. My favorite exhibit (being the engineering nerd that I am) was The Scales of the Universe which illustrates the relative scale of everything from sub-atomic particles to galaxies. A close second was Picturing Science: Museum Scientists and Imaging Technologies which showcased the ways that different optical techniques are used by scientists in their research. Very cool! 

By the time we left the American Museum of Natural History, Frank and I were starving and headed to Birreria, Eataly's rooftop beer garden. Being a beer garden they were brewing cask ales on the rooftop and so I tried the Ruby which I really enjoyed. We started with a cheese plate (asiago fresco, robiola bosini, provolone madrone, taleggio, gorgonzola dolce) and meat plate (speck, sopressata, mortadella, cacciatorini, coppa) which was delicious. For dinner I had a chopped mixed kale salad topped with grapefruit, poppy seed frico and anchovy vinaigrette while Frank ate the beer braised pork shoulder with apricot. The food was great and the atmosphere on top of the roof was really laid back and cool.   

After finishing dinner we headed back downstairs to the Eataly Market. The market sells everything you can imagine to make an Italian feast with amazing varieties of cheese, meats, pastas, vegetables, and more. Although we didn't buy anything it was fun to wander around and look.

After leaving Eataly we spotted the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park and even though we were still stuffed from Birreria we just had to stop for a shake. Frank's chocolate malted shake and my Arabica coffee shake were both awesome and a great cap on the night.

As we were heading to grab the subway back to our hotel we had an amazing view of the Empire State Building. It was festively lit up and the foggy evening made it seem like it was vanishing into thin air. It was a beautiful way to end an awesome day.

If you are interested, check out the rest of our New York trip here: Day 1, Day 2, Day 4.

Picture of the Day: Iguacu Falls

Iguacu Falls, Brazil
05.30.2007 

Picture of the Day: Sunset over River Liffey

Banks of River Liffey
Dublin, Ireland
06.14.2004 

New York Day 2: Holiday Markets & Tasty Treats

On Tuesday, our second day in New York, Frank and I started off the morning by picking up breakfast at Sullivan Street Bakery which is just around the corner from our hotel. I opted for a pastry filled with ricotta, gruyere and pancetta while Frank had the Pizza Bianca (olive oil, rosemary and sea salt) and Pizza Patate (potato, onion, olive oil, rosemary, and black pepper). Not only was it convenient but it was absolutely delicious.

After breakfast the rest of the day was all about the holiday markets. We started off by walking up 8th Avenue to the Columbus Circle Holiday Market. The market was festive with red and white striped tents festooned with greenery and lights. Wandering around looking at all the vendors was really fun. The stalls were bustling with people and we even saw a CNN camera crew interviewing shoppers. I ended up buying some cool postcards with graphics of transit lines from cities across the U.S. and around the world from Line Posters. We also couldn't resist picking up a snack of a yummy truffle-cheddar pretzel from Sigmund's Pretzels and a hot chocolate from No Chewing Allowed! The hot chocolate was ridiculously decadent and had a chocolate truffle placed in the bottom of the cup before the hot chocolate was poured over it.  

From Columbus Circle we walked down Broadway and through Times Square en route to Grand Central Terminal. With all the hustle and bustle and the buildings plastered with enormous advertisements there is nothing quite like Times Square.

Grand Central Terminal was teeming with people when we got there. Frank was particularly interested in checking out the new Apple Store which opened up there earlier this month. At 23,000 square feet it is enormous and has a cool atmosphere taking up the whole east balcony overlooking the station.

From Grand Central Terminal we hopped on the subway to visit the Union Square Holiday Market. Many of the vendors were the same as those at Columbus Circle so we didn't do a lot of browsing, but being late in the afternoon we were hungry and ready to try some of the food stalls. First up was pork meatballs topped with a sweet and spicy cranberry horseradish chutney from Mighty Balls. Still hungry we got lentil soup and Persian chili from Taste of Persia. The soup had a delicious flavor and was chock full of beans and vegetables. We finished off with a trio of miniature canoli in eggnog, girl scout cookie, and white chocolate macadamia flavors. 

After getting our fill of tasty treats we grabbed the subway again to go to Kalustyan's. It is an amazing shop full of all sorts of food stuffs but the reason for me to go is the fabulous selection of high quality spices. Frank and I stocked up on bulk packages of all sorts of things. Who needs a pound of poppy seeds? Me, of course!

We then headed to 601 Lexington Avenue to visit a friend of Frank's that works there. Frank's friend's office is on an upper floor of the building and the conference rooms have amazing views of the Chrysler Building and Rockefeller Center.

After a short rest at our hotel we headed to Broadway for a production of Rock of Ages. Booking last minute during holiday season we had limited options and the campy aspects of the show really weren't my style. Despite the show not being my taste the performers were talented and I like the cozy atmosphere of the Helen Hayes Theater where the production was staged.  Two years ago at the Helen Hayes Theater I had a chance to see The 39 Steps, a farce based on the Alfred Hitchcock movie of the same name, which being an old movie buff I absolutely loved.

At ten o'clock we ended our evening by dining at Momofuku Ko which was an amazing experience and deserves it's own post later. It was another wonderful day in New York.

If you are interested, check out the rest of our New York trip here: Day 1, Day 3, Day 4.

Picture of the Day: Turret in Old San Juan

San Juan, Puerto Rico
02.17.2007 

Picture of the Day: Jellyfish at Shedd Aquarium

Shedd Aquarium
Chicago, Illinois, United States
05.29.2011 

New York, New York

Frank and I both had a lot of vacation left at the end of the year so we decided to take a pre-Christmas road trip to New York for a few days. We arrived in New York yesterday afternoon and after checking in at our hotel in Hell's Kitchen we headed to Chelsea Market to wander around.

Chelsea Market is a feast for the senses. There are so many amazing food shops and I loved wandering around the kitchen supply shop looking at all sorts of cool tools that I covet. All the food smelled incredible but with dinner reservations at six at Del Posto we didn't want to ruin our appetites. We couldn't resist stopping at Amy's Bread for an olive bread twist and tea, however. Everything at Chelsea Market was decked out for the holidays and I particularly liked the mass of lights creating an arch by the clock in the center of the market. It definitely had me in a festive mood.

We still had some time before our dinner reservation at six so we took a little walk around Hi Line Park. Hi Line Park is built on a section of a former elevated freight railroad spur that was used to transport goods directly to factories and warehouses without disturbing the traffic on street level. As trucking became the primary means for distribution the line fell into disuse but was revitalized as an urban park opening in 2009.  The park does an amazing job of incorporating original elements of the train line with plantings. I particularly thought that the seating that could roll on the old tracks was really cool. Since the park is elevated it also provides some beautiful views of the city that Frank and I enjoyed.

At six Frank and I headed to dinner at Del Posto. We had the five course tasting menu which was absolutely amazing and deserves its own post later. After dinner we headed to Rockefeller Center to see the decorations and the Christmas Tree. Everything was beautifully lit up and I really loved the enormous ornaments lit up in the fountain nearby.

Around Rockefeller Center we stumbled upon a cool light show displayed on the side of a building. Initially we saw huge gears ticking down so we waited and when it got to zero a show began with the windows appearing to move and snowflake bubbles exploding of the face of the building.

We then went up to the Top of the Rock Observatory to see the view of the city at night. The view was gorgeous, especially the Empire State Building lit up in red and green.

We ended the evening by getting drinks at a small bar in the West Village called Little Branch. It has a very nondescript door on the street but when you descend the stairs you find a cool bar with amazing drinks. It was a great way to end a wonderful day.

If you are interested, check out the rest of our New York trip here: Day 2, Day 3, Day 4.

Picture of the Day: View of Napflio from Palamidi Fortress

Napflio, Greece
11.2009 

Monogrammed Fleece Scarves

I wanted to make something fun and personal for Frank's nieces for Christmas and I thought that fleece scarves would be cute. I made the scarves in each girl's favorite color and then appliqued each girl's first initial on the scarf.

To make the scarves I started off with a piece of fleece and used my rotary cutter and quilting ruler to cut it 6" wide and then cut 1/2" wide fringe on the ends.

For the monogram applique I printed out each girl's initial in the font Georgia and cut it out. I placed the letters right side down on a coordinating piece of felt, traced them and then cut them out.

Frank and I are heading to New York for a pre-Christmas vacation so I had plenty of time on my hands during our drive yesterday. After I had done all the cutting at home I brought the scarves with me to do the hand stitching in the car. I pinned the felt letters to the scarves and used a small stitch to applique them, hiding the tails of my thread under the letters. 

I bought the fleece when it was on sale half off and got the felt at a ¥100 shop (Japanese version of a dollar store) when I was in Japan. With the fleece, thread and felt each scarf cost under three dollars and took less than an hour to make. I am really happy with how they turned out and hope that the girls like them on Christmas.

Picture of the Day: Wat Xieng Thong Buddhas

Wat Xieng Thong
Luang Prabang, Laos
08.16.2011