With the “relative” safe COVID travel easing, we ventured once again, six weeks later, by returning to New York City, this time for ten days and then, finally, after three long years, to our former life as boaters in Connecticut for a week. There we were reunited with the boat we lived on each summer since I retired, mostly at the same dock in Norwalk, the ‘Swept Away’ (now Captained by our son, Jonathan, and his wife/first mate, Tracie). Our other son Chris and his significant other Megan were able to meet up with all of us at the end of that week. To be with our four “kids” was the highlight of our trip.
The flight to NYC went flawlessly, thank you Jet Blue, and there was an orderly line to get cabs when we arrived at the gleaming new LGA terminal. For the following ten days we enjoyed living like the Upper-West-Siders we once were, staying at Jon and Tracie’s apartment overlooking the Hudson River (while they vacationed on the boat). Ironically one can see part of the West Side Highway from their windows, which I drove each morning in 1970 commuting from our little rent controlled apartment on West 63rd Street, to where I worked at a new publishing job in Westport, CT, not moving there until a year later. It was a more civilized drive in those days. I became the President of that company and was there for the rest of my working life. I feel deep roots in Manhattan and Southwest Connecticut. Florida has its merits but the verdant hills of Connecticut and Manhattan’s macadam still call out.
Jon and Tracie’s apartment also fronts Riverside Park which on some mornings I walked, especially enticed by a visit to the pier which juts out into the Hudson River and sitting on a bench where I could marvel at the 360 degree skyline. Manhattan was literally a breath of fresh air, in the 70s, low humidity, a nice breeze. The juxtaposition of the old West Side Highway and the new gleaming condos reaching for the sky, and the George Washington Bridge to the north in the distance and New Jersey to the west made for expansive viewing, dazzling in the light.
Manhattan people-watching is still so much fun. I was lucky to photograph a man and his dog enjoying that fresh morning air on the pier, and later, walking with Ann on Central Park West, the sweet mother and daughter strolling in lock step, Mom transporting her child’s roller skates.
Or an elderly woman feeding Manhattan's requisite pigeons at Riverside Park in the morning.
From a cab I saw a flight attendant who noted I was taking photos and stopped to pose as she crossed the street. My pleasure!
Not allowing grass to grow under our feet our first full night we were thrilled to catch our favorite jazz pianist at Birdland, Emmet Cohen. In addition to his steadfast drummer, Kyle Poole, and a guest bassist, he was joined by Bruce Harris on the trumpet, and Ruben Fox on the sax.
We had a front row table, directly facing Harris, probably one of the leading trumpet performers, but the young Aussie, Ruben Fox did some other-worldly riffs, to such an extent that Harris and I made eye contact, acknowledging what Fox was doing, both wondering, how the heck? Cohen meanwhile was smiling at his crew and doing his usual virtuosity on the ivories. We were able to chat briefly with him afterwards, “old” fans that we are, in both sense of the word.
There were so many new cast members that it felt like an opening night. When the curtains opened and the cast came out to perform the “Into the Woods” Prologue, the audience jumped up to a boisterous standing ovation which DID NOT STOP to the point that the performers began to look uncomfortable. It was a mutual audience/performer love fest all night. What a high bar for them to clear, but, clear it they did.
Among the almost entirely new cast were several well known performers including Stephanie J. Block, and Sebastian Arcelus of Madam Secretary fame. But to me it’s Sondheim’s glorious music and lyrics which makes this show a true work of art. A thunderous wave of ovations concluded the show. We exited to 8th Avenue and it became a battle to even move among the throngs of humanity in the light rain forcing us to walk blocks and blocks to get a cab or an Uber. It was some distance until the aggressive crowd filtered out that we finally were able to hail a cab in the rain. This may be our swan song for an evening Broadway performance. But never say never!
Another theatre event I was looking forward to, not for the faint of heart, is The Butcher Boy downtown at the Irish Rep., a very dark coming of age, absurdist production, a musical no less, based on Patrick McCabe’s contemporary piece of literature. The book, lyrics, and music are by Asher Muldoon, only 19 years old attending Princeton University. He has been compared to a young Sondheim, and some of the lyrics and music had a Sondheim quality to it. Imagine if Sondheim’s Saturday Night was performed as intended when he wrote it in 1954. I felt that seeing a work by this young artist was a must, sort of getting in at the ground floor. This piece of theatre, like Sweeny Todd, progressed to a very dark place. But dark places are where we now live in the world. Bravo to Mr. Muldoon and the cast!
Part of our days and nights were centered on some of the great restaurants of NY but my favorite was the old NYC diners, Greek owned, mostly booths. There is a sense of comfort being part of that scene and the food is darn good. That is yet another essential ingredient of the UWS which makes it unique, a village within a great city.
But then of course there were the “finer” restaurants, including this one recommended by our son, a great UWS French restaurant, Cafe Luxembourg. With a staff like this, how could it go wrong?
Most of the NYC time was spent walking the UWS, visiting its markets (call outs to Fairway, Citarella Gourmet, and of course Zabar’s) and then days at some of our favorite museums.
The Jewish Museum was new to us, but it had an exhibit everyone is raving about, NY 1962-64, exactly matching three of our formative years as New Yorkers! It’s a collection of all art forms of the period, including photographs and artifacts, arranged chronologically, sometimes day by day or weekly.
The New York Historical Society -- which we make a point to visit anytime we are in NYC -- showcased The Art of Winold Reiss: An Immigrant Modernist whose book designs captured my imagination.
Their special exhibit Confronting Hate 1937-52, is a terrifying harbinger of our present times.
The NY Historical Society also has its affiliated restaurant which we love, an oasis within an oasis, Storico.
I enjoyed the replica of the oval office the the NY Historical Society has created, and I felt very comfortable running the country from there.
Another beautiful day was spent at the JP Morgan Library Museum which features the Gilded Age magnificence of its interior and the breath taking library of JP Morgan.
The highlight of that visit was seeing their extraordinary collection One Hundred Years of James Joyce’s Ulysses with priceless Joyce documents and artifacts.
The Morgan gardens were also open, revealing the original entrance to the mansion.
Then to cap off our wonderful ten day stay in the City, we returned to Dizzy’s Jazz Club at Columbus Circle, for a tribute to Duke Ellington. Three wonderful singers performed all of his iconic pieces, backed up by the bass, piano, sax and drums. This Lincoln Center supported venue is unique overlooking Central Park. It is where we first discovered Emmet Cohen four years ago when he was relatively unknown, just coming up in the jazz world at the age of 28.
The following Monday we closed up Jon and Tracie’s apartment and headed up to Connecticut for another week. All I wanted to do at that point was to enjoy our old boat, see family, read and relax, and meet up with a few of our old boating friends we haven’t seen since Covid. It was strange walking down the dock to our old boat, our summer home for 20 years. The cool CT breeze and the lovely sunset made it seem like no time at all had gone by.
So many of our boating friends have either moved away or passed away. Those three Covid years have certainly taken a toll on the health of others that remain. It was nice to see them but a painful reminder of aging.
The following weekend our small but close family was able to get together, the first time since Covid.
Jonathan prepared the boat for a cruise to our beloved Crow Island where we spent so much time during our boating years. Add to that time those at the dock during our retirement years, and cruising to ports as far as Nantucket, with extended stays in Block Island, we figure we have lived on a boat for a total of about eight years. We miss the waters of the Long Island Sound.
So although Jon fired up the starboard engine, the port engine failed to turn over. The fuel pump failed. Always something in boating. By the time the replacement part arrived, we were there with our family for the last day, but just being at the dock was sufficient, beautifully soul-satisfying.
We then flew home, just beating a thunderstorm out of Westchester Airport. How many times remain for such trips? We wonder, and hope.
