Spring Break in the Balmy Big Apple, Volume IV

Day four of spring break found me walking. I walked and walked. The Today Show's Al Roker warned me that Tuesday would bring lots of rain, so I knew that if I wanted to get out and about in the Big Apple, I would have to do so on Monday.

So I checked out of my hotel in New Rochelle and took the train into the city. I hoofed it from Grand Central to my hotel, four or five blocks down 42nd Street, rolling my big suitcase behind me. After leaving that big bag in the room, I stepped out the front door of the Hilton Manhattan East to find a location of Patsy's Pizzaria right there on Second Avenue! Well, I had to have lunch there. Patsy's became a favorite of mine when I first ate there with Lawson and Great Aunt Dawn on our famous trip to New York in February 2011. We ate there before splurging on giant sundaes at Serendipity. Since then, I've taken Stephen and Davis to Patsy's when we brought Davis to college, so when I spied a Patsy's location so close to my hotel, I considered it serendipity and lunched there on eggplant parmesan.

Afterward, walked back to Grand Central and took the subway down to Union Square, and there began my walk around the lower part of Manhattan to see what I could see.

My first stop, oddly enough was Whole Foods. I've never been in one, and as I write, Whole Foods is busily constructing a new store on Victory Drive in Savannah. I wanted to see what the fuss was about. When I first entered, I thought, What's the big deal? It's a grocery store. Then I walked to the back of the store where the deli foods are. Then I thought, Oh, I get it. The place looks more like a cafeteria than a grocery store deli. People at home are going to love the selection. Welcome to Savannah, Whole Foods!

After that quick tour, I walked down Broadway, taking a right onto 18th Street and then heading south another block or two to Washington Square, where I sat down for a few minutes to rest.

As I gazed upon the arch, I wondered, Where can I find a big, sugary drink? Today is the last day I can have one. Nothing says America like a super-sized Coca-Cola, especially after an afternoon walk in the big city. I'm surprised I didn't see New Yorkers left and right sucking on their Big Gulps, but oddly enough, they were out playing and enjoying the day. All that thought of delicious cold beverages made me realize I had to find a bathroom. But that's one challenge of vacationing in the city--most locations do not open up their restrooms to just anybody. However, the NYU Library lay just ahead, so I headed there. 

Unfortunately, the library is open only to students, faculty, and staff of NYU. Go figure. But I didn't let that deter me. I spoke to the security guard, brandishing my Armstrong faculty ID, and said I was a guest of the university and had to do some important research at NYU. He gave me library privileges for one visit only, which was enough for me to find a toilet. However, I also found a really neat exhibit about the history of NYU, which included this wall of portraits of the university's past presidents. 

I also browsed the stacks and looked for a copy of Dunaway's Crossing, but sadly didn't find one.

Then my walk resumed down LaGuardia Place into SoHo and back to Broadway, where I worked my way back up to Union Square, where I sat and rested again, before strolling through the Monday local farmer's market. The produce looked really good, and I wish I could have bought some of it, but I don't know how I would have gotten it home to Savannah. It did remind me to make a visit to the Forsyth Park farmer's market sometime soon. 

From there I walked up Fifth Avenue, noticing from my map that the Flat Iron Building should be just ahead.On my way, I noticed a weird looking guy with kinky, curly, grayish hair walking my direction, pushing a strange little cart loaded with what looked like books and office supplies. The cart caught my attention more so than the man, but we happened to make eye contact, so I said a quick "hey" before moving along. Then I realized I'd spoken to Howard Stern. I have no idea why he was pushing a cart of office supplies, but he must have been just as puzzled by a Paula Deen sounding woman in a bright red coat speaking to him.

As I continued my walk, I looked and looked for the Flat Iron Building, but I didn't see it. I would have missed it if it hadn't been for a man on the corner ahead of me taking photos. I realized then that I'd been walking beside it for a whole block, and I hadn't thought to look up.

Across the street from the Flat Iron Building is Madison Square Park, home of the original Madison Square Garden. By this time, my feet were pretty sore, so found a bench and sat again, this time enjoying an apple I'd bought at the grocery store in New Rochelle. Temps had risen considerably, so I also shed my red jacket. The weather was a stark contrast against the snow I'd flown into just three days before.

From there, I resumed my walk on Madison Avenue, having never walked that street before. I was glad I did because I eventually came to the Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum. Unfortunately, it's closed on Mondays, but I thought that might be a nice indoor excursion for a rainy Tuesday, so I made a mental note to return. I had to take a photo of this banner outside the library because it reminded me of Lloyd Davis, my paternal grandfather, who always used to call me Miss LaLa:

Finally, I'd made it back to the hotel, and I was delighted to find in the lobby an urn of hot chocolate, so I poured myself a cup and while it was not a super-sized cup of it, I found it refreshing and a nice treat after a long afternoon's walk. In my room, I relaxed for about an hour before changing for dinner, and as I watched the news, I learned that the Supreme Court of New York had just ruled that Mayor Bloomberg's law against the twenty-ounce soda was "arbitrary and capricious." At that moment I heard the huge sigh of relief from New York soda lovers across Manhattan. I made a mental note to order a giant Coke at dinner, feeling fortunate to be in New York on this momentous historic occasion.

I dined at a New York landmark I'd never heard of before:  The Palm. I just happened to see it on Google Maps on my phone, but as it turns out The Palm has been a beloved New York eatery since 1926, and it soon became a favorite among journalists and newspaper cartoonists. The restaurant's owners had no decorating budget, and the cartoonists of nearby King Features Syndicate often had no food budget, so they drew on the walls in exchange for meals. The result is an entertaining mural featuring some well-known cartoon characters. I sat next to Funky Winkerbean. I couldn't help noticing, though, that the characters took on personalities they couldn't in the Sunday papers. For instance, newspaper funnies seldom feature topless women.

As I dined, I read about the history of the Palm in my iPhone,and I discovered that the restaurant has locations all over the country. There's even one in Atlanta! So I texted Sabra and told her she and Martin should have a date there sometime soon.

By the time I'd finished dinner, I was wiped out, so by 7:30, I was back in my hotel room getting ready for bed. Tuesday is supposed to be rainy all day, so I will either spend it exploring the Morgan Library and Museum or the New York Public Library. I have time to decide.