Before we left town, I stayed up almost all night downloading movies/tv shows onto our iPads thinking it would entertain us if there wasn't a movie on our early flight. Sure enough, no movie and unfortunately what I had downloaded onto Jerry's iPad wouldn't work without first connecting back to the iTunes Store - that was impossible in mid-air - so he used my iPad and I entertained myself with the flight magazine and shooting photos out the window.
I've made this flight so many times before but it's a beautiful sight as you turn up the East coast and near Manhattan. In this snap you can see Governor's Island in the foreground, with Freedom Island - and the Statue of Liberty - back left and Ellis Island center back.
Battery Park and Downtown Manhattan ...
Headed up the East River ... the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan Bridge
Approaching "Midtown" and the Williamsburg Bridge ...
Home of the US Open Tennis Tournament, with Citi Field (the new Shea) in the background
After a quick deli lunch, followed by walking all our favorite midtown Tracks, we headed to the Village for dinner at Il Mulino ~ a lovely Italian restaurant owned by the mob. Seriously. Not everyone gets in and we were happy that Jerry's contact could pull it off. There are Il Mulino restaurants in other cities - and they're opening one in Houston soon - but it will be interesting to see if it compares to the original in New York. These boys are the real deal.
When you go to Il Mulino you'd better be hungry! Like in Italy, the minute you sit down they start bringing things to your table ... bruschetta with beautiful ripe tomatoes and olive oil ... hunks of Parmesan cheese ... garlic bread slices ... sampler plates with salami ...
Truth be told, you should stop at the appetizers, but no one does.
This is Jerry's plate, I kid you not. I had a bite of his lamb but focused on my own delicious mushroom ravioli with black truffle oil. It was fabulous!
We needed to "walk it off" after a meal like that, so we wandered around Greenwich Village a bit to take in the local sights. Neighborhood handball courts with lots of players and spectators. Outdoor basketball was another highlight.
We had passed Washington Square on our way in and decided to walk back through the park before grabbing a cab back to Midtown. The squirrels are huge in NY and this one was certainly enjoying the weather ... draped over his house at the top of a tall tree!
Like SoHo, the Village is an interesting mix and Washington Square was full of musicians and "street entertainers", along with locals who just wanted to get outside and enjoy the fountain & park.
Meanwhile, back at Rockefeller Center, this bronze statue of Atlas is holding the weight of the world on his shoulders.
No comments:
Post a Comment