Manhattan Miscellany #1

SEA OF BLUE

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

The cherry blossoms were over and done, but there were azaleas and early rhododendrons here and there. The first Japanese garden in the U.S. was created here in 1914. It is welcoming and serene with its bright red gate standing in a pond and a hilly path alongside.  However, the real highlight on this day was the span of 45,000 blue flowered plants in the bluebell wood as shown in the header photo and below. Getting to the garden was easy: we took the Q train from 63rd Street to the Prospect Park station and then it was a very short walk to the entrance on Flatbush Avenue.

Bluebell Wood

RECENT READING

Everything in Its Place: First Loves and Last Tales by Oliver Sacks

This is the second posthumous book by Sacks who died in 2015.  The vast majority of these essays have appeared elsewhere in the years between 1987 and 2015.  Even though I might have read a few of them previously, I enjoyed “hearing” Sacks’ voice again.  He writes from a deep knowledge of science, medicine and the arts, and his writing combines warmth and humor with compassion for his patients.  The book is divided into three sections arranged somewhat chronologically in terms of the essays about his own life.  I particularly enjoyed “Libraries” about his love of books and reading; the several pieces on Tourette’s, dementia, and bipolar disorder in the Clinical Tales section; and lastly his humorous and poignant take on gefilte fish in “Filter Fish.”   Dr. Sacks is a good companion for several hours of contemplative reading.  (~JWFarrington)

FINE DINING–JoJo

Every so often, it’s fun to splurge on a special restaurant, one that is more elegant or with more sophisticated cuisine.  We opted not to go to the Bar Room at the Modern on this visit, a dining experience we’ve enjoyed in the past.  Instead, we discovered JoJo, chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s first restaurant now in a new location.  It’s tucked in a pretty block of E. 64th Street and you enter by going downstairs to the lower or main level.  That level is attractive, but not as lovely as the upstairs dining space where we sat. 

JoJo upstairs dining room

It has windows overlooking the street, lots of natural light, and is mostly done in whites with a touch of color in the variety of bread and butter plates—clear pink glass, tan ringed china and other patterns—-at each place setting.  Even the napkins are different with a beige stripe against white linen.

White asparagus

The menu is a mix of the familiar and the unusual and highlights locally sourced ingredients. We began by sharing two appetizers. A platter with two fat stalks of white asparagus accompanied by a pool of mustard mayonnaise and a small bowl of delicate peeky toe crab dumplings in a citrusy broth.  Both were excellent and evoked spring.  

Crab dumplings

For entrees, the Chief Penguin had the roast organic chicken with roast potatoes and onion rings while I delighted in the seared salmon (served medium-well per my request) in the pea green curry with bok choy.  

Wines by the glass were expensive, but good.  It was such a lovely experience, we’d like to return!

Note: Contents and photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved).

Manhattan: Tulips & Art

TULIP TIME

With the cold, somewhat snowy March followed by cool April weather, the trees here are just leafing out. But, there are tulips galore!  I love the little fenced square and rectangle gardens along the streets with their big bold tulips. Jefferson Market Garden was also a riot of tulip beds. Makes for a lovely spring!  Usually we come in May and any remaining tulips are bedraggled and beaten down.

AT THE WHITNEY

American painter Grant Wood is arguably best known for his portrait of a farm couple called “American Gothic.”  Actually it’s meant to be a father and daughter and if you look closely, you can see the difference in their ages.  Most people just assumed it was a husband and wife.  

Wood painted farm scenes and the rural folks of his native Iowa, but he did it from an idealized perspective based on memories of his childhood and his view of a simpler time.  Lots of rounded shapes and flat surfaces.  

Early in his career, he made the requisite European tour and this exhibit includes several impressionistic works from that time.  

But I was also taken with his “Women of Revolution,” a less than admiring portrait of three women of the DAR.

What comes across here and what I enjoyed most was getting an enlarged sense of the variety in Wood’s oeuvre. The exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art runs into early June and is well worth a visit!

 

GRANDPARENTS’ DAY

The Chief Penguin and I had the pleasure of experiencing Grandparent and Special Persons’ Day at Brearley, our granddaughter’s school.  Fortunately, all four of her grandparents were able to attend.  It’s an impressive place and it was great to hear and see how these kindergarten girls are being empowered to be creative, bold, and caring individuals.  

RETURN VISITS

We will eat a lot of meals out while we are in the city.  Here are several places we’ve re-visited.

Lenox Hill Grill.  The all-American comfort food you would expect from any respectable diner. Grilled ham and cheese with fries and a tuna salad sandwich with cole slaw on the side made for a quick tasty lunch.

Amali. Now billing itself as “sustainable Mediterranean” with a new menu with more veggies and small plates, it’s easy to avoid ordering an entrée.  We had prosciutto, chorizo, and buffalo blue cheese, followed by chickpea and cauliflower croquettes with a spicy salsa, grilled asparagus and green onions, and fluke crudo.  All delicious, with Greek and Italian overtones, and mostly healthy!

Gradisca.  This Italian restaurant on W. 13th Street was jumping on a Thursday night and service was slower than we’ve experienced in the past.  But, the pasta was as wonderful as always!  One of the specials was farfalle with little chunks of zucchini and shrimp in a light lemon cream sauce; another was Mama’s homemade beef tortellini that we watched her make at a side table in the dining room.  And our friends B. and A. were pleased with the cavatelli with eggplant.

Note: All photos by JWFarrington.

Down Under: Arrowtown

IN ARROWTOWN

We drove from Manapouri on Wednesday, after our overnight cruise on Doubtful Sound, to Arrowtown, which is about half an hour from Queenstown. It wasn’t a long drive, but it rained much of the way and the last 45 minutes or so were on the now familiar narrow, winding roads around the mountains. A very narrow one lane bridge was a bit unnerving since it wasn’t really clear who had the right away. We arrived in charming Arrowtown and the Arrowtown House Boutique Hotel around 3:00 pm. When the rain let up a bit, we decided to walk into town.  

 

Arrowtown is a former gold mining village and sits in a valley surrounded by more beautiful mountains. The flowering trees, cherry and apple, are in full bloom and many houses have elaborate gardens of rhododendrons, tulips, and, what I would call, wild roses, but are probably just another subspecies of rose.

Many buildings date from the 19th century and are wood framed and well preserved.

St. Patrick’s Catholic Church

Masonic Lodge

The main street is not that long, but is dotted with plenty of upscale galleries and gift shops, an inviting wine store, a small museum which we plan to explore, and more restaurants and cafes than you might expect in a town this small. There was a mix of people on the street, older and young, walkers and backpackers, and Asian (Chinese and Indian, it would appear) as well as white. There is also a historic Chinese settlement here that we will also visit.

DINING

We dined our first night at La Rumbla, a delicious tapas restaurant where we had fun bantering with our French waiter about the food and what wine by the glass we should choose. For lunch the next day we tried Mantra, an Indian restaurant. 

The interior is beautiful with magenta on the chair seats and wall and pink flowers in tubs.

We opted for the lamb rogan josh thali, which meant the delicious lamb came with basmati rice, lentils, potatoes and peas, raita, spicy pickle, and both poppadums and poori. Some of the best Indian food I’ve had! 

Thursday night, on the recommendation of our hotel, we went to Postmaster’s Residence, a cozy restaurant with a wood stove in its main room. We were the first to arrive, but soon the side room was full of diners old and young. The pan-fried fish of the day (gurnard, I believe) was excellent, served with capers, perfectly cooked broccoli, cauliflower and carrot rounds, and roast potatoes.

STOPPING IN QUEENSTOWN

It is so near we figured we had to make the short drive over to Queenstown. Thursday was sunny and we stopped to take a few more photos of the lovely shades of green on the mountain before going into the center of town to a parking garage. Navigating a tight garage when you have to remember to always be left is a definite test for the driver!

We wandered around Queenstown for about an hour noting how busy and lively it was (especially compared to Arrowtown), the large number of hikers and back packers, and along the lake, the many options for jet boat rides, wind gliding, and other water sports. The skyline was gorgeous on this bright blue-sky day!

The public garden also fronts on the water and we strolled up the hill and immersed ourselves in spring in the beds of bright pink and yellow tulips. We’re glad we made a point of seeing Queenstown, but were very happy to return to our abode in Arrowtown!

Note:  All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)

Down Under: Wellington in the Sun

TRAMPING AROUND WELLINGTON

Botanic Garden

Thursday was clear and almost cold (50 degrees), but a good morning to walk. Our first destination was the cable car up to the botanic garden. Interestingly, since the incline is very steep, some affluent individuals have their own private cable cars to deliver them to their homes. This public one takes only about five minutes, makes a couple stops along the way, and ends at the Cable Car Museum and the entrance to the Wellington Botanic Garden. We wandered in the museum, took our pictures with period hats and then were on to the garden.    

It was quiet and lovely and full of trees and plants native to this country. It’s also very well signed for specific locales within the garden as well as with plaques identifying most of the flora. We headed for the Lady Norwood Rose Garden which was said to be about a 20-minute walk. It took us longer, partly because I kept stopping to take pictures. The rose garden is probably glorious when in full bloom; today there were just a few rogue blooms, early budders.  

Bolton Street Cemetery

From the garden, you can enter the historic Bolton Street Cemetery which was in use until 1892. Founded in 1842, the original intent was that it be a cemetery for all religions and all people. It ended up being divided in three parts: Anglican, Jewish, and Public; the Catholics already had a cemetery elsewhere in Wellington. As you walk the main path, there are side paths that you can take deeper into the various sections. It’s a fascinating glimpse at the history of the city, its famous politicians and successful merchants, and the children who died of one disease or another, diphtheria and scarlet fever being two examples. Like the botanic garden, it’s a peaceful spot and we saw no one else on our walk.  

 

 

Note the understated summation of her life.

 

 

 

 

Wellington is a clean, compact city and very walkable. We like it a lot and have done almost all our wandering thus far on foot. By the end of this day with all our tramping around, we had reached 20,000 plus steps or eight miles!

Note:  All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved).