Over the years I’ve written a lot of New York  blogs.  I love NYC and have loved the city since my first trip  in my college years with my then boyfriend, now husband.  I was invited  to visit his parents  who lived there at the time and to see the Big Apple.  

I went armed with the book “ NYC on $5 to $10 a day” and a list of things to see and do each day.   

Last week I went to New York without the book, but with a good solid list of what to do.  We were taking our ten year old grand daughter and given the need for reservations, vaccination proof, etc. etc.  it took a lot more planning than other trips.  

No deciding spontaneously to do something.  WE needed reservations for museums and restaurants.   

But it all worked out and we had a great time.  Here are some of the Highlights.  

First of all, we had a great flight very early into NYC.  I loved using my new IPhone out the window to capture these images of the sunrise.  I’m really amazed with what that camera will do.  I am not willing to give up my Olympus Mirrorless constant companion yet, but the 13Pro Max did pretty darn good.  

Breakfast at the Empire Diner

We had breakfast at the Empire Diner on 10th street. Empire Diner. 

Wow. It’s terrific.  We understand the original diner was built in 1940s.  It fell into total disuse and disrepair at one point but is now a great spot to eat any time of the day.  Breakfast was fabulous.   I recommend it if you are in the neighborhood.   Jack recommends the Avocado Toast. 

I also love the big mural on the wall of the  building next door.

High Line  

We rent an apartment near the High Line so it has been part of the recent NYC experience. The High Line.

 It was terrific to share the elevated park in the sky with our grand daughter, pointing out the old tracks and elements designed to look like railroad components.  We walked both ways several times, noting the architecture, plant life, the people and the city lights.  

There is a lot of controversy over the architecture that has exploded along the High Line,  but that’s another blog post another time. 

                                    The Whitney Museum of American Art 

The Whitney Museum of American Art  sits at the bottom of the High Line, an elegant white boxy building, designed for large works of contemporary art.  I have enjoyed this museum ever since it opened in 2015.  The outdoor spots for lunch are lovely.  Way in the distance, you can see the Statue of Liberty and now, the Little Island is close by.  

Little Island is a new NYC attraction.  It is an artificial island park in the Hudson River west of Manhattan,  adjoining Hudson River Park. It is financed by Barry Diller, husband of Diane von Furstenburg.

It was a bit too cold and we were quite weary so we didn’t hike out to see what it is all about.  Next time.  It is intriguing.  

At the Whitney, we thoroughly enjoyed the massive Jasper Johns Exhibit.

We had had a sneak peak of the work by this famous American artist at our very own Grand Rapids Art Museum’s exhibit of prints so we had some idea of what to expect. GRAM. 

The Whitney exhibit was well worth the time.  It certainly demonstrated the prolific American artist’s recipe for success:  “Take an Object/Do something to it/Do something else to it. (Repeat)”  

Actually this was a great “grown up” exhibit for our ten year old.  She enjoyed looking at the objects and then seeing all the different ways to depict  it.  It really held her attention.  

I enjoyed the exhibit, but this sliver of mirror on the end of a temporary wall caught my eye. I found it very interesting to capture people’s reflections.  I’m not sure that is what the curators at the Whitney had in mind, but I enjoyed myself.   

Chelsea Market 

When we are in this part of town we always go to the Chelsea Market, a reuse of an old Nabisco Factory.    The floors are uneven, walls meandering and it is filled with quirky shops. 

The holiday decor was creative.  I liked it a lot….my husband not-so-much.  I think our grand daughter  was overwhelmed.  

So, I think this is enough for today.  Come back next week or the week after for more about post Covid (I hope it is) trip to New York City.

More about NYC on DesignDestinations.org

I have way too many blog posts about NYC to list here,   including a bunch about the High Line.  If you want to read them, put New York City and/or High Line into the search box on the right hand side of this page.  It searches the blog and will give you a brief summary.   Or you can go to the top of the page called the Header and use the pull down menus to get to the list of NYC blog posts.   

Have fun and I hope you are all healthy and enjoying the Holiday Season.