December 2006 involved a 5 day trip to New York City,
a trip which meant that Valeria would at last get to
visit the United States. Staying near Broadway, we took
in visits to the Guggenheim Museum, Natural History
Museum, a walk in Central Park on Christmas Day and
out and about. Valeria seemed to be overwhelmed by the
openness and friendliness of the Americans we met. They
say that if you cannot buy something in NYC then you
cannot buy it anywhere. For many things we found this
literally to be true, with Valeria able to buy Sicilian
foods in the shops in NYC, which are not even available
on the Italian mainland. Below
we highlight two pictures of dinosaurs from the History
Museum and also a picture of the fire hydrants in Little
Italy, NYC - painted in the colour of the Italian flag.
If you go to New York City, then be sure to go up
the Empire State Building. Despite being December,
the view of the skyline was still excellent as shown
in the photo which we took directly below.
Valeria below as she enjoys the cold wind high
up on the Empire State Building. On the right
below a photo we captured of a bird at it sits
proudly whilst the Statue of Liberty sits quietly
in the background. You can go to the bottom
of Manhattan and see the Statue of Liberty without
going off of the island. Alternatively you can
jump on the Staten Island ferry and get closer
if you really feel the need, as many do!
All
photos by Valeria Lo Iacono & Paul Symonds - 2007
A trip to NYC would not be the same without a walk
through and around Central Park. You might recognise
the picture of Central Park below from movies such
as Breakfast at Tiffany's, Fatal Attraction or Night
at the Museum. It was a strange to visit NYC in
December and experience unusually warm seasonal
temperatures of 10 Celsius. On the right below,
the corner of 6th Avenue and Avenue of Americas
in the centre of Manhattan.
NYC is a great place for children at Christmas time,
with the city often looking just as you would see
in the movies. A great example is below, with the
picture of the Rockefeller Centre and many families
and young children ice skating as Valeria observes.
One thing which
overwhelmed us on a few occasions on this trip was
the amazing way in which everything is done in style.
I went into the bar on Boxing Day (26th December)
to watch the English football and it was possible
to watch 3 games at once, and on 3 massive screens.
See the photo below right, as I sit at the bar with
a pint of Guinness totally relaxed.
All holidays and vacations have to come to an end
and thus it was back to Barcelona, back to the apartment.
One great thing about Barcelona is some of the architecture,
in the birth city of Gaudi. Below left a picture
of one of the houses Gaudi designed and lived in,
in Gaudi's Guell Park. The same park offers an excellent
view of the city, looking towards the ocean (see
below).
Gaudi also designed the Sagrada Familia church (which
is shown below). Last weekend we went up inside the
church to the top of one of the sections you see in
the photo below left. The photo on the right highlights
the view from inside. The church has already taken over
100 years to build and is expected to take another 100
years to finish, such is the attention to detail and
complexity of design (and the bureaucracy involved in
keeping the building work going). I am not generally
interested at all in churches but I would strongly recommend
a trip inside and to the top of the church!
The
architecture of Barcelona is also shown below with
a photo we took of a monument on the top of the
Sagrada Familia and with a photo of myself next
to a contemporary art sculpture at the Montjuic
Park.
And
finally....my favourite restaurant in the whole world,
La Caridad on 2199 Broadway. When i lived in NYC years
ago I used to go there twice a week and on this trip
to NYC with Valeria, we ate there 3 days running,
such is the quality and good value of the food. If
you are ever in NYC, jump off the train at 79th and
Broadway you'll see the restaurant as you exit the
station. Be sure to order the 'beef stew with black
beans and yellow rice which is cooked Creole style.
Enjoy!
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