Museum of Modern Art

It has been a while since I left the United States, so I suppose this blog is beginning to turn into a New York blog. The last time I went to the MOMA was for the Alexander McQueen exhibit, which to this day is still one of my favorite exhibits of all time. I saw the Yves St. Laurent exhibit in San Francisco and the Jean Paul Gaultier exhibit in Brooklyn and couldn't quite remember them, though I do remember enjoying them. That's how I feel about this most recent exhibit at the MOMA for Charles James at the new Anna Wintour Costume Center in MOMA. I liked it, but now can't quite remember it. Perhaps it's because some of the clothing related exhibits make me feel like I'm in a very high end boutique, so in my memory it become akin to a shopping (more like window shopping) experience. The McQueen exhibit however, was in a world of its own. I remember those dresses distinctly, as well as the hologram of Kate Moss. I am however, excited that there will probably be more exhibits featuring fashion design at the MOMA with this new Costume Center.

 “Cut in dressmaking is like grammar in language. A good design should be like a well made sentence and it should only express one idea at a time.” --Charles James

View from the roof of the MOMA

A few new central park discoveries along the way:

Belvedere Castle

Lake by Belvedere

A wedding in the park!

A squirrel Acrobat

View from the roof of the MOMA at night

Location Location Location

When choosing a place to live, the number one rule is: location, location, location.

I wrote a bit earlier about the hectic scramble to find my apartment. Now, after having lived there for a year, I figured to update. I love the upper west side. It's quiet, safe, and in some ways an escape from the crowded, hectic energy that New York is famous for. What I like most is how convenient it is for me to get to most places in the city. Situated between three major subway lines, I can easily walk a block to take the train to Chinatown, to the Lower East Side, to West Village, to Harlem--Times Square is about 10 minutes away, door to subway exit. My area has many stores, restaurants, bars, and random flea markets, farmer's markets, and street fairs.

Even though my apartment is ridiculously small--when I say small, I mean the bathroom door doesn't open all the way, and my bed has to be lofted--and when friends say some place is small and I say "small like mine?" and they say, "no, not small like yours--yours is just absurd"--the great location means that I can easily find a lot to do, so I often spend a lot of time outdoors. While I was in law school, I wasn't so crazy about New York, probably because I lived in Harlem and it took a long time to travel to my favorite places in the city. Now that I'm close to the express trains and several lines, I have opportunities to explore more and find that I uncover new places every week. I have been here for almost five years, but still often feel like I have just arrived at a new city and have much to explore. Winter is the worst time of the year, but since winter melted into spring, and the summer has begun, I do feel like I am in one of the best cities in the world.

I have no backyard, but Central Park is only a block away. Tonight, the Philharmonic Orchestra will be playing a free concert in the Park, with fireworks to follow. I have been visiting the Park more frequently, and find that in my past five years I have really under-appreciated it. Central Park is a bit of magic, especially at dusk when it is still light and the lamps go on. There are random bridges, winding dirt roads, small cottages, and ponds and lakes, and to me it feels like a place out of a fairy tale. Those who like to hate on New York say that New Yorkers love Central Park just because the rest of the city is so metallic and ugly, and that in comparison to other parks it's "just okay." It's hard for me to say if that's true or not, but who really cares? After a day of work in the city, it's nice to come home and walk five minutes and be surrounded by what feels to me like a magical forest that has sprouted up in the middle of this concrete jungle.

Here are a few photos of my neighborhood, through the seasons.

A view of autumn from my window

The worst of winter

The thaw

 

The coordinated arrival of spring!

And spring turns to summer

A summer evening in Central Park

Jersey Shore

Last weekend, I went with a friend and her niece to Jersey Shore. I had never been before, but based on the TV show my expectations were low. As it turned out, it was a really nice beach. Her sister's boyfriend had reserved a beach house, so we had access to a private beach. It wasn't crowded at all.

I got to release my inner child, partially because there was an actual child there, but also because there were a ton of toys to build sand castles with. People actually get fancy with all sorts of molds, different shaped shovels, and buckets that also double as large molds. I wish I had a photo of the sand castle we made--my friend's sister's boyfriend may have one so perhaps I can get it from that chain. Anyhow, I went to collect seashells with the neice. "I love the BEACH!!! I love the WATER!! I LOVE THE SEASHELLS!!!" She would scream.

"ME TOO!!!!" I would scream back.

"Okay okay we heard you, no need to yell," said the nearest responsible adult.

I like kids who are a bit crazy, but I suppose I can like them because I only have to be there for the fun time, not the tantrum over homework or whatever things children fight about these days. We made several sand castles and collected an assortment of shells, including a sea snail, to decorate with.

I must say however, I was very disappointed in the seafood. The boardwalk was a bit trashy and did look like a gathering of the cast from "Jersey Shore" and their friends and relatives, but the amusement park had rides. We waited about an hour to get seated at a crab shack. All of their seafood was previously frozen, or at least that's how it tasted. And, because it was on the boardwalk, it was very expensive. While I would definitely go to the beach again, I think I will skip the boardwalk next time.  

Pride Day NYC

I've been behind in updating. The weekend before last weekend, I went with my good friend, his boyfriend, and another friend to the Pride Parade in New York. I had briefly mentioned the pride parade in New Orleans in my last post. The Parade in New York blew that one out of the water, and is probably one of the largest parades I have ever seen. We didn't even finish watching it because it was so long. It began around noon, and even at 5:30 there were still floats passing through. 

Pride Day in New York (or anywhere for that matter) is not just for the LGBTQ community, rather it is for everyone who supports equal rights regardless of sexual orientation, or more broadly, everyone who likes parades and glitter. The parade started off with a motocycle gang (mostly women), and then had everything from bollywood dancing to men in high heels decked in feathers. It was a lot more corporate than I thought it would be. Since there is such a large LGBTQ community in NY, I suppose every politician needs to show their support if they want to get elected. The Mayor, the Senator, and other candidates hoping for election had contingents in the parade. Meanwhile, Diet Coke, Delta, Khiel's, and other brands, including tourist floats promoting travel to the United Kingdom and Fort Lauderdale, gave out samples and played music. 

What I thought was most interesting were the divisions of floats from different cultural backgrounds. There was a pan-Asian group, Indonesian group, Brazilian group, African group, Black American group, and more. We ended up not staying for the entire duration because we were hungry. My friends actually had arrived at 11 am to ensure they got a good spot, and I was fortunate enough to join later.

We went to Cafe Asean, which my Indonesian friend deemed was the best South East Asian food he had outside of South East Asia. 

A lot of support expressed from family and friends

The Asian Group

Random winged man

Mayor Blasio

The Cast of Orange is the New Black

The Caribbean Group