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New York - Day One.
Jan. 12th, 2007 03:04 pmI took a red-eye flight last night and slept as much as possible on the plane. When we landed early at JFK International, I called my mother and let her know I was at the terminal. She had gotten a very late start and consequently only managed about an hour of sleep. So we elected to go back to her hotel and catch a few extra hours of shuteye. I certainly didn't mind. I had planned a very relaxed day anyway - one gallery, an early dinner, and a refreshing evening in.
We woke up again at 11am (EST) - my flight had arrived at 7am - and checked out of the hotel around noon. We then began the lengthy process of negotiating New York traffic into the city. Even at midday the traffic is a killer. We found a nearby parking structure to store the car, and checked into our city hotel at roughly 1:30. In our sixth-floor room, we dropped our bags and determined what to do with our time.
I hopped on the Internet to check out some of the smaller gallery exhibits and discovered that the New York Performing Arts Library (which was hosting a pair of exhibitions) was only twelve blocks away. We set out for it, intending to find something to eat en route. At W 72nd and Amsterdam we discovered Seven's Turkish Grill and ate a simply delightful early meal there. Grilled lamb over rice with grilled tomatoes and peppers, and a heavenly lentil soup (flavored with cardamom and fennel) to start. I drank Turkish cherry juice for an aperitif, and the kindly waiters there offered us baklava dessert on the house. Such luxury!
With that sumptuous repast under our belts, we ventured on to the Library for their exhibit celebrating 75 years of collecting theatrical memorabilia, Stars and Treasures: 75 Years of Collecting Theatre. Included in the show were a number of posters, photos, letters, and programs, and a special section that was comprised of mementos donated, upon request, by famous theater actors like Bebe Neuwirth, Christine Ebersole, Christopher Plummer, Roger Rees, and Ben Vereen. Some of these mementos were accompanied by written explanations of their significance to the actor in question. The choices of what to give were fascinating.
Also at the library was a photography exhibit called In Character: Actors Acting, a collection of photos of various actors posed in an emotional moment - say coming home to find your husband kissing the babysitter, getting a blow job from your wife, or discovering your daughter was pregnant. Some were extremely fun, like F. Murray Abraham's portrayal of a twelve-year-old girl discovering she'd won a chance to go backstage at a Justin Timberlake concert, or George Seagal acting out the various expressions of a pregnant woman in labor.
I took a couple of photos that I'll post later, but the idea and the end product were both rousing and amusing. Many of the actors gave astonishing performances in their one moment of time.
With this completed, we walked back to the hotel by way of a corner market to pick up some drinks for the evening. Now Mom is reading quietly, and I'll soon join her. In a while we'll watch a movie and then tuck into bed for tomorrow's activities. We're touring the Metropolitan Museum of Art, stopping by the Neue Gallerie of German and Austrian Art, and then taking in the play, "The Vertical Hour," which stars Julianne Moore and Bill Nighy. I can't wait!
We woke up again at 11am (EST) - my flight had arrived at 7am - and checked out of the hotel around noon. We then began the lengthy process of negotiating New York traffic into the city. Even at midday the traffic is a killer. We found a nearby parking structure to store the car, and checked into our city hotel at roughly 1:30. In our sixth-floor room, we dropped our bags and determined what to do with our time.
I hopped on the Internet to check out some of the smaller gallery exhibits and discovered that the New York Performing Arts Library (which was hosting a pair of exhibitions) was only twelve blocks away. We set out for it, intending to find something to eat en route. At W 72nd and Amsterdam we discovered Seven's Turkish Grill and ate a simply delightful early meal there. Grilled lamb over rice with grilled tomatoes and peppers, and a heavenly lentil soup (flavored with cardamom and fennel) to start. I drank Turkish cherry juice for an aperitif, and the kindly waiters there offered us baklava dessert on the house. Such luxury!
With that sumptuous repast under our belts, we ventured on to the Library for their exhibit celebrating 75 years of collecting theatrical memorabilia, Stars and Treasures: 75 Years of Collecting Theatre. Included in the show were a number of posters, photos, letters, and programs, and a special section that was comprised of mementos donated, upon request, by famous theater actors like Bebe Neuwirth, Christine Ebersole, Christopher Plummer, Roger Rees, and Ben Vereen. Some of these mementos were accompanied by written explanations of their significance to the actor in question. The choices of what to give were fascinating.
Also at the library was a photography exhibit called In Character: Actors Acting, a collection of photos of various actors posed in an emotional moment - say coming home to find your husband kissing the babysitter, getting a blow job from your wife, or discovering your daughter was pregnant. Some were extremely fun, like F. Murray Abraham's portrayal of a twelve-year-old girl discovering she'd won a chance to go backstage at a Justin Timberlake concert, or George Seagal acting out the various expressions of a pregnant woman in labor.
I took a couple of photos that I'll post later, but the idea and the end product were both rousing and amusing. Many of the actors gave astonishing performances in their one moment of time.
With this completed, we walked back to the hotel by way of a corner market to pick up some drinks for the evening. Now Mom is reading quietly, and I'll soon join her. In a while we'll watch a movie and then tuck into bed for tomorrow's activities. We're touring the Metropolitan Museum of Art, stopping by the Neue Gallerie of German and Austrian Art, and then taking in the play, "The Vertical Hour," which stars Julianne Moore and Bill Nighy. I can't wait!
