The High Line

As soon as we escaped MOMA we headed downtown to the Chelsea area to meet some friends. The first stop was The Hotel Chelsea which looks the same as it ever has, except there weren't any junkies hanging outside like the last time I visited it.









After taking some photos my docent suggested we meet my friends at Dallas BBQ on 23rd Street because Lord knows, we don't have any barbecue joints in Roanoke. It was actually pretty good, especially the vegetable tempura and onion loaf. But the highlight of the meal was having my daughter served a piece of cornbread with whipped cream on it while the staff sang Happy Birthday to her.



No, it wasn't her birthday and she was taken totally by suprise as the little stinker thought they were coming over to the table to embarrass me. Oh you should have seen her snickering with my cousin as she plotted with him to tell them it was my birthday. Evil minds think alike. Haha!

My friend and her two children joined us. They just moved back to New York from Orlando -- according to her "I put my time in" and were promptly greeted with a Welcome Back to NY $65.00 parking ticket. Don't forget to face the little piece of paper UP on your dashboard! We decided to walk off the three thousand calorie meal so we all headed to The High Line, a beautiful new elevated park which runs along the West Side from 34th Street to Gansevoort Street. Here's a view of the Chrysler Building from it.



It's good to see NYC put to use the space abandoned for years where once a railroad stood.



I said at least we can say, "We went to the High Line when it was free!" because I suspect that Bloomberg will one day charge people to walk along it. They also have wooden chaise lounges that I can see the city charging folks to lay on much as resorts do on beaches across the country.



Besides the beautiful views, what I really liked about the elevated park was that no bicycles, skaters, or dogs were allowed. I did see a bride and one of the chef contestantss from Master Chef walking along it and was tempted to say something to him, but us New Yorkers always ignore "celebrities" so I didn't.



I even saw some pizza being delivered. And after walking in the hot sun the vendors selling ice and gelato were most welcome. My friend's kids partook in a cucumber/lime ice pop with hot spices sprinkled on it. And I opted for shaved ice of plum and mint. It was one of those things where I couldn't decide if I loved it or hated it, but it was cool and refreshing.



One of the apartments across had a sense of humor and the tenant installed a piece of art of a hand waving in the window that rivalled some of the art we found at MOMA.



Here's a couple more shots I took during our walk...









That's the Statue of Liberty in the background...



When we got to the end of the line we decided to walk the streets back. I can't believe how much the Meat District has changed. We didn't see one tranny along the way but tons of new trendy restaurants. Ah, if only I was 20 years younger...



Such a beautiful view, but it was time to head back to the hotel to rest up for Sunday and the big parade...