Since before we moved out here, Matt, Megan and I had a group chat on Facebook entitled New York Living! It's been a great way for us to stay connected and all be communicating digitally together. I heard the familiar "bing-bing" that let me know there was a new message in the chat. Megan had sent a message to Matt and me about the New York Philharmonic playing in Central Park for free! Did I want to go? Heck yes!
I left our place around 5:45pm and walked the few blocks to the 7th Avenue station to hop on the Q. Just a few stops later I got off at Union Square. I'm pretty good at figuring out which direction to take the subway (although I've made some mistakes), but I have yet to master figuring out which way is north once I'm standing on a corner staring up at buildings. I have to consult my Google Maps app on my phone, and see at least three streets so I can pinpoint where I am. GPS is not the most accurate in my experience. But I had been to Union Square so I figured that I knew where I was going... I walked up and around toward the north side and was amazed and freaked out by the amount of NYPD and news vans around the square. With all of the anger and protests over the George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin case, the police were there in droves. To be honest, it was quite unsettling.
I was pretty dang confused when I looked around after walking the park and realized I had gone the wrong direction. I was up on 17th and needed to be on 14th street east. Whoops! So I turned around and walked back to where I had started. As I approached Trader Joe's, I glanced at a man and thought, "hmmm he looks familiar." Then I realized I was in NYC and nobody really was familiar to me, so I stopped and looked closer. It was Michael, 34, Park Slope, the guy I had gone out with on my first official NYC date just this past Friday the 12th. I said hi, and after I took off my sunglasses he recognized me and we chatted for a bit. It was nice to have to turn down his invitation for drinks and say, "Oh, no, I can't... I'm going to see the philharmonic in Central Park, I was just going to pick up some snacks and this is the only Trader Joe's on the way. But give me a call sometime!" What a funny coincidence to see him, although he does go to NYU and their gym is right by TJ's. But seeing one of the few people I have met here while on the packed streets? I felt like I was living a scene from Sex and the City.
I finally entered TJ's and was overwhelmed with how many people were in it. Ok, so you might think that the TJ's near you is super busy, right? Just take that and multiply it by 5 and you might be close to how many people were shopping for Greek yogurt or mochi ice cream balls. An employee holding some sign asked me, "End of line?" and I responded "Ummmm no... I have an empty basket, I just got here." I pushed through the bodies and grabbed some veggies, sesame sticks, meat/cheese, and returned to where I saw that guy, except he was gone. Some other kid was standing there and so I got in line near the produce. As we wound back toward the cheese section, through the sparkling water, around the organic dog food and then finally near the cashiers, I realized that it's best to just get in line and then reach out for what you want as you go. Or, just leave your cart in line and trust that the friendly California girl behind you will push it forward as the line moves while you go grab some Puffins cereal and raspberry Kefir. Megan also got lost in Union Square (I could tell by her exasperated huff as she asked me where TJ's was in respect to 16th Street. Is it on 14th STREET or 14th AVENUE?!?). Once she finally got there, Megan had to wait outside in line to get in to the store while I was waiting in line to cash out. She barely got in and grabbed a tub of hummus before I finally made it to the cash register and we paid for our food. A quick stop at Trader Joe's wine store next door for a box of delicious red wine, a brief jaunt inside Walgreen's for some blue Dixie cups, and then we got on the 6 and headed uptown.
We got off at 86th Street and turned in the direction that I thought the park was in. Thankfully, the crowd of people lugging bags of blankets and food were going the same way we were so I figured we were on the right track. As we "New-Yorked-it" (read - jaywalked) across 5th Avenue, we followed many other New Yorkers into the great and beautiful park. Man, it was a gorgeous afternoon...
The clouds here are unreal. I've heard from a few locals that this summer is especially wet, and with a forecast for more thunderstorms this weekend, I'm happy our air conditioners will be installed in order to help with the humidity. I've grown accustomed to carrying a handkerchief to mop up the sweat and I try to drink at least 2 gallons of water a day to make up for the fluid loss (and help with any hangover I might have).
Megan and I got to the Great Lawn around 7:30pm, and the concert was set to start at 8pm. We were coming in from the northeast, and while a seat to the center or in view of the stage would have been cool, we settled for a spot in the shade directly to the right (stage left), where we could hear the musicians already warming up and tuning their instruments. Our classic Mexican blanket was laid out, we opened up the food and poured ourselves some wine. Not long after, Matt showed up and plopped down with us. The fireflies came out and were zipping around. Man, I wish my butt would light up any time I accelerated!
A few people started speaking up on stage, including the sponsors of the free concerts in the park - Didi and Oscar Schafer. Well, Oscar spoke. His voice trembled with emotion as he recalled meeting his wife 15 years ago at the opera, at a performance of Carmen. Then Oscar got to conduct the philharmonic while they played the overture from Carmen as a surprise for Didi. I teared up at the sweet moment, and it reminded me of dressing in black tie formal and taking the metro to the opera in Budapest with Greg to see the Hungarian State Opera perform Carmen, back in 2012. What an experience that was!
As the philharmonic began the rest of their performance, I sat back and enjoyed this experience in the present moment. The sunset through the trees was fantastic, this photo doesn't even begin to capture the vibrant colors.
The night really was magical. Something just as simple as sitting on a blanket, with food and drink, listening to world-class musicians, surrounded by tens of thousands of people doing the very same thing at the very same time. It was unreal and I really tried to soak it up.
After the concert, we wanted to go to the west side of the park and take the B home. In an effort to avoid the crushing mass of people trying to leave, we went north of the stage and walked across a field. The grass was so soft, it felt like I was walking through cool, green feathers. Then we looked left and realized that just maybe, we weren't supposed to be back there.
Oops! We somehow ended up behind the stage, near all of the trucks and stuff for the instruments and gear. Oh well, we didn't get yelled at and we definitely avoided the crowds - until we got to the edge of the park.
And we got a beautiful view of the city looking toward downtown and saw the thousands of people we were avoiding. Another walk through a dark field and then we joined up with everyone and headed down to the subway. It was a fun ride home, almost everyone was coming from the concert. I chatted with a nice fellow about running in the city, and how I might do the NYC half marathon but really have no desire to do the full 26.2. But that's a story for another time.
Of course, it was an added bonus that on our way home we stopped into a German place, Der Schwarze Kolner. The best part was - they have my favorite beer in the entire world, Kostritzer! I used to call it Kostriker because the people at Heroes in La Verne used to call it that... but it's really Kostritzer. It's delicious and yummy and was a great way to end the night.
Well, to be honest, that wasn't the end. We all walked back home together, and it wasn't exactly a short walk. We also stopped in at The Way Station, because I met some folks on my last trip to NYC when I asked about karaoke. I happened to be speaking to the proprietor, Anders, and he told me about their "nerdyoke" and the fact that they have a full-size Tardis bathroom (which is indeed bigger on the inside for those of you who are curious). One beer there and then we really did head home. But I will be back, ohhhhh yes indeed. Nerds, delicious brews, live music, and Doctor Who paraphernalia? YES!
What a night!
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