Biking the East River

Mark on Randall's Island

Today we ventured over to the East Side of Manhattan for a bike ride.  On the way up (click here to see map) we left the house at 8:30 a.m. and took the PATH to 33rd Street, rode up 6th Avenue into Central Park for what we thought would be a leisurely early Saturday morning ride through the park.  Unfortunately, there was an organized running race going on, so we got off at 81st Street.  Then we rode down 86th Street and the river, to Carl Schurz Park, which we've been wanting to visit for several years now.  It's a beautiful park along the East River.  From there, we rode the bike path up to 102nd Street, where there's a pedestrian bridge to Randall's Island.  We biked around the island, which is mostly sports fields, but with a couple of parks.  There were not very many people there, and it provides a great view of Manhattan.

The return trip we rode along the bike path as much as possible, except for a stretch of about a mile where we rode the streets (with a couple of hills!)  By this time it was late morning and the path was getting crowded, especially around the South Street Seaport area.  Then we biked across lower Manhattan over to the World Trade Center PATH station and home to Jersey City.  The ride was about 22 miles, and we finally got to bike the East River!

Queens 'n' Art

Once again we traveled to Queens.  This time we went to Long Island City to visit Socrates Sculpture Park, the Noguchi Museum, and MoMAs PS1.  We first stopped at the sculpture park, which was a disappointment.  A large part of the park was closed off due to construction, and the part that remained open had sculptures made out of trash by students.  The park itself seemed geared toward school groups.  We then walked several blocks to the Noguchi Museum.

Isamu Noguchi (1904–1988) was one of the twentieth century’s most important and critically acclaimed sculptors.  Through a lifetime of artistic experimentation, he created sculptures, gardens, furniture and lighting designs, ceramics, architecture, and set designs.  His work, at once subtle and bold, traditional and modern, set a new standard for the reintegration of the arts.  Noguchi, an internationalist, traveled extensively throughout his life.  (In his later years he maintained studios both in Japan and New York.)  He discovered the impact of large-scale public works in Mexico, earthy ceramics and tranquil gardens in Japan, subtle ink-brush techniques in China, and the purity of marble in Italy.  He incorporated all of these impressions into his work, which utilized a wide range of materials, including stainless steel, marble, cast iron, balsawood, bronze, sheet aluminum, basalt, granite, and water.  aterials—are still being produced today.  In 1985 Noguchi opened The Isamu Noguchi Garden Museum (now known as The Noguchi Museum), in Long Island City, New York.  The Museum, established and designed by the artist, marked the culmination of his commitment to public spaces.  Located in a 1920s industrial building across the street from where the artist had established a studio in 1960, it has a serene outdoor sculpture garden, and many galleries that display Noguchi’s work, along with photographs and models from his career.  Not only are Noguchi's works spectacular, but the museum itself is beautiful.

We then walked the 12 blocks back to the subway to get to the area where MoMA's PS1 is located.  We had read on the Internet that the Burger Garage restaurant served gluten-free hamburgers and french fries.  We were eagerly anticipating this as it is very difficult to find a place that serves a hamburger on a gluten-free bun.  BUT BUMMER!  They were OUT OFF GLUTEN-FREE BUNS!  So I had a gluten burger and we split the fries.

Then we went to PS1.  This old public school (hence the name) is devoted to "cutting edge" modern art.  Unfortunately, almost the entire space was devoted to videos, which are not really something we appreciate.

Mary and Mark with a Manhattan in Manhattan

The next leg of journey took us to Union Square in Manhattan.  I sat in the park while Mark went to Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.  Then we walked over to the Village to Buvette for a truly outstanding Manhattan.  A very full and fulfilling day.

Julia and her Grandparents

Mark Brauer, Julia Brauer, Mary Brauer, Lynn Phelps, Glenn Phelps

We spent a nice, relaxing day with Lynn and Glenn.  Went to see Sing Sing prison (the outside) and went for several walks.  John, Nancy and Julia joined us for the afternoon.  It was wonderful to all be together.

Westchester-Putnam Bike Trail

Westchester-Putnam Bike Trail

We put the bikes on the car and drove north about 50 miles to Yorktown Heights and rode a beautiful paved bike trail.  It was mostly flat and shaded by tall trees.  It was really green, quiet and peaceful.  It had rained that morning and the moisture was still in the air.  We rode about 15 miles; 2-1/2 of them were on the road to the great little bar/restaurant we stopped at: Healy's Corner Bar.  They had Mark's favorite gluten-free beer, Estrella Daura, and made fried foods in a special fryer for people with Celiac Disease.  So we had chicken wings, french fries and nachos for lunch, accompanied by several beers.  Then road back to the car -- it was slightly downhill on the way back.

From there we drove to Lynn and Glenn Phelps home in Croton-on-Hudson.  We sat on the porch and watched a storm blow in, and then headed to White Plains for a dinner at Legal Seafoods.  We had wood-fire grilled fish.  On the way there and back, we had to take several detours because of tree branches down from the storm.  

We spent the night in their guest room.  It was the first quiet, comfortable night's sleep I've had since we've been out here.  It was wonderful.

Dan and Natalie's Summer Birthday Bash

Natalie and Dan have birthdays about one month apart, so they hold a birthday party for both of them in the park across the street from their apartment in Inwood.  They had a wonderful selection of beer and snacks, and offered Bocce and Frisbee for activities.  Mark and I met two of their friends (Dave and Tim) in Battery Park City and rode up the Hudson River Greenway from one end of Manhattan to the other.  The ride started out hot, and then got really windy as a storm blew in.  Around 125th Street, the trail was closed, so we had to ride on streets the rest of the way up to 218th Street.  There are some STEEP hills around there.  We also got rained on for awhile, but we pulled over under some trees so didn't get too wet.  It was a pretty grueling ride for me, but Mark says he wants to do it again before we leave.  Maybe if it isn't a hot, windy, stormy day ...?

Hot Hot Hot

105 degrees

So it's been a hot weekend.  This picture was taken in the garden of our apartment building on Friday, July 22 when it was 105 degrees.  It was quite the experience.  The wind was hot, and heat radiated from the sidewalks.  Friday morning, we rode our bikes to Liberty State Park and around the trails.  It was an 11 mile ride and it took us over an hour.  It was already 90 degrees by 10 a.m.

On Saturday, the forecast was for 100 degrees, so we decided it would be a good day for a museum.  We've been wanting to go to the Whitney for some time, so we took the PATH to World Trade Center and walked over a few blocks to catch the #4 Subway.  Well, it was packed with fans heading to the Yankees game in the Bronx!  Went to the Whitney -- some of the exhibitions were a bit too "out there" for my taste, but I liked the permanent collection.  Unfortunately, my knee was bothering me so we only stayed a little over an hour.

Then we headed down to Union Square to go to L'Annam, a Vietnamese restaurant that has a gluten-free menu.   Mark is the designated "stir fry" chef in our house, so it's a treat for him to have someone else make it!  Then we stopped at the Union Square Farmers Market and bought some fresh tomatoes -- YUM.  By this time (mid-afternoon) it was pretty darn hot in Manhattan, so we headed back to New Jersey for some rest and frozen margaritas.

John and Nancy's Sunday Social

Nancy, Julia and John Brauer

John and Nancy hosted a Sunday afternoon get-together at the local Jersey City Beer Garden, inviting friends and family to spend a relaxing afternoon together.  It was a beautiful (although a bit hot) afternoon.  Julia was in attendance, and Nancy's mom and dad were there, Dan and Natalie, and lots of John and Nancy's friends.  We had a really nice time visiting and drinking beer.  The women's World Cup game was on TV, and the place was packed!  Lots of excitement, although disappointment at the loss.  We are really enjoying the opportunity to spend quality time with our family while we are out here for the summer.