NYC Trip - Day 3, Part 1

The third day in New York we decided to walk Central Park and continue walking until we came to the theater district at Times Square. One of our trip goals was to see a Broadway show and we were hoping to get 1/2 price tickets for either Spamalot (a spoof of the Monty Python film The Holy Grail), The Lion King (a play based on the movie) or perhaps Stomp (a play based on stomping).

When you walk through the theater district you realize just how the entertainment industry had changed. In NYC's heyday in the 50's, plays became movies. Now, primarily spurred by Disney, movies have become plays... the aforementioned The Lion King and Spamalot are joined by Mary Poppins and the Little Mermaid currently running on Broadway.

Anyway, back to our day. Central Park wasn't very far away, so we walked through some neighborhoods with wonderful architecture.

The family on the stairs of one
of the many beautiful
brownstones.

Once at Central Park, we partook of the local cuisine (pretzels) and motored ourselves into the famed centrally located grounds.

Mmmm... pretzels.

In honor of the Bard, William Shakespeare, DC and I stopped at a memorial and over-acted, Shakespearean style.

Let us notith beith so badith
at actingith.

Our first real stop was the Belvedere Castle. Built in the 1800s, it was originally used as a meteorological station. It fell into disrepair in the 1980s and 1990s, but had recently been repaired.

Belvedere Castle

Gabe atop the castle overlooking
his little piece of heaven...
baseball fields.

The view from Belvedere Castle.

Afterwards we continued through the park toward midtown and enjoyed the surroundings.

Dea at the Park.

Cool structure. Leaks though.

Standing in "The Mall"
which is used in
a lot of movies.

During our stay, all through New York, it was not uncommon to come across extremely talented artists playing for change in parks and subways. It spurred an interesting conversation with DC... as an artist at some point she'll have to decide whether she wants to try and be a small fish in a big pond or a big fish in a small pond. If extremely talented artists are working for change, then how good must those who actually perform for a living be at their craft?

Some excellent musicians
playing for donations.

After strolling through The Mall we found Poets Corner, where world famous poets were honored with statues. DC and I again found Shakespeare's statue and had our picture taken.

DC and I below the patient Bard.

You know, Shakespeare's genius is that he is able to, with great efficiency, create completely enveloping imagery. One of my favorite Shakespearean lines is:

"He has the patience of statues."

What is more patient than a human form that never moves? Great stuff.

Our now weary bodies eventually reached the end of Central Park, stopping atop the massive rock structures, overlooking a free outdoor ice-skating rink lined by the towering skyscrapers.

Atop the rock.

Kids take a break
looking at the ice-skaters.

Our day of exploration would continue outside of the calm confines of Central Park and into the busy streets of Manhattan as we made our way toward Broadway.