And We're Back

We apologize for the lack of more frequent posts over the last week. My body largely crashed after I arrived back in Los Angeles late Sunday night after a brief jaunt to North Carolina, so I've been fighting a dreaded summer cold for the better part of the week.

Although my trip to New York didn't end as I had initially hoped, I was able to enjoy my last two days in the city. Unquestionably defying all unspoken doctor's orders, I found myself alone in New York City, so naturally, I wasn't going to stay inside all day, even if my ankles would have thanked me for it.

I couldn't wear shoes without extreme pain, so I donned my flip flops and headed into Manhattan. I had considered meeting Matt for a meal or something, but the extended time requirement of taking the subway from southern Brooklyn all the way to the Bronx made that idea unfeasible. As it was, walking was only somewhat painful, but stairs were simply brutal, so I was actually avoiding the subway and its stairs wherever possible.

I had planned on visiting Ellis Island, but found an absurdly long line of nearly 2 hours awaiting me, so I got a refund for my ticket and walked gingerly up to the 9/11 memorial at the site of the twin towers. I was amazed at how fast the emotions of that day returned as I looked out over the open construction area. The memorial itself is very simple, yet remarkably profound in its simplicity. It features some photos from that fateful day, as well as a list of the victims. Despite being right on top of a bustling subway station, the mood was predictably muted, even with the passage of nearly six healing years.

From there I walked across the street to a nearby church that was a base for operations in the 9/11 aftermath. There was a unique juxtaposition of history and modernity, as it was the site of George Washington's inagural prayer in 1793, in addition to serving as a resting place for countless first responders on 9/11.

I then took the subway to Midtown, walked around the Theatre District and over to Times Square, and then to the library map room on 42nd St, which was one of my most-anticipated stops on our "checklist." It turned out that Matt arrived too late to enter the map room, so I planned an unfathomably awesome trip. Details will follow in due course.

The rest of the day was passed people-watching in the incredibly eclectic atmosphere of Washington Square Park. From musicians to protestors to bad hacky-sack players, I was able to witness a little bit of everything during my couple of hours there. I picked up some dinner at several small restaurants in the village and then headed back to Brooklyn, my feet begging me to spend a few hours resting.

I had a fun/busy day Friday as well, but I'll write about that a bit later on.