Thursday, July 12, 2012

New York Literary Pickings

Since I visited Ashdown Forest in England last year, I thought I'd round off my Winnie the Pooh pilgrimage by viewing the original toys at the New York Public Library.



Unfortunately staff haven't taken down an old display telling visitors the stuffed animals are located elsewhere. I spent two hours wandering around midtown trying to find this mysterious place before ending up back at the main library to be told "oh that building was destroyed, they're now on the ground floor"



While on my mission I happened across the library's 5th Avenue neighbour Bryant Park. It's an outdoor oasis in the midst of the urban bustle. Those lounging on its green space looked like they'd stepped straight out of Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. And the rat race meant nothing to those seeking shade on its cute little chairs in the Reading Room. The outdoor reading space replicates the original that opened in 1935 as a response to the Depression Era, to benefit out of work intellectuals.



I stopped for some lunch at a Japanese tea room that doubles as a book shop.



Later on, while visiting the art galleries in Chelsea (from the bottom of the High Line this time), I looked up to read a message that seemed specially for me.



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