A Visit to New York City

I went to New York City for a couple days last week. It was a work related trip, but I did have an opportunity to do some walking one crisp, clear afternoon.

I've been to New York three or four times. Or I should say, I've been to the borough of Manhattan.

My co-worker Kevin is a native of Brooklyn and would probably tell me in no uncertain terms that Manhattan is just part of New York City and that I haven't seen "New Yawk" until I've been to the other boroughs. Maybe the next trip.

If you were raised in Southeast Missouri and have never ventured further than St. Louis, describing the atmosphere of New York City is difficult to illustrate in a fashion that you might comprehend, but I will try.

Walking around Manhattan is kind of like being outside of Busch Stadium right after a Cardinal game, but the crowds never seem to fade off into the suburbs.

Its reputation as the city that never sleeps is also accurate. Based on the rambunctious trash men on the street in front of my hotel at 3 in the morning, it never even takes a nap.

Excluding Central Park, almost every inch of space on the island is taken up by buildings or the infrastructure to support those buildings. You have 100-year-old basic brick apartments snuggling up next to behemoths of steel and glass and marble facades next to holes in the ground where another architect's dream will be soon realized. I find it hard to contemplate land that is sold based on a square footage basis rather than acres.

The one thing Southeast Missouri does have in common with Manhattan is that everyone is constantly talking on his or her cell phones yet saying absolutely nothing. If you like communication solitude, don't go to New York.

The cabbie who took me to LaGuardia for my return trip answered a half dozen calls during the 40 minute drive. I'm not sure whom they were from since his conversations were in Spanish, but based on his tone I'm guessing it was his wife or a girlfriend or both. He didn't look like a "playa," but you never know. He bore a strong resemblance to comedian Carlos Mencia.

I gladly paid him for shuttling me back to the airport. I could and would never drive in Manhattan. Traffic is bumper to bumper for the simple reason that you're in New York City. That's stress that I don't need. I would rather pay a taxi or use public transport.

I considered going to a Broadway show on the one free night I had. I thought with the current state of the economy that tickets might be a little cheaper. They weren't, but they were available. The one show I particularly wanted to go to -- it was a limited-run play starring Will Ferrell as President George W. Bush -- cost $200 to $350 a seat!

I decided to wait and watch it on Comedy Central or rent it at the video store. I imagine it will be there soon enough.

Certain mundane things fascinate me about New York. For instance, the ubiquitous wooden water tanks that you see squatting like fat-little watchmen on many of the high-rises. The Discovery Channel program Dirty Jobs did a segment on these tanks where the host, Mike Rowe, assisted a construction crew in replacing one of them.

They tore the existing tank down and assembled its replacement in a day, all the while perched hundreds of feet about the streets below. It's definitely not work for those even remotely nervous of heights. The program indicated that the tanks were required on any building higher than four stories because the city only supplies water pressure up to that height. I find that interesting.

And the scaffolding you see throughout Manhattan has always intrigued me ever since my first trip more than a decade ago. It seems to be setup everywhere.

Maintenance on the city and its assorted architecture never stops and any exterior work apparently requires the use of scaffolding to protect passer-bys on the sidewalks below from any falling debris. If you're walking around Manhattan, you seem to be using these temporary pedestrian tunnels all the time.

On the afternoon of my walk on this trip, I had a chance to retrace some of my routes from a visit 2 years prior. Some of the scaffolding that was on some of those buildings then, was still on them now. I saw no change. I also saw no workmen. It makes one wonder if they ever finish some of these reputed "projects." I have my doubts.

New York is nice to visit and I would have liked a day or two longer to explore during this visit, but its good to be home.

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