New York, New York

Amy and I spent a weekend in New York City a few weeks ago.  I don't spend a lot of time in New York, but there were some things I had been wanting to do there, and in fact the weekend ended up being framed around the opera I wanted to see Saturday night.

We drove into the city Saturday morning, met Rebecca, and took the subway south to Chinatown.  First stop:  bubble tea.

Second stop:  Past the Chinese greengrocer, in search of Fried Dumpling.  They made them while we waited.  A few bucks for 15 dumplings.  Yum.

Then off to the High Line, the elevated linear park built on retired rail delivery tracks.  There were lots of interesting architectural elements along the way

including these beautiful windows.

A quick washing up at Rebecca's apartment, then met Amy's parents at the Metropolitan Opera for a performance of Rigoletto, which I had been wanting to see.  I was interested in the modern set for the classic opera -- 1950's Las Vegas style -- but while the music and singing were fabulous I wasn't wowed by the updated concept.

But I was wowed by the backstage.  Amy's cousin Ray Menard works as a stage manager at the Met, and he met us between acts to show us the backstage transition.  It was awe-inspiring.  What you see below is the entire stage for the second act, elevated by motorized lifts, then hauled off into the wings by motorized winches, to be replaced by the set for the third act.

The next morning our New York tour continued.  Soul food brunch at Amy Ruth's in Harlem (did you know that Amy's birth name was Amy Ruth Eppler?).  I had catfish on a waffle.  Yum again.

Then off to the West Side to ride the bike path south.

Behind Stuyvesant High School, there is a playground\sculpture garden at the north end of Battery Park that we remembered from many years ago.  The Tom Otterness sculptures are just as odd and entertaining as we had remembered them!

This is Sarah riding one of the sculptures in 1996 ...

and this is Rebecca riding one of the sculptures in 2013!  (has the sculpture gotten smaller??)

Looking through the old pictures, I was reminded of how much change there has been in our lives in the last 17 years.  It's a comfort to see the balance between the losses and the gains, with some things like the Otterness sculptures staying exactly the same.