very simple

because I never know when I’m going to run into a random festival of antique citroens in town for Bastille Day.

Whereas most neighborhoods in new york city have zoning requirements designed (at least in theory) for the comfort and stability of their residents, Times Square’s zoning rules actually require buildings to put a minimum amount of lighted or neon signage on their exterior in order to stay in keeping with the character of the neighborhood. A few of my favorites, most of which are not even commercial enterprises (in order: subway entrance, NYPD station, US Armed Forces recruiting station, and the Paramount Theater//Hard Rock Cafe).

Today, I met a friend from work who is also a photo bug, and he joined me on my (almost) annual trek out to coney island to take pictures. Of course, between the heat of the day and the desire to go out there before the sun was too hot in the sky, we decided to meet at Grand Central at the bright and early hour of 6:45am – we were at Coney before 8 and done by about 10.

Here are this year’s results. Lot’s of parachute jump, wonder wheel, cyclone, and elderly Russians claiming their spots on the beach as early as possible in the morning. All in all, a beautiful day.

It’s too early for the actual post-solstice manhattanhenge, but it pretty much felt like it last night when I was walking across union square north trying to keep from staring directly into the sun. Yesterday was a perfect weather day, and I tried to take full advantage.

(and is it wrong of me to actually like the weird, spotted, reflective effect that happens here on my iPhone 4?).

Canal Street subway station. If it wasn’t obvious.

sometimes it’s the little details that make it interesting.

After getting curious as to why this building only a few blocks from me was labeled “telephone building”, I did a little digging online and found (via google books), volume 54 of the book “Architecture and Building” published in 1922, which featured this photo of the New York Telephone Co. building.

Same building, 90 years ago.

I wouldn’t want anyone to think that the Chrysler building is the only one I find camera worthy. A perusal through my architecture category would disabuse you of that opinion quite quickly.

In fact, just yesterday, I was compelled to take pics of two more architectural classics.

First, the flatiron building, but from a different side than what most people are used to seeing (hint – it’s the back):

Second, the building that knocked the Chrysler out of contention for the tallest building in the world (at the time of course):

There will never be a time when I get tired of taking (and posting) pictures of the Chrysler Building. I know it’s cliche, but to me, this is, hands down, the most beautiful piece of architecture in this city, and helps define the city in innumerable ways.

Sometimes, deciding to take a different route home from the river (just one block over from where I normally walk!) can lead to stumbling across something absolutely beautiful wedged in between the high-rises and brownstones.

Back in the 1930s and 40s, when cars were an up-and-coming thing and still used primarily for leisure, someone (Robert Moses, naturally) had the ‘inspired’ idea to build a series of highways along the waterfront in NYC. Of course, immediately afterwards, driving became a means to an end, rather than and end unto itself, and these highways served mostly to cut off the largely pedestrian residents of new york city from their waterfront, and generally turning what should have been a lovely area into a giant eyesore. In the past 10-15 years, the city has sought to reclaim the waterfront for pedestrians, extending the west side greenway the entire length of the west side of manhattan. some spots are more developed than others (the 30s near the west side rail yards is still, well, rail yard detritus), but otherwise it’s now a lovely park, bikeway and pedestrian route.

Yesterday, I had the brilliant idea to take a walk down to see the ships for fleet week, which then turned into a walk all the way down to 18th street. I’m really glad I’ve got today off to recover from the sunburn. No individual descriptions, but the walk starts out at 72nd and Amsterdam, heads down the greenway toward the Intrepid and the other ships in town for Fleet week, and ends at Chelsea Piers, where I stumbled across the intro to an Indian wedding.