For Central park
Information about Central Park, that i know of, without the need to prompt it, started to hit me in waves, at the very moment i walked through the Central Park gates at W 59th street. Ahh. Central Park in NYC is one of the most well known parks in the world and its popularity, has lain foundations for many modern parks planning around the world.
It was inspired by European Parks, and it is the first landscaped park of USA. hehe for the construction of the park, they had to displace some pig farmers, dealt with some swampy land and erratic terrains, Also, Frederick Law Olmsted who co-designed the park, also designed the Prospect Park in Brooklyn, which i didnt have a chance to visit during my short visit in NYC.
My heart raced as I stood in front of Bathesta Terrace at Central Park. It’s not even the most mind blowing architectural building I have ever seen, and I was there, at the time when it’s simply too bright to take any stunning photos
Do you know that the sculpture of the fountain at the terrace was the fist major public artwork, designed by a woman in NYC?
There, I immersed myself in the vibrancy of the park and the people surrounding me. I was cycling on a sweltering Autumn day with my childhood friends. One, by the way, was cussing at me incessantly (on the inside) as I made her cycle.
On the bike, coming down the slope (after the painstaking uphill climb), I felt fortune just being there, at that moment, with friends I want to keep for the whole of my life time. I also silently smirked at the many new couples taking wedding shoots, silently worried about the implications of the algae boom in the lakes, and silently sympathised the lack of green parks in Manhattan, with Central Park being the very few green refuges.
I was on top of the rock, at Rockefeller centre. Wind in my face, blowing off the Asian in me shouting,
'WHY ARE YOU SPENDING 35usd TO BE HERE WHEN YOU COULD HAVE BOUGHT 7 MORE COFFEE WITH THIS 💰'
I took in the view in front of me, absorbed the energy from the city below me. Sea of lights and outline of skyscrapers that look familiar, yet strange. The urge to shouting out I’m on top of the world, nearly overcame my rationality.
That’s the charm of NYC, you feel empowered, whether this notion is real or not, I do not know. The charm of the city is undeniable, it fuels one with so much charisma and passion. Wait, I acknowledge the paupers and homeless persons on the street. I did not see the real ghettos. I know it exists, just as evil and good exist hand in hand together.
I think a city is only amazing because of the people living in it. You build a platform, and it will only be a successful one when you have participants.
Brooklyn bridge, well. Why. What’s the significance? Well. It connects people, and it is one of the oldest bridge in the USA. First steel wire bridge, and a part of the industrial history. 132 years of age, connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn. My adrenaline was pumping as I stood atop the bridge, above the East River.
Till now, I don’t fully understand about my excitement, given.. It’s just a bridge, for god sake! I wasn’t even that excited when I was on the tower bridge in London (similar age and also a suspension bridge) nor I was feeling the same as I stood on kapellbrucke in Lucerne, Switzerland (oldest wooden covered bridge in Europe - about 650 years old)!
I blame it on the books I read which detail the construction of Brooklyn bridge and how the neighbourhoods transform, just because of this additional connectivity! So gullible
Last photo was taken at high line park. Formerly an elevated train line to Hudson Yard. NYC transformed it (not with small effort) into a public park which is slightly less than 3km in length. This is probably the only place where you could walk through the streets of Manhattan without having to stop at intersections, every 200-400m (or less)! Walked to the very end, and I looked at the details and devices the urban designers and planners created for the park to make it a success. Whether it’s some random art installation, or very clever designs of benches, or an elevated seating area which gives people opportunities to overlook the main carriageways underneath. The public park where vendors were not allowed, well.. To be fair, there’s one stall that sold ice cream and the other selling some souvenirs. That supposedly was an effort by NYC to avoid privatising the space. I hear they are now developing a lowline park, and is underground. It’s exciting isn’t it. People Mobility, happens more easily in a metropolitan.
Ok. I stop for now before I bore anyone to death.
I am back here, armed with memories, and developing my own perspectives.
Not saying NYC or USA is all peachy, given increased unemployment rate, more people in poverty, high crime rates and so on. But it does have its charms.
Moreover, the features in the country and city exude a higher level of familiarity to me, given I have been influenced (heavily) by American media and publishing growing up.
