New York City - Day 5

It is Friday, this meant I had to get up early and move my car to the other side of the street to avoid getting a ticket; remember that they clean the north side of the street on Tuesday and Friday between 9:00 am and 10:30 am. It was not easy finding another place to park, I ended up parking close to a fire hydrant, about 5 feet away and hoping that I won't get a ticket. I went down at 10:15 to move my car but the north side of the street was already filled up. I haven't been ticketed yet so am thinking perhaps I am okay.

After our usual slow morning we took the bus first and then the subway to downtown Manhattan. There is a Trader Joe's at Union Square, the first in New York City. We needed to get a few things for our 4th of July picnic. If you think the lines at your Trader Joe's are long, you need to come to New York City! There are 2 lines that wrap around the isles and at the end of each line is a person holding a sign. One sign says 12 items or less, the other says any number of items, this is there way of somewhat controlling the lines. Raven said that the lines are usually so long that you get your cart, get in line, and shop the isle as the line moves. It wasn't quite that bad today. Another feature in that this Trader Joe's delivers! We scheduled our groceries to be delivered between 8:00 and 10:00 tonight. Off to MoMA!

We walked near Central Park and passed the Plaza Hotel on our way to MoMA. Sharissa Iqbal had arranged for free passes to the museum for the three of us. We decided to start downstairs in the Theatre Gallery, where a very special exhibition of Maya Deren's experimental short films were streaming.

After the lower level, we decided to move to the 6th level and work our way down, unfortunately they were between special exhibits and the Matisse show doesn't start until mid July, so we started with the contemporary paintings and sculptures on the 5th level. Picasso, Gauguin, Manet, Matisse, Van Gogh, Mondrian, Diego Rivera, Freida Khalo, and many more artists were represented in this exhibit. Did you know that Salvidor Dali's painting, "Persistence of Memory" (draping clocks) is tiny?! It is only about 10" x 16"! Raven was fascinated with the detail Freida Khalo portrayed in her self portrait with a monkey. Julie was exited to see Meret Oppenheim's sculpture of a cup, saucer, and spoon covered with gazelle fur. Rainy was absorbed in the paintings by Max Beckman. We spent the most time on level 5 because these were the paintings and sculptures which fascinated the three of us the most.

We moved on to level 4 which houses more contemporary paintings and sculptures. This level held more 20th century pieces by artists such as Jackson Pollock, Jasper Johns, Andy Warhol, and Mark Rothko. Overall, the artwork on this level did not hold us as long as the 19th century artwork did, though there were some very fascinating paintings and sculptures.

The third level had one section that featured Drawings, surveying the years from 1880 to the present. There were works in pencil, ink, and charcoal as well as watercolors , collages, and works in mixed media. Because Julie often works in mixed media, she enjoyed seeing a lot of the pieces on display, many by artists that she was unfamiliar with. There was a large Rauchenberg mixed media piece that Julie was really happy to see on display. Also on the third level was a section on Photography which surveyed the history of photography from the 1840's onward, representing both its creative figures as well as applications in journalism, science, and commerce. For the first time ever, Julie saw photographs by a photographer that she has admired since high school, Dorthea Lang. The third level also featured a display on Architecture and Design, ranging from large-scale design objects to works on paper and architectural models. The collection surveyed major figures and movements from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. The mid-century furniture made Julie think of her good friend Rhonda Woodward, whoose house is filled with examples similar to what was featured at the museum.

On down to level 2 where one section was filled with Prints and Illustrated Books. The collection surveyed works from the 1880's to the present, with installations that highlighted individual artists and key movements. Julie was fascinated with the collection of woodcut prints by her favorite printmaker; Kathe Kollwitz. Also on level 2 was a collection focused on Media, reflecting ever-evolving artistic practices, new technologies, and today's visual world. Surveyed are works dating from the late 1960's to the present.

By now we were somewhat tired and ready for just a little bite to eat. We walked a few blocks to a small Japanese tea shop called "Radiance". Julie ordered an Iced black tea and steamed pork with vegetable dumplings. Rainy had an iced green mach tea and a salmon spring roll. Raven ordered a Silver Needle Premium light tea that was served hot and Wellness soup with goji berries, mushrooms, red beans, and barley. It was just enough to refresh us for the subway ride home. For dessert Rainy got an array of mochi: strawberry, red bean, mango, honeydew, sweet milk...

Believe it or not, we were still hungry and decided to make a quick stop at Crif Dogs. Julie and Rainy ordered the Chihauhau Dog, served with bacon, avocado, and sour cream. Raven ordered the Jon-Jon Deragon Dog, served with cream cheese, scallions, and everything bagel seeds. We each ordered a Dale's Pale Ale to wash the dogs down. Next was a walk around the corner, back to Raven's apartment, to await the Trader Joe's delivery!

After the deliveries arrived, we continued drinking craft beers from Raven's small collection, and realized we were much more tired than we realized! We decided to relax and get to sleep early. In bed by midnight, we noticed how loud the noises from the street are (on a friday night) compared to other nights, and it goes on until about 5 am. But Saturday mornings are divine. The streets are coated in a silence.