NYC visit to the MOMA and Rockefeller Center
I haven't posted anything for a while because I honestly haven't done anything that I considered worthwhile. I recently went up to NYC with a couple friends this past weekend and we had such a good time. I started telling my co-worker over IM about the trip and it turned into so many paragraphs that I figured that I might as well post it for posterity.
First we took the E downtown to Washington Square Park which is in the Village area next to NYU. My friend Elysa hadn't been there in several years, so she wanted to see it again. it wasn't much to look at because they are doing alot of construction on it. After we were tired of that, we went to Peanut Butter and Co as soon as it opened. I had the Elvis, which is peanut butter, honey, bananas and bacon toasted. I opted for whole wheat and crunchy pb. Elysa got a peanut butter cup, which is pb and nutella. She got it toasted on whole wheat. Her boyfriend, Gregor, also got a toasted sandwhich but I don't rem what was in it and he got a milkshake. They loved it and will go back again maybe in the spring. We then walked to this store in Soho called the Evolution Nature Store. They had all kinds of bones, fossils, bugs (butterflies, bettles, insects) in glass cases, taxadermied animals and stones, jewelry etc. They love stuff like that so that was another huge hit. I would definitely recommend it and take other people to visit it.
Then we took a walk over to the Dean and Deluca cafe and supermarket. If you were a fan of Felicity, you'd remember that she worked there. I used to visit it all the time when I friend Chara was at NYU getting her masters degree. That place is just amazing. It's kind of like a really fancy wholefoods that sells all kinds of gourmet foods, veggies, pastries, chocolates, cooking supplies etc. I just love it there. I picked up a couple stocking stuffers for my brother. We took the subway to Union Square so we could go to the Holiday Market. Basically, it's all of these little booths set up and it's kind of like a little crafts market. For example, one person sells soaps, one person makes ornaments, someone else is selling art, someone else has baked goods, etc. They had a ton of little unique gifts all in one place. We each got a little something but then it started to rain heavily so we got back on the subway. It took us a while to get to the Moma because we kept waiting for the V train which would drop us right off at 53rd and 5th but four F trains went by while we waited so we just hopped on one of those. Now I know that the V only ruuns on weekdays! Unfortunately, it left us off at 47th and 5th so we had to walk to 53rd in the snow. We probably would have been better off taking the 6 to 51st and switching too the E, but I didn't know that at the time.
Well, we finally got to Moma but we went in the wrong way and there was just a sea of people, like hundreds of people in line. We finally waved over a security guard and he directed us to the information desk. We picked up our tickets that my co-workers sister left for us without a problem but then had to wait in the super long coat check line. it musy have taken us 20 minutes just to do that, but then we went about finding the Tim Burton exhibit.
We followed the signs and followed the excalators downstairs to this room that had posters from his movies and weird portraits that Tim Burton did. Like one was of this woman that had makeup on that made it look like she was stitched together and she was sawing off her leg and one was this weird bush thing that had eyeballs at the end of it's branches. Really bizarre stuff like that. In the center of the room where some of the objects from the posters. Then all of the sudden everyone got in line and was being herded through these doors but when I showed them the ticket, the security guard said that this was the line for one of his movies and we needed a separate ticket for that. I thought it was a line to go into the exhibit! He told us that it was on the third floor so we made our way up there. When we got there it was ultra crowded and they were shooing away people that either didn't have Tim Burton tickets or those who had the timed tickets but it wasn't their time yet. We got in without a problem because of our guest passes.
It was equally crowded inside, but we were able to see everything if we went with the flow of the crowd. You could jump around if you wanted but then you couldn't get close enough sometimes. The exhibit itself was cool but equally bizarre. it had all of these drawings and paintings that we did from the time that he as young until now. There were pencil sketches of weird monsters, little comics, and actual paintings. There were these little maquette puppets of these completely bizarre creatures. There was also work from artists that has been inspired by his projects.Tthey also had alot of props from his movies. They had the whole leather outfit, scissor hands and wig that Johnny Depp wore in Edward Scizzorhands, Michelle Pfieffer's catwoman outfit, a few batman masks, the baby carraige that the Penguin was in as a baby, the little puppets that they used to make Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, Coraline and one used in Beetlejuice when Beetlejuice was a snake. They had these animatronic dolls from the opening scene of his Willy Wonka movie that caught on fire and were all singed and melted. They also had puppets from some other short films that he did. I think one of the coolest things he had besides the movie props where the original concepts for a few of his movies. They were hand written on a yellow notepad and it was his original concept behind Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice. After we saw everything and my friends got a few souveneers, we went to exploe the rest of the museum.
We then explored the museum and saw some strange sculptures like this bowl and spoon covered in fur and this bizaare Salvadore Dali one with a mannaquin head and feather and corn cobs for hair with a loaf of french bread balanced on top and ants crawling on it. We also saw some amazing works by Picasso, Cezanne, Jackson Pollock, Van Gogh, Monet, Salvadore Dali, etc etc. I have pics of a ton of them as you were allowed to take pics w/o flash. I have to admit that I really don't understand modern art. Some of it looks like they just threw random paint or welded together random pieces of metal. I appreciated the really colorful ones the most even if I didn't understand the point.
So, we left there around five and made our way to the World of Disney store. We had to wait in a little bit of a line because we had to wait for the employees to bag the umbrellas to keep them from dripping all over the store. I just got a mug, that flat round ornament and a pin that had the mickey symbol and NYC on it. It was kind of like a play on I heart NYC but with a mickey head instead. I also got some candy for my nephews. Then we walked to Saint Patrick's Cathedral where Elysa lights a candle for her friend that passed away five years ago. She lights one every year. Then we walked to Rockefeller Center and took pics of the tree. Elysa and Gregor got a professional pic done as it's a tradition for them. then we went into his ridiculously expensive chocolate store called Teuscher Chocolates that sold swiss chocolate at $75 dollars/pound. I did get this chocolate bar for $6.50 that is 99% cocoa. You know how with the dark chocolate it's always some percentage like 77% or so? They said it's extremely bitter so you should only bake with it. my brother constantly talks about how the higher percentage bars are so much better and had never found one above 88% so he'll be very surprised!
Then we walked to the M&M store in Times Square which was an absolute mad house. I just walked around while they shopped but was getting very tired by that point and the special color m&ms were $12.95/pound so I was like no thanks. We also ran into the Hershey Store and I got these Almond Joy pieces. They are like Reese's pieces but one color is coconut flavored, another is almond flavored and another is chocolate flavored. They had this concept for some other hershey products as well. My sis wanted unique candy so that fit the bill. I also got Lou the Take 5 bars he wanted and a 5th avenue bar. Then we stopped in some other outrageous chocolate store for a sample and then took the subway to Macy's on 34st street because there's this little diner/cafe that they found one time called Andrew's Cafe that they like. It was OK but nothing I'd recommend. I mean atleast not for what I got. I got a western omlette and had to pay extra for cheese which I swear they didn't even add and they had no free refills. with two sodas, the omlette and a side of bacon, it came to $17 with tax and tip. We got a better meal at serendipity as far as I was concerned. plus they only had one bathroom that was constantly occupied. then we finally caught the train home at 9PM.
We did get alot done and had a really great time. Even though it was raining or snowing most of the day, it stayed warm enough where we didn't use the foot warmers that a picked up but we did end up using a pair of hand warmers towards the end and a couple cheap ponchos during the day.
First we took the E downtown to Washington Square Park which is in the Village area next to NYU. My friend Elysa hadn't been there in several years, so she wanted to see it again. it wasn't much to look at because they are doing alot of construction on it. After we were tired of that, we went to Peanut Butter and Co as soon as it opened. I had the Elvis, which is peanut butter, honey, bananas and bacon toasted. I opted for whole wheat and crunchy pb. Elysa got a peanut butter cup, which is pb and nutella. She got it toasted on whole wheat. Her boyfriend, Gregor, also got a toasted sandwhich but I don't rem what was in it and he got a milkshake. They loved it and will go back again maybe in the spring. We then walked to this store in Soho called the Evolution Nature Store. They had all kinds of bones, fossils, bugs (butterflies, bettles, insects) in glass cases, taxadermied animals and stones, jewelry etc. They love stuff like that so that was another huge hit. I would definitely recommend it and take other people to visit it.
Then we took a walk over to the Dean and Deluca cafe and supermarket. If you were a fan of Felicity, you'd remember that she worked there. I used to visit it all the time when I friend Chara was at NYU getting her masters degree. That place is just amazing. It's kind of like a really fancy wholefoods that sells all kinds of gourmet foods, veggies, pastries, chocolates, cooking supplies etc. I just love it there. I picked up a couple stocking stuffers for my brother. We took the subway to Union Square so we could go to the Holiday Market. Basically, it's all of these little booths set up and it's kind of like a little crafts market. For example, one person sells soaps, one person makes ornaments, someone else is selling art, someone else has baked goods, etc. They had a ton of little unique gifts all in one place. We each got a little something but then it started to rain heavily so we got back on the subway. It took us a while to get to the Moma because we kept waiting for the V train which would drop us right off at 53rd and 5th but four F trains went by while we waited so we just hopped on one of those. Now I know that the V only ruuns on weekdays! Unfortunately, it left us off at 47th and 5th so we had to walk to 53rd in the snow. We probably would have been better off taking the 6 to 51st and switching too the E, but I didn't know that at the time.
Well, we finally got to Moma but we went in the wrong way and there was just a sea of people, like hundreds of people in line. We finally waved over a security guard and he directed us to the information desk. We picked up our tickets that my co-workers sister left for us without a problem but then had to wait in the super long coat check line. it musy have taken us 20 minutes just to do that, but then we went about finding the Tim Burton exhibit.
We followed the signs and followed the excalators downstairs to this room that had posters from his movies and weird portraits that Tim Burton did. Like one was of this woman that had makeup on that made it look like she was stitched together and she was sawing off her leg and one was this weird bush thing that had eyeballs at the end of it's branches. Really bizarre stuff like that. In the center of the room where some of the objects from the posters. Then all of the sudden everyone got in line and was being herded through these doors but when I showed them the ticket, the security guard said that this was the line for one of his movies and we needed a separate ticket for that. I thought it was a line to go into the exhibit! He told us that it was on the third floor so we made our way up there. When we got there it was ultra crowded and they were shooing away people that either didn't have Tim Burton tickets or those who had the timed tickets but it wasn't their time yet. We got in without a problem because of our guest passes.
It was equally crowded inside, but we were able to see everything if we went with the flow of the crowd. You could jump around if you wanted but then you couldn't get close enough sometimes. The exhibit itself was cool but equally bizarre. it had all of these drawings and paintings that we did from the time that he as young until now. There were pencil sketches of weird monsters, little comics, and actual paintings. There were these little maquette puppets of these completely bizarre creatures. There was also work from artists that has been inspired by his projects.Tthey also had alot of props from his movies. They had the whole leather outfit, scissor hands and wig that Johnny Depp wore in Edward Scizzorhands, Michelle Pfieffer's catwoman outfit, a few batman masks, the baby carraige that the Penguin was in as a baby, the little puppets that they used to make Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, Coraline and one used in Beetlejuice when Beetlejuice was a snake. They had these animatronic dolls from the opening scene of his Willy Wonka movie that caught on fire and were all singed and melted. They also had puppets from some other short films that he did. I think one of the coolest things he had besides the movie props where the original concepts for a few of his movies. They were hand written on a yellow notepad and it was his original concept behind Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice. After we saw everything and my friends got a few souveneers, we went to exploe the rest of the museum.
We then explored the museum and saw some strange sculptures like this bowl and spoon covered in fur and this bizaare Salvadore Dali one with a mannaquin head and feather and corn cobs for hair with a loaf of french bread balanced on top and ants crawling on it. We also saw some amazing works by Picasso, Cezanne, Jackson Pollock, Van Gogh, Monet, Salvadore Dali, etc etc. I have pics of a ton of them as you were allowed to take pics w/o flash. I have to admit that I really don't understand modern art. Some of it looks like they just threw random paint or welded together random pieces of metal. I appreciated the really colorful ones the most even if I didn't understand the point.
So, we left there around five and made our way to the World of Disney store. We had to wait in a little bit of a line because we had to wait for the employees to bag the umbrellas to keep them from dripping all over the store. I just got a mug, that flat round ornament and a pin that had the mickey symbol and NYC on it. It was kind of like a play on I heart NYC but with a mickey head instead. I also got some candy for my nephews. Then we walked to Saint Patrick's Cathedral where Elysa lights a candle for her friend that passed away five years ago. She lights one every year. Then we walked to Rockefeller Center and took pics of the tree. Elysa and Gregor got a professional pic done as it's a tradition for them. then we went into his ridiculously expensive chocolate store called Teuscher Chocolates that sold swiss chocolate at $75 dollars/pound. I did get this chocolate bar for $6.50 that is 99% cocoa. You know how with the dark chocolate it's always some percentage like 77% or so? They said it's extremely bitter so you should only bake with it. my brother constantly talks about how the higher percentage bars are so much better and had never found one above 88% so he'll be very surprised!
Then we walked to the M&M store in Times Square which was an absolute mad house. I just walked around while they shopped but was getting very tired by that point and the special color m&ms were $12.95/pound so I was like no thanks. We also ran into the Hershey Store and I got these Almond Joy pieces. They are like Reese's pieces but one color is coconut flavored, another is almond flavored and another is chocolate flavored. They had this concept for some other hershey products as well. My sis wanted unique candy so that fit the bill. I also got Lou the Take 5 bars he wanted and a 5th avenue bar. Then we stopped in some other outrageous chocolate store for a sample and then took the subway to Macy's on 34st street because there's this little diner/cafe that they found one time called Andrew's Cafe that they like. It was OK but nothing I'd recommend. I mean atleast not for what I got. I got a western omlette and had to pay extra for cheese which I swear they didn't even add and they had no free refills. with two sodas, the omlette and a side of bacon, it came to $17 with tax and tip. We got a better meal at serendipity as far as I was concerned. plus they only had one bathroom that was constantly occupied. then we finally caught the train home at 9PM.
We did get alot done and had a really great time. Even though it was raining or snowing most of the day, it stayed warm enough where we didn't use the foot warmers that a picked up but we did end up using a pair of hand warmers towards the end and a couple cheap ponchos during the day.