When Cousin Marcy Came to Visit New York City

Jing Fong Dim Sum

Food cart

Marcy took the Greyhound bus up from New Jersey to spend the day with us in Manhattan. She especially requested dim sum for lunch so, of course,  we went to Chinatown. We took the B train to Grand and Bowery and walked along the Bowery until we came to Jing Fong restaurant which the internet said was a good place. Eddie had said that there was a good dim sum restaurant on the Bowery that was near a bank, but he just couldn't remember the name. This one was book-ended by two banks, so it had to be good. It was also packed with Chinese (not a single farang in sight) so that was another indicator that the food was authentic. Every dish was served piping hot from steam carts.

Mickey D's

Making a point

Among all that good authentic Chinese food, McDonald's appears to be superfluous even redundant, but it is an American presence, so here it is. Looking like a Chinese temple with its red columns and curving roof, the façade reminds that this American identity is malleable. Of course, to some it is cause for resentment, a reminder of America's economic power. But here in Chinatown, it is McDonald's that is colonized. And happily so.

Monk napping

The courthouse in Federal Plaza

Laughing on the bus

We browsed around Chinatown a bit, walking down Henry Street and then Catherine Street, and buying cheap stuff for the kitchen. I found a set of melamine soup spoons and a teapot for under $10.00. We found our way back up Centre Street and Federal Plaza. Indomitable bargain hunters, we went into Lots-Less for more deals. I got an ice cream scoop and a silicone trivet for $5.00. Afterwards we still had time to spare so I suggested we go up to High Line Park. We took the #6 train to 14th Street where we got on the cross-town bus. The entrance to High Line Park is at 14th Street and Tenth Avenue. An elevator takes you from street level up to the park. Under a brilliant blue sky the park was a cool refreshing change from the hurly burly of the streets below. Here is a brief picture gallery of our day with Marcy.

MOCA, High Line Park, and East Village

MOCA

No, that's not a new coffee drink! MOCA is the Museum of Chinese in America. In a city known for a variety of museums, this is a small one located on Centre Street between Howard and Grand. One fine day, we walked from 38th street down Third Avenue, then west through Cooper Square and picked up Lafayette and Centre. MOCA is at the junction of Soho and Chinatown. But all New York neighborhoods are a state of mind anyway. You are where you want to be.

Replica of a Chinatown shop

 The Chinatown shop replica was way too clean, spacious, and well-lighted to be real. Chinatown shops to me are dark and musty and have a particular smell of herbs and preserves. In addition to the shop, the museum has posters, photographs, and film documenting the lives of the Chinese in the United States and celebrating their accomplishments.

Walking the tracks at High Line Park

Besides MOCA, another interesting site to visit is High Line Park. A clever concept that, to recycle some old elevated train tracks into a public park. It begins at Gansevoort Street in the West Village near the Hudson River and continues all the way up to 20th Street. That's just phase one of the park. An extension is planned all the way up to 34th Street. I got onto the park through an elevator at West 14th Street and Tenth Avenue. There are wooden benches and chaise lounges for sitting and sunning. However, owing to the lack of trees and the concrete, it's hot up there!

Getting some sun

People forget that New York is constantly renewing itself. High Line Park is a nice reminder that demolition isn't always the way to make way for the new. Sometimes something old can be turned to another use. New York also has quaint neighborhoods. Not far from Cooper Square is this little neighborhood on Eighth Street where we found a banh mi sandwich shop. I don't know if the bull on the roof is supposed to be a reminder that New York is the financial center to the world.

Bull

The street was tree-lined and a little faded, with that Boho touch that is so fashionable these days and much imitated. In one small block there were several cafés, at least one deli, a yoga studio, and a shop selling used CDs and DVDs that were shockingly overpriced. Haven't they heard of the free downloads at Limewire and Pirate Bay?

Eighth Street's got something for everyone. Like New York itself.