Catching up with Christine

Earlier this week I had a chance to have dinner with my friend Christine from Caramoor. It was an exciting way to end a snowy, busy work day. Over yummy brisket and Reuben sandwiches at Juniors in Grand Central, we had a chance to sit, relax, and catch up. If it had been a Tuesday night in another part of my life, I wouldn't have been able to meet her due to work obligations. The freedom to make week-day plans is just another reason why I am grateful to have relinquished certain jobs.

It been too long since we'd seen each other -- since December. Plus she reminded me (okay, she didn't really) that I hadn't had a chance to blog about our exciting New York adventures. Let me rectify that now. So, et and voila!

Frigid Fun with Camera-happy Christine

The catalyst for our get-together was a work function. The Arthur Ross Foundation, one of the Big J's scholarship donors, extended an invitation to join them a holiday tour of the Arthur Ross Pinetum and a reception in the Swedish Cottage in Central Park. Since, I hadn't ever explored that section of the Park and no one from the Big J had attended in a while, I felt someone should go represent the School. I decided to try and round up a friend and make a whole day of it in the City.

Christine and I met up in Grand Central and headed uptown for Sunday brunch (a New York institution) at the Popover Cafe. Luckily the anticipated 30-minute wait for a table was only about 5-10 minutes and we were able to warm up over popovers, Diet Coke for me and mulled wine for Christine, and brunch before heading over to the Park for the afternoon.

We gathered on the corner of West 85th and Central Park West and waited for the Rangers to bring us over the Pinetum. It turns out that this is an annual event that's open to the public, so there was an interesting turnout of family, invitees, nature lovers, and passerbys. There was a brief presentation by the Park Conservatory, Ross Foundation officials, and the family, and it was at this point that my mild-mannered friend Christine turned into a paparazzo, snapping shots of everything under the sun, including far too many pictures of me doing the schmoozing thing with the Foundation folks and the Parks Commissioner, which I will spare you.

The presentation - note the hats - it was COLD!

Bundled up Conservancy folks

Mr. Ross was a man ahead of his time when it came to conservation causes, and was a generous contributor to many New York institutions. The Pinetum is very beautiful. At the center is a Contemplation Circle:

We could have taken the "official" Park Rangers tour, but decided to go off on our own. If it wasn't so freaking cold that day, we would have sat and contemplated. As it was, we kept moving through the pines in order to keep warm.

Following the presentation and tours, guests were invited to head toward the Swedish Cottage for cocoa, cookies, cider and caroling. Christine and I meandered through the pines, catching up on the news, taking photos, and following the red bows that led the way to the Cottage.

On the way, we came across this vignette:

In lieu of a driveway, where else is a father supposed to teach his kid important hockey skills?

Swedish Cottage

No angels for this tree, only a queen

Music by Santa's helpers

Refreshed by music and munchies, we continued our tour of Central Park by hiking up to the top of Belvedere Castle, where we saw ...

dragons,

falcons,
far distant flagstones,

flags,

and friends having fun.

The last time I made it to Belvedere was when the Gates installation was in town. The Castle was the location of the gift shop and was crowded with too many tourists to make it enjoyable. This time I got to make it to the top to enjoy the views of the Park, City, the Turtle Pond by the Delacorte Theater, and didn't have to compete with hordes of people. Plus, my back wasn't out this time, so I wasn't hobbling around like a 90 year old woman in massive amounts of pain. Despite the cold, this was a major improvement.

Christine and I bid farewell to the Castle and headed back downtown to the Holiday Shops at Bryant Park, a tradition for us. Luckily most of my shopping was already done, because it was way too crowded for me and very cold. Christine did manage to get some shopping done before we succumbed to the elements. On our travels through the booths, we saw some celebrities over at the home of Metal Park. Say hello to:

This artist is amazing. He's been a regular at the Shops for a five years. I highly recommend you check his stuff out.

There's also been skating at Bryant Park for a couple of years now. Compared to the 2007 rink, this one is huge. One day I'll actually GO skating, but for now, I'll just enjoy the view. That's the back of the New York Public Library behind the tree.

By this point Christine and I were frozen, as the wind chill was nipping at more than just our toes. We headed back to Grand Central to warm up and catch trains to our various domiciles. All in all, it was a lovely day, and I'm glad that I got to spend it with a friend -- even if she's camera happy. I guess I'll forgive her. I take lots of pictures of her that are up on this blog.

Can't wait for spring, so we can explore other parts of New York and the Park and not freeze.