Day 2 - OMG, the burger.

19:45
What a day!

There’s very little surprise when we ‘re all awake before 06:00. Ali gave up around 03:30, and I find him chilling on the sofa when I pad into the lounge a little after 05:00. My head is a little bunged up from the overnight A/C, but I feel like I’ve slept reasonably well. Karin is next to emerge, followed really not that long after by Vicks. We decide to get cleaned up and head out a little earlier than planned, and we’re at the subway station by 08:00.

We jump off at Times Square and 42nd, right in the heart of the Broadway theatre district. From here, it’s a 20 minute walk through Hell’s Kitchen to the Circle Line cruise pier. We stop for sustenance at Broad Nosh bagels, and I have the best bagel of my life. Kind of like a posh version of a McDonalds sausage and egg muffin, but oh so very much and a lot more. Ali and Karin both have variations on a smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel, and Vicki has a fab looking roast turkey and avocado wrap. Utterly delicious.

We wander over to the Hudson River, and stop to admire the enormous USS Intrepid moored opposite 43rd Street. It’s crazy to think that the newest US aircraft carriers are almost 60% bigger again than this behemoth. A couple of piers down is the Circle Line Cruise company, an absolute must if you’re visiting New York for the first time. Manhattan is an island, and can be circumnavigated. Vicki and I have taken this trip on both of our previous jaunts to New York, and are very happy to be sharing the experience with Ali and Karin.

The boat sets off to the South, and the sun is getting properly warm at 10:00. There’s a touch of breeze kicking around, but I slather myself in sunscreen to be on the safe side. We pass Chelsea, the financial district, and see the Freedom Tower. It’s 541m high, which is 1776 feet, and was built to this height to commemorate the US’s declaration of independence in 1776, which is the most, “America, Fuck yeah!” thing I’ve ever heard.

Next up is the Statue of Liberty. The view from the water is beautiful - a real treat. From here, we head up the East River, and pass under the Brooklyn Bridge. That’s one of my very favourite things right there. It’s such a cool moment. I encourage the others to join me on the bow deck at the front of the boat, where it’s both cooler due to the breeze, and the view uninterrupted.

We continue up towards Queens, passing some of the most recognisable buildings on the planet - the Empire State, the Chrysler, the UN building. There are other architectural gems though. There are two buildings next to each other but linked by a walkway around halfway up, which has been designed to look like two people dancing. I love it.

Queens soon gives way to the Bronx, and the world famous Yankee Stadium that Ali and I will visit tomorrow. We loop around the top end of Harlem, and rejoin the Hudson, right at the very northern tip of Manhattan. The view across from us is staggering. The Palisades are actually in New Jersey. They were bought by a cabal of wealthy New York families - the Stuyvesants, the Rockefellers, the Vanderbilts - who committed to keeping the area undeveloped. These beautiful flint cliffs rise to towering peaks above the river. It’s so strange to see this unspoilt ecosystem so close to the sprawling mass of New York.

Disembarked, and reinvigorated with a coffee, we set off to walk the High Line. What used to be an elevated train line has been turned into a public park - never more than a few metres wide, but stretching North to South across maybe 25 city blocks. The sides of the walkway are strewn with art installations and greenery - all plants that are indigenous to New York, but which have become increasingly hard to find as the urban sprawl has intensified. Some of the architecture alongside the walkway is uber-cool.

At the South end of the park, we try to decide whether beer or food. Beer wins. We head for the Tavern on Jane, an awesome little slice of Americana that Vicki and I stumbled upon (and stumbled out of. Hic) on our last visit. We’re hopeful that the incomparable legend that is Johnny Pompadour will be working today, but are disappointed to find he’s not. Only Mondays and Tuesdays apparently. Undeterred, we sit at the bar and pass the time. One swiftly becomes two, and we’re conscious that time’s pushing on, and we need to eat.

Hamburger America - what a place. George Motz is a dude. He wrote an entire book (and subsequently turned it into a documentary) about the history of the burger. This guy knows more about burgers than pretty much any other living being. HE LITERALLY WROTE THE BOOK. From all of this experience learning about and eating burgers, he decided to open his own place in New York, and it’s here that we find ourselves, drooling at the menu. There are only two burger options - Oklahoma style, which sees wafer thin slices of onion pressed into the burger patty, and his take on a smash burger. I go for the onion burger, Vicki the smash. OMG - the burgers are sensational. The onion adds such a depth of flavour, but never competes with the quality, dry-aged beef used in the patties. The cheese is perfect, melting not ‘onto’ the burger, but almost ‘into’ it. It’s burger alchemy. Straight into my top 3 burgers of all time.

Our next stop is John’s on Bleecker street, a legendary pizza place all of 500m from Hamburger America. Vicki, Ali and I smash our way through a 14” pepperoni pie. We take it to-go, and eat it in a small park a couple of hundred metres down the street. It’s good. It’s not world beating, but we all agree it’s very tasty, and we’re glad to have tried this world famous pizza.

A brief conflab suggests we are not going to be hungry anytime soon. I propose a walk through Washington Square Park, and then a beer. Washington Square Park is buzzing. It’s nearly 17:00 on a sunny Summer Friday, and the people of New York are coming out to play. The fountain throws some very welcome spray in our direction. The heat hasn’t abated all day, with highs around 32C. We’ve been marching around, and the sweat is constant. A couple of guys are advertising free hugs, and we persuade Ali to get involved. I’m not sure he’s exactly the kind of hug recipient these dudes were aiming for, but they’re happy huggers, nonetheless.

Our next pit-stop is at a cool little bar called Malthouse, where we revel in some frosty, air-conditioned climatic conditions. In the interests of energy, Karin and I go for Espresso Martinis, which are excellent.

Leaving Malthouse, we head over to the Bowery, in the general direction of Katz’s deli, our last planned food stop of the day. We head to Sara Roosevelt Park, and sit in the shade watching some games of 3 on 3 basketball happening. The standard of play is wildly varied. There are some serious ballers alongside some players who are anything but. It’s evident that you just pitch up, wait until a space on a team becomes available, and join in. There’s no vitriol against the less gifted players, which I find heartwarming.

We womble around the corner to see some street art on Freeman’s Alley. Beautifully vivid colours, and some incredibly high quality work.

We head back to the Bowery, and drop in to a very cool Irish Bar called Slainte. Ali decides a beer is probably too much right now, so has a lemonade. I decide that Guinness is a solid strategy. Our seats are becoming very comfortable. It’s around 19:00, and we’re tuckered. We’ve been on the go all day, and none of us are particularly hungry. We decide to revisit the Katz’s plan later in our trip, and head back to Brooklyn instead.

The subway is a cakewalk. 30 minutes in comfortable, air-conditioned carriages. We’ve not seen any crazies on the subway yet, though it’s possible that we are the crazies. As we climb the stairs to our apartment, I can really feel the 21,000 steps I’ve done today in my calves and my feet. Tomorrow promises more of the same, though thankfully in slightly cooler conditions…Meer informatie