Chronicles Continued

As I passed by, it was just one small drop coming out of the wall.  A small plastic pipe aiding and abetting the drip.  Obviously connected to an air conditioning unit behind the wall.  Why it caught my eye?  It was creating all the puddles in the photo to the right.

The organization “Sing for Hope’ places pianos around the City.  The 88 pianos will remain in the public until the 16th of June.    If you want to see and hear please copy this link:

http://singforhope.org/galleries

Not only to think it up, but to execute it!

Truly is a public gathering space.  In smaller cities and villages, the town square is where the band plays and folks picnic once a year.  Union Square is where the troops gather to protest and to speak their voice.  It is a refreshing sight.   A few weeks ago, it was also the place that a young woman, aged 24 was found dead under a tree one morning.

Still in Brighton Beach.  After lunch, at a sophisticated and accessible pastry shop.  One shop of many and many were the choices of pastry.  Sweet dough filled with poppy seeds, ground nuts, rolled – filled with jams and fruit fillings.  More than could be easily resisted.  But this caught my eye.  There is not a fig that I haven’t met and identified.  I asked the lady, who was the proprietor, if those were indeed not dates.  No, she said, figgie, figgie.

No I countered, I believe those are dates, figgies are another fruit.  No figgie!  So I bought one to prove to myself: it had a date pit inside, so no figgie.  But if you are Russian speaking and have 10$ to give per pound, does it really matter?  

Late lunch at ‘Kashkar’ on Brighton Beach Avenue.  Ordered ‘Salad Langsai’ which was vinegar-soaked bell peppers, carrots, cucs, onions, noodles and suntaisa which is a green vegetable from China, all seasoned with among other seasonings, coriander seeds.  Also ordered eggplant salad which was oiled with a red oil and other unnamed herbs. Clear lamb broth with little dumplings filled with ground meat, and a kebab and a samsa.  [A flaky crusted half ball of dough stuffed with ground lamb, onions and spices.]  Clearly more than could be eaten in one seating, but could not resist.

Uygur is situated the most western part of China, directly above Pakistan.  The landmass is approximately 1/6 of all of China. The Uygurs are Islamic, their name means Unity or Alliance and they trace their history to the third century.  They have their own language apart from the Chinese and surrounding countries as they are a mixture of Turk, Han, and peoples of southern Xingiang and Tibet and Mongol tribes. Russia looks over their right shoulder. Why this is applicable: being in the restaurant was as if in a foreign land.  The head waiter spoke enough English to accommodate pointing and questioning.  The second waiter spoke none at all.  The television was broadcasting a program in the language of Uygur and when asked the waiter explained it was an amalgamation of Turkish, Russian, and some Chinese.  The menu was solely in Russian and English.

If you’ve read any play by neil simon, or any number of jewish playwrights, the action takes place in Brighton Beach.  I could not stop asking whatever question came to mind as we wandered along the boardwalk, to whomever we passed.  I even careened over to the benches where little old folks were resting, to query them.  The accents are so Russian and so heavy, as they say, they speak as if they just got off the boat, and they have been here for 40 years.  Brighton Beach an icon place.  There is the boardwalk, which is undistinguishable from the continuation of the Coney Island boardwalk, but when you leave the water and head inland, you then pass the apartments and come to the daily life:  the bakeries, the markets, the restaurants, the shops…all offering goods not usually seen in  the City, and most certainly at much lower prices.  And many of them bearing descriptions only in Russian.  The nickname of Brighton Beach is ‘little Odessa’.

The only sign along the boardwalk, that wasn’t in Russian as well as English and Spanish was the one warning about rip tides and the risk of drowning.  What sort of oversight was that on the part of NYC Parks?

There it is:  the Wheel.  The wooden roller coaster is there too, but one has to have a bit of faith to take a ride on the latter.

Made a Memorial Weekend visit to the ‘island of rabbits’ as the Dutch referred to it: Konijnen Eiland.  What a treat to see how accessible it really is, one train direct from the City.  A lot of stops in between boarding and exiting, but none the less, one train. Upon arrival the first stop is Nathan’s, where the sausage was first rolled into a bun to become the hot dog.  At 11 in the morning, isn’t quite a cup of coffee, but with sauerkraut it is delicious; a fine way to start the day.  Weather was impending gloom, but all that meant was that it was blustery, and ‘fresh’ and we were the only ones on the board walk!  Nothing wrong with all of that.

And then we got a surprise. As the only ones walking along the boardwalk we decided to see what the carousel was, as we could see the huge letters on the outside of a half round building.  We arrived at the dedication.  Little did we know that it was the first day of the refurbished attraction, and everyone was there to celebrate it, including the honorable Mayor Bloomberg.  If you look closely at the photo, you see him standing at the head of the crowd on the right hand side.  When we mosied away, his entourage engulfed us, and so there is a good possibility that we are forever in the photo footage of that glorious event.

Living in the City gives exposure to restaurants on every corner, in addition to deli markets and traditional grocery stores.  But it is the delivery of complete meals, daily to those working in office buildings that is intriguing.  Firstly, it takes thought; the group passes the menu around, decisions are made, money changes hands and phone calls are made. Eventually the delivery person has to appear and gain access.  The plastic bags have to be exchanged for the previously gathered monies.  Are the buyers cheap or do they tip well?  Somehow it appears cumbersome, expensive, and more work than the trouble to eat out.  To say nothing of the lack of ambiance for eating the food, the lack of presentation and the purpose of eating at all, the intermingling of work and sustenance.

It was damp weather outside, however underground in the subway, it was dry and warm.  The female pushing the baby stroller was young.  What caught my attention was the double plastic wrapping on the stroller; two layers of plastic, the form fitting sort made for the stroller. But how does baby breathe?  I was dumb-struck.  I felt the need to say something, but I didn’t, I just turned away.  Was this the mother or the nanny?

You want beads and clasps and closures and beading tools and more beads and beads and beads…. head to West 37th Street around and between 5th and 6th Avenues.  The choice is beyond what you can imagine.  The stores here sell, string, fix, design and accommodate you in any way possible to get you on your way to a hobby, a one time purchase – highly unlikely.