The first snow storm of 2008/9 fell last weekend, dusting the metropolis with 5" -6" of snow, although about half of that got washed away by the 3" of rain that fell in between. Unlike the 1970s, when snow storm meant days of impassable streets and homeless people freezing to death, this is Micheal Bloomberg's city where city workers pre-salted the street and sat on stand-by in snowplows 2 hours before the snow fell. The efficiency is impressive. But this post is not really about urban management. This is a homage to scenes of beauty.The longer I stayed in NYC, the more I am being captivated by a certain dignified, poetic, piognant - but not all that obvious - kind of beauty.
On Saturday, I took my younger daughter to Central Park for snow tubing: whizzing down the snowy slope sitting on a rubber tube. One of the things I love best about New York is having an enormous, stately and brilliantly-designed 160 year old parkland right at the heart of the city ( that last part is important because it takes time for trees to grow and look timeless). Last Saturday, it was simply a winter wonderland with bunches of parents-and-kids having a good time turning hills slopes into runs for toboggans, sledges, trays and tubes.
On the other hand, it was quiet enough to have your own patch of slope as you can see from this picture we took. Quite hard to imagine all this is a 10 mins cab ride from our apartment, 200m away from Fifth Avenue and just up the street from frenzied Christmas shopping of a city of 10 million.
I love how the Victorian architecture of the snow-covered arched bridges, old park lamps, wrought-iron park benches and the gentle old trees all came together into a picturesque and melancholic snowscape that reminds somewhat of scenes from Central Europe.
As the daylight slipped silently away into the evening, the scene lightened and acquired a certain magical glow. The lights came on in the park and in the windows of the stately apartment buildings visible beyond the trees. The jaggered lines of the skyscrapers began to twinkle and shine with lights. Amidst the snow, the park sat like a scene from Narnia.
The lakes were semi-frozen, and well-dressed people strolled about and taking in the sights of a winter wonderland. The Christmas card has come alive.
2 comments:
A very placid and timely write up from NY. What better cap a year with a snowy scene outside the door.
Like what my younger boy Qian is doing these days when he sees me after work. He saluted me. I would like to do the same to salute you and thank you for our friendship and our lifelong discourse starting from those winter nights in Ashwood.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and the Changs.
And I salute you back (!), Bro, for being a wonderful friend and intellectual sounding board. Its not easy to stay friends from so long ago (end 1995!) and still have so much to talk about. I really enjoy this journey with you. Happy holidays and happy new year to the Tans!
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