Saturday, March 31, 2012

New York: Last Stop

I'm left savouring my Porchetta sandwich and fennel chorizo bake, as well as the fine Zinfandel from Vino Volo as we board the flight bound for JFK. Time enough for a Peet's espresso, but not enough to avail ourselves of the Yoga room. San Francisco's Terminal 2 has to be one of the most civilized airports in the country, if not the hemisphere, and honestly one of the best meals of the trip. It's like a showcase for Silicon Valley wealth. 

The American Airlines terminal at JFK is not bad for a bankrupt airline, but can't possibly compete. And the road into town is more uneven than many we've driven well South of the border, but the Empire State is a blue beacon as we round the bend in Queens and majestic Manhattan comes into view against the night sky. 

We're lucky for Pierre and Arielle's hospitality on the Upper East Side - back in the old 'hood! Their apartment is a real oasis in this frantic town (the City that Never Sleeps? Isn't there a Circle in Dante's hell where people are consigned to perpetual wakefulness?). I'll lie down in the sun for a siesta with Beethoven and the delicious smells of Arielle's kitchen wafting up. Or park myself like Tabby, their cat, on a wondowsill to read or daydream about the trip, the past, the future.

Pierre and Arielle are also famed for their dinner parties, for the excellent cooking as much as the eclectic and fascinating company. It's good to catch up with Joseph and Jenny over Malbec from Colome', to begin my re-education on markets ("Brazil beats UK to become world's 6th largest economy"), the French election ("Sarko the comeback kid? No way...") and red meat vs veganism (you can imagine which side of the argument the French around the table took).  



Cruising along the FDR at twilight reminds me of the three years of dawn's early light I witnessed commuting from Manhattan to our offices in Stamford. I still shiver at the thought of the 4am wake-up call, but there were magical moments seeing the sun rise over the river. In many ways it was often my favorite part of the day. 





Martine's neighbourhood is where we rolled last summer in the Dodge Challenger RT, taking the straightaways by the river like something out of Streets of Fire. Thanks to everyone who came to the Bronx to hear highlights of our little tale, and especially Mom and Vytas for hiking over all the way from DC and Applebachsville. 





The slideshow was curtailed and chaotic but fun, the champagne cocktail euphoric, and the local liquor store run a fascinating detour, with all the merchandise behind bullet-proof glass (do I go for the Colt 45 or the Moet?). Especially thanks to Martine for hosting the party, and taking delivery of all those postcards over the previous eight weeks. 



Resolutions from running the ramparts I Cartagena dissolve in so many toasts with friends and family. But I do manage a run around the Central Park Reservoir, my old circuit. It's always fascinated me the culture or running in the Park, so many shapes and sizes, and so many people that just shouldn't be putting themselves through such suffering, but do. Then of course there's the fit girls in athletic kit. I am a big fan of fit girls in athletic kit. 


On another afternoon I retrace my usual route from UES to the office, this time to meet new colleagues in our NYC office. Nostalgia? Not quite. I wouldn't move back to Manhattan. Not in a hurry, anyway. To call it a great town is an understatement, but for me an "Escape to New York" would feel like a step backward. And the world is so vast and diverse, there is so much to experience. And I don't think Flo would jump at it the way she might have in prior years. Something to so with the oppressive heating in winter, exaggerated A/C in summer and the tyrrany of "controlled environments". 

Double Vampire Hill Slayer
Flo hits the Armory and Playtime, the Kid's Fashion trade fair, while Jasmine and Iris are whisked of to Uncle Vytas' and Jessica's place in Applebachsville PA. "It's like the crazy cat carnival" says Vytas, and indeed these two really know how to get the party started, and keep it going. There's gardening, kayaking, and of course skateboarding. The first custom skateboard to come from Vytas' shop is the Vampire Slayer special, artwork by the Pixies.  


For me, time to acclimatize to lower altitudes. I'm the advance party heading back to London, as I was when we first decided to move there. Seeing so many friends and family on the way back - and I wish we'd been able to see more of you! - has been a wonderful glide path to landing back in London soon. 


The Empire State is white on departure, a visual duet with the Chrysler spire, elegant and inspiring. And there's a full moon in the sky, like the day I handed in my resignation and embarked on this little journey, and the longer professional journey ahead. The story comes full circle over a single quarter, thank you for reading along. Now once again I've got a blank slate as I head back to London, though so much richer than when we left it. 

Nostalgia for early days in Manhattan




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