Got in to Newark about 6AM yesterday, there was almost no traffic coming into the city. Manhattan likewise was deserted, like a science fiction movie after the apocalypse. Quiet. I guess everyone is out on Memorial Day.
The Jane Hotel is quirky, funky, old, good-feeling. Kind of like I imagine The Chelsea Hotel used to be. I’ve got a room on the 5th floor looking out at the Hudson river (and the West Side Highway — I pretend the traffic noise is the ocean) and this was the view last night.
Walked over to Cafe Reggio, it’s like a time capsule. I was first there 60 — yes, 60 — years ago when I lived in a rented room in the village for a month during a hot summer and worked on the night shift at a shredded coconut factory in Queens while waiting to take a boat to Europe. Still good vibes, Vivaldi violin concerto, latte and breakfast, then took off for Brooklyn on the R train — ugh — it’s falling apart, numerous stops, creaks groans, took an hour to get to farther reaches of Brooklyn. What a contrast to the Paris Metro or the spiffy Hong Kong subway system.
Got to the parade area late (with Uber help the last few miles) after coming up for air from the creepy underground.
Gotta run, will finish this later…
already love this story!