My last afternoon in the city, I went down to the new skate park that just got built at Chelsea Piers. My friends, twin brothers Shelter and Ivory Serra, who grew up in Bolinas and now live in NYC, were going there to skate and I met them there and shot some movies of them skating the bowl. I marvel at the grace and skill (and guts) of all these guys that skate these steep bowls.

Here are a couple of photos from earlier that afternoon. What caught my eye at the top left side of the Flatiron Building was what looked to be a person standing, looking down (barely visible here). Turns out it’s a fiberglass statue of a person by British artist Antony Gormely.

I’ve got an overwhelming amount of photos and experiences from the last week. but also a ton of stuff to do now that I’m back home. I’ll post stuff when I get the time.

City footwork: My competitive running days are over, but all those years of training have given me the ability to move deftly through busy city streets. A lot of it is footwork. Also being able to shift your weight and spring left or right, ahead or backwards. Don’t obey traffic signals, but watch the traffic. Often I’ll do a quick speedwalk to get across in front of a lone car. I pretend like I’m a hunter out on the streets, shooting photos instead of game.

Architecture: The Seagram’s building (Mies van der Rohe, 1958), at Park and 52nd, still looks great

Map: Found this tiny map, fits easily in pocket, does the job for Manhattan: New Yorker’s Manhattan MiniMap

Sustenance:…”Guinness is good for you.”…Pescatore Italian seafood restaurant, 955 2nd (50th-51st) is my dream restaurant. Pasta is as good as it gets, reasonable prices..…Buttercup Bake Shop, 973 2nd, good latte, great cake…Le Pain Quotidien, a number of locations in NYC, recycled lumber community tables, artisan bread, best French toast I’ve ever had, hip workers, good vibes…Blue Ribbon Sushi, 119 Sullivan at Prince, had standing room only at 11:30 Tuesday night, v. hip looking.

Books: Stopped in at the Strand, 828 Broadway, venerable old bookstore, it was mobbed with book buyers (who haven’t heard that books are dead).

Air was fresh after rain, wispy clouds, nice temperature for being outside…