The Tourist

I walk in New York.  As my last few trips have been short, I like to pack light.  Workout shoes are bulky and enormous space-eaters and I hate to be stuck in a hotel gym when I’m only in the city for 48 hours.

So I walk.  A lot.  That way, I get my exercise and see the city.  Win/win.  The second day of my last trip I walked from the Standard to the Cooper-Hewitt (with stops in between.)

I just google mapped it and it’s 4.6 miles.  A little trafficy.  A lot touristy (I am one) and a complete delight.  Also, I love big, stone lions (and small stone lions, but, for me, when it comes to stone lions, bigger is better) so passing the front of the Metropolitan Museum on foot makes for a good day.

Heading back, I hopped on the subway at 57th Street; there’s no reason to walk through Midtown twice in one day.  That brings the total to 6.6 miles.  More than I would have walked at home.

And in 6.6 miles I saw mid-century New York, rural Pennsylvania, Ted Muehling, Central Park, Frank Lloyd Wright, a fortune in jewels and had lunch with a Russian-born fabric designer.  A very good day.

The images, above are of the Sonia Delaunay exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt via their website.  Delaunay was a painter and clothing and fabric designer.  This exhibit was one of my favorites.  You can access the site here and read Courtney Barnes’s excellent coverage – anything I would do would be redundant – on Style Court here.  The catalogue is chocked full of inspiring images and absolutely worth the $35.

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11 thoughts on “The Tourist

  1. Patricia, we would travel well together. I love your itinerary. Great art!

    xoxo
    Karena
    Art by Karena

  2. I have decided to follow the dream and move to NYC! This post only inspires me more! Keep up the great work!

  3. What an inspiration was Madame Delaunay and her husband Robert?
    How ahead of their time was this 'modernist' couple?
    I just adore the melding of decorative arts, fine art and design and would so loved to have visited the what must have been uber- glamorous Metz & Co, with the colourful works of Sonia nudging along side iconic designs of Rietveld's Red-blue chair for example.
    Can you imagine witnessing all this so early in the 20th century?

    What a lovely walk you had, experiencing all that NYC has to offer!

  4. You've just described part of what makes New York City so amazing. It's a potpourri of this and that…something for everyone. And, to get your exercise in to boot. A perfect day!!!

  5. That is definitely one of the things I miss most about living in NYC, the walking! Keeps you in such great shape!

  6. Patricia — So glad you made it! I was hoping you would. Appreciate the shout out.

    Cheers,
    Courtney

  7. When I was a little girl I wrote to famous people and asked them for their autographs. One of my favorites was from Wheeler Williams, who did the lions you mentioned. He took the time to write me a wonderful letter. I had found him in Who's Who. Please say hello to the lions if you pass them again.

  8. ewf – that is an absolutely charming story. It could be a children's book. Thank you so much for taking the time to share it – I will appreciate them more the next time I see them.

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