Welcome to ManhattanWalk 2011.
Nah, don't google it. It's not a real thing. Well, it is, but only to five of us - intrepid if inexperienced city walkers - who scaled the island of Manhattan, NYC, from South to North on an ordinary summer Saturday last month.
I have to admit from the outset, I was merely a blow-in. A very, very lucky one. I contacted friends while on a weekend trip to NYC and happened to catch them on the day they had planned (months in advance) this epic adventure with another couple, also seasoned New Yorkers. They sent me a message that said something like "hey! We'll be doing a walk around Manhattan from about 11am, you're welcome to join us" - I expected a gentle stroll around SoHo and a cup of coffee; I turned up in flip flops.
My Friends (old and new) had started about half an hour before, at Battery Park City. By the time I took the subway into town - from a decidedly sketchy part of Williamsburg - they had reached City Hall, and were already thinking about the first snack stop. At this point, despite the sensible footwear of the group and comments like "hope you're ready for lots of walking!", I had no idea what lay ahead.
It was only when we were in Chinatown, having stopped at an incredible hole-in-the-wall place for delicious asian beef jerkey and now happily tucking in to Vietnamese bbq pork sandwiches, that it became apparent that this was an undertaking not exactly suited to my flimsy flip flops - but I was more than ready to put them to the test! The initial estimate was about eight hours, depending on stops and detours, and the route North was perfectly flexible.
We set off from Chinatown and through Little Italy (esentially shrunken to a dense collection of eateries on Mulberry Street) and into Tribeca, where we were undoubtably watched from the windows of very expensive apartments by local residents Robert DeNiro, Beyonce, and Meryl Streep.
We trooped across the Avenue of the Americas, past neo-renaissance and art deco facades, glimpsing the sparkle of the Hudson river beyond 59th street. Next stop was trendy SoHo, with its designer boutiques, cobblestone side streets, and impressive cast-iron architecture. Bravely ignoring the lure of a shopping break on Broadway (that may have been just me), we continued northwest and into one of my favourite New York neighborhoods, Greenwich village.
The Village was lively as ever, with sidewalks full of café tables and people lazing over iced coffees. The early afternoon sun kept things hot and sticky as we strolled by Off-Broadway theatres and attractive brownstones, past NYU's huge campus and through the hulking Arch at Washington Square Park. The West Village still has it's unique bohemian vibe, and was even more colorful than usual, as rainbow flags, banners, and bouquets marked the gay pride celebrations happening all over the city that weekend.
My amazing buddies had worked an aerial view of the city into our route, and soon we were making our way along The Highline, an abandoned (and now beautifully redeveloped) freight train track high above street level. The tracks were originally built alongside the factories and warehouses of the Meatpacking district so milk, meat, and produce could be transported and unloaded without disturbing traffic on the streets. Now, they're part of a little bit of heaven smack in the centre of the concrete jungle, with wildflowers, grasses and rugged trees planted alongside benches and areas for art installations. We stopped for pictures of butterflies and the Chrysler building in the distance, and descended into Chelsea, where it was definitely time for a drink.
In that delicious way of the universe knowing exactly what you need, we rounded a corner to find a small makeshift market place, with one shaded farm stall selling ice-cold homemade apple and strawberry juice.
Re-hydrated and ready to go, we continued through Hell's kitchen to our next stop: a delicious fountain cool-down at peir 86 (at W 46th Street), in the shadow of the hulking aircraft carrier The USS Intrepid. As in a classic movie scene, kids (ok, and us) ran screaming and giggling through the sporadic jets of water, while boats took off for New Jersey beyond.
We could have stayed at the fountain to be entertained by confused toddlers ("wait, where did the water go?") all afternoon, but we were still less than half way to our destination, so on we continued through Lincoln Square in the Upper West Side to our next snack stop. Levain Bakery (167 West 74th Street) hit the nail on the head, with face-sized double choc-chip cookies that took at least three blocks to finish (and undoubtedly made up for all the calories we had burned so far.)
No sooner had we (ok, me) licked the last of the chocolate off the paper bag than we were in Morningside Heights, outside the hallowed, ivy league gates of Columbia University (nothing to do with the Latin American country, which is spelled differently, in case you were wondering).
Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the State of New York, and has been affiliated with more Nobel Prize laureates than any other academic institution in the world. It is also the school of 20 living billionaires and three U.S. presidents - but all I could think was that I was on the steps where that opening scene of "Hitch" was filmed!
So, having soaked up a little Hollywood - ahem, academic - history, we continued along Broadway, leaving Morningside Heights, Riverside Church and Tom's Restaurant (Seinfeld fans, you know) behind, and crossed east into the whole other world that is Spanish Harlem.
[As an aside, we bumped into b-list actress Caroline Rhea - best known as the larger aunt from Sabrina, the Teenage Witch - on her way to get her hair done, and she was super-friendly and happy to stop for photos.]
We hit Harlem as afternoon was turning into a gorgeously balmy evening, and it was almost a pity we had upped the pace because on a summer's evening, that is a neighborhood made for lazy wandering. Whenever I hear the name I hear a Carlos Santana guitar solo in my head, and the reality didn't disappoint.
'El Barrio' was full of Puerto Ricans and Dominicans lounged on stoops and street corners, waxing cars and listening to the salsa that drifted from open windows on every street.
I know it sounds like I'm glamorizing the area, which is well known for it's poverty, drug problems and drop-out rates, but on this perfect ManhattanWalk Saturday, all I can report is that we heard the music, tasted the hot, spicy empanadas, and felt perfectly safe on our journey north.
Now about two-thirds of the way to the top, and having stopped for an impromptu street concert (I managed a not-quite-perfect version of 'Let it Be' by the Beatles) on one of the many pianos left around the city (88 this summer, apparently, very few vandalised!) we veered west again to Morningside Drive, where we spotted a hawk chilling by the water near the George Washington Bridge.
Onward and upward (three-quarters of the way now, but the light is fading!) to the oasis that is Fort Tryon Park in Washington Heights, where we rested our weary feet and took in the stunning view of sunset over the Hudson. On the trek down the steps leading out of the park at dusk, I leaned against a mossy stone wall, and happened to put my hand on a small green snake (you Americans probably grew up with them, but St. Patrick deprived us of the pleasure) and saw fireflies (or glowworms) for the first time!
We made our way back to Broadway and pushed on, some hobbling by now, some still striding ahead (I was somewhere in the middle, hoping my flip flops wouldn't give up). It was dark by the time we got to Inwood, and we lost one brave walker just half an hour from the finish (though she did do an amazing job of finding a place for our celebratory dinner).
Four out of five of us used whatever energy we had left, a little over ten hours and 16.1 miles from the starting point that morning, to soldier on past Isham park (which we didn't even see in the dark) and finally, finally, up just past 9th Ave, where the Broadway Bridge connects Manhattan to Queens.
Finished!!!
Passers-by glanced dubiously as we did little whoops and jumps of joy, taking photos and calculating how far we had come. Eventually, we headed back to our compatriot and took our seats at Papasito, a buzzing Mexican bar and grill, where we tucked into fresh ceviche, crab cakes and tacos. When our waiter heard of our expedition he couldn't believe it, told the manager, and suddenly it was free tequila shots all round!
So that was it. The subway home seemed to take forever, but the quiet excitement of our amazing day buoyed us until we reached cool showers and soft beds back in Midtown. (My flip flops held up admirably until I was leaving the next morning!)
I have to say a huge thank you to Charles, Liz, Tomi and Jacob for letting me tag along on that truly unforgettable day, and for all the little gems of NYC wisdom along the way. See you all for ManhatttanWalk 2012! (or a winter edition, who knows?!)
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