Adventures in Subway Riding

Thoughts of the gloriously bright sun overhead and springs unfolding of the cities flowers were enchanting. We were quite caught up in this dream, and visions of ourselves relaxing beneath the shade and watching the sun bounce off the water were part of what convinced us to head our for a walk, that and the inner guilt I so often feel after stuffing myself righteously the night before on pork dumplings.

Our path was to battery park city, rumored to be a different kind of city within a city although the clutter of babies and dogs each group had in tow made it feel like a more expensive version of the upper west side upon arrival. The streets were clean and the river views were spectacular. In place of bees and insects the park was swarming with people. There were people exercising and people kissing and many more people like myself, taking pictures and generally finding a way to disturb the paths of everyone else as we stared through the viewfinder.

The views of new jersey were quite similar to the views from new jersey, and if one is inclined to enjoy the sight of many tall buildings rising into the air togethor through the smoky haze of pollution then this is the place for you. Personally I was there to see the first signs of spring and experience another peice of this crazy city. Battery Park City for its part was pretty much everything I had previously heard. Sunlight careened off the windows of buildings stretching into the sky, with the cookie cutter shops on the ground levels that one can find in your average mall. I liked it, but it didn't quite feel like Manhattan to me. While Starbucks are everywhere in the city, I have grown quite fond of the striking contrast between corporate shops and the corner deli, independent restaurant and maze of clothing stores that seem to be everywhere else I walk.

We took in the sights and and snapped pictures up and down the promenade, slowly making our way towards the staten island ferry and the long winding lines of visitors waiting for statue of liberty tickets. The whole walk was enjoyable and stress free, stopping once to pick up sandwhiches which we ate in view of giant tour sail boats sloping their way up the hudson.

Of course setting out to enjoy the city on a long walk assumes you are competent enough to actually get to the the starting point, a test we came up quite short on. The 2 train which normally runs express but often runs local on weekends had been switched to the 5 although using the same track, and wasnt running below 14th street. The N and R lines were also rerouted across the Manhattan Bridge and skipping many stops, naturally including our ultimate destination. If that line of reasoning was too confusing to follow then you have experienced my exact emotion upon realizing our train was heading over the bridge and into Brooklyn, despite reassurances from the electronic map detailing the upcoming stops that contradicted this.

After a few mumbled curses towards the conductor who speaks too quietly to hear above the buzz of conversation filling most busy subway lines, we found a map and plotted an escape back to our island. The contradicting calmness of the river was a welcome sight once we finally arrived.