My regular anxiety about moving hotels etc woke with me this morning. Added or supporting it today was the fact it's St Patrick's Day and the major parade of the year is held on Fifth Avenue and the Spring like weather has brought record crowds in to watch the 251st parade. Would I and my luggage be able to get onto a subway train, would I be able to fit onto a bus from the subway station to get to the hotel, if I decide to get a taxi will it be ridiculously expensive or even likely to find one? Ah yes the niggly worries that beset this writer.
The weather cleared early and shaped up as a sunny and clear day, perfect parade weather, apparently last year it was freezing. It's a Saturday so the parade would have many more in the viewing audience than usual. Large swathes of downtown are closed off, there are some security concerns but there is a fun atmosphere as I check out of the hotel and walk the two blocks to the 6 line going uptown to 59th. Surprisingly there are already some pretty loud youngies around who may or may not be 'fueled' (what drunks on Paddy's Day?). It's a quick walk to 5th from the subway and I garner a perfect spot at the front near 61st. This was 10.30 so we had half an hour before the parade was due to start down in the 40's so we wouldn't see any action until around 11.15. A loud, large woman pushes her way to next to me about 10.55 and copped a fair bit of 'tude from the couple on the other side of her. It was pretty obnoxious of her because people had been securing their spots early and she just barged in. Really not something to get het up about, what goes around comes around and she will be taken care of for her selfishness.
We started to see the first of the parade not long after 11.15 and it was very lively and all round a happy event. There were the Irish, the politicians, veterans, police, schools, dance troupes and what all else. The mayor passed by within feet of me. I did feel the soldiers (marines) particularly looked solemn, sad and lost, maybe parades such as this were just not their thing. The cops on the other hand were loose and having fun with the whole thing. The bands were terrific, although one of the school bands had a little trouble with the concept of formation and lines despite having a big retinue of (presumably) teachers giving them guidance...funny.
After a couple of hours, frankly I'd had my fill of uniforms, shaved heads, brass bands, flags (oh those flags, mercy), whoop whooping, 'god bless you's' etc so I moved on. Now getting away was a bit of a challenge to say the least but I worked my way up to 60th near the Apple Store (which had seen a lot of activity with the launch of the new iPad)and eventually we were let across the Avenue and I popped into Central Park and a spot near the Pond. Of all the places I'll miss in New York I think Central Park is the one I'll really miss.
I sat there for a pleasant hour, watching thousands of people pass by, take a pew, climb so,me rocks and even one fall into the pond (lord there goes his chance of a long life, heaven knows what's in that water). I read some of my book, listened in on conversations (apparently Jamie's a gross out and may have screwed Leesha at the same time he was seeing Kim) and having a quiet perv on some of the sights passing by.
On such a perfect day I gathered my now returned anxieties and headed back to the subway to catch the train back to 33rd and to pick up my bags from the hotel. They couldn't get me a cab because the wait would be too long and unreliable so I decided to walk back to Penn Station and queue there for a taxi. As I hit the street there was a line of taxis cutting through East 31st and I took the chance of seeing if one might just happen to be free. The first six weren't but suddenly a woman gets out of the one in front of me and the driver says 'want a lift?' In I get and out we go to Jamaica to the Howard Johnson. Happily it turned out to be cheaper than the ride in on day one so good all around.
A large room in a pretty basic hotel and my first King Sized bed I've ever slept in.
Anxiety has passed, shaver has died and it's my last night on U.S.soil.
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