19 Months and counting: still so much to explore

We’ve just passed the 19^th month mark after moving away from a 35-year-life spent in Gainesville, Fla., to an urban existence in New York City. We’re sure there are more than a handful of family and friends who expected we’d be back in Gainesville by now, but those people didn’t appreciate the depth of the love we feel for this amazing city – and for the urban lifestyle.

Most people who visit NYC see the city through a certain lens: Times Square and Broadway, Rockefeller Center and the stores along Fifth Avenue, the Empire State Building, and the Statue of Liberty. While these NYC institutions are certainly the city’s lifeblood and we’d never criticize those who visit these parts of the city, New York City’s charm is actually defined by the smaller neighborhoods that dot the metropolitan area. Those friends of ours who have been able to visit have been introduced to a NYC different than what they might have seen before. Kind of like if you visit Gainesville there’s a lot more to the city than The Swamp (football stadium) or Butler Plaza.

What do I mean? 

I mean a trek through Central Park – although not necessarily the John Lennon Memorial area or the skating rink or the Central Park Zoo. Head further north and you’ll find the Central Park Bramble and Lake, a wild, natural garden and lake far away from the horse-drawn carriages and $3-7 a-minute pedicabs rides. Or the 1.66 mile trek around the Reservoir.  Or the Conservatory Water at E. 74^th Street, an ornamental pond where model boat owners run their vessels across the shimmering waters in the spring and summer.

I mean a walk along the Hudson River – starting anywhere in the W. 110s all the way down to Battery Park. There are wonderful paths along Riverside Park that offer beautiful views – and if you want, you can grab a glass of wine at Pier I; catch a ride on the North River Lobster Company’s “Floating Lobster Shack;” tour the Intrepid Sea, Air, Space Museum; or take a 3-hour Circle Line tour around the entire Manhattan Island where you learn about Spuyten Duyvil Creek - which is a short tidal estuary connecting the Hudson River to the Harlem River Ship Canal - and view the boroughs from the water and the bridges that connect them. Yes, these places still attract out-of-towners, but they are a little different from the usual fare.

And let’s not even get into the other areas of the city? Brooklyn – great little neighborhoods and Coney Island. Queens, with its wonderful Asian cuisine that we have yet to explore, and Harlem – where we’ve just scratched the surface of this iconic community.

The wonderful thing about moving somewhere new – no matter your age – is the chance to visit the nooks and crannies around your new home.  We’re still finding all the ones around us – whether it’s the week we spent in the Catskills last summer or the upcoming visit we have planned for Philadelphia. Cause let’s face it – Philadelphia is to New York City as Gainesville is to Orlando, or Hartford, Ky. to the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Just a hop and a skip down the road – and a whole 'nother world to visit!!