Hillary Davis Travels's Blog

Central Park Stroll

Wow, what a sunny weekend in NYC! Everyone was out and about. Here are a few shots of a stroll I took through Central Park. Come with me!

    Hills were covered with bikini clad sun worshippers. Picnics were spread out under trees. I turned a corner near the Metropolitan Museum of Art and sat down on a bench to listen to great jazz.

    But you don't have to go in the museum to see art, there's tons of historic and innovative art throughout the park....this cat sits on a bluff above the running lane....waiting for runners to pass by and ambush them....(just kidding...!)

    The boat house was packed...............

.........brunchers were enjoying their meal with an excellent open air view of the rowers on the pond....

...the bar was humming. And the outside bar was filled to the gills with people celebrating summer.

..........just steps away, this was the line waiting to rent a row boat to go out on the pond...

.....there are so many beautiful corners of Central Park....this fountain being one of them.

..........and did you know there is a very lovey croquet court in the park??

...in fact, in many ways, Central Park is on the up and up. There's even a Pain Quotedienne instead of the former, not so great, snack shacks that used to dot the park. This is seriously good news.

...........it seems to me that Central Park is the perfect place to be on a perfect sunny day. Good food. Clean, well-groomed landscape. Art. Music. And others who also are in the mood to celebrate, in a laid back way, the return of summer in the city.

 

 

Madison Avenue Stroll, Part 2.

...and made a note that I want to come back and see this exhibit at Gagosian before I leave.....

...that's what's great about window shopping. You don't have to want to wear the clothes you see, you can just glance at them and keep walking...

...HOWEVER,  I would definitely, definitely, definitely wear this little Carolina Herrera number! Sleek, and I am a bona fide dog lover....hence...

....from whimsy to a very serious building: The Whitney Museum. 

....to a book store with my kind of book. Too bad it was closed. Have to go back!

...ladies and gentlemen. On the right, a Ralph Lauren store (whole building)...

....and just across the street, another Ralph Lauren store (building)....

....and a Ralph Lauren window. Most of the windows on Madison Avenue featured white or cream fashion....

....and a white Astin Martin across the street from Bond Street's Asprey.......

...if you want to fit in all the skinny clothes in the windows, don't stop here. Laduree for macarons. Heavenly. Just heavenly. Oh, maybe just one!!!!

...of all the fashion, the shoes along Madison Avenue were the most interesting.....

.....along with this....

.............while Nello's still draws the famous and infamous on mid-town Madison Avenue, I sort of like this little place....Bar Italia...........laid back and pretty....

....walk another block, and on your left you will see Hermes...........

...and across the street, the famous Nello. You go here for the crowd, for the ambiance, and for the lovely big flower arrangements. One night I sat here next to a very famous hedge fund manager and his wife, and the noise was so loud we couldn't hear each other comment on each other's plates. Polite smiles all around. (the end of the story: it was 8:30 and I heard him say, "We have to get going and get to bed, early day tomorrow).

....and now for some men's fashion.....

 

....Todd's boating shoes?!

....Barney's Department Store....minimalist.......

..............dripping in jewels at Chopard....

.....so I leave you with the last window I saw. Two shoes. Sort of says it all. If you visit NYC and stroll along Madison Avenue, it is always different. This was all shot on one day. But what is constant is that it is a small town street in a big city. Something many of us treasure. It is hollywood. Fantasy. Another world. For window shopping, it is superb!

 

 

Madison Avenue Stroll, Part 1

    While mid-town Madison Avenue is impressive and international, the upper reaches of Madison Avenue feel like a small town. Side streets are tree lined. Town houses have planters overflowing with flowers and vines. Stores are small, and antique shops, boutiques and art galleries abound.

    Come take a walk with me and let's look at all the shops together. Later, I will post a second stroll that takes you to mid-town.

    I started around 94th street and began to walk downtown....

    

    Rather than big book chains, a couple of independent bookstores have survived with a very loyal local clientelle. 

    This knitting store looked very tempting, but I have bags full of beautiful yarns waiting for me to transform them into something, so I bypassed this temptation and kept walking!

    Despite only being mid-June, summer sales are in full swing. 

 

    Bistro du Nord was ready for guests...........

.....and looked like it had an interesting menu for the evening.....

...........this lavender was so fragrant as I walked by...........

......shoe window shopping. From casual flats to space age stilletos!

    I stopped into Dean & Deluca, an upscale food market, to take a look around.....

...and ended up with roll mops and some peaches for later. 

....back on the street, more window shopping.

.....loved this window of an art gallery.

......not sure how I felt about these shoes!

.....EAT Cafe, always busy.....

    I stopped into L'Occitane....from the south of France where I lived for so many years. They make a wonderful Shea Hand Cream............

    And I ended up at my hang out, my favorite restaurant in the city. I stood at the bar. I had a tiny sandwich and an expresso. I feel so at home here, either dropping in for one of the gelatos they import from Milan, or for a wine, or for lunch, or for a late afternoon snack. Great ambiance. The family is from Milan and have had this restaurant in this location for years. You have to try it!

    Soon I will post Part 2. Stay tuned!