Uncategorized

Marco, Roger and I visited the Polonsky exhibition at the New York Public Library while we were visiting. Here’s the blurb on the free exhibition:

“For more than 125 years, The New York Public Library has collected, preserved, and made accessible the world’s knowledge. Now, for the first time, the Polonsky Exhibition of The New York Public Library’s Treasures showcases some of the most extraordinary items from the 56 million in our collections, inspiring and empowering visitors to discover, learn, and create new knowledge—today and in the years ahead.

The treasures in this exhibition tell the stories of people, places, and moments spanning 4,000 years—from the emergence of the written word through to the present day. Visitors will encounter manuscripts, artworks, letters, still and moving images, recordings, and more that bring vividly to life voices of the past.”

And you know what the coolest thing was that we saw?

The stuffed animals that were given to Christopher Robin Milne which became the inspiration for Winnie the Pooh and friends. He received the stuffed teddy bear (inspiration for Winnie the Pooh) on his first birthday. The other stuffed animals on display which Christopher received were inspiration for Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga, Tigger and Roo. His father wrote the stories in Christopher’s childhood.

The exhibition link above lets you explore collection highlights digitally if you can’t visit in person. For example, here are some pages:

• Winnie the Pooh and friends
• Lock of Beethoven’s hair
• Thomas Jefferson’s handwritten copy of the Declaration of Independence

While we were in New York City last week we spotted a Netherlands themed Funko pop:

Full of Dutch stereotypes, of course. A milk maid holding a tulip, wearing clogs. It was actually a New York Comic Con exclusive, part of the “It’s a small world” collection. The store we spotted it at was Toy Tokyo on 5th and 2nd avenue.

I find it amusing that it is caught in between Cowboy McNugget and Thanos.

Marco, Roger and I just returned from a trip to New York City. This was our first trip as tourists since 2019. (I figure a trip to see my parents in Indy last year doesn’t count as we weren’t really tourists then.)

One of the places we visited was Central Park. This time we took the subway up to the northernmost point, 110th street, and walked all the way back down to 59th street. And then some, since we also walked around the reservoir a bit and took detours. I think my Apple Watch said I had 25,000 steps…

Here are some of my photos from that day:

This is from the Conservatory Garden near the top of Central Park. The fountain is called the Untermyer Fountain; it features a bronze cast of Three Dancing Maidens. It was donated to Central Park and dedicated in 1947.

One of the first things you see when you enter the park from the north is Harlem Meer. And yes, that name reflects the Dutch nature of the surrounding area: this land was once part of the Dutch Village Harlem (Harlem being the English spelling; there is also a large city called Haarlem not far from Amsterdam).

This part of Central Park (above) is called Fort Clinton. The fortification was built in 1782 by the British. This area is on a large hill and has perfect views of the surrounding area, both of which are important for military operations. One interesting fact about this cannon is that is was not actually fired from this location. The cannon actually came from a British revolutionary ship which ran aground in the East River in 1780.

Central Park also has a very large reservoir, named after Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. The path around the water is just over a mile and a half, so it used by a lot of walkers and runners. And as you can see, it offers gorgeous views of the New York City skyline. It is also a popular spot for bird watchers and features beautiful cherry trees in the springtime.

Finally, here is a view from the base of Belvedere Castle (who knew: Belvedere means “beautiful view” in Italian). It is a miniature castle on top of a rock outcrop known as Vista Rock. Check the link for views of the castle itself.

All in all – a very relaxing visit to Central Park!