It has been a very exciting week here in the Big Apple. The weather was gorgeous all week, and there has been a lot going on.
First, the Pope came to town. Pope Benedict actually cruised right through our neighborhood on Friday. He spoke at the Park East Synagogue, which is just a few blocks away, and he stayed the night on 72nd Street, which is even closer. We never actually saw him, but we did find our way through the maze of barricades, police officers, and nuns.
Second, I (Erik) was introduced to the game of Petanque. (French word, sounds like Petonk.) It's basically the French version of Bocce, which is the Italian version of horseshoes-using-round-objects. My first introduction to the game came on Tuesday afternoon, when I took my lunch to Bryant Park, just a few blocks from my office. My mealtime entertainment was provided by some very serious old men playing Petanque (though I thought it was Bocce at the time). As entertaining as it was to watch, it just so happens that some of the other associates with whom I work play Petanque (not Bocce) after work on a fairly regular basis. So, Thursday evening, I went back to Bryant Park with several colleagues and we played Petanque for about 90 minutes, while all the tourists stopped and took pictures of us.
For the record, I have no idea what the real difference is between Petanque and Bocce, but people who play either one seriously are horrified if you confuse the two. Must be some lingering French-Italian tension. Wonder where that came from.
Third, and most importantly, we had our first New York pizza delivered on Thursday night. We ordered an 18-inch sausage, pepperoni, and mushroom from Giorgio's Pizza, which is about a block from the apartment. (Yes, we recognize how stupid it is to have food delivered from a restaurant that we can see from our window. . .) Either way, the pizza was phenomenal, and we had enough for two dinners!
It's hard to imagine that the week could have been any better, what with the Pope, Petanque, and Pizza, but we actually topped it off on Friday evening by going to a concert. We went and saw an indie rock band we had never heard of (Tapes 'n Tapes) at The Fillmore NY (formerly Irving Plaza). The venue has a long and interesting history dating back to 1911, when four brownstones were converted into a performance space. In the hundred years since, it has been a cabaret, a boxing ring, an off-broadway stage, and a concert venue. It has featured musical acts ranging from Woody Guthrie and Muddy Waters in 1947 to every rock band I have ever heard of in the 1990's and 2000's.
At the concert, we actually made some friends (two Swedish girls and a guy from Brooklyn), who we hung out with through the concert. The concert was very good, though our long-term hearing may have suffered a bit. The only real downside of the concert was the exceptionally large (265 lbs, approx., linebacker-build), extremely drunk guy in front of us who was not so much dancing as he was flailing about uncrontrollably, tossing his ragdoll girlfriend around like a puppet. His stumbling departure halfway through the concert was applauded by everyone around us. On the way out of the concert, everyone was given a giftcard for 20 free downloads on iTunes, so that darn near paid for our tickets.
We've got plans tonight with some friends from Duke, and we are still deciding which excursion we want to take tomorrow. We should have another post up soon!
With love,
Katy and Erik
First, the Pope came to town. Pope Benedict actually cruised right through our neighborhood on Friday. He spoke at the Park East Synagogue, which is just a few blocks away, and he stayed the night on 72nd Street, which is even closer. We never actually saw him, but we did find our way through the maze of barricades, police officers, and nuns.
Second, I (Erik) was introduced to the game of Petanque. (French word, sounds like Petonk.) It's basically the French version of Bocce, which is the Italian version of horseshoes-using-round-objects. My first introduction to the game came on Tuesday afternoon, when I took my lunch to Bryant Park, just a few blocks from my office. My mealtime entertainment was provided by some very serious old men playing Petanque (though I thought it was Bocce at the time). As entertaining as it was to watch, it just so happens that some of the other associates with whom I work play Petanque (not Bocce) after work on a fairly regular basis. So, Thursday evening, I went back to Bryant Park with several colleagues and we played Petanque for about 90 minutes, while all the tourists stopped and took pictures of us.
For the record, I have no idea what the real difference is between Petanque and Bocce, but people who play either one seriously are horrified if you confuse the two. Must be some lingering French-Italian tension. Wonder where that came from.
Third, and most importantly, we had our first New York pizza delivered on Thursday night. We ordered an 18-inch sausage, pepperoni, and mushroom from Giorgio's Pizza, which is about a block from the apartment. (Yes, we recognize how stupid it is to have food delivered from a restaurant that we can see from our window. . .) Either way, the pizza was phenomenal, and we had enough for two dinners!
It's hard to imagine that the week could have been any better, what with the Pope, Petanque, and Pizza, but we actually topped it off on Friday evening by going to a concert. We went and saw an indie rock band we had never heard of (Tapes 'n Tapes) at The Fillmore NY (formerly Irving Plaza). The venue has a long and interesting history dating back to 1911, when four brownstones were converted into a performance space. In the hundred years since, it has been a cabaret, a boxing ring, an off-broadway stage, and a concert venue. It has featured musical acts ranging from Woody Guthrie and Muddy Waters in 1947 to every rock band I have ever heard of in the 1990's and 2000's.
At the concert, we actually made some friends (two Swedish girls and a guy from Brooklyn), who we hung out with through the concert. The concert was very good, though our long-term hearing may have suffered a bit. The only real downside of the concert was the exceptionally large (265 lbs, approx., linebacker-build), extremely drunk guy in front of us who was not so much dancing as he was flailing about uncrontrollably, tossing his ragdoll girlfriend around like a puppet. His stumbling departure halfway through the concert was applauded by everyone around us. On the way out of the concert, everyone was given a giftcard for 20 free downloads on iTunes, so that darn near paid for our tickets.
We've got plans tonight with some friends from Duke, and we are still deciding which excursion we want to take tomorrow. We should have another post up soon!
With love,
Katy and Erik
3 comments:
Dominos delivers, play ball, rock on and amen!
The Pope spoke at a synagogue? What am I missing here? Has there been a corporate consolidation in religion - cutting out overhead etc etc?
Dad and Cee Cee
Sorry guys, I've been in Vietnam and am only now catching up on (and living vicariously through) your NYC adventures. What's crazy is that I have recently had a conversation about petanque, and really, I thought "who in the world plays this crazy game, let alone KNOWS about it?" doesn't surprise me, simpson, doesn't surprise me.
-huong
Post a Comment