NYC and beyond

Last weekend I trekked to New York City for the long weekend (thank you Presidents). It was an interesting couple days and seeing New York again for the first time in many years good to gain a little more current perspective on the place. My first impression upon arriving was that I don't want to live there. The sheer weight of human impact on the land is almost palpable (I was in Manhattan). And in between all the very tall buildings, there was very little open, green space. Not exactly my idea of home. Plus it felt dirty, which I suppose goes hand in hand with the high population density. This is not to say I didn't enjoy the place. Dinner the first night at Ilili was delicious. The Frick Collection was also really enjoyable, you can even tour it yourself with Google's fun tool Art Project, which let's you virtually walk through several museums around the world. Very cool. Probably not the same feel as actually being there though. Part of what I found so appealing about the Frick was that it used to be a private home, which limited the size and made it feel more approachable to me. I've been to some of the largest and best-known museums in the world and I often leave them feeling exhausted and a little disappointed. There's just no possible way to see everything, and usually I don't have the luxury of returning multiple times to these places so prioritizing exhibits is key. I felt pretty good about seeing everything there was at the Frick. I could probably spent several more hours there, but I also have the fortune of not being an art historian, critic or painter myself. So for me good art is something that is visually stunning and I don't need to deconstruct it to enjoy the experience.
My trip to NYC also involved a trip to Katz's Deli, which was apparently a defining moment in my life. I guess that's true, because as a vegetarian I can definitively now say that I don't need to return. If I ate meat I would probably have found the experience much more engaging, since they cut the meat for your sandwich right there in front of you. Now, is that worth the line to get inside and then the line to get to the counter to order once you are inside? I'm not sure. It was great people-watching though, and in that respect if reminded me very much of the Minnesota State Fair.
The 6th annual Coffee and Tea Festival NYC coincided with my visit. I swear this was a coincidence and nothing more. Naturally, we had to go. And I have to say, maybe we missed the good coffee by going on Sunday rather than Saturday, but I was a little disappointed at the lack of coffee samples available. That being said, there was a wide selection of pretty incredible teas so it wasn't a total bust.