New York City ’06

Walking is healthful. The professional health nags remind us of that, and I believe it, but that isn’t why I walk. I walk because of what unfolds in front of me.

I just returned from three and a half days in New York City. Part of the visit involved attending a conference, and that didn’t involve walking – with one exception, more about which later. At other times I met editors I know, and that didn’t involved walking either, but it usually did mean good food and one time, wine. I spent the rest of the trip on foot as much as possible, because there are few places in the world so great for pedestrians as New York. My feet ached a little every night before bed, and I got blisters and re-enforced some calluses.

A small price to pay. I enjoyed the contours of Central Park on a Sunday morning even as strong winds knocked branches down nearby. A lot of other people were out and about, but the park could hold them all as they took pictures of each other next to bronzes of heroes and fictional characters, walked their dogs, and consulted maps. I wandered the labyrinthine Met until I could absorb no more intricate paintings, appreciate amazing sculptures or even admire (discreetly) the steady stream of well-dressed female museum-goers.

After yet more walking, I reached a point in Flushing Meadow Park at which you can touch the base of a 12-story steel globe, once the marvel of millions, now lording over a trickle of curiosity-seekers and skateboarders. I heard the wind whip more, plus the excitement of a crowd at a soccer game in the distance. I saw two tall rockets and walked past them, close enough to have been killed if they had been loaded with fuel and suddenly launched. Later, I beat a familiar path to a famed retailer, then a masterpiece of a church, then the vicinity of a major university and a street of businesses that depend on the whims of youth. Even then I wasn’t quite done, since I had to walk down a dark street of an unfamiliar neighborhood a world away from my experience. Luckily, I had a good guide at that point, my nephew.

That was just the first day.