The past weeks have been unusually warm in the Northeast, so spring flowers have appeared in extremely quick succession in New York City’s parks and public spaces.  We have enjoyed a range of glorious colors from the sunny yellow of forsythia and daffodils in early March, to the riot of white, pink, fuchsia, and lilac on the cherry and crab apple trees in April, accompanied by all the shades of green on the budding trees.

Enjoy the slide show of New York City flowers and blossoms, and then book a tour to see them in person!

Rockefeller Center, constructed between 1931 and 1940 is one of the most recognizable landmarks in New York City.  The businessman an philanthropist. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. assmbled a professional group that included the architect and designer Raymond Hood, the real estate specialist John Todd and his associates Andrew Reinhard and Henry Hofmeister.  The urban designer Harvey Corbett and his partner Wallace Harrison completed the team.

Rockefeller Center consists of 21 buildings, the first date from between 1931 and 1940, others were added to the complex in successive building phases.  The GE Building (30 Rockefeller Plaza) is at the center of the original complex.  Its attenuated form with long veritcal lines are characteristic of the Art Deco period, and was in part due to the architect and Rockefeller’s wishes that as much natural light as possible entered the building.  The long vertical sections are accentuated by stacks of narrow windows, one over the other.  It  is approached from 5^th Avenue walking past the “Channel Gardens” between the Maison Française and the British Empire Buildings, dedicated in memory of Dr. Hosack, the owner of the Elgin Botanical Gardens.  A private road, Rockfeller Plaza runs north-south and connects another group of buildings. All of the spaces were carefully designed so as not to overwhelm the visitor.  The buildings are steel core faced in Indiana limestone, and setbacks are used to create open spaces and to subtly articulate the buildings. Once again verticality is emphasized.  The lower buildings had roof gardens to provide private areas for rest and relaxation within the office complex, as well as giving those on higher floors a pleasant view.

The Center is also filled with large public works of art, including scuplture, murals, and painted reliefs, all focused on the theme “New Frontiers.” These include Paul Manship’s, Prometheus Bringing Fire to Mankind, 1934, a gilded bronze scuplture that seems to float above the famous skating rink; and reliefs by Lee Lawrie expressing the idea that wisdom and knowledge of the universe will bring security and fulfillment.  The interior the GE Building has murals by José Maria Sert of man’s search for immortality through his conquest of space and time covering the walls of the main lobby.

While the Halal Brothers on 53rd Street are perhaps the most famous, my favorite is the unassuming Kwik Meal cart located on the south-western corner of 6th Avenue and 45th Street.  Owned by Bangladesh-born Mohammed Rahman, a former chef at the Russian Tea Room, hungry office workers and tourists in Midtown can enjoy tender chicken or lamb over rice or in a pita.  You can also try the falafel, and on some days there is fresh fish.  I usually stick to the lamb pita, and I like to ask for the special green sauce for a spicy kick.  My children love to get hot dogs at Kwik Meal, because they are cooked in butter on the flat top, and the buns are buttered and grilled too!

The midtown street carts are always a good bet for tasty and inexpensive food, so don’t be afraid to try them.  If there’s a line, then it is usually worth the wait.  While I am partial to Kwik Meal, you should also try the Halal Brothers on 53rd Street and the Biryani Cart on 6th and 46th.  The Halal Brothers can be mobbed, especially at night when cabbies and others line up for late suppers, but I’ve usually had good luck with the Biryani Cart.  Their chicken biryani is wonderful and filling!

Buon appetito!

Useful tips – the Apple Store is open 24/7.  Many people go there to browse and to play with the latest Apple products; some even use the store computers to check their Facebook pages!  (Just don’t forget to sign out.)  Public restrooms and seating can be found in the public atrium of the Trump Tower on the corner of 56th Street.  The restrooms are hidden on the lower level, but they are clean and usually are not too crowded.

First-time visitors to New York City are often overwhelmed when they find themselves surrounded by the hustle and bustle of one of the most famous cities in the world.  Visitors can use guide books and maps to orient themselves, and there is plenty of information available — right here on this website too!  However, the best way to get to know the city is with a professional, licensed guide.  My New York City Tours has a wonderful New York City highlights tour designed for the first-time visitor to the Big Apple.

Your tour will start in Midtown Manhattan with a visit to Rockefeller Center and Times Square, then a short subway or taxi ride to SoHo to admire cast iron architecture, and to visit boutiques and eateries.  After lunch in SoHo we continue to Wall Street, and a visit to the area around the 9/11 Memorial.  The tour concludes in Battery Park, with a view of the Statue of Liberty and a FREE ride on the Staten Island Ferry.  The hardy visitor can continue back uptown, with a stroll in Central Park.  This tour is a great way to see some of the main attractions as well as some intriguing details of the city - all in one day!

When you contact My New York City Tours, we can also find transportation services to facilitate your tour, from a private car to a small bus or van. Otherwise you can try out the New York City subway system or fleet of yellow cabs.

In 1869, the railroad tycoon Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt had consolidated his train lines at 4th Ave. (Park Ave.) and 42nd Street at the Grand Central Depot.  It was replaced with the current Grand Central Terminal (often called Grand Central Station) (1903-1913) designed by the architectural firms of Reed and Stem and Warren and Wentmore.  The slow pace of the contruction is easy to understand when one considers that the trains continued to travel, and by 1906 to over 600 trains were entering and exiting the station per day.

The main façade of the Terminal is a magnificent Beaux-Arts triumphal arch – the Beaux Arts style refers to the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris where many nineteenth and early twentieth architects were trained in the grand manner of European style architecture.  This styple emphasizes rationality of plan, immense size, and grandiose decoration. The “triumphal arch” of Grand Central greets the visitor arriving from the south, from the north the view is today completely covered by the Grand Central Office building, now the Helmsley, built in 1928, and by the Met Life building, built in 1963.  The elevation of Park Avenue around the Terminal allows traffic to flow smoothly through the city, while isolating the main building even more from its surroundings. In spite of the great changes that have occurred nearby, the Terminal remains magnificently centered on its platform on 42nd Street.

The interior was designed to make a strong impact on travelers with its vast height and space, yet this impact was tempered by the slow arrival of passengers from one area to another. The carefully graded system of marble-lined ramps and corridors, lined with amenities such as shops, restaurants, and art galleries, allowed the weary traveler to slowly make the transition to the outside world, to waiting taxis and the comfort of two luxurious hotels nearby.

The main façade is dominated by the large arched windows, and the sculptural group of Mercury (Commerce), Hercules (Physical Energy) and Minerva (Intellectual Energy). The plaster decoration and the constellations on the inside enliven the great interior space which was modeled after ancient Roman baths. The building itself is a steel frame sheathed in granite and limestone, with marble, travertine and painted plaster surfaces on the interior. A totally new scale of electric lighting had to be invented for the interior of the Terminal, as well as for the elaborate system of electric signaling. Elevators were used to move passengers, and pneumatic tubes were used for tickets and baggage.  Decorative details in polished brass and gilt bronze delight the eye throughout the Terminal, including oak leaves and acorns from the Vanderbilt coat of arms.  The ceiling is also decorated with the Vanderbilt coat of arms on the curved pendentives above the lunette windows on the long sides of the terminal.  The plaster vault is painted blue, and gold constellations were added by the French artist Paul Helleu, with the brightest stars picked out in small electric lights.

Over the years many proposals have been made that would radically modify or even completely obscure the Terminal. Fortunately the only eyesore constructed has been the Pan Am building, and others have been blocked from adding office towers and even bowling alleys on top of the magnificent Beaux Arts structure. Grand Central was declared a Landmark by the then-newly created Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1965.

Vimeo video: Mindrelic – NYC Timelapse

New York City is home to many of the world’s greatest museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the Guggenheim Museum, the American Museum of Natural History, the Whitney Museum, the Frick Collection, and many, many others.

With My New York City Tours you can select the museum or museums that interest you the most for a customized tour of special exhibitions, permanent collections, or for a family-oriented treasure hunt.

Head over to the “Tours” page and select the “Made-to-Measure-Museums” to reserve your place today!