All This Is That: NYC, Day One

By Jack Brummet

After a five hour and five minute red-eye flight on Jet Blue, Keelin and I landed at JFK at 6:05 AM. We hopped on a bus that took us to the Howard Beach subway station, where we got on the A train (the train we rode to school and work every day when we lived in Brooklyn), switched at Columbus Circle for the No. 1 train (which was our train when we lived on the Upper West Side), and got off at 79th for our hotel--The Belleclaire, on the corner of Broadway and 77th Street. It was too early to check in, so we went out for breakfast to Barney Greengrass "The sturgeon king" which is just up the street from our old apartment at 158 W. 84th Street (between Amsterdam and Columbus). We always liked eating there when we lived here, but usually couldn't afford it. I had scrambled eggs, an amazing plate of Nova Scotia salmon, a bialy, and Barney's usual lame coffee. No one makes better nova, lox, sturgeon, herring, etc. than Barney. Anyhow, the nova at Barney's is transcendent, if you like nova (very slowly code smoked salmon, with a very subtle smoke...not as dense or smoky or salty as lox).

Since we couldn't check in to our hotel in noon, we decided to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There was a Franz Hals show we wanted to see, as well as a survey of historical Indian (the Asian Indians) painters. And I always like to see their modern collection (The Klines, Warhols, Pollocks, Rothkos, etc.). Before I completely collapsed (I only slept two hours on the 'plane), I also went through the Roman and Greek marble galleries--always one of my favorites. Usually, I also like to go through the Egyptian galleries too, which I may have to do this weekend. But then there is the Modern, the Whitney, and The Frick, and The Guggenheim to consider.

More tomorrow (will try to visit the Occupy Wall Street protest/uprising).