Audrey & Anna: A City Remembers, Part 2

I had a most interesting day yesterday. It was a beautiful day but I took a cab (in effort to spare my ailing foot) and one hour later I arrived at Bryant Park. Now Bryant park is right behind the Public Library on 42nd Street and 5th Ave, so really not that far from my 64th Street hotel. Because of the terror threats, Mayor Bloomberg ordered check points all over the city and especially near the bridges. You've never seen the likes of frustrated cab drivers, mine included, who idled in snarled traffic and yelled when police rerouted them to other streets. He had had only 3 trips before mine, and it was 3:00 pm. From Morocco, he was married with 4 little daughters, information I learned in my self- serving attempt to engage him in conversation and get his mind off the traffic. By the time we arrived at Bryant Park, I felt so sorry for him that I gave him triple cab fare and blew him a kiss goodbye. He gave me the biggest smile and said thank you about a hundred times.

Anyway, arriving in Bryant Park was a relief, and to see what all was going on in this unusual park was most impressive. First, you must know that this beautiful green sanctuary was at one time very off limits to anyone who wasn't either a drug dealer or a prostitute. It now is one of the most beautiful parks in Manhattan.
I went there because I had read in the Times that there was a memorial exhibit of 2,753 chairs on display, one for each victim in the 9/11 collapse of the Twin Towers. This exhibit, unlike the Oklahoma City permanent memorial, lasts only through the weekend. It was very moving, and the crowd was somber and respectful.

The chairs were positioned facing the site where the Twin Towers once stood.

To see this memorial with a blue sky above and the Empire State Building in the distance was very moving.

I lingered there in the park for an hour or so, looking at all the activities that were going on at the same time.

Cafes, hot dog stands, restaurants, and outdoor dining.

Reading room in the park. There is also a special children's reading area with tiny tables and chairs.

Ping Pong tournaments, chess and checkers tournaments....on and on ad infinitum.
They also teach everything from yoga and Tai Chi, to knitting, juggling, and fencing.

From Bryant Park, I went to the New York Times building for a commemorative exhibit of 9/11 photos. Many of the photos were Pulitzer Prize winning photos, and I show them to you now without commentary.

You can just make out a part of the airplane in this one.

On my way back to the hotel, I happened by a firehouse on Broadway. Several firemen were outside the station and I spoke briefly with one. Floral tributes and notes were clustered along an outside wall, and I heard about the baked goods and home cooked food that had been brought in from neighbors and strangers.