Watching the Transformation (Hudson Yards)

A stroll a bit north and eastward on my lunch hour is more and more like watching a caterpillar turn to a butterfly. The daily construction activity is enormous and the metamorphosis is sometimes overwhelming. City blocks of crumbling concrete and barely visible underground railroads get ripped apart, dug deeper and poured with concrete as steel frameworks transform into one more enormous skyscraper climbing slowly to the sky. Its almost like a sci-fi world of the future...

Map of the area

Playground

 Yep - there's a railroad there!

If you stop and peak through the fences, vestiges of old New York can be seen...

 ...an old 2 strong hold-out from the past give away building-by-building to the new high-rises...

 Even the future Penn Station is shrouded in black as work continues on renovations and renewal...

It's crazy!!

Down by the Riverside (Again)

Another gorgeous day for February! The caboose piqued my curiosity...

"Pier 66 within Hudson River Park in New York City  includes a Lackawanna railroad barge a historic rail float bridge, an authentic 1900’s Lackawanna caboose, and the retired New York City Fire Boat, John J Harvey." Further Details >

My handy bag of pretzels ensured I make new friends :-)

A view back to the overwhelming skyscrapers....

 

Yep - under the Highline there's greenery as well :-)

 Need I say more? This area is ritzy now...

Revisiting the High Line

Back on July 11th 2016, on a beautiful warm sunny day,  I documented my visit to the High Line on my railroad-related blog.  Today was a gorgeous day -(in the 50s -- amazing for February !!) so I spent my lunch hour on a quick trek back on this wonderful park/railroad remnant.

lt's always good to see rails :-)

Powerful piece of art!
(view full screen)

Down by the Riverside....

I took a walk down to the Hudson River at lunch hour today. Despite my office being in the west side of Manhattan (the Hudson Yards area to be exact),  it surprisingly still took a long time just to get to the river's edge!

Lunch Hour

It was a crappy day--gray and super wind--but nevertheless good to explore! Around 30th Street, I finally got to the river and came across this - pretty cool!

Aha - I saw a caboose when glancing further south - "very interesting" - gotta check this out on a sunny day!

The only way to get all of these huge skyscrapers in a photo is to get far enough away - way down by the riverside!

Yep - High Winds!! See the flag? It was tough just to walk....

 Shades of yesteryear - these cement monstrosities are covered in barnacles--remnants of an old pier (probably pulled out by an enormous crane!),

 This is carved stone - its nice to see they are being saved!

 Ah yes - there's that crazy Rib Cage :-)

After Work

The walk to Grand Central takes about a half hour but it's always a treat to see Grand Central - especially at Christmastime with all the lights! :-)

Short West Side Trek

Now that I am working on the West Side - Hudson Yards area to be exact - a stroll around the neighborhood is usually dominated by massive skyscrapers...

...discovering Alice's Garden was a treat...

 ...and the occasional painting on the barriers add a colorful flavor to the rapidly transforming area.

Midtown

Lastly, up in midtown (on my way to Grand Central) I stopped by the The NYC Main Library, a.k.a. Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, and snapped a photo of the great sign detailing this blocks previous history as a reservoir!

See also:

• Great Buildings - Midtown NYC

Took a walk on the Wild (West) side

My day gig moved to midtown Manhattan -- on the west side: "Hudson Yards" area. Yikes - talk about major development (no doubt much of it due to the High Line...) These skyscrapers are huge!!

But its a nice walk from Grand Central way over to my office building about 25 minutes and the fringe benefit? 

• Two music stores on the way: Sam Asch and B&H Photos -- Ooo yeah -- I 'll be often playing synths on my lunch breaks!!