Weekend explorations: Meatpacking district, NY

14th Street and 9th Avenue, New York: I wonder if Michelangelo would approve? 

("Celeb" sighting: Not long after I took this photo, veteran New York Times style photographer, Bill Cunningham, biked past...he is 83 and still fearlessly bikes NY streets, looking for his next shot! I was too starstruck to take a photo. Cunningham was the subject of a touching movie -- a portrait of an artist, a passing era, and unexpected beauty.)

At the antiques shop

Just a small homage to the London Olympics, from this side of the pond. Happy Friday!

Mystery bloom

Fiery colors for a scorching summer.

Fragility

Tiger swallowtail. Fragile butterfly's wings, clipped yet flying free.

Where childhood reigns

"Times past, way off in China, in the city of all cities,
there was a good-for-nothing fellow called Aladdin."

Cotsen Children's Library. Children and adults alike enjoy this space, stocked with rare children's literature (medieval manuscripts, early Brothers Grimm editions, Beatrix Potter writings). The books are too rare to circulate, but can be consulted in a special reading room.

Weekend moments: Manhattan "ballroom"

Bethesda Arcade, Central Park. New York is more than just urban sprawl - after all, its metropolitan area covers bucolic Princeton! This arcade is one of Manhattan's loveliest spaces, it's like a public ballroom. The 1869 ceiling tiles were made by an English company and restored in 2007.

Tiger hunting on Princeton campus

Not sure if this is the male or female

These male and female tigers appeared in 1969, when Princeton first admitted women. (About time!:) A big film crew has been in the area - perhaps this pair will show up in an upcoming movie?  

Sunbathing

Princeton Battlefield. Serenity belying its past. The fenced new Mercer Oak, grown from the original, marks where Revolutionary hero, General Mercer, lay before dying.
***
(Lasting legacy: Mercer's descendants include WWII general George Patton and lyricist Johnny Mercer, who penned words for such popular songs as "Moon River," immortalized by Audrey Hepburn).

The little movie house

Princeton's movie house opened in 1920 with a silent movie and live orchestra. It feels intimate, despite renovations. Oh, the movies and people that passed through - laughing, crying, with friends or dates - since the dawn of cinema.  (P.S. I very much enjoyed funny, bittersweet Moonrise Kingdom).

The wedding party

'Tis the (wedding) season! This party literally stopped traffic on Nassau Street, Princeton's main thoroughfare which follows an old Lenape Indian trail. I spy wedding photographers hard at work.

Weekend moments: Shining star

Koch Theater for ballet, Lincoln Center, New York

Koch theater lobby

Paris Opera Ballet and étoile Aurélie Dupont

 The plan Sunday was to work, but New York proved irresistible. The Paris Opera Ballet and its shining étoile, Aurélie Dupont, was dancing at Lincoln Center -- a star hub in the New York performing arts scene. Lincoln Center's Koch Theater, above, was built especially for ballet.

(Sadly, photography was not allowed during performance, though I tried a too-far shot of Aurélie Dupont after her stunning star turn in Boléro. A small taste of that dance, with another prima ballerina, is here.)

Branching out

College Road: Recently trimmed hedges reveal their delicate patterns, like capillaries or fan coral.

Princeton by night

Except for the background, this dim-lit scene probably hasn't changed much since London was capital of America.  (This building still retains 1700s cannonball damage).  

STOP and smell the flowers

This seemed to say! Took a different path home and chanced on this fun juxtaposition (perhaps the universe is trying to tell me something).

Summer camp

Rehearsing Mozart's Requiem, Music Camp, Princeton University Chapel. No tents or campfires here! Each summer, kids (aged 12-18) descend on campus for arts, sports and other camps.

These campers sounded pretty great (a Requiem clip - apologies for my handheld pocket camera!)...

Beat the heat

Oppressive storm clouds and heat, Delaware River. People and pups dip their toes in this favorite local spot, just a 20-30 minute drive away. A heatwave broke records over the weekend.

***

 (Not far from here, George Washington famously crossed the Delaware River on Christmas 1776 to defeat Hessian troops during the Revolution).

Signs of summer

Hydrangeas are everywhere, like colorful clouds.

Holiday spirit: Red, white and blue

Greene St. vintage shop: Celebrating the July 4th holiday in style (thanks to this young man for posing)!

Happy July 4th!

Festive fireworks above Alexander Road treeline. July 4th's Independence Day marks the American declaration of independence from Great Britain. (In our part-British, part-American household, we call it even).

The library

Reading patio...

...and polyglot collection, Princeton Public Library. Where to go to really lose yourself in the world of books. 

Weekend explorations: Lower Manhattan

City Hall, New York City: Seat of power, place of movie scenes. Something I love about Princeton, that it is a small town yet part of the New York metropolitan area.  

July theme day: chimneys

I apparently forgot July is here! These chimneys seem more at home in an English town than an American one.
(The CDP portal appears to be down - please visit http://cdpbthemeday.blogspot.com.au/ for July theme day.)