Pub In The Park

Some cities are known for their streets: In Beverly Hills, it’s Rodeo Drive.  In Hollywood, it’s Hollywood or Sunset Boulevards.  In Paris, the Champs Ellysee; in London, Shaftesbury Avenue; in New York, it’s Fifth Avenue.  If you’ve arrived in New York City, this is perhaps on of the essential streets on which to stroll.  You’ll find that Fifth Avenue begins north of Washington Square and runs far north to 143rd Street in Harlem.  In-between, you’ll find, like Rodeo in Beverly Hills, this is one of the planet’s most costly streets, particularly from 49th to 59th Streets.

Along Fifth Avenue, you’ll find stores of the calibre of Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, Versace, Ferragamo, and others.  There’s Brook Brothers, an NBA Store, and even an Apple Store with its Genius Bar.  Of course, there’s Saks Fifth Avenue, as well as a number of incredible jewels at Harry Winston, known as the jeweler to the stars.  Also on Fifth, you’ll find FAO Schwartz, the largest toy store in the world.

As you walk down the street, you’ll find Central Park, and great residential homes, large churches, and other historic buildings.  In the Museum Mile, from 82nd to 104th Streets, you’ll see the homes of 19th and 20th Century industrialists; most of these residences have become museums, such as the National Academy Museum or the Frick Collections (previously owned by the philanthropist Archer Huntington and Henry Clay Frick, respectively).  The Museum of the City of New York itself is contained within one of these mansions, built in 1932.  You’ll also discover the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Guggenheim Museum!  The former is one of the largest museums the world has to offer, while the Guggenheim is famous for its architecture and the modern art it exhibits.

You’ll find, too, St. Patrick’s Cathedral around 50th and 51st streets.  If you’re tired after all this walking, you might want to check into the Plaza on Fifth Avenue, a hotel made famous as the place The Beatles (along with many U.S. Presidents) have stayed.  For more information about the Plaza and other places to stay, especially near casinos, check into any one of these New York hotels.

Well it is Valentine’s Day again and it is always fun to come up with some fun and romantic things to do. There is always the either fancy or funky dining out experience. There are seemingly endless places to eat and drink in San Francisco. A modern edge restaurant you could go to might be the Levende Lounge. It is located in an old building but it has a new romantic modern style in architecture and cuisine. There is a great mix of Latin American, Asian and Mediterranean influences in the dishes they prepare.

If you like the classics of Dean Martin or 007 style you may find yourself most comfortable at Bix. This restaurant has been in San Francisco since 1988 and is the home of some of the best live Jazz in the Bay area. It is an intimate environment with a close seat to the fine music that fills the air. You can start with a classic martini and a delicious Dungeness Crab appetizer. Then move into Oysters on the Half Shell or a rack of lamb. They always have fine steaks available with the classic side dishes served with a wonderful Napa wine.

Some people like to get out and stroll as they snuggle together. San Francisco is filled with great places to walk and talk. The Fisherman’s Wharf may be a bit crowded so how about a nice day or evening at the zoo. The San Francisco Zoo is a nice casual place to enjoy all the creatures, brought from around the world, to snuggle in there habitats and watch you walk by. There is also the Spa idea. Couple’s massages and soaks are always a luxurious treat. What a fine way to enjoy each other company in a relaxing and different environment away from the streets and the crowd. So find the honeymoon suite and either begin a new love or revive an mature one.

New York is the best town in the world, and there’s never going to be another town like New York.  It’s the most interesting and exciting place in the world, and there are some people who might say that it’s not what it used to be.  It could be that those people aren’t who they used to be, either, but New York is still my city, it’s my favorite city, and I’d never live anywhere else.  That’s because it’s an actor’s dream of a city, even though it might be one of the worst places for an actor to try to make a living.  I came here with the idea that I’d struggle for awhile and I was all ready to pay some dues.

Soon enough, though, maybe after two years or so, I’d be living in four star hotels, and New York would be my oyster.  Or at the very least, it would be a place to go get oysters for my friends, because I would be friends with all of the people who owned oyster places, and I would get them in to eat.  My dream is to make sure my friends don’t have to wait longer than ten minutes, or maybe fifteen sometimes.  This is how I saw the city, but doing the walk of an actor is something that sometimes takes a little longer.

It’s a city that rewards those with vision, initiative, and drive.  But it rewards those who already have money much faster, and with more oysters.  I learned my craft here, though.  I followed in the footsteps of Stella Adler, and studied all the things she encouraged her students to study.  I looked at the lives of all the great actors I admire, Brando, DeNiro, Hoffman, and DeLuise, and tried to live like they did.  On the edge of a breakdown, or on the edge of a great meal, it was all part of the actor’s process.  When I audition for a role, I’m already living the part.  Sometimes, I have to be someone who’s depressed, and sometimes I have to be a soda cracker.  It doesn’t matter.  It’s about the work.  I still love New York.

Once you’ve seen the Coca-Cola Museum and the Georgia Aquarium, you may want to find your way to Atlanta’s High Museum of Art for this last days of its exhibit, Leonardo da Vinci: Hand of the Genius.  There are a few times in life when you’ll be able to witness art work that has lasted for hundreds of years; in fact, there are only two people whose work is so extraordinary, I would do whatever it takes to see their art in person.  One is Michelangelo, particularly his sculpture.  The other is Leonardo da Vinci.

One of the best museums in the Southeast, the organization has collections of classic and contemporary art.  This time around, their exhibiting fifty works of Leonardo da Vinci, as well as twenty sketches as studies, some never seen before inside the United States.  The exhibition is in three parts, stressing different parts of the artist’s life: Leonardo, the Sculptor, the Student, and the Mentor.  As a Sulptor, he planned to create the planet’s biggest and most complicated statue.  The museum has recreated the 26 foot high Sforza Horse in the Sifly Piazza.  As a Student, his works are presented alongside work by his contemporaries, the people from whom he most likely learned, such as Andrea del Verrocchio or Donatello’s famed Bearded Prophet (never before seen outside Italy, not even outside Florence).  As a Mentor, the museum demonstrates Leonardo’s influence over younger artists.  This includes Giovan Francesco Rustici and Peter Paul Rubens.  Rustici’s large bronze figures, John the Baptist Preaching to a Levite and a Pharisee, is provided as an example of this mentoring relationship and friendship.

Hand of the Genius closes on Sunday, February 21st; however, to provide more time for the public to see the works, the museum has extended its hours on the closing weekend.  Friday, February 19th, the gallery will be open from ten in the morning to midnight.  On Saturday, February 20th, it’s ten in the morning to seven in the evening; on Sunday, February 21st, the last day, you’ll have one more opportunity to see the work from noon until six in the evening.  To make sure you don’t miss it, arrange for a room in advance.  There are few opportunities to see legitimate works of genius.

For all interested parties I can now, after fifty five years of existence on this planet, testify to the wonders and fascination, even the addiction potential of bird watching. That’s right, you read it correctly, I’m a bird watcher and proud of it. It all started last summer when my best friend Delores talked me into going with her to Cape May, New Jersey. I shouldn’t say talked me into going, it sounded like a great vacation and I certainly needed one. A week in one of the beach hotels sounded just perfect. However, Delores has been a birder since just after her divorce when she was thirty three.

The divorce itself wasn’t responsible for her passion for birds it just allowed her the freedom to pursue it. She had actually wanted to watch birds from the time I knew her in college. Anyway, she had been to Cape May a few times and always remarked about what a great place for birding it was. I have to admit that I never really listened to her stories, nor did they make that much sense to me. When she told me statistics like over 400 bird species have been recorded in the area I tried to look interested but I’m sure a look of “so what” was more prominent on my face. So, to pacify me she told me that I could go diamond hunting while she watched the birds.

She didn’t really need to pacify me much, I was interested in going regardless of the 400 species of birds. And I did have a fun time looking for one of the Cape May diamonds, as they’re called. They’re really quartz pebbles that have washed down the Delaware River. I did find one and even had it polished up. It looks really pretty and I wear it attached to my birding binoculars that I also purchased on that trip. I’m telling you, once I got out and watched and learned a few of the species and their habits and visual cues I became a little obsessed with getting to know them. I know that sounds strange but it’s true. And so now I dare you. Spend one summer practicing the art of birding and I bet you’ll become obsessed with it as well. Really, I dare you.