Custom NYC Tours

20/08/2024

Looking towards the Statue of Liberty 🗽, and other shots from a beautiful wander through historic Green-Wood Cemetery.

18/08/2024

I love the way that One World Trade Center seems to disappear into the sky when you look straight up at it.

16/08/2024

An afternoon at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 🖼️

16/08/2024

The current rooftop exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is Petrit Halilaj's 'Abetare'. This sprawling sculptural installation will up through October 27.

15/08/2024

The beautiful art deco lobby of the Empire State Building.

14/08/2024

Ghirardelli Chocolate has arrived at the Empire State Building.

In addition to their full chocolate selection, the shop offers favorites like sundaes, milkshakes, hot chocolate, coffee, brownies, cookies, and chocolate covered strawberries. Will you be visiting?

13/08/2024

My thoughts on visitors worried about safety in NYC, and not mistaking media narratives for reality. 🗽

13/08/2024

The subway rolling into Victorian Flatbush, in Brooklyn.

12/08/2024

A visit around the campus of Columbia University.

Established in 1754 as King’s College on the grounds of Trinity Church, it is the oldest institution of higher education in New York and the fifth-oldest in the United States. It was renamed Columbia College in 1784 following the American Revolution, and in 1787 was placed under a private board of trustees headed by former students Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. In 1896, the campus was moved to its current location in Morningside Heights and renamed Columbia University.

The campus was designed along Beaux-Arts planning principles by the architects McKim, Mead & White.

11/08/2024

Photos from my Summer Streets walk yesterday, and a couple of little detours I took along the way. A beautiful Summer morning!

09/08/2024

Coney Island, on a grey late afternoon & evening. 🎡

09/08/2024

There’s no better way to make an entrance to Coney Island then via the Q train. Gets me every time. 

07/08/2024

The beautiful crown of the former General Electric Building (1931), plus a shot of it seen behind St. Bartholomew’s church from Park Avenue. The building was a celebration of the electric age. ⚡️

07/08/2024

The Seagram Building, on Park Avenue, and completed in 1958, was designed by famed architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. He was the last director of Germany's Bauhaus school. It has 38 floors, and cost about $40 million to build.

A glass curtain wall with vertical mullions of bronze and horizontal spandrels made of Muntz metal form the building's exterior.

Upon opening, the building was widely praised. Described in The New York Times as one of "New York's most copied buildings", the Seagram Building has inspired the designs of other structures around the world. Within NYC, it helped influence the 1961 Zoning Resolution, a zoning ordinance that allowed developers to construct additional floor area in exchange for including plazas outside their buildings.

05/08/2024

On top of Grand Central Terminal sits statues of 3 Roman gods. The work is called 'Glory of Commerce', by Jules-Félix Coutan. Traditionally, the depicted figures have been interpreted as (from left to right) Hercules, Mercury, and Minerva.

But lately, there's been renewed debate about that first one. On closer inspection, the figure does not resemble Hercules, and is surrounded by an anchor, cogwheel, anvil and hammer, etc. This indicates the figure is likely actually Vulcan... the god of fire and the forge, and of smithing and metal working. Essentially the god of industry. Logically, this interpretation makes more sense.

What do you think?

(Below the sculptures is a beautiful Tiffany-glass clock. Still tells the exact time!)

04/08/2024

Summer Streets is an annual event in NYC where specific streets are shut to cars from 7am to 3pm so they can be used for running, walking, or cycling. The Manhattan one runs from down by the Brooklyn Bridge all the way up to Harlem, just over 150 blocks or about 10 miles. The main stretch goes up Park Avenue.

I walked the entire length yesterday morning, and here’s some photos I took along the route.

Final Manhattan 2024 dates are Saturdays the 10th and 17th. Brooklyn and the Bronx will have shorter versions on the 24th.

30/07/2024

A Sunday afternoon in DUMBO, Brooklyn.

28/07/2024

Central Park, late July. 🌳

26/07/2024

An afternoon in Manhattan, on a lovely Summer day. 🚶🏻‍♂️☀️

24/07/2024

NBC is the local television home of the Paris Olympics, so Rockefeller Center has been transformed in celebration!

It’s always wonderful to see the Center transform throughout the year for holidays or other special events.

23/07/2024

An afternoon exploring Brooklyn.

Come tour NYC’s largest borough!

23/07/2024

Another beautiful Summer day on the water! ⛴️

23/07/2024

The Transit Museum in downtown Brooklyn (in a decommissioned subway station!) is a must-visit, but there’s also a free annex inside Grand Central.

The current exhibition there looks at the system history through old signage and maps.

23/07/2024

Some street art photographed this week.

We offer private art tours. Contact us to plan yours! 🚶🏻‍♂️🎨

07/07/2024

Haven't done any new videos in a while (busy working!), but here's some videos from last year...

6 1/2 Avenue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uATP35Svxls

Brief history of the NYC subway from Astor Place to City Hall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjrh3h4iHLs

I plan to do more videos in the Fall. What topics/areas should I cover?

Much of this is likely familiar to my followers, but for newbies, here's a brief (2-ish minute) look back at some NYC subway history.

05/07/2024

The High Line, on a sunny Summer day.

03/07/2024

Queensboro Bridge, seen from Roosevelt Island.

02/07/2024

Another beautiful Summer day for exploring NYC! 🗽

Come join me on tour, and plan your own New York adventure.

02/07/2024

A question I get on my Art Deco tours a lot is: Does anyone still make art deco buildings?

And the answer is: Very rarely! But not no.

A great example is The Fitzroy, a residential building in Chelsea, near the High Line. Completed 2019. It was developed by Largo and JDS Development Group and designed by the firm Roman and Williams. It has a striking art-deco-inspired facade of fluted dark green terra-cotta.

Amid more modern-looking buildings nearby by firms such as Bjarke Ingels Group and Zaha Hadid, it stands out for its more classic look. A walk along the High Line has become a stroll through inspiring new residential architecture. Worth a look if you're in this area of the west side.

30/06/2024

The Astoria route is my favorite route on the NYC Ferry system. A good ride along the East River, passing by countless landmarks and cool neighborhoods. ⛴️

And at $4 a ride, an incredible deal.

Here’s photos from yesterday’s ride!