Nine Days To Christmas

This gigantic sculpture of the Roman Arabic numeral '9' is located outside the Brasserie 8 1/2 restaurant on 57th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue. I took this photo on the same day I took the one of the brasserie window, and I have been saving it for today's post.

So do you save anything unconventional, hoping it would be of some use at a later in the future?

Holiday Bazaar at Union Square

Every December, temporary shopping bazaars pop up all over the city to sell everything from food and jewelries to clothes and bags for the holiday season. This year, there are three holiday bazaars that I know of (there maybe more) : Union Square on 14th Street, Bryant Park on 42nd Street and Columbus Circle on 60th Street. This photo was taken at the Union Square site.

So do you have a holiday bazaar in your city?

Update: Opps! I forgot about our mid-month subway theme day until Peter of Paris and Virginia of Birmingham alerted me to my faux pas. So how am I going to spin this? Okay, see that roof on the upper left corner of the photo? That's the roof of the 14th Street subway station at Union Square. Here is another view of the subway roof taken from above.

This mid-month subway theme is shared by the following bloggers:

Budapest - New York City - Paris - Stockholm

Special guest blogger:
Virginia of Birmingham (in Paris)

Angels @ Rockefeller Center

Here is a close-up shot of the lights-and-wire angels at the Rockefeller Center Atrium that I posted a couple days ago.

So what is your plan for the weekend?

Lexus No More

We had a strong wind storm a couple days ago and it must blown the Lexus sign of its perch on top of this building next to Queensborough Plaza. What's more interesting is the little ladder that goes up the side of the building where there is a door. I wonder who lives in there.

So what is the oddest place you have lived before?

Argosy Bookstore

This is the entrance to Argosy Books, one of the few independent bookstores left in New York City. Located on 59th Street between Lexington and Park Avenue, it specializes in rare and old books, maps and prints, which makes it somewhat immune to big store chains like Barnes & Noble and online retailers like Amazon.com that sell mostly new fiction and non-fiction books.

So what kind of books do you usually read?

Chrysler Building

Here is one of the grand dames of New York City -- the Chrysler Building. The photo was taken while I was standing in front of Macy's Departmental Store on 34th Street and 7th Avenue. I have just bought two pairs of wrinkle-resistant Docker's pants that were on sale.

So what have you bought on sale recently?

Antiques and Art @ The Armory

A friend invited me to the Antiques & Art at The Armory show sponsored by AVENUE magazine last weekend. It was definitely an eye opener for me. Among the antiques on display was a velvet lined wooden chest filled with gold and silver flatware from the Romanov era, priced at an affordable US$450,000. :-)

So do you have a formal set of china and flatware?

Ice Rink @ Bryant Park

This is The Pond at Bryant Park, an free ice skating rink on 42nd Street between 5th and 6th Avenue. It is one of three ice skating rinks in the city -- the other two are at the Rockefeller Center and Central Park.

So when was the last time you ice skated?

Christmas Decorations

Last night, I went to the Rockefeller Center to take some photos. The building with the snow flake lights in the background is the famous departmental store, Saks Fifth Avenue. The lighted angels with trumpets are located on the walkway leading to the ice rink at the Rockefeller Center.

So how was your weekend?

Meet Wakamaru

I would like to introduce everyone to Wakamaru, a domestic robot (that does household chores), made by Mitsubishi of Japan. He is currently visiting New York City and staying at Uniqlo (Japanese version of GAP) in SoHo. He can be seen walking around and greeting customers at the store. I had a delightful conversation with Wakamaru and I hope he enjoys his stay here.

So have you met anyone interesting lately?

Irresistible Indulgence

This store window for Henri Bendel, a luxury departmental store on 5th Avenue and, has some of the best Christmas decorations. Instead of mannequins or Christmas trees on the windows, it has a row of jars filled with colorful candies.

So what is your irresistible indulgence?

Chili Bouquet

I saw this interesting bouquet where dried chili peppers were used to add some colors to the yellow blooms. Since winter is here, there aren't many fresh flowers at the market any more.

So what is your favorite thing about the winter season?

East Village Painter

I got off the bus at 3rd Avenue and 8th Street last weekend and saw this guy painting a picture of the Cooper Union Building in the East Village. The painter patiently applied his strokes to the canvas despite the freezing cold temperature and breezy wind outdoors. I snapped a half dozen photos and ran inside a Starbucks to get a warm cup of Caramel Macchiato.

So what do you like to drink when it's cold outside?

Central Park South

This is the skyline of Central Park South, above the tree line so the buildings you see are probably the 5th floor and up. Directly across the street from these buildings is the southern border of Central Park.

So which floor do you live on?

Chimney 3

Here is a new photo for my chimney series. The building is located on 3rd Avenue between 13th and 14th Street, directly across the street from the dino mural photo I posted a couple days ago. Notice the rooftop garden in the photo? It must be wonderful to have a little private garden all to yourself.

So do you have a chimney in your house?

Theme Photo: Circles/Spheres

It's theme photo day again and this month's theme is Circles or Spheres. My contribution to the theme photo was taken in from of a restaurant called, Brasserie 8 1/2 on 57th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue.

This month, 187 bloggers participated in the theme photo. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

Union Square Artist

Last weekend, I saw this artist at Union Square painting a street scene involving the famous street seller/demonstrator of the Swiss vegetable peeler. Check out the websites of Kitty of New York Portraits and Strangetastes of St. Louis Daily Photo for actual photos of the same scene.

So do you have a veggie peeler? I don't!!

Dino Mural

This dino-mural, literally and figuratively speaking, is located on the 3rd to 5th floor of a building on 3rd Avenue between 13th and 14th Street. I don't know the significance of it but it definitely lights up the neighborhood.

So what brightens up your day?

Salvatore Ferragamo

Today, the day after Thanksgiving, is known as Black Friday because it is the biggest shopping day of the year. Every store across the country is offering the biggest sale to entice shoppers to start their Christmas shopping. It is also the day that most retail stores make so much money that the revenue generated will turn the stores account from red (loss) to black (profit).

So have you started your Christmas shopping yet?

Happy Thanksgiving

For those of you living in the US, whether you are staying home or visiting friends and/or families this Thanksgiving weekend, I wish you all a wonderful holiday. I will be joining my friends for lunch and then a movie.

So what is your favorite winter/autumn dish?