Rockefeller Christmas Tree

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree was unveiled on Wednesday night to great funfair and excitement. According to news reports, the 8 tons, 60-year old, 84 feet tall Norway spruce was decorated with 5 miles or 30,000 pieces of energy-efficient lights called light emitting diodes (LEDs). The LEDs use up to 60% less energy than regular light bulbs. In addition, the tree will be recycled as lumber for Habitat for Humanity after the Christmas season is over.

Click here for professional photos of the tree and the festivity on Yahoo.com.

So what are you plans for this weekend?

Love is a Gamble

According to the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) advertisement here, one has a 2 to 1 odds of running into six tall, dark, handsome men on the subway. I don't know if that is a good thing or not. If you were a single girl (or a single gay man), I guess the subway is as good a place to meet men as any other place.

So where and how did you first meet your current spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend/partner? Was it love at first sight?

I Feel Naked

I was on my way to dinner on a very cold evening this past weekend when I noticed this tree looking very naked and cold.

Have you ever felt vulnerable or exposed?

SoHo at Night

This photo was taken minutes before the one I posted yesterday. It is from the corner Prince Street and Mercer Street, where the Fanelli Cafe is located. The bar/restaurant has been here for since 1847, way before SoHo became the hot spot for fashion and art. It serves really good chilli and burgers but most people come here for the bar scene since it is right in the middle of SoHo.

Since this was late in the evening, I set the camera to a slow exposure and balance it on top of a traffic light box -- the thing that is attached to the traffic light post and goes tick-tock-tick-tock as it counts down to the light change.

Christmas Reflections

This photo was taken in front of Zoë, a nouveau American restaurant on Prince Street between Broadway and Mercer. To catch as much light as possible, I set my camera on slow exposure and stabilized it on top of a car parked on the curb of the street. The reflection you see in the photo is from the roof of the car. I have never eaten at this restaurant before but I hear it is a really nice place.

So have you put up for Christmas decorations yet? Do you have a tree with lights and ornaments?

Political Message

Todd of Postcards from Hell's Kitchen and CityGirl15 of Gramercy Cafe recently posted photos of political messages they saw in NYC and they reminded me of a photo I took almost a year ago at the Staten Island Ferry Terminal. It was a small graffiti scribbled on a giant poster blanketing the wooden fence surrounding the renovation site. If you click on the image above, you will see a full size version of the photo and what the graffiti said.

If you were to scribble a graffiti on a public space (not that I'm advocating it), what would you write?

Central Park Bench 5

The weather turned really cold and wintery yesterday. This photo re, taken last weekend at Central Park, presents how it feels outsidie -- chilly and dry. I had to have the humidifier on all day long because of the low humidity in the air.

So do you prefer the warm or cool weather?

Black Friday

Today, the day after Thanksgiving, is known as Black Friday because it is the official start of the Christmas shopping season and retailers across the country are expecting to be raking in huge sales volumes and profits.

This photo taken from outside the Apple Cube structure on 5th Avenue between 59th and 60th Street shows the crowd inside the underground store. The new iPod nanos are on sale (today only) for US$136.

So have you bought anything at a sale recently?

Happy Thanksgiving

Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated in the US and it is one of the busiest traveling holidays in the country. Everyone will be go home to their families or visiting friends for the 4-day weekend. And there will be many turkey dinners served on the table.

So you do like turkey? How do you like it served?

Sausages

These sausages were from the Koglin German Hams store at the Grand Central Market. The store specializes in sausages and cured meats from around the world. Although I have not tried the sausages here, I have gotten some deli meats and some breads and cheeses from other vendors at the market for an impromptu picnic at Bryant Park.

So do you like processed meat products like sausages and deli meats?

La Parisienne Cafe

I had breakfast in Paris and was back to NYC in less than an hour. Or so it seemed. This photo was taken at the Bernarduad store window on Park Avenue and 60th Street. Bernarduad is a maker of fine chinaware and jewelry.

So what do you eat for breakfast before you go to work in the morning?

Me, Myself & I

I took this photo at the Louis Vuitton window display case this weekend. I love that you can see three of me in the photo but not everything so my identity is still a mystery. I am, afterall, Ming the Merciless from the planet Mongol.

If you have an alter ego, who would you be?

Cold Weather Gear

It has been fairly windy and cold this weekend. During weather like this, I usually have to wear a skull cap to keep my head warm or else, I will get a severe headache later in the evening. While I was in SoHo a couple weekends ago, I saw these fancy caps on sale by a street vendor on Prince Street between Mercer and Broadway. The vendor told me she knitted the caps herself.

So do you wear a hat or a cap when you go outside during the winter?

Autumn Foliage

Fall (Autumn) weather is finally here again and the foliage has turned a spectrum of yellows to reds. This photo was taken from the 4th floor of one of our office buildings in Queens this afternoon. You can see the faraway Manhattan skylines in middle of the photo.

So what are your plans for the weekend? I will be doing the walkathon for Race To Deliver at Central Park to benefit God's Love, We Deliver, a non-profit organization that provides free nutritious hot foods for people who are home bound due AIDS, cancer and other debilitating diseases.

Refrigerator Magnets

These are little refrigerator magnets for sale at the street fair. I believe they are 3 for $1.

So what do you have on your refrigerator door?

N.B.: I apologize for not responding to some of your comments this week. I am swamp at work. I will try to visit everyone this weekend.

Mid-Month Theme: Subway Day

It is mid-month subway theme day again and this month, we have a new guest -- Peter from Paris who is joining us for the first time. We all decided to post similar photos of people entering the subway station at night in our cities.

The mid-month subway theme day is shared by the following blogs:
New York City Daily Photo - PHO (Paris) - Stockholm by Pixels

Table & Chairs

This photo was taken at the Lieutenant Petrosino Square in Nolita (North of Little Italy) where the The Ring Dome stucture was installed last month. Corona, the Mexican beer brand, must have sponsored the event or paid for the tables and chairs at the square because of the advertisements on the chairs.

Recently, the New York City health department started cracking down on bar tenders who used their bare hands to put line wedges on the top of Corona beer bottles, which is how Corona are usually served. Supposedly, bar tenders are required to use a pair of tongs or gloves to handle ready-to-eat items. This caused an uproar among bar tenders who have been serving lime wedges bare handed for many years without any government intervention.

So what kind of beer do you like most? Do you have a favorite brand?

Magnetic Letters

These little hand made magnetic buttons were sold at a street fair in Queens a couple months ago. I thought they were colorful and quite fun, especially the ones with beautiful designs on them.

So do you like street fairs? What do you usually get at the fairs?

Subway Art @ Prince Street

Janet Zweig and Edward del Rosario are the artists who created the ceramic mosaics that are currently installed on the walls of the subway station at Prince Street in SoHo. The ceramic artwork depicts regular New Yorkers going on with their every day lives.

Initially, I was going to post a photo of the ceramic artwork but I found this photo to be more amusing because of my reflection on the vandalized steel plate. To see the photos of the ceramic artwork, click here.

So how often do you look at yourself in the mirror? Do you talk to yourself in the mirror?

Fire Escape 9

Here is another beautiful vase shaped fire escape with ornate iron work on the railings and steps. You cannot see it in this photo but there was an old man leaning out the window just left of the bottom corner staring at me. I think he was either curious or unhappy I was taking a photo of his building. I said HI but he did not respond.

Have you ever had someone stare at you before? What did you do?

Apartment Stoop 8

This is the stoop of the famous apartment (66 Perry Street) where Carrie Bradshaw, a character on the tv-series Sex & the City, supposedly lived. There were numberous scenes in the show where Carrie sat on the stairs leading up to the building while hanging out with her friends or waiting for Mr. Big to show up. Although she lived on Upper East Side, most of the exterior scenes of her apartment were shot here in the Village.

This photo is dedicated to Missy of Norfolk, UK because she is as much a fan of Carrie Bradshaw as I am. So here to you, kid.

Have a good weekend, everyone.

I'm in the Mood for Pizza

Here is another photo of pizzas at a restaurant in Union Square on 14th Street between Broadway and 3rd Avenue. I had posted a photo of an eggplant pizza from the same restaurant a couple weeks ago. The reason I love the pizza here is because they are cooked in a traditional wood burning oven and the crust are super thin and crisp. A slice here goes for about US$3.50.

So when was the last time you had pizza for dinner/lunch? How many slices can you eat at one seating?

Weeds & Wildflowers

I saw these words scrawled on a wooden board in a garden not far from my apartment. I walked past it many times and finally took a photo of it. I like the sense of humor of the author.

No, I'm not going to ask if you have ever smoked weed (marijuana). But I'm going to ask if you have an interesting phrase or poem to share.

Silvercup Studios

This photo was taken from the window of a moving (#7) rain in Long Island City, Queens. The building beyond the elevated highways is the Silvercup Studios where many of the New York City based television shows are filmed. But there is currently a writers' union strike going on right now so all studio work are suspended until further notice. Shows that are affected include Late Night with David Letterman and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

So do you have a favorite TV show?

Le Petit Cafe

I love the signs and window decorations on this cute little cafe in SoHo, Le Petit Cafe, which is located on Spring Street between Wooster and Thompson Street, a block west of yesterday's photo. This is a great place to stop for cappuccino and gelato when I'm in the area.

So how do you take your morning coffee or tea?

Wooster Street Market

This corner street market is located on the corner of Wooster and Spring Streets in SoHo. The items sold here are mostly clothes, hats, gloves and jewelries made by independent designers and artists.

But the main reason I took this photo was the faded poster of a little girl on the wall. I was walking up Spring Street and I stopped in front of Wooster Street because of the red traffic light. When I looked up, I saw the poster and I quickly took a photo of it before the light turned green.

So do you prefer to shop for clothes at a big departmental store or at a small boutique?

N.B.: I have switched the Word Verification mode ON because I received over 50 spam comments in the last week.

Rotisserie Chicken

When I visited in Paris in 2005, I stayed at a small hotel in the Villier neighborhood where there was a daily street market a block away. At the street market, there were vendors selling rotisserie chicken with baby potatoes cooking on a tray directly beneath the roasting chicken. The smell was amazing. Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to try them because I did not want to eat it in my hotel room.

Last weekend, I walked by this little charming french bistro called, Le Gamin Cafe on West Houston Street and saw the same rotisserie chicken with potatoes at the bottom cooking outside the restaurant. I was tempted to eat there but I had just came from dinner. Maybe next time.

So have you ever had these rotisserie chicken with roasted potatoes?

Halloween Party in the Village III: Blown Away

These two gentlemen have the most original costumes at the Halloween Party on Wednesday. They created a realistic impression of a windy day eventhough the weather was fairly calm that evening. I love the upswept hair in the first photo and the newspapers-and-leaves effect in the second photo. They must be artists or designers to come up with something so spectacular. Incidentally, we are expecting 30-50 mph wind condition tomorrow from the storm that is developing in the Atlantic.

Click on to The Making of New York City Daily Photo to view a R-rated photo collage from the Halloween street party.

So are you an artistic person? Did you excel in art when you were in school?

Halloween Party in the Village II

Here is the second installation of photos from the Halloween street party yesterday. These people were NOT part of the Halloween parade that marched up 6th Avenue from Spring to 23rd Street. They were actually revelers dressed up in costumes and hanging out in the Village or heading to a party somewhere.

There was a huge stadium size spot light at Sheriden Square so I stood there for three hours watching people walk by. As soon as I saw someone interesting, I went up and asked if he or she could step in front of the light so I could take a photo. Most of them gave me three to four poses to photograph.

So would you stop and pose for a stranger?

Halloween Party in the Village

Every year, the city organizes a Halloween parade in the Greenwich Village. So after work yesterday, I went downtown to take some photos of Halloween revelers on the street. I saw a lot of amazing costumes and everyone was willing to pose for me.

So here is the first collage of people and costumes from the street party. Click on the photo to see a bigger version of it. I will post the second and third collages in the next couple of days.

So which is your favorite photo?