Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire

Roasted chestnuts are usually associated with Christmas and the winter season. Although we have not had much of a winter weather this season, you can still get roasted chestnuts from hot dog and pretzel vendors in the city. They are usually available from early November to late January. A $2 bag will yield about 10 to 12 morsels of sweet chestnuts roasted in kosher salt.

Chestnusts are fairly vertatile in that they can be roasted, boiled or candied. They can also be grounded into powder for cakes or pureed into paste for pie fillings. But most often, they are found in turkey stuffing during Thanksgiving and Christmas.

This photo was taken in front of 55th Street and 5th Avenue in Manhattan. The roasted chestnuts and pretzels on the trays are for display only because they have been sitting in the open for hours and exposed to dirt and dust from the street. The vendor has a fresh supply of warm pretzels and chestnuts in the aluminium oven under the display trays.

Do you have a favorite chestnut recipe?

Pennsylvania (Penn) Station

New York City is served by two main train stations: the Grand Central Station on the east side and the Pennsylvania (Penn) Station on the west side. Although Penn Station does not have the architectural beauty and pedigree of the Grand Central Station, it is nonetheless one of the most important and busiest train stations in United States. Penn Station is the center of the Northeast Corridor shuttle that connects Washington DC and Boston. It is also the main departure station for Amtrak, the New Jersey Transit and the Long Island Railroad. In addition, there are six subway lines that connects the station to the rest of the city.

The current Penn Station is not visible from above ground because it is located under the Penn Plaza complex on 34th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenue. The original Penn Station, completed in 1910, was an above ground Beaux Arts structure. It was demolished in 1964 to make room a multipurpose urban complex. As a result, Penn Station was relegated to the space below it and to this day, there is no identifiable stucture to represent it.

This photo was taken during rush hour traffic at Penn Station. Notice the interesting tunnel structure overhead. On the left are a series of ticketing booths and terminals leading to the trains. And on the right are retail and dining facilities for the commuters.

Rival Peaks

The Empire State Building (on the right) and the Chrysler Building (left) have been competing stepsisters ever since they were conceived in the late 1920s during a period construction boom in New York City.

The Chrysler Building designed by architect, William Van Alen broke ground on September 19, 1928 and was expected to be the tallest skyscraper in the world, surpassing the then record holder, 40 Wall Street, which was under construction at the time. Not to be outdone, architect H. Craig Severence secretly added an additional 2 feet (0.6 meter) onto the 40 Wall Street structure but William Van Alen also secretly constructed a 125-foot (58.4 meters) spire from inside the Chrysler Building. In the mist of all this competition, the developers for the Empire State Building jumped into the fray by announcing the construction of an even taller skyscaper.

40 Wall Street (927 feet/283 meters/72 floors) was finally completed in 1930 and claimed the record for the tallest skyscaper in the world from the Woolworth Building (792 feet/241 meters/55 floors) for only a couple of months before the Chrysler Building (1,046 feet/319 meters/77 floors) opened in May 1930. The Empire State Building (1,250 feet/381 meters/102 floors) took over the record a year later in May 1931.

Which of the two buildings do you prefer?

Doorman @ Bergdorf Goodman

The distinguished looking gentleman in the photo is the doorman for Bergdorf Goodman, a luxury goods departmental store on 5th Avenue and 59th Street. [See previous photo commentary for more information on Bergdorf Goodman.] He was wearing a beautiful Russian fur hat and a long wool coat that reminded me of the character played by Omar Sharif in the 1965 movie, Doctor Zhivago.

The Russian fur hat called, ushanka is traditionally made of rabbit fur but it is also available in other types of animal fur and "fish fur", a term used to describe synthetic materials since fish do not have fur. A distinct feature of the ushanka is the collapsible ear flaps on each side of the hat. They are meant to keep the ears warm during cold windy weather. During warmer weathers, the ear flaps can be folded up and tied above the hat. Ushankas are popular in cold weather cities with huge Russian immigrant populations like Chicago, Illonois and New York City.

So what do you think of the hat?

N.B.: I did asked for permission before taking the photo.

Update: UNICEF Snowflake at Night

I posted the first UNICEF snowflake photo two weeks ago. That was taken during the day. Here is another photo of the snowflake taken at night.

The building in the background is the women's department of Bergdorf Goodman, a luxury goods departmental store on 5th Avenue and 59th Street in Manhattan. The men's department is located in a separate but equally impressive building across the street. Bergdorf Goodman was started by Herman Bergdorf, an immigrant from Alsace, France, in 1899. The store was then taken over by Edwin Goodman in 1906 and became a popular fashion retail outlet. Today, Bergdorf Goodman is owned by Neiman Marcus, another luxury goods departmental store. Other name worthy buildings in the vicinity include the Apple Cube and The Plaza Hotel, which is currently being converted into a condominium.

Bergdorf Goodman also produces a very nice catalog/magazine each season. The items included in the catalog range from a $140 Ermenegildo Zegna tie to a $50,000 Mercedes Benz convertible.

Bike Messenger

Bike messengers or bike couriers are one of those traffic nuisances that New York City drivers have to deal with on a daily basis. These bicyclists tend of swerve around cars, in and out of traffic to get to their destinations as fast as possible. Majority of them are paid on commission by their delivery agencies so their incomes are based on how many deliveries they make a day.

The profession dates back to the mid-19th century with the invention of pedal-driven bicycles by Frenchman, Pierre Lallement in 1864. Since then, bike messenging became a integral part of commerce in many metropolitan cities around the world until the 1990s, when the internet boom took over the information delivery industry. Today bike messengers still exist but in few numbers. They have carved out a niche market offering delivery services for items that e-mails and faxes cannot do.

The young man in the photo is dressed in his bike messenger outfit. Notice his rolled-up pant legs with black spandex leggings underneath, over-the-shoulder messenger bag and stretchy ropes to secure additional packages on the rear wheel.

Chauffeured Town Car

Chauffeured luxury sedans, or car service as we call it here, are a fairly common sight in parts of New York City, especially on 5th Avenue in Manhattan where this photo was taken. Out-of-town businessmen and well-to-do tourists usually hire these car services to chauffeur them around town. Local New Yorkers also use them to get to airports because the yellow taxi cabs do not pick up passengers from their homes.

The chauffeur in this photo was waiting for his passenger outside the Trump Tower. You can see a white card with a number on the front driver window. This allows the passenger to identify the car service he/she has ordered because sometimes, there can be three to four similar looking sedans parked on the street. The average cost for a car service like this is about $60/hour.

Personally, I love car service. They are extremely comfortable and convenient.

Shoe Shopping in SoHo

"I spent $40,000 on shoes and I have no place to live. I will literally be the old woman who lived in her shoes!" cried Carrie Bradshaw, the shoe-addicted New York character in Sex & the City.

New Yorkers love their shoes. But comfortable shoes are paramount to the New Yorker who walks a lot. Good looking shoes are a must for the fashion conscious New Yorker. So where does one go to find a pair of comfortable yet, good looking shoes?

This photo was taken inside Camper, a Spanish brand shoe store in SoHo. I was trying on some shoes when I looked up and saw this interesting vantage point -- roughly 3 feet (1 meter) from the floor. I love the coordinated colors inside the giant overhead lamps and the walls.

Do you have a favorite pair of shoes?

Skating Rink @ Rockefeller Center

Ice skating at the Rockefeller Center Rink is a winter tradition for many New Yorkers and tourists alike. Each year between October and April, the artificial ice rink is open to the public from 8:30 AM to midnight. However, skating here can get pretty expensive. Ice skate rentals cost $7.50 per person and admissions are $10 - $14 for adults and $7.50 - $8.50 for children under 11 and seniors. The rink gets extremely crowded during weekends and holidays so the best times to skate are Mondays through Thursdays.

The gilded statue in the background is Promethius, a smart and cunning Titan who, according to Greek mythology, stole fire from Zeus and gave it to the mortals because of his love for humanity. As a result, the word prometheous refers to someone or something bold and creative.

So do you ice stake? Or ski?

Men's Bags

Lately, I have been following The Sartorialist, a daily photo blog by fashion photographer, Scott Schuman. The photos on his blog are absolutely amazing. So as an ode to Mr. Schuman and The Sartorialist, I decided to post a photo on men's fashion today.

Men in New York City carry bags!! Oh yes, we do. We carry all kinds of bags -- computer bags, messenger bags, gym bags, backpacks, briefcases, European carry-alls (as Seinfeld called it), etc. We carry bags because we have to tote everything we need for the day when we leave the apartment. And since most of us commute on buses and trains, we do not have the luxury of temporary storage in the trunk of a car.

The type of bag a New Yorker carries largely depends on his fashion aesthetic. The hip and fashionable yuppie may prefer a Jack Spade messenger bag. while the conservative business executive may carry a Tumi computer case. The college student usually carries a backpack and the retiree, a PBS logo canvas bag. It is as much a statement about your personal style as it is what you need to carry in it.

So what kind of bag do you guys carry?

Fruit Vendors in Chinatown

Street vendors are a common sight in New York City. They provide a convenient and inexpensive option for commuters to pick up some fruits and vegetables on their way home from work. This is because the lines are shorter and the produce are usually fresher. Plus the low overhead expenses mean cheaper prices for the consumers.

The vendors in this photo taken in Chinatown sell exotic tropic fruits that you will not find in regular grocery stores. Some of the more interesting produce are fresh longans, dwarf bananas, pomelo, kumquats and persimmons.

Keropokman of Singapore Daily Photo recently posted a photo of durians, the supposed "stinkiest fruit in the world." Have you tried them??

Restaurant Kitchen Workers

New York City has more restaurants per square feet than any other city in the United States. This is because most New Yorkers do not cook or they live in small apartments with minuscule kitchens that are just big enough for a kettle pot and a microwave oven.

As a result, there are ample job opportunities for immigrants who work "behind the scene" at restaurants, as well as in other businesses, where they have minimal contact with the consumers. Almost every restaurant, regardless of the price point or culinary origin, employs immigrant workers in the kitchen. The work is usually long and laborious, and some of these employees are paid below the minimum wage. And yes, most of them are here illegally.

I posted a lot of architectural photos last month (well, it was my first month) so I thought it would be interesting to look at people who live in New York this month.

Time Square on the eve of New Year's Eve

Time Square is one of the few places in New York City where traffic congestion, both vehicles and humans, is a given. The situation worsens on New Year's Eve when 750,000 revelers congregate here to watch the giant crystal ball drop at 12 midnight. Some people even start staking out the best spots to watch the celebration at 8 AM on the morning of the event, 16 hours before the ball drops. This photo of Time Square was taken on the eve of New Year's Eve (Dec 30). As you can see, the energy of the celebration has already begun.

So do you have a New Year resolution? What are they?

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Deli @ Little Italy

Little Italy, as the name suggests, is a section of Lower Manhattan where Italian immigrants first settled after arriving in New York City at the turn of the century. Today, the neighborhood has diminished to about half its original size due to the ever expansion of Chinatown, as well as the decrease in the number of new Italian immigrants to the US. Most of the first and second generation Italians who grew up in the area have moved on to other parts of the city or to the suburbs.

What makes Lower Manhattan so interesting is the dynamics of its population over time. Prior to the arrival of Italian immigrants in the 1900s, this area was inhabited mostly by Irish immigrants who came here in the early 1800s. Now, Little Italy is slowly being engulfed by a newer immigrant population, ie. the Chinese.

This photo was taken inside an Italian deli and it shows a big wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese being cut up into smaller pieces. The yellow cubes of cheese on the right are Pecorino Romano and you can see someone walking by with a tray of freshly made canolis.

Brownstones in Brooklyn Heights

Brownstones or brownstone houses refer to multi-storey single-family townhouses that were built before the 1900s using reddish brown sandstones. Before the turn of the century, they were built mostly by wealthy families and therefore, contain some of the most exquisite architectural details of the era. Today, these brownstones are highly desirable in New York City. The brownstones in this photo are from a cul-de-sac in Brooklyn Heights, a very prosperous neighborhood in New York City. Each of these unit can easily cost over $4 million.

Manhattan Municipal Building

This is the Manhattan Municipal Building that is located on the intersection of Centre and Chambers Streets in Lower Manhattan. The structure, completed in 1915 in the Beaux Arts style, has 40 floors and is 580 feet (177 meters) tall. The building was the first ever constructed to include a subway station underneath it. Currently, the Manhattan Municipal Building and the City Hall building next door are transfer stations for the following subway lines: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, A, C, E, J, M, and W.

The Beaux Arts architecture is a classic architectural style that originated in Paris, France around 1885 to 1920. The basic characteristics of Beaux Arts style include symmetry in design, grand entrances and staircases with figurines and garlands bordering the structures.

Grand Central Station

This is another photo of the main concourse of the Grand Central Station. It is, in my opinion, one of the most magnificent architectures in New York City.

The famous clock on top of the information booth in the middle of the grand concourse is valued at an estimated $10 - $20 million by both Christie's and Sotheby's. The clock has four faces made of opal and can be seen from the north, south, east and west of the station. The three windows in the back are 75 feet tall and has a walkway across them but it is closed to public for security reasons.

According to statistics found on Wikipedia, the station serves 125,000 commuters and receives 575,000 visitors per day. Each year, 19,000 pieces of item are reported to "lost and found", 2,000 of which are coats. The return rate for these items are 60%; however, the return rate for computers and iPods are 98%.

UNICEF Snowflake on 5th Avenue

The giant UNICEF snowflake, installed high above the intersection of 5th Avenue and 57th Street in Manhattan, is another New York City holiday tradition that began in 1988. Last year, the snowflake was updated with a bigger version made of over 16,000 Baccarat cyrstals, spanned 23 feet in diameter and 28 feet in height, and weighed over 3,300 pounds. The snowflake is an emblem of the work UNICEF does for the children all over the world.

Christmas Tree @ Trump Tower

This Christmas tree sits in front of a 5-storey waterfall at the atrium of Trump Tower. The building, completed in 1983, is located on 56th Street and 5th Avenue in Manhattan and was one of the first luxury condominiums built in the city.

Prior to that, the most desirable and luxurious properties in the city were coops. Condominiums were considered "middle class housing" although middle class in Manhattan is not middle class at all. In addition, coop properties provide owners with stricter control over who can and cannot purchase an apartment in the building.

With that, I want to wish everyone:

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year

Christmas Ornaments

These porcelain ornaments are part of a Christmas decoration inside a minimalist store in SoHo. The color of the figurines matched well with the white and cream color palettes of the walls, shelves and ceiling in the store. Personally, I find this minimalist aesthetic very calming and relaxing but my friend thinks it is boring and antiseptic -- like in a hospital.

What do you think? Should Christmas decorations be in green and red and gold, or some splash of colors?