116

116
Originally uploaded by maggie_gem

Had a great time with hubby and his good friend at 116 MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village. Rock Drink Love, formerly Gaslight Cafe, a little basement cafe that is full of history dating back to 1958.

Tom Pacheco headlined and Alana Amram opened for the evening entertainment. I've seen Tom perform a couple of times before and this show was no disappointment. He also shared his stories of living across the street from 116 and performing at Folk City in the '60'. Tom is a wonderful folk artist/song writer that is severely under rated in America, a shame since it's surely the land he loves and it's evident in his songs.


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Exposure 0.05 sec (1/20)
Aperture f/2.4

Texture Tuesday

Friendships Remembered
Originally uploaded by maggie_gem

Friendships Remembered - Summer memories always improve with age. Applied Pioneer Woman's Vintage action and Kim Klassen's Silence texture for Texture Tuesday submission.

Here is the original

Exploring: 5 Pointz - Long Island City

80/365 5 Pointz
Originally uploaded by maggie_gem

This weekend hubby had a meeting in Flushing, NY and we took the opportunity to explore the old neighborhoods. Coincidentally we did this almost exactly one year ago, we visited Long Island City then too, but stayed closer to the river.


We both grew up in Queens, he grew up in Astoria and I in Sunnyside. We really enjoy checking out the neighborhoods to see how they've changed over the years, we moved to New Jersey in 1988, there have been many changes! Yesterday after showing our daughter the schools we went to and the apartment houses we lived in we ventured over to Astoria to have gyros for lunch (I think that's the main reason she came with us). We went back to Mr. Gyro's where we had lunch last year, but the place was now Broadway Eats. Looked like they still made gyros so we were game to check it out. Glad we did, the gyros were just as good as they were last time! Yummy!

 

Gyro at Broadway Eats

After lunch we headed down by the water, then decided to change course and checkout the 5 Pointz graffiti area I had seen photos of several months back. While browsing the web on my phone I noted there were recent news stories that 5 Pointz would soon be closing due to future development plans for the site. I felt it might be now or never, so off we went to Long Island City in search of the world renowned "Graffiti Mecca" off of Jackson Avenue.

As we approached the site, an old warehouse, the first mural that caught my eye

The main entrance was quite intriguing...

Photographers come from miles around to capture the artists and their work

Read more about this amazing place at their website 5Ptz.com

Lake Papaiannia - The Storm

In pursuit of the photo of the day I took a quick detour on the way home this afternoon. With The Daily Shoot assignment in mind for today's shot I headed over to Lake Papaiannia Park in search of a leading trail.

As I spent a few minutes at the park I noticed a storm just rolling right in from the northwest, with quick moving clouds that were just rushing right in.

The reflection on this little lake caught my eye... and despite the impending storm the water was pretty calm.

Within feet of where I stood was the signs of warmer, brighter summer days

A lakeside table for a picnic lunch or late afternoon snack,

A bench to relax and take in the view of the lake and it's surroundings. There is a trail around the lake that is used frequently by the town residents and leashed dogs on their daily walks. Maddox has had fun walking the trail in the past, it time to take him back!

Sunday Drive: Frenchtown, NJ

New Jersey, along the Delaware River has surely captured a part of my heart. Many of my Sunday drives lead back to Hunterdon County, where life seems to be slower and the history richer.

On this particular Sunday we traveled I78 Westbound to Frenchtown,  a small borough right on the banks of the Delaware.We entered town from Route 12 at the bend of Race and Bridge Streets and we were quickly greeted with the lovely colorful shops below.

Like many of the towns in this area of the state, antiques and interior design shops line the main street

As you continue down Bridge Street you come to the Uhlerstown-Frenchtown bridge that leads to Uhlerstown, PA

You can drive or walk the bridge to cross the Delaware River

The bridge viewed from the south east

Back on Bridge Street, there are buildings that date back to the 1800's

Restaurants for every palate

Galleries

And shops that offer unique items

Not to mention the town Cycle Corner....

I just couldn't resist this tandem bike!

I started reviewing and editing this batch of photos Saturday night after seeing Eat Pray Love with my daughter. I've been wanting to see this movie for a few weeks now, just having the need to see a chic flick and try to find some deviation from the daily routine. We both enjoyed the movie finding some messages and solutions to life's little dilemmas. I found it quite ironic to discover Elizabeth Gilbert comes from Frenchtown... it's a very small world we live in!

Historic Track

July 4th weekend was a great time to take a trip out to Goshen, NY where the town was celebrating their Great American Weekend. We took a trip up on Saturday to visit the Historic Track, America's oldest track! Part of the week also included vendors and activities around the town.

A few pictures from the afternoon at the track - 

Ulysses S. Grant once watched the races from the loft of this barn

The refreshment stand is located under the Grand Stand, and proudly displays it's National standing

The band stand and judges stand are prominently located where all can be clearly seen from the Grand stand

The town library participated in the The Great American Weekend by hosting a book sale, there were quite a few people gathering around for the sale.

Despite the heat, we enjoyed the day and may go back again in cooler weather to take the quick Walking Tour offered by the Chamber of Commerce.

Clinton in Spring

I've fallen in love with Clinton NJ... one of the beautiful, quaint towns that gives one a better view of the "Garden State" than the dismal NJ Turnpike could ever do. Hidden along the Raritan River, way out west past the Watchung Mountains is a gem I've been enamored with since my first visit last November.

Last week I had the great pleasure of introducing my brother to Clinton. He was quite impressed with the lovely little town in the NJ Skylands!

Across from the Red Mill on the east bank of the South Branch of the Raritan River, this stone mill now is home to the Hunterdon Museum of Art.

After taking a few shots we strolled Main Street and enjoyed lunch in a little coffee house right on Main Street. Tree-lined Main Street is home to many shops keeping the Victorian shops in order

With many shops maintaining the welcoming touches of potted plants adorning their store fronts

Spring in Clinton is as beautiful as Autumn and Winter, I'd recommend a drive to anyone in the vicinity for a relaxing, enjoyable afternoon!

Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart

Another hidden gem in Newark, NJ. A Flickr contact mentioned that the Cathedral was very close to Branch Brook Park and that it would make for an interesting stop for anyone going up to the park. I'm glad I listened, especially after seeing it from the park! I stopped there for a few moments after leaving the park, I don't think I did it justice as it was an amazing place.

Originally planned to be built in the English/Irish Gothic style, the plans were changed to the French Gothic style in 1913.

Read more at Wikipedia

Cherry Blossoms

Last week I took a few hours and visited Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ. I've been hearing about the Cherry Blossom Festival and how lovely this park was for years, but never had the opportunity to visit until now. Turns out I was missing out on the beautiful display of cherry blossoms and a park that is the first County Park in the nation!

You can visit the Cherry Blossom Center and learn all about the trees that are part of the annual Cherry Blossom Festival each April. This year the festival began on April 12, my visit was on the 8th a little early but hoping to catch blossom before a pending storm did damage.

The park is 4 miles long, with lakes and trails along with recreational areas for use of the local sport teams.

The southern part of the park has a fabulous lake, with views of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart Basilica, one of the largest cathedrals in the United States.

 What a great place to relax and maybe even review some important reading material on lovely spring day!

A great view of the Cathedral from this vantage point!

The lake also provided a wonderful color show in the fountain!

Walking along the path, there were quite a few visitors on this late Thursday afternoon. It's nice to see people out and enjoying the wonderful weather we were having!

And the Cherry trees were all in their colorful spring outfits!

The Cathedral framed with blossoms

Late afternoon light made this tree shine!

A Day in Hoboken

Saint Patrick's Day was a beautiful sunny spring day and Kate and I took a stroll along Washington Street in Hoboken.

Our first encounter was with a street artist that was painting an old time street scene

The painter was friendly and even gave his permission to take photos!

Even the hotdog vendor was cordial, he was very proud that one of the paintings was bought by the city of Hoboken for their archives. There seems to be lots of civic pride in the city!

Have you seen or heard of  "Cake Boss" ? Well Buddy's bakery has been located in Hoboken since the early 1900's. Carlo's Bakery is directly across the street from Town Hall

The TV show has definitely improved this little shop's business, and word on the street is that the town was giving Buddy an award on 3/17 for the shop's contributions to the local economy.

Now that's getting a lot out of your dough... don't ya think?

Kate and I step inside for a few minutes, but the crowd was huge... 

We really don't need to be eating any of those sweet cakes or pastries anyway! We walked a bit further down Washington Street to see what other goodies we could find!

City Hall, directly across from the bakery was bustling with activity, after all it was the middle of a normal weekday.

This Police Officer was trying to keep things moving, mostly that bus which was interfering with the flow of cars and pedestrians! While it was a "normal" weekday, I did think there were more people just strolling along than was usual. Probably just the tourists and St. Paddy's Day celebrants getting ready to partake in the celebrations at one of the many neighbor pubs!

From the looks of things, revelers and inn keepers alike were anxious for this day to begin!

 

Kate was excited to be in Hoboken and wanted to have lunch at one of the many pubs along Washington St.  We did find a place that had a nice menu and reasonable prices, it's a shame I can't recall the name of it.

We loved the traditional pub setting, and the weather was gorgeous so the doors were open wide!

Steak with pesto and cheese was one of the specials, and it was quite good.

There was much more we got to see along Washington Street and then later along the river front. I'll be sure to post those another time! All in all we had a great day and I'm looking forward to another trip to investigate more of the neighborhood!