I am playing in New York this week. Lucked out with fantastic weather (short sleeves!!) and the beginning of watching the seasons change. Beautiful! It is a wonderful time of year to be here.
My goal for this trip? To stroll, meander and walk the streets. That is really all I wanted to do and I have probably walked a couple hundred blocks in the past few days–my feet are killing me but I am loving it!
First stop? The High Line. Wow. Took my breath away. In the middle of the super industrial west side of Manhattan is a public park 30 feet above ground. A glorious urban ecosystem–old brick buildings, modern glass high rises coupled with a park filled with sustainable greenery, plants, birds, compost and bees.
I recently met two women who started a gardening company called Urban Hedgerows. The idea comes from the practice that if bees, birds and insects have mini habitats even in the most urban environment they can help feed, pollinate and supply an ecosystem. The High Line is a fantastic example. Bees were buzzing, birds were eating happily, all different types of plants were thriving and all the while people were sitting on benches reading or taking a lunch break, talking with friends or strolling like me.
I started on West 30th Street and walked the whole 20 blocks. Every couple hundred feet the design changed and so did the plants. A wonderful example of how modern design and nature can come together and completely regenerate an ecosystem and neighborhood.
So where did I eat? Dinner last night was at Bell Book and Candle. As I walked in to this gorgeous space I said, “did this place used to be a laundry mat?” Gotta love New York. This where I did my laundry when I was living in the West Village and now it is a new fantastic, delish, beautiful restaurant that grows 60% of their produce on the roof using aeroponic gardening. Heaven.
For those of you who have a hard time ordering healthy try doing what we did. We ordered an entree of roasted vegetables and then two appetizers of protein. It was perfect and provided the balanced plate I was looking for. Yum.
Bees are happy in New York City….plenty of urban gardens for them to stop and play…maybe they have as much fun strolling the city as I do.