An afternoon in Central Park

Yesterday afternoon I took the train to Central Park. A company had set up a hot air balloon near 72nd street and was offering rides. I've never ridden a hot air balloon and decided to see how long the lines were. They were non-existent.

A number of television crews had set up in front of the teathered balloon. Pedicabs rode around searching for fares. They asked each person walking by if they'd like a ride. I walked up to a table where two women sat under a tent, sunglasses masking their eyes. I asked about the rides.

They told me that the rides were cancelled due to wind conditions and told me to come back tomorrow. Then they paused. "Are you a native New Yorker?" one asked. I replied in the affirmative. "Come back Monday morning at 6:45am," she told me. "We're telling everyone else to come back tomorrow, and they'll all be tourists. Then the weekend is really busy." I thanked her for her advice and calculated what time I would have to rise from bed to make it to the park at that hour. Then I debated with myself whether I could wake up so early.

I walked to a hill overlooking the balloon and set down my blanket. I ate a sandwich and pulled a book out of my bag. A photographer set up in front of me, trailing a model. An entourage trailed him. He set up some shots and began shooting before they broke for lunch. Now and again tourists would ask to step into his shot in order to balance on a rock he was using as a backdrop to take their own photos. I took some photos of the photographer and his crew.

Clouds came and went. A few stray drops fell. After a few hours I got up to leave. The photographer and his crew had moved a few hundred feet away. The model had changed, and they were setting up another shot. I walked to Conservatory Water and watched the model boats glide along the surface of the pool, then turned north, and headed towards class.
Posted by eku at August 1, 2008 10:00 AM