The day began with the rather distressing news of the sacking/resignation of James Hird. In solidarity I put on my Essendon running top and headed out for a run. There were two middle aged ladies in the elevator to the ground floor. “James Hird just got sacked,” said one of them. Sheesh.

It had just been raining so there was an almost tropical humidity to Central Park, making conditions pretty unpleasant for a run. Even at 6:30 it was hot and very sticky so I was soon a sweaty mess. Still, glad to get out and try my new running shoes, and work off a small amount of all the food we’ve been having. My phone informs me we are walking an average of 10km per day so that’s a start.

There were plenty of other runners out. In particular I love that the road around the inside of the park has a dedicated runner’s lane and separate bike lane. The lane for cars appears to be reserved for park vehicles, so apart from fellow runners and cyclists there was no traffic at all. Perfect!

Returning for a quick breakfast of average crepes, we caught the subway down to 30th street to meet Salli and Dottie and walk along the high line. This is an elevated railway which has been converted to a linear park, a lovely strip of greenery through the city. 

  

 Salli told me that this was where aspiring supermodels often come to be “discovered” so I had the camera at the ready! Much to my disappointment there were no supermodels, instead there were groups of Buddhist monks offering beads and other trinkets. Salli warned us that these are actually fake monks (Punk monks? Junk monks? Bunk monks?) and if you accept their gift they put the hard word on you for a donation. They passed me right by without offering anything, presumably I looked calm and centred already. 

  

 
There was lots of nice urban art and plenty of benches and fountains, it was a really enjoyable experience. 

 We took the elevator back to ground level, then wandered the meat packing district. Out of the cooling greenery the sun was a bit too hot for the kids, so we trooped indoors to the Chelsea market. This had lots of food and drink options, and looked like a very funky place to get food or sweets. Fortunately (?) the crepes hadn’t been that long ago so we just took a tour without any purchases. 

Salli mentioned that she knew of a nice place for a sangria, and given the perfect conditions for such a venture, we headed to “The Frying Pan” on pier 66 and grabbed a long cool pitcher of sangria and some lunch. 

 The sangria was delicious, but I worried that it was deceptively strong as the floor started swaying slightly. Thankfully this was just due to the fact that it was a floating pier, rather than any great inebriation.

Our thirst quenched we dropped in on Salli’s hotel to say hello to her husband Patrick and dog Sadie. Otto was smitten with Sadie and had a lovely time playing, but it was soon time to make our way back to the hotel to freshen up before dinner, and perhaps a couple more cooling beverages.