I was looking through a billion old photos this morning and came across this one of my wife, sitting in the biergarten at Loreley Restaurant and Biergarten in New York City in the summer (if memory serves) of 2009. We stopped in for a snack and a beer, I think, as we were wandering on foot all over New York. Seeing the photos, especially this one of her smiling so genuinely, makes me long to make another trip back to NYC. A friend I’ve never met in person who lives in the area regularly invites me to come see him and let him show me the restaurants and havens for wonderful food that he knows I would enjoy. He posts photos of grilled octopus that I would kill for.
It’s not just the food, of course. New York City has some of the most intriguing neighborhoods, some exceptional architecture, and pockets of culture that you just can’t find in Arkansas or, for that matter, in Texas. It’s odd that my wife and I did not go to any plays on Broadway during any of our few trips to NYC. Not that we didn’t want to, we just couldn’t fit it all in. During our last trip, I seriously suggested we should throw caution to the wind and rent a tiny place there for six months so we could really experience the city. That was before we sold our house in Dallas and bought another one in Arkansas; a six-month excursion into life in New York City is no longer an option. But maybe a week-long trip would be doable, if we could find an affordable hotel in a location we could be sure was safe. Hmmm. That’s one thing about New York City lodging; affordable is not part of the concept. I remember thinking $190 per night was a good price back then, when I had an income. Not any more. Then again, you only go around once in this life, so perhaps a long weekend…
Just daydreaming for the moment. I’ll have to dig out all those other photos and post a New York City retrospective one day. I suspect half the photos will involve food or architecture.
