The Counter Seat

Dear New York,

I’ve been thinking about my trip last week. We hadn’t seen each other in six years, so of course I was apprehensive. Especially since, after COVID, the news reported that your rodent problem had dramatically increased. And while I don’t give much credence to news reports, the appointment of a czar to handle the problem did give me pause. I considered not going, but my daughter, who had seen you a few weeks before, assured me it would be fine.

I didn’t really know what to expect, after all, 2020 and the last six years in general changed us all.

Times Square was pretty much like I remembered it. Big screens flashing advertisements for television shows, movies, Broadway plays, perfume, and fashion. Scores of people and tchotchke shops. The vacant Times Square Studios, which housed the production of ABC News’ Good Morning America, made me sad. Their parent company, Disney, relocated the GMA studio and other New York-based productions to consolidate its regional workforce.

I never actually saw Good Morning America being filmed, but I loved knowing it was there. Standing in Times Square, watching the news ticker scroll through the latest headlines, made me feel like I was part of the magic of New York City. But as I rode through Times Square, I felt sensory overload.

I decided the best way to spend my first day back was to go shopping. I have such fond memories of walking down Fifth Avenue, popping in and out of stores. Like that time back in the early 2000s, a few days before Christmas, when we stayed near Rockefeller Center. I woke up early, grabbed a hot mocha coffee, and headed out to finish my Christmas shopping. Walking past the tree in Rockefeller Plaza and the decorated shops was magical. And the dusting of snow made me feel as if I was in a Netflix Christmas movie.

Rather than shopping on Fifth Avenue, I went down to 1 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan’s Financial District, to the French luxury department store Printemps, on my daughter's recommendation. I’d been to the one in Paris, so I had to check it out.

The immersive Devil Wears Prada 2 fashion experience, inspired by memorable scenes from the movie, throughout the store, was captivating. Definitely not your typical department store.

More for looking than buying, in my opinion. I don’t remember much about the Paris store, so I can’t compare the two, but I had a great time, capped off with lunch and champagne at the cafe’s bar.

After lunch, I had a hankering for a more traditional department store, so I hopped in an Uber and headed to Bloomingdale’s flagship store on the Upper East Side. Sure, it would have been faster and cheaper if I had taken the subway, but I hadn’t run into any rodents, and I wasn’t willing to tempt fate. As it turned out, I never did see one. Maybe the czar is earning his keep.

Once I was at Bloomingdale’s, I didn’t get to dig into shopping there as I wanted to. I had to meet my husband for an early dinner at 4:30. But I will say the little time I did spend there felt like old times between you and me.

Later that evening, we went to the theater, and I have to admit that’s one area where you are as stunning as ever. I wish we had had time to see more than one show.

I spent my final day there at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Much like Times Square, there were tons of people, but something about the calm of art made it tolerable. I was excited to see the Costume Art exhibit that examined the dressed body across the Met’s vast collection. Admittedly, I hadn’t bothered to read the exhibit description, so I thought it was about the designs people wore to the Met Gala. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

I found it so interesting to see how the different designers interpreted the art. The most haunting example was the gray hoodie and long, flowing skirt with the words “I’m Retired. This is as dressed up as I get” written on the front, juxtaposed with a vintage photo of two older people nude. The flat, somber institutional gray with the hoodie pulled up was haunting. I couldn’t help but think of the Grim Reaper.

The design inspired by Van Gogh’s Irises and the Abstract Expressionist red, black, and white painting made me want to find one of each in my size.

When I left the museum, I walked down Madison Avenue looking for somewhere to have lunch. The slower pace and fewer people reminded me of the New York I had come to love years ago. I popped in and out of a few shops. I found the perfect dress for a wedding I’m attending in June in one of the shops.

After buying the dress, I stopped in a diner for a Reuben sandwich. As I sat at the counter eating my sandwich, watching people from the neighborhood pick up carryout and eat in the booths, I realized this is the New York I love. Not the spectacle, but the counter seat, the Reuben, the city just living around me.

I don’t know if you and I will spend as much time together as we used to. I’m drawn more to expansive views and nature these days. But I’ll be back for the counter seat.

With love,

Kim