Sunday, August 07, 2011

Manhattan Mania



I stopped for a night in New York City after flying in from India. I had bought my first SLR in Singapore during the transit stop - a Canon Rebel T3i/EOS 600D. Eager to try my skills with the new camera, I walked out towards Byrant Park in the evening. Among the most pleasant areas today to spend a lazy evening, this park has quite a history.



George Washington and his troops passed over this area when he retreated from the Battle of Long Island. Also, Byrant Park was once a graveyard for the poor, while in the 70s the park had been taken over by prostitutes and drug addicts. However, now it is picture perfect in the evenings.

I soon found myself in front of Grand Central Station. It was close to dinner time, so I strolled into Ammos for some Greek food.





The dolmades were served warm and turned out pretty good. The sea-food risotto, on the other hand, wasn't particularly memorable. While the tiger prawns and scallops tasted good, the rice was over-cooked.





Handling the hefty camera wasn't easy when taking food pictures and I was missing my trusty S90 already!

It was dark now as I retraced my path and walked past my hotel to Times Square. As always, Times Square was filled with the usual hordes of tourists. I always feel a sense of excitement being here - the heart of New York City - a sight seen so many times in movies, a place familiar to me even before I ever traveled to the United States.



I strolled around taking in the sights and as drops of rains began to fall, I hurried back to my hotel. I had a morning flight to catch for Chicago.

2 comments:

Suhel Banerjee said...

Are you in Chicago now by any chance? Would love to catch up with you! By the way, I also just ordered my 1st DSLR and am apprehensive about how the food pictures will come out. The S3IS has been a steady friend for so long!

Shantanu said...

@Suhel: Actually, I am back from home from Chicago. Backlogged on my blog posts. :)