One Pantzer in New York

June 30: Trump country

James, saw your comment so please let me end your confusion…….some people (not you) plan ahead when organising holidays, and so Diana researched and booked transport from Porto to Lisbon to get the best deal (like you) oblivious to the fact that there was an accreditation barrier. How many places in the world have you ever experienced limits on taxi entry??

And, Deena, thanks so much for introducing me to Marlene, who just happens to be the Managing Director at the Hotel Carlyle, and who I met this morning. (More on this later).

Unlike Porto, with its narrow and meandering streets and confusing public transport, New York has a very structured street system so i thought I would try the New York subway. Turns out that it’s a breeze compared to getting a 207 bus in Porto. I got the right subway station, on the right side, with the right fare….i just got off a few stops too early, so had to walk a while in order to reach the Museum of Contemporary Art (MoMa).

The most famous piece in MoMa is Vincent Van Gogh’s “ Starry night”, but my personal favourite was Paul Gauguin’s “Still life with three puppies” (you can guess why)

There was one room dedicated to Claude Monet’s water lilies and I just had to have a photo taken there because I have often used this image when I send an e-birthday card. I’m sure some of you have received this from me….the card involves a dog diving into Monet’s lily pond!

Am including photos of some of my other favourites, so that in future, I can recall what they were…… I realise that this will be of little interest to you so you can skip these photos! (OR I could run a competition and give a prize to the person who names all the artists, but we all know that Jim would be the winner!)

I walked back to hotel, including a stroll through Central Park, by which time I was exceedingly hot and in need of air conditioning. After a short rest and cooling down period, I went to see the Frick Collection which holds one of the world’s foremost collections of fine art.

It only reopened in April after undergoing its most comprehensive upgrade in almost 90 years. The 1914 mansion’s original steam heating and cooling systems have been replaced with state-of-the-art systems, outdated electrical wiring has been replaced, antiquated skylights in the galleries have been replaced with ultraviolet-protected glass, its second floor has been opened to the public for the first time and so on.

The mansion is truly magnificent and has some remarkable pieces of art dating back to the 1600s displayed on its walls, including an exhibit of Vermeer’s love letters, and artists like Thomas Gainsborough, Bruegel, Renoir, Manet, Monet and Romney.

You weren’t allowed to take photos of the pictures, but I did get a couple of the courtyard and one of the painted ceilings.

When I returned to my room, I received a complimentary dessert and handwritten note from Marlene telling me that she had booked me a table at the hotel’s iconic Bemelman bar (normally you can’t reserve a table there! (Thank you again, Deena)

The Bemelman bar is named after a children’s author who wrote the Madeline series of books ( I don’t remember the series….before my time?) He was commissioned in 1947 to paint large scale murals to depict the 4 seasons in Central Park. The murals are childlike and are the only surviving Bemelman commission which is open to the public. A live jazz trio plays each night,