Graduation Week

This week there are the Leeds Met Graduation ceremonies, held at the Headingley Campus in the Marquee. I have set up the Leeds Met Caedmon Webcam to record an image every 30 seconds during the day. Friday will be our Graduation of Innovation North, followed by a celebration of our former Dean Cath Orange.

Visitors from India

Since my return from the US, I have been busy at work, catching up with things that were waiting for me. But the main activity was that our friends Falguni, Mitali, and Kiran from Anand in Gujarat, India had arrived on 22.June here in Leeds. We had visited them last November, and now they completed the visit exchange. Brian had taken care of them for the first week, and right when I returned they were on a visit in Stratford-upon-Avon. I picked them all up from there. On the weekend of 4.July Jane had organised a conference at the Northern College Barnsley about "Global Perspectives in Adult Learning", in which I took part on two days. Then this Wednesday the group went to Malham in the Yorkshire Dales for an excursion, and on Thursday I had organised a meeting at Leeds Met with them and a few people at Leeds Met with an interest in Climate Change. On Friday evening our friends left back to India.

Return back to Leeds

Monday morning I get my stuff ready packed, have breakfast, then check out. Still some hours, so I decide to drive a bit into Long Island. Cross over a toll bridge into Atlantic Beach. The beaches there have a light sand, there are also many dunes. But it is not possible to freely access the beach: one would have to pay somewhere else to get an admission, or be a resident.



I stop a few times to take some pictures, then drive on.



This little stretch of land has two coasts: one outward to the Atlantic, another one inward towards the mainland.



Time is getting tight, I need to get back to the airport. Have to find a gas station to fill up the rental car. Everything works out in time, and I fly back. During the approach of Leeds (LBA) the Emley Moor TV Tower peaks out of low ground fog.

And back again in New York City

This time I stay in Queens, not far from the JFK airport, near Jamaica Ave. Has actually a good connection to JFK, with the AirTrain. I explore a bit the neighborhood of Jamaica Ave.



The NY subway E train goes express to Manhattan, it takes only about 30 minutes. I get off near Central Park at 5th Ave.



In the Central Park there are the "Victorian Gardens" with lots of attractions for children:



I walk down the 5th Avenue, passing the Rockefeller Center:



Further along 5th Avenue. The street has been closed for some event, it is being opened block by block. Later I realise that there just had been the annual Gay Pride Parade.



Near the Empire State Building:



Near 33rd Street:





Near Greeley Square with a view of the Empire State Building:



In the evening, back at the hotel, I enjoy watching TV: Bill Maher, and then the cartoons on Fox: Simpsons, Family Guy, King of the Hill. I also use the free WiFi to upload the first set of pictures to Flickr and Photosynth.

Back to the Countryside of NY State

Again out into the countryside of the Hudson Valley. Through the town of Sleepy Hollow, visiting the large cemetery. This is the hometown of the headless horseman's tale.



Further north very nice view over the Hudson River Valley.



Many antiques in the town of Millbrook. I actually buy something: a headset from an old rotary dial phone. This will make a great extension of my mobile phone!

Another Day in New York City

I had gotten a good deal for staying in the Empire Hotel, which is located right across Lincoln Center. But for an extension of the stay the price would go up horrendeously. So I decide to move to another Hotel: the Hudson Hotel. Very strange - this hotel has no sign outside, I almost miss it. There is just "a hole in the wall". Later I learn that the hotel is themed after "Alice in Wonderland".





More walking around the area in Manhattan, Upper West Side.






Views from roof terrace of Hudson Hotel:





58th Street, in front of Hudson Hotel:



And at night:



Dinner at Rosa Mexicano (sic!), a nice Mexican restaurant.

Later I cannot resist going to Times Square, 42nd Street:

New York City: Liberty Island and Ellis Island

I have been in NY many times since 1987, but I never had done one the most important Must-Do-Things for tourists and visitors: visiting the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. There was a long line for buying the tickets, and the airport-style security checks also took time. But then I finally was on the boat. Nice opportunity for many pictures of Manhattan.



The weather first was cloudy, but it then turned sunny. The base of the statue was only open for a limited number of visitors with advanced reservation.



Further on to Ellis Island, the first stop of many generations of immigrants.



This is the central registry hall:



After this excursion, a walk through Lower Manhattan.





A visit at the construction scene of the World Trade Center Site.

Lorin Maazel's Farewell Concert at Lincoln Center: Mahlers Symphony #8

All four performances of Lorin Maazel's Farewell concert had been sold out, when I first checked the web site of Lincoln Center for availability. But when checking again, just hitting reload every few minutes, suddenly seats became available. There was a problem with the web reservation - one could click on a seat in the chart, then it was reserved, but proceeding and actually doing the payment did not work. So I called and reserved my ticket over the phone.

The performed work was Gustav Mahler's Symphony #8, which I actually had never heard before. A great work, unusual, with chorus, also called "Symphony of 1000" because so many required performers.



A review of the concert is available from "Classical Source".

New Haven to Poughkeepsie

On Tuesday morning I check out from the accommodation in New Haven. I now have the option to drive in any direction. Have no hotel reservation, so I can completely arbitrarily move anywhere. I decide to drive up Northwest, towards Poughkeepsie. Since my GPS does not have the map data, I drive just following the signs. Very nice landscape throughout Northern Connecticut, into New York State. Drive through the Bulls Bridge in Kent, one of the many covered bridges in New England.



When I come closer to Poughkeepsie, I suddenly see a large wooden derilict building on the right side of the road, hidden behind bushes and partially overgrown. I stop and take a few pictures, for later assembly into a Photosynth:



It turns out to be the former Bennett School for Girls near Millbrook and has been decaying for more than three decades. It appears to be a quite magical place, and there are many sympathetic posts on a forum with many entries about this building and its history.

I continue driving and soon am in Poughkeepsie in the Hudson River Valley. Appears to be a relatively sleepy town at the River Hudson, where the river banks have some remnants of former industrial installations.



A large bridge across the Hudson Valley captures my eye: it is very rusty and appears to be no longer in use, but there is construction and repair around it. Later I find out that this is a former railway bridge which is being converted into a pedestrian bridge. This will be the largest pedestrian bridge in the world!



It is getting towards evening, and I soon need to find a motel. When browsing the web, I had seen several motels in the area, but when driving now, I seem to be in the wrong area. I decided to drive for a few more miles north of Poughkeepsie, then I will return and search the south side of the town for a motel. But luckily I see a nice place appearing shortly after passing the Culinary Institute of America: The Golden Manor Motel in Hyde Park looks very inviting, and the do have a vacancy at a very reasonable price: $55 per night. So I found my next stay for the night.



In order to use their free WiFi, I have to do a strange thing: enter a pin number which is printed on their router into a form which appears on my laptop... no other guest ever had to do this.

I briefly have a look at the FDR Presidential Library which is just across the street. Very interesting museum and gift shop.



Afterwards I have dinner at the nearby Applebees. There are a few special offers: get two small beers for the price of one, and have a combo of three different small dishes. I have Chicken Wings, Burgers, and Mini Quesadillas.

Sightseeing around New Haven

After the conference I have now some time to do some sightseeing. The cemetery of New Haven appears to be quite a landmark, with its pseudo-Egyptian theme.



There are nice old houses in the downtown area. Overall, about 2/3 of the town center area appears to be the Yale University Campus, with its grandiose buildings.

All my pictures from New Haven are here in this Flickr set.

In the evening I head towards the coast, have an appetite for some nice seafood. And indeed, I spot the place: from far away it seems unremarkable, but I know from Southern California how these places usually look. And indeed, this is an excellent place: Sage American Grill and Oyster Bar.



Very nice atmosphere inside, with a fine dining area below, and a less formal bar area upstairs. I go to the bar area and order a lobster bisk and small lobster rolls - tastes delicious!



After this dinner I drive a bit further along the coast, to Bridgeport which has a very nice park along the coast.