Wineshops on Manhattan

Today I have been looking for a sparkling Italian wine. More precisely a beautiful bottle with an artistic green label and a handtied string over the cork. Looks classy tastes great and doesn't cost a fortune. Well. I didn't find it. But I did find three supernice wineshops. At the Winfield-Flynn Ltd. in Midtown I was recommended the Chelsea Wine Vault and thereafter I went to Discovery Wines in my own Alphabet City. All staff supernice. Not afraid to recommend other shops. Clever questions on drinking purpose. Great interior - great cards.
____________________
MIDTOWN Winfield-FLynn 558 Third Ave at 37th street
CHELSEA Chelsea Wine Vault 75 Ninth Ave at 15th street
ALPHABET CITY Discovery Wines 10 Ave A at Houston

Privacy policies

Strolling New York is all about me being genuinely curious. Asking and documenting. As simple as that. I guess that is one of the reasons why I love our time. Everything is so accessible. Not everyone is like me tho. People I stroll by - with the most fantastic ideas and creative plans - are afraid. Of our time of people like me of Internet and most of all - of cameras. Usually I'm not allowed to take a pic inside a shop - no matter how much I show my businesscard or let them approve the photo. People are terrified. I am of course used to another and much more open society. But I do sincerely hope people will let down their guard a little bit and take the advantage of the Internet. Soon.

This is the lock of one of those supersecretive superprivate shops.

Bike repair at Lorimer

My favourite bike repair is in Williamsburg. No businesscard no accessories no fancy schmancy. A tad quiet to begin with - but getting more and more talkative. Always very professional and efficient. They fix the bike on the street while you are waiting. Go for a coffe or hang out with the funky crowd. There are also bikes for sale.
____________________
WILLIAMSBURG 636 Lorimer Street
Open all days of the week. Usually close 7pm weekdays.

Russian candy at Brighton Beach

As everyone else I deeply love all the different cultures in this city. Most of all I love to go to Korea China and Russia - all in one day. Just a few blocks from the Brighton Beach subway there is a delicatessen with Turkish and Russian food. And candy. I was so happy when I found this Russian fudge. Absolutely delicious.
____________________
BROOKLYN Brighton Beach Exakt address to come shortly.

Midtown not to be forgotten

____________________
Last fall I spent some decent time in Midtown. Mainly office hours far up in some skyscrape - but also quick lunches and walks to other offices. Yesterday I had a morning appointment just by Madison Square Garden. And I have to say - few things are as fotogenique as some good old New York skyscrapes. Take a stroll along 6th Ave up to 33rd Street over to Madison Square Garden and continue on 8th Ave up to Central Park. Ave 6 and 8 are my favorite walking avenues.
____________________
MIDTOWN 33th Street betw 7th and 8th Ave
Morning hours for the best light.

Live at Ludlow

Pianos on Ludlow is a nice and cosy bar - surprisingly enough with a concert room in the back. Only 8 dollars for all bands playing. First band out was Running still - ballads and more hardcore rock. A very good singer and an extremely entertaining drummer - Zack. Worth seeing live only because of him. A bit later The Bones of Davey Jones with bluegrass-kletzmer made us dance and clap our hands. Great crowd. Nice staff. Pianos is well worth some love for their live music.
____________________
LOWER EAST SIDE 158 Ludlow Street two streets south of Houston
coming soon...

A long New York day at the beach

Some days it is really hard to believe Manhattan NewYorkers are only 45 minutes away from a huge beach with bright blue sky - superfine sand - and refreshingly cold water. Best of all - it's not even crowded. And a total bonus is the kitschy fairground of Coney Island and the Russian neighborhood in Brighton Beach.
____________________
BROOKLYN Coney Island or Brighton Beach Subway N or Q

Mermaid Parade on Coney Island

_______________
A less traditional summer celebration is the Mermaid Parade. And what place can be more suitable for a kitschy and cheesy parade than Coney Island. Actually some of the participants were really good. But most of them were just for fun. And for naked.. This year was the 25th anniversary - and in the evening there was even a Mermaid ball.
____________________
BROOKLYN Coney Island
21st of June - next year i guess...

Swedish Midsummer in New York

Sweden may be known for cold weather and darkness - but that's only the winter truth. Summertime temperatures rise and days never end. The Swedish solstice - Midsummer - is celebrated since pagan days. Most people go to the countryside and eat typical Swedish food such as dark sourdough bread herring salmon meatballs - the smorgasbord - and then a juicy piece of strawberry cake with whipped cream.

Swedish Midsummer in New York is in Battery Park and - I do have to say - is a recommendation for next year. Either come early to avoid lines to delicious Swedish food - or bring your own picknick put together by Swedish friends. Even bottles are allowed. The New York Park Department is organising the event in close cooperation with The Swedish Consulate and Swedish sponsors.
____________________
FINANCIAL DISTRICT Battery Park
Friday between 19th-25th of June.

Free Williamsburg

To get myself around New York I use a lot of different guides - as you can see among the links. Only favourites make it to my list - and Free Williamsburg is the latest add. Great info on restaurants and bars in a perfect strolling area. I especially like the cool background on the website - and therefore borrowed some dots.

Acqua Santa

Acqua Santa is a cosy Williamsburg spot. Good pizza and pasta - don't hesitate to try the beet gnocchi. Most of all I like the interior and atmosphere - very homie. Staff is nice and friendly and the owner quite something. Go see! E per favore - parli in italiano con lui. Winebar will open soon.
____________________
WILLIAMSBURG 556 Driggs Ave Corner of North 7th Street
mon-thu noon-11pm fri noon-midnight sat 11am-midnight sun 11am-11pm

The perfect strolling route

Some of my friends are visiting from Sweden and I am so happy they understand what New York is all about. Strolling. Today we took a stroll from Union Square via a coffee at the undercover Starbucks at Washington Square Park and down south to Prince Street. Prince to Broadway and a couple of streets down Broadway. It doesn't have to be more difficult than that. Supercute and supernice. On my way home cross China Town and up to Alphabet City I had this beautiful view at Houston and Essex. Looks lite Cuba to me. Gotta love.

IKEA Brooklyn opens Wednesday

IKEA will have its grand opening in Brooklyn Wednesday morning.

Actually I took this pic without any thoughts of the opening. Passed a huge IKEA ad at 4 am Saturday morning. When I sat down on the sidewalk for a closeup of the logo - some kids laughed and yelled IKEA all over the street. What I love about the photo is the haze - accentuated by the sharp orange spots that are actual street lamps.
____________________
BROOKLYN 1 Beard Street
Open 9am Wednesday June 18 | thereafter 10am-10pm every day

Beautiful New York pieces

Slipped into Fishs Eddy porcelain shop only minutes before the thunder storm yesterday. The sticky heat outdoors was transformed into a warm and nice homie feeling indoors. Now I know where everyone buys supercute Manhattan cups. Not to mention I fell in love with the Brooklyn bowls. Super nice staff dressed in Manhattan tees. Basically the perfect place to buy classy New York stuff. And enjoy the oil canvas portraits on the walls. - fortunately not for sale.
One can even stay at home and buy online.
____________________
FLATIRON 889 Broadway at corner of 19th Street
mon 10am-9pm tue-sat 9am-9pm sun 10am-8pm