Uh oh

So, things have not been working from a geographical perspective this week. First, there was the trip to the Upper East Side for #6’s singing lesson. Having said we rarely take the subway, this new venture necessitates a trip up, up and away, so it’s off to the 1 train we go. Only today, when we arrived at 86th Street and I was congratulating myself on getting there with time to spare (a novel experience, as those of you who know me will appreciate), I suddenly realised that not only were we on the west side because we had forgotten to change at 42nd Street, but I wasn’t sure which way was east. Uh oh.

I was convinced we could still make it in time, if only we could work out in which direction to head. So out came the iPhone and behold, Google Maps told me it would take just over 23 hours to get there. Hmmm. Apparently the Upper East Side is now in Minnesota. Who knew? I started to perspire more than I was already.

Luckily, at that point a man came along and recognised a panic attack about to happen. I love that New Yorkers love to give directions. And so we were off in an easterly direction and I was convinced we still might make it on foot – until a barrier of trees loomed. Who could forget Central Park? At that point I sagged in despair, so #6 flagged down a cab and we piled in and I rang the singing teacher and apologised, five times. She assured me she had done the very same thing that very same week and blamed it on the humidity – I didn’t believe her but I appreciated the gesture.

Second, I was meeting a friend for coffee, at Charles and Seventh. I set off along West 4th, which seems to have been overtaken by construction workers. There is digging and bashing and all sorts going on, though I have no idea who is doing all this banging and crashing as there were hordes of yellow hard hats huddled all over the sidewalk, not wielding tools but rather bent over cell phones, thumbs wiggling madly. I remember the good old days when road workers would have been standing in a hole in the ground, talking about who was going to win ‘Strictly’ on Saturday.

Enjoying the sun, I took the opportunity to size up the restaurants along there as we are going out to dinner with some new friends and they want us to choose the venue. (I wonder if this might be some kind of test? Uh oh.) And so it was that I forgot to look out for Charles Street but found a lovely jewellery shop I had meant to revisit and I had a jolly chat with the Romanian salesgirl who came here nine years ago as an au pair and stayed, and then I bought a silver ring I had been coveting for a while, and then I remembered my friend.

Uh oh.

Inspiration struck today at ... Dominique Ansel, 7th Avenue and Charles Street

Sitting in the shade at this trendy little coffee shop, you almost don’t notice the buses and taxis and crazy drivers whizzing past.
Pros: Cute outdoor venue for drinking coffee and spotting people you haven’t caught up with in a while.
Cons: Strange set-up inside that necessitates some climbing, so not suited to those of us who aren’t terribly bendy.