From inside the Town Hall

This view of the tower was taken from the interior courtyard.

The Breakers

The most famous of the Newport mansions was built by the Vanderbilts in the 1890's, and has 70 rooms.

When we saw the back of the house from the Cliff Walk, I have to admit that $24.50 no longer seemed like such an outrageous price to pay for the privilege of paying a visit. I still wasn't interested in the interior, but I very much wanted to sit under one of the big shade trees on the velvety lawn and stare out at the ocean for awhile.

Then we walked around to the front and saw the long, long line waiting to get in, and I realized that I had much better things to spend $24.50 on after all.

Orchard Street

I took a break from sorting and resizing photos to meet my friend Jayne for an early brunch at Cafe Katja on the Lower East Side. The neighborhood is a hipster paradise these days, but all the cool is a veneer over the very old wrought iron and brick bones.

For all the glossy super-high rises and luxury this and that everywhere, much of Manhattan still looks the way it did a century ago. For which I am profoundly grateful.