High Line post no longer on hold.

While the future of my personal garden is up in the air, I’m doing my best to keep a positive attitude. To keep pushing on and living life to the fullest even though the future is so uncertain. And today nothing makes me happier than writing about the High Line.

So I will do just that.

I took a day off last week to spend it entirely on the High Line. It did not disappoint. Well check that, the $46 cost for parking was a bit of a BS deal disappointment, but when in NYC …

It was the perfect summer day without a cloud in the sky. While all others were slumming away at their jobs, I was gleefully pacing the old elevated freight rail line stretching from 14th to 34th street in Manhattan.

I had visited the High Line back in September and only had a chance to walk it between 14th and 20th street. This time I walked the entire thing … three times.

Once without taking a single photo in order to get a good feel for this urban oasis in its entirety, a second time to observe the surrounding buildings and their interplay with the garden and a third time to pay special attention to the plants. The story of the plants will be covered in a separate post because well, they deserve it.

I love Manhattan. I love the chaos, the diversity, the energy and the aura of wondering what is going on behind the doors of each building as you pass by. I guess I like the extremes. The extreme calm quiet and “country” of my little hamlet in NJ and the extreme of everything in NYC. I’ll pass on the suburbs.

What immediately strikes you upon entering the High Line is how different Manhattan looks not only from the elevated view (30 feet above the streets) but the juxtaposition between hard urban and soft plant life. It is overwhelming at first (in a good way) until you settle in and let the reality of this special place suck you in.

Even the obnoxious billboards are softened by all of the greenery.

So as I started my second full tour of the park, I focused on the nearby buildings and how they are integrated into the park itself.

While the obvious sight here is the Empire State Building, I was actually more absorbed by the church that sits in front of the world famous landmark. The church is the “General Theological Seminary”, an Episcopal seminary chartered in 1817 and home to one of the greatest collection of Latin Bibles in the world. I find that to be very cool.

I absolutely love the compass plant and the way it twists and turns to and from the sun. It makes for wonderful photos with the “city” backdrop.

More than once, I found myself glued to the view below. As much as I love me some Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium), the building in the background is what caught my eye. It is the IAC building, headquarters for Barry Diller’s Interactive Corporation.

I have no idea if this is a residence or not, but either way, I want to live there.

I guess Bisazza is some sort of high end mosaic designer and they just opened this flagship store on the High Line. Big deal, I just want to hang on their rooftop deck.

Another spot to lounge and be seen by those walking the High Line. I especially love the astro-turf/putting green flooring.

The artwork/sculptures along the way pack an even larger punch when viewed from up on high.

This one is very cool. That is not graffiti on the brick wall. It is a sculpture that is at least 10-20 feet away but obviously placed there to create the illusion.

Not window washing, but building surface washing. This is “HL 23”, the first building to be named after the park. It’s claim to fame is that it is wider by 40% at the top in order to conform to NYC zoning laws.

The bulk of the High Line is surrounded by Manhattan construction projects galore. Once could argue that it fits right in with the urban/garden vibe or that it is a distraction. I sort of lean towards the former.

My next post will cover the latest section to be completed (September 2014), between 30th and 34th street. It is a complete departure from the other sections yet makes a lot of sense when viewed as a whole.

Until then …