I was greeted by a gloomy Manhattan sky. It was 9:30 AM.
The sun was slowly making its presence felt, appropriately celebrating the last installment of New York City’s ‘Summer Streets 2012.’ On three Saturdays in August – the Fourth, 11th and 18th – Knickerbockers are treated to an entire stretch of Park Avenue being closed down – all for the purpose of fun and play.
People are able to enjoy a unique look of the area (since it’s never not busy), and are allowed the privilege of fun activities; from running, biking (there’s free rentals and helmet giveaways), getting on a zip-line with skyscrapers as the backdrop. They also get to enjoy a myriad of offerings with that New York flare (mostly free and voluntary), such as improv performances, mini kids’ games, and food samplings – all these as one goes down 59th St., all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge.
I took in the scenery, the activity. I cannot fathom another place in the world that could pull this thing off, in this manner.
There was a long line that caught my curiosity. And coming towards me was a tall, exuberant figure with a big friendly smile on his face. He was handing out buttered bread samples, all while expertly directing people’s attention to a stall at the end of the line.
“Would you like to try our bread? It’s really good,” he said, handing me a bag.
Oh wow, thanks! What’s your name, sir? – I asked, him, and explained that I was writing about the event.
“My name is Morten. It’s nice to meet you!”
I didn’t realize it, but I was speaking with Aamanns-Copenhagen‘s Operations and Restaurant Director, Morten Friis. Aamanns- Copenhagen is the only exclusive Danish restaurant in New York.
Nice fellow, for sure.
And then I asked him, “What’s this line for?”
“This is for our Danish lunches. We’re selling them for today,” he explained. “You should try it out.”
I kept walking down, camera in hand. There was such a vibrant energy here. People were lining up for free bike rentals. There were families enjoying each other’s company, little kids running around.
A local station was blasting tunes away. (That Jay-Z – Alicia Keys song never gets old.)
The NY Rangers had this booth where you could take a couple of slap shots. A little further down, there was a station where you could throw spirals into a netted target. And beyond that, this yellow blow-up contraption that looked like a bouncy house, except it was in the form of a sofa.
It was pretty awesome, just looking around.
I soon found myself on 51st street. I had been looking for the line for the free helmets.
It was a busy sight. The line stretched all the way down Lexington, but these guys moved fast. In my hesitation, I ended up checking out the ‘Volunteer Check-In’ on the corner.
I then meet a lovely lady named Alicia, who also happens to be a TV casting director. She and two of her colleagues in the photo below were among the people who had been assisting with Summer Streets, getting up early for a 7 AM start.
The helmet line, like I said, was packed. But they said it was only a 20-minute wait, and so I hopped on line anyway.
The wait was made pleasant by the company of two lovely ladies, an independent film maker named Karin, and her cousin Kameryn. Karin was translating the forms you needed to fill out to get the free helmet – it was in Spanish.
She also told me a little bit about her latest project – a documentary called ‘We’re Not Broke.‘
(But, more on that later.)
Pretty soon, we were getting fitted. The volunteers were very light-hearted and seemed to enjoy their time with one another, and with the people they were helping out. The lady that fitted me was also funny, and was very warm.
Here, you find her patiently struggling with my dome:
And here, with some of the awesome volunteers (and the little dude grilling me for some reason):
As I left the stand and said goodbye to the cousins, I kept walking around. It was easy to get lost in the scenery of people.
There were volunteers dressed in bright orange shirts, helping the NYPD with pedestrian crossing. One of the volunteers, Benita, held 50th all by her lonesome.
Heading further down, more bikers:
I sat in front of the JP Morgan building, soaking in the view.
Next year, I’m bringing my helmet, and I’m riding all the way down to Brooklyn.
(For the full gallery, visit our Facebook Page.)
