A visit to the city within the city

For Rob's bday last week, we went up to New York in the blazing humidity to continue his celebration. Having just seen the Bourne Ultimatum, we made one of our destinations Tudor City (I won't give anything away by saying that they filmed a scene there). I have never heard of it and rarely venture over to the middle-east side, but it is quickly becoming my favorite.

Here's a little history on Tudor City before I get to my day-by-photo tour (info from Wikipedia).

• "Tudor City" takes it's name from England's Tudor Dynasty (1485-1603) a Golden Age of Arts and Letters.
• In the 1920s, the complex was built to bring in middle-class residents who had begun leaving the city for the outer boroughs and suburbs
• Includes a U.S. Post Office, hotel, grocery store, haircutting salon, laundry, and restaurant in addition to three garden parks and a children's playground.
• Located directly across First Avenue from the United Nations Headquarters
• The UN was built to replace a slaughterhouse that was demolished in the 40's.
• In 1988, the complex was named as a historic district and is perhaps most famous for its TUDOR CITY sign overlooking 42nd Street.

Our day started with a ferry ride out of Weehawken's new Port Imperial. From our slip, we could see 2 Norwegian Cruise Line ships waiting to depart. One of them was the Spirit, the boat we took on our Honeymoon!




















One of the nice things about taking the ferry is the unlimited bus service around the city. We hopped on the 5th avenue bus so we could make a stop at Brooks Brothers. We actually went to the flagship on 44th and Madison. Wow, was that store huge! Seven floors! The saleswomen couldn't have been more helpful to us.

After Brooks Brothers, we cut through Grand Central Station. I love the architecture. My camera doesn't really capture it that well though.













Next was Tudor City. You can tell you're getting to a nice area of the city when you start to see trees and potted flowers. The main restaurant is L'Impero and although it's covered in scaffolding, it has a great outdoor ambiance. Reminiscent of an Italian cafe (not that I've been to Italy or anything).

























After our tour of Tudor City, we went on a hunt for a dinner spot. We ended up eating at one of my favorite Indian restaurants Bukhara Grill, which is on E 49th between 2nd and 3rd (on the same street as Smith and Wollensky). They opened and express place up in Parsippany as well. Now, I wouldn't say it's the best Indian restaurant ( my favorite is still Passage to India in Lawrenceville), but I think the food and ambiance combined keeps me going back.









After our relatively early dinner, we took a really quick cab ride up to Central Park to walk around and look for ice cream. Though we did not find an ice cream shop, the streets were lined with ice cream trucks. We also saw the coolest Apple Store facade ever! Right in front of FAO on 5th Ave, was a glass cube with the Apple floating and people cascading downstairs. How cool is that! The Plaza Hotel was still under scaffolding, but they were advertising the luxury condos for just a mere 1.5 million! On our way back downtown, we passed a gourmet deli shop that we had been to last year. I took a picture of the name so we could remember it for next time. It's called the Manhattan Gourmet Deli and I think it was on E. 57th St. but can't find it online anywhere.We also passed by the Laila Rowe store. The night before I was looking on their site for store locations and figured that I wouldn't find one especially since we go to the city so seldom. But there we were right in front of it! SO I had to go in, but I resisted the urge and didn't buy anything. I'm in penny pinching mode now!












The last stop on our tour of the city was Bryant Park. What a perfect night for rest and relaxation. The movie screen was set up for their Summer Film Festival as well as Good Morning America's Summer Concert Series. The Bryant Park Grill is situated behind the NY Library with a cafe/bar adjacent to it. We took a load off at the bar. I sipped a lovely champagne and enjoyed the scenery. And by 9ish, it was time time to head back to the Port.
















Alas, we made it back to the ferry and back home. But here is one of my favorite shots of the night: the evening city skyline. It was a great bday day!

Regrowth, Redevelopment & Rebirth: New Jersey Transit Village-South Amboy

If you or someone you know works in New York City and wants to move to a New Jersey town that is near the train or ferry, I have a place for you! Believe it or not, South Amboy has become a destination for city professionals since it's redevelopment project started in 1999.

Since 1999, a new wave of redevelopment swept through New Jersey's Transit station towns to make use of vacant or underused land. Towns like Morristown, Belmar, Metuchen, New Brunswick and Journal Square/Jersey City have received grant money to improve their transit village and as a life-long resident of the Morristown area, I can totally feel the difference.

Like Morristown and New Brunswick, South Amboy received grant money to start a plan that Mayor John T. O'Leary had envisioned for his hometown. The plan was to bring back the vitality of the harbor town that had become vacant and a destination for bar hopping and strippers:

''We had 60 percent vacancy along Broadway,'' the town's central artery downtown, he said. ''The storefronts were boarded up and shabby, the sidewalks were in bad shape, the lighting was old and burned out. There were water main and sewer breaks all over town.''-New York Times article

"[He sought to] banish bars with exotic dancers in South Amboy, once listed in travel literature as having more bars per capita than any other city in the country."-NYT

With the bus, ferry, Garden State Parkway, and New Jersey Transit all within walking distance from the downtown, South Amboy is a hub for city transportation and a perfect location for a suburb life that many professional are looking for.

With the grant money, Mayor O'Leary started with a new school/library, a senior living facility, a downtown parking garage, and new stores and storefronts.

In 2001, a 136-acre Middlesex County park with a gazebo and playing fields was opened and new housing was erected in Lighthouse Bay-a community of townhouses and single-family homes with Victorian and New-England style architecture. Friends of ours lives in one of the single family homes. One word: Gorgeous!. Back in 2002, when the New York Times article was published, the homes ranged from from $411,990 to $455,990, now they are worth almost $1.3 million. Talk about resell value!

In addition to Lighthouse Bay, you will find another townhouse community called Harbor Village and brand new condos/townhouses called Beacon Pointe which are located just as you drive into town from Rt 9/Rt 35.


If you are currently neighborhood hunting and you want to be close to New York with the option of train, ferry or road, take a drive through South Amboy. Talk to the locals. Wander through Harbor Village and Lighthouse Bay. Stroll along the boardwalk or have a picnic in the park. You'll quickly start to feel at home.