The beautiful weather last weekend drew us out to Coney Island (or Conyne Eylandt -- Rabbit Island, as the Dutch say). Coney never totally disappears, but it gets a bit smaller every year. A shot of the midway, with the Wonder Wheel towering over:

Some vomitous ride with the iconic Cyclone in the background:

And of course, the beach:

On an absolutely beautiful day this week I had to go uptown to 42nd Street for an eye appointment, so I stopped for lunch in Bryant Park:

(New York Public Library)

(Empire State Building)

This sign for the old IND, BMT and IRT lines hangs in the entrance of the Subway terminal based in Port Authority. The old lines disappeared decades ago; why is this sign still hanging? Maybe simple sentimentality. It's not as if it's hidden and forgotten about, tens of thousands see it every day. I like it though, it's a nice remnant of old New York City.

The new Drew Barrymore/Justin Long (the Apple guy) film Going The Distance is filming on our block this Sunday. Co-starring Charlie Day and Christina Applegate.

(Willoughby Ave.)

Although not as handsome as its older sibling the Brooklyn Bridge, The Manhattan Bridge is much better for commuting. The Brooklyn Bridge has one walkway with a line down the center, bikes on one side, commuters on the other. However, the throngs of tourists spill into the bike lane, causing an enormous hazard to bikers (and themselves).

On the other hand, the Manhattan bridge has separate walkways on either side of the span -- Bikes on the north path and walkers on the south path.

Looking west toward Manhattan:

On the left of this picture (facing west, toward Manhattan) you can see the D train rumbling past:

I bought a new bicycle recently (more on that later) and I've been doing a ton of riding. This week I took the Brooklyn Bridge into work and took a minute to stop at the top and take a few photos.

There's a wooden pedestrian walkway which is split into discreet lanes between walkers and bikers. Tourists don't pay attention so it can get a little hairy. The walkway is built above the roadway:

The observation deck where I took these pictures is located at the iconic arch:

And to the north you can see its WPA-built neighbor, the Manhattan Bridge: