Getting to the Train at Penn Station

You would have thought that an hour for a cab ride down Manhattan's west side from 101st Street to Penn Station (34th Street) would have been enough for comfortable-train-catching.

It was Wednesday, July 2 & George & I were headed for Springfield Mass where we would rent a car. The talk of Arthur-the-first-big-hurricane was in the air.

There were obstacles: construction, volume delays, ambulances & the usual summer-in-the-city business. I had to quell my growing twitchiness about maybe not getting there on time. So I took out my camera to document the scene. I was glad I did. 

It's in moments like that I think I understand why Bartok wrote such difficult music.

Fourth of July flags? No, a huge vessel, The Intrepid was open to the public. 
Wasn't that Baby Bush's 'mission accomplished' stage set?   I think so.

                               Those are jet pods. It's an aircraft carrier.

                        

Already I am into the visual jumble of our travel route.  Travel & travail are related words, I recently learned.  I get it.

This must be the Chinese Embassy in New York. It was south of the Intrepid, & overlooking the Hudson, for sure.

Then we went through a construction patch. We were running parallel to the West Side Highway.

I love all the cranes, grids, superstructures, & diagonals.
We get off the highway & suddenly we are in 'neighborhoods'. I am very grateful for our driver's knowledge of the city. Aside from knowing which streets run which ways, he knows where the current obstructing construction closures are & how to avoid them.

                                                                    Visual chaos!

It's slow going though. I don't check my watch because there is nothing I can do about it.

 It's a selfie!  Can you see me in the back seat, my hands on my camera?

 I look up & recognize the Highline, the elevated-train-line-park I've visited several times.

My imagination took off wondering what the line-up was for.

                                        trafficTRAFFICtrafficTRAFFICtraffic

The jumble of images reflects my inner turmoil. The driver thinks we'll make it. I trust his judgement, though it's hard.

In the end, once we can actually see Penn Station, we say our farewells to him, take our bags, & roll off to the station. We are, in fact there in plenty of time.... & the next leg of the travel begins...

New railroad ties are being installed. Infrastructure maintenance.

See that Arthur-grey sky? As soon as we were in our car in Springfield, Mass. the heavens opened. The 4th of July events in Vermont got rained out.  Fine with me, I needed down time in the country.
                                                    That's it for now.