Three Saturdays a year, athletes rejoice because Park Avenue is closed to traffic and pedestrians are free to walk, run or cycle from the Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall all the way up to Central Park. It’s called Summer Streets and Citibank makes it possible. David is obsessed with this concept and so every year, we take advantage. It helps that we’ve always lived within a stone’s throw of the route.
This year, we were away the first two weekends so we made sure we were out bright and early this past Saturday since it was the last weekend of Summer Streets until next year.
We ran from our apartment on 17th Street, up to Central Park and did one lower loop of the park for a total of about 4.5 miles. David wanted to keep going, but I had had enough. They were hot miles but it felt great to get out and be a part of it. After, we walked to Juice Press and split an almond butter smoothie bowl. The best.
That afternoon we headed to a BBQ in Hoboken. We took the PATH train there which required us to walk through the Westfield World Trade Center Mall and it was truly incredible. Having lived in a building that overlooked the re-build for 5 years I feel a deep sense of pride for how the city has moved forward.
On Sunday, we decided to catch up on housework in the morning then wanted pancakes.
I usually make my own, but we wanted to get outside so we settled on going to Friedman’s in Chelsea Market since they cater to gluten-free diets. David ordered eggs with turkey bacon, I had a veggie sandwich with a fried egg on top and we shared a gluten-free blueberry pancake which was fluffy and flavorful. (Tip: I asked how many pancakes came in an order and the answer was 3. I knew that I wouldn’t feel well after an entire order of pancakes and that I wanted some protein and vegetables so I asked if they could do a smaller order of pancakes and the answer was yes. This way we could each have a healthy meal and indulge our craving by sharing a pancake. Done. Always ask for what you want at a restaurant).
The plan after brunch was to rent Stand Up Paddleboards, but when we got there, they were all out on a private tour. Instead, we rode Citibike back downtown and checked out City Vineyard at Pier 26 which is basically the same as SUP.
How was your weekend? If you live in NYC, are you a fan of Summer Streets? Have you ever tried SUP?
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