There's no place like MOMA

Monday, July 9, 2007: Day 5 in NYC

Last day in NYC. We are leaving with regret. We wanted one or two days more. I didn't find Madame X, we didn't go to Washington Square, we didn't see a Broadway show, we didn't explore Soho fully. But we leave wanting more not less which is a good thing! We had breakfast again at Pershing Square, this time getting a seat in the back. A great place with terrific atmosphere! You can see a pic of it here.

We headed out for the MOMA at 53rd and 5th (yet another City Pass attraction - I reiterate it's a great deal!). I am still alarmed at how it appears that all the gallery attendants there are black, everyone at the reception desk is white or Asian, the people in the cafe appear to be Hispanic. Is it just me? Am I being overly sensitive about this? This is particularly odd when viewing the cubist works of art which have African themes and faces in the work.

The new MOMA is beautiful, spacious, completely pristine, with the 4th and 3rd floors having a giant floor to ceiling window which faces the street (5th Ave.?) and a truly Manhattan landscape: elaborate 19th c. buildings and new office buildings juxtaposed against a busy urban street with yellow taxis scurrying up and down the avenue.

How odd, and exciting, to see the original works of art in front of you as my brother-in-law T said. It's a bit disorienting. Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (create in 1907 - now 100 years old) by Pablo Picasso, Piet Mondrian's intriguing boxes and lines in Broadway Boogie Woogie, Gustav Klimt's Hope II, Salvador Dali, Man Ray, Giorgio de Chirico's The Song of Love, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Modigliani, Andy Warhol's Campbell's Soup Cans and Double Elvis, Jackson Pollock's splatter paintings, so close you can see the brush strokes. And the kids were admirable in their patience.

But we only had a hour at the MOMA and could do no more than two floors at best. We had to rush back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and get to the airport. Our flight was at 3 and luckily it all went to plan. We even had time for a nice lunch at the airport before we boarded.

We were home by six. None of the pets perished, the grass in the backyard did not wilt and die, the house was well taken care of due to the care of family and friends. We were tired but happy - it was a great trip!