An Ode to BPC

Every once in a while, I find myself somewhere in the city and I am struck by the fact that I actually live in New York City in the 21st century.

I've had that experience while visiting the High Line, zipping through dark tunnels on the subway, sitting at my fountain, walking through Central Park on a warm summer evening, and most recently, when I visited Battery Park City for the first time.

Battery Park City is really an extension to Manhattan Island, developed out of the excavated material from the construction of the World Trade Center in the 1980s.

credit: wikipedia.org

I visited BPC on a breezy, sunny day towards the end of the summer.
As I meandered along the paths, I continuously discovered more features of the park that I absolutely loved.
As I now write about my experience, I am having difficulty pinpointing one specific aspect of the park to write about.

So instead, I will share the following guide:

Visiting Battery Park City means visiting the quintessential urban retreat. In my opinion, it maintains all the elements that make up a perfect urban retreat - it is adjacent to water, has loads of greenery, cool public art, a unique indoor atrium, beautiful views, fountains, history, and plenty of areas where you could just have fun and be a kid :-). 

In order to gain the full effect, when you visit BPC, be sure to:
...walk along the river on the beautiful Esplanade:

credit: wikipedia.org

...stroll through a shady, tree-lined walkway:

Credit: www.tfcornerstone.com

...discover some really cool public art in the South Cove (the black circular structure is actually a set of stairs!):

...find the awesome Otterness on display in Rockefeller Park:

credit - www.tomstudio.com

... hang out at one the funnest playgrounds in the entire NYC (which actually has Otterness on display inside!)

(when I was a little girl, my family used to trek down to this very playground for a full day activity... it was really exciting to re-discover this place where I have so many good memories. Read more about it at MommyPoppins).

...read quotes by Walt Whitman along the railing of the World Financial Center Plaza and ponder their meaning:

Credit: Flikr User Lauren Sperber

...enter a vast atrium known as the Winter Gardens right off the World Financial Center Plaza:

credit: wikipedia.org

and marvel at how naturally palm trees fit into the New York City environment.

... listen to yourself echo loud and clear while standing within the secret circle somewhere in the Winter Gardens (credit to LM for discovering this!!):

... and finally relax on a bench and enjoy magnificent views of the busy New York Harbor:

Credit: Flikr user matt707

I haven't even scratched the surface of what there is to see and do in the area. I still want to discover Teardrop Park, which I have yet to visit. I heard it has an awesome slide :-).

Check out the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy website for more information.

There is another feature of Battery Park City that I did not share in this post. It is my absolute favorite part of the park.

credit: Gothamist.com

Any ideas?
Stay tuned....