[Dixielandjazz] New York City

[Rob McCallum]

Hi all,

I just returned from NYC last night and found life to be fairly normal on
Manhattan (though bitterly cold).  The atmosphere on the bridges and tunnels
seem a bit tense though (and I was on most of them at one time or another -
can't believe they want $7 to cross the Verrazano bridge!).  There's a huge
police presence at all of them and they were searching some delivery-type
trucks, sometimes with guns drawn.  Also, there are helicopters continually
monitoring the airspace.

I did notice that prices at stores and restaurants are lower than they were
a couple of years ago, and are comparable to Detroit (gas prices - except
for Manhattan itself - were actually lower than in Detroit).

I didn't hear any OKOM on this trip, though I did make the pilgrimage to
Queens to see the Louis Armstrong house.  It looks like the renovation is
really coming along (though it's not yet opened to the public).  I also
walked around the Flushing Meadows Corona Park to see the remnants of the
World's Fair.  That Unisphere is huge (it was one of the things I really
wanted to see- it would look great on a cd cover).  I also spent some time
in Harlem and was amazed at how nice it's becoming.  The whole area seems to
be going through a rebirth and people must really be dumping money into
restoring those brownstones.  There's even a full time jazz club (the Lenox
Lounge / Zebra Room) that's all Art-Deco and comes complete with Greenwich
Village prices ($20 per set plus minimum).  The Mt. Morris Historic District
is beautiful.

All the best,
Rob McCallum