NYC – Local-Style
“Can’t repeat the past?” Gatsby cried incredulously,
“Why of course you can!” (The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald)
And we did … albeit with a new twist!
The memorable lanes of New York have become so familiar that this big city has started to feel like ‘home’. We no longer feel like novice visitors and now view the city from a different perspective – New York, local-style!
Over the last few years on the island of St Barts, we have formed some very good friendships with both residents and quasi-residents. By quasi-residents, I mean those people who spend a large part of the year here and live the rest of the time elsewhere, one example being New York.
So when planning our trip to relive our favourite traditions, we made a point of setting aside time for our New Yorker friends.
One such prominent date in our diary was a cocktail party given by our good friends Willem and Richard. We were not only honoured to be invited, but were in fact THE guests of honour! The party was held in Willem and Richard’s very elegant Park Avenue apartment, and the occasion itself was just as stylish with a most interesting guest list, delicious hors d’oeuvres and fine champagne!
My pre-party prepping started with a mani-pedi in West Village – an unbelievable ‘first’ for this island girl, so it was an extra special treat to be preened, pampered, massaged and painted! The ‘shocking pink’ nail varnish lived up to its name and I spent the day questioning the colour, only to be enthusiastically encouraged by Philip, who was simply pleased to see my toes painted, so was oblivious to the colour! We had packed our ‘cocktail attire’, mine being a little black number with coordinating heels … all very elegant for the party, but a little out of place as I tottered through West Village in broad daylight, en route to the party. For self-assurance, I simply thought of the glamorous Carrie Bradshaw confidently walking through the streets of New York in the most eclectic, often over the top, outfits! Philip wore jacket and tie, for the first time in years and was feeling a little uncomfortable, but was then reassured when greeted by a very smartly attired Richard welcoming us to the party (Willem, busily supervising the finishing touches, looked equally dapper!).
The evening was truly memorable and the highlight of our trip … As we cruised back to the Village in a chauffeur driven limousine (shared with a kind friend), New York really did feel like home, or rather a great complement to our island home. It made me realise why these great friends had chosen such a combination.
We had the pleasure of meeting up with another friend whom we know from St Barts, Sherry, who has in fact just recently moved from Texas to Soho, so we were practically neighbours during our visit. Sherry kindly hosted a fun dinner party in her beautiful penthouse apartment, designed by the award winning French architect, Jean Nouvel. The apartment reflects his modern, minimalist style and is like something out of a film set, particularly at night, when the views of South Manhattan are quite spectacular. The other guests at the dinner party were none other than Richard and Willem, as well as David, who lives full-time in New York, and is the summer Music Director for our church on St Barts.
We had a fun evening with a delicious menu compiled by Sherry, with the help of her ‘corner grocery’ Dean and Deluca! The dessert of chocolate cake and ice cream was the pièce de resistance … There wasn’t just one, two or three ice cream tubs on offer, but approximately ten mounted on a large plate, Lazy Susan-style, which we span around to dig in and enjoy all the various flavours. Each tub was from a gourmet venue, boasting artisanal style ice cream made with quality, organic ingredients. One such supplier was none other than Arethusa Farm owned by Manolo Blahnik – a delicious alternative to fabulous pair of heels!
I shared another enjoyable moment with Sherry, relaxing in the private spa on the ground floor of her apartment building. It was the perfect way to unwind after a long day walking around Chelsea galleries, admiring the creations of Jeff Koons and Wolf Kahn, amongst others. The pool was refreshingly cool after the city heat, and the jacuzzi’s various pulsations soothed my tired feet and limbs – I could quite easily get used to Sherry’s lifestyle!
We attended mass on both Sundays, at two very contrasting churches. On the first Sunday, we were invited by David to Middle Collegiate church, in East Village. It is renowned for being very liberal and progressive, with sermons that ‘provoke your mind and stir your soul’ and music that ‘will encourage your toes to tap and your heart to soar!’ Well it certainly lived up to its reputation with a lively service led by the very attractive, energetic preacher, Jacqui Lewis, who looks and sings like Diana Ross. She certainly inspired the congregation with her enthusiastic words of wisdom; and the gospel, choral and classical music was indeed very emotive – ‘I am light’ resonated through my mind for the rest of day.
On the second Sunday, we attended Richard and Willem’s church on Fifth Avenue – St Thomas. It has a most impressive façade as well as interior, built in 1913, in the French High Gothic style. It also has many English influences, namely its enormous reredos which is reminiscent of English cathedrals and is in fact one of the largest in the world. The whole ambiance felt so familiar and it was like stepping back in time to many a service in the beautiful churches of England. The congregation were all very well dressed, including the ushers in their seersucker suits and bow-ties, more reminiscent, however, of Charleston, South Carolina. After a very spiritual service, we then enjoyed a glass of champagne in the vestry, where Richard and Willem introduced us to fellow members of the congregation. I was also introduced to the Reverend Andrew Mead who had in fact been awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth of England, in recognition of Saint Thomas Church’s ministry to New York’s British community, after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in September 2001. Willem showed me the plaque that Queen Elizabeth had laid in the church; the poignant words live on in my mind ‘Grief is the price we pay for love’. It may seem a sad note to end such a convivial occasion, but it made me realise just how precious life is and how we should appreciate each and every moment, as well as each other.
Ingrid is yet another good friend from St Barts who spends time in New York, and who happened to be there during our visit. She had in fact just moved apartments, from a traditional brownstone building in Chelsea to quite a modern block just off Union Square. We had a fun lunch together then visited her new apartment, which in fact still looked very much like it did before, with its antique furniture, elegant rugs and ornaments – it made me realise just how quickly one can make a place feel like home.
One thing we miss on St Barts is the opportunity to see films on the big screen. There is a quasi-cinema on the island, consisting of a screen on an old tennis court and plastic chairs for seating, which then become ‘umbrellas’ when it rains! The films are generally aimed at the teenage population of the island, apart from those during the annual film festival, which are more of an art house genre from Latin America and the neighbouring islands of the Caribbean.
We were thus delighted to be able to see a couple of new releases – ‘The Great Gatsby’ and ‘Before Midnight’ (the third part of a great trilogy). These two films were very different in style, but they were equally moving, with thought provoking plots and eloquent dialogue. I felt quite emotionally drained after each film, the memories of which are still imprinted on my mind, particularly ‘The Great Gatsby’ that lived on through the music that we played throughout our holiday. (We also had the pleasure of seeing the magnificent jewellery collection when casually browsing in Tiffany’s, Soho.)
Music is said to evoke memories, and this wonderful soundtrack certainly did prompt words and images from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s great oeuvre. However, on returning to St Barts, these catchy tunes now conjure up images of this very special trip, when we ‘repeated the past local-style’ – with the help of great friends!!