A Long Walk

Vera and I decided to take a long walk today, considering that, with the imminent arrival of Hurricane Sandy, we might not be going anywhere for a few days, with heavy rains predicted and the possible shutdown of the subway system.   (Vera wants to get some sandbags for our apartment!)
We started out just north of the World Trade Center, and walked through all the chic districts:  TrBeCa, the Meatpacking District, The West Village, and the southern part of Chelsea, with a stop at a Belgian Brasserie for lunch, sitting outside in the still warm weather.   New York is endlessly fascinating in its variety of architecture and people.  All of these reclaimed industrial areas have a broad mix of all kinds of buildings, from clusters very small 2 or 3 story 19th century houses to mammoth industrial warehouses, with bits of modern architecture mixed in, both high end and plain.  Chic restaurants and high end boutiques next to shipping warehouses still functioning.  The people are equally mixed.
We also walked a bit along the seawall (they don't call it that here), the Hudson River Park.

Pictures:

The seawall with the new WTC in the background (and some serious black clouds):

(Update after Hurricane Sandy: this area was all under water during the storm..)

Some old houses:

And here is a self portrait in front of a store selling very chic black pumpkins: