My absolute favorite Beatles song…
(Please forgive me for cutting off the very beginning.)

I wasn’t sure if I made mention of it in my previous Central Park posts but there were many weddings that day! This was the fourth and final wedding I saw that day but a beautiful sight none the less.

I loved the light in the clouds in this shot, there is nothing quite like a cold front pushing the clouds around; giving the sky a very distinctive look.

I told you we would visit a very familiar site, the Bethesda Fountain is one of the most famous fountains in the world and among the largest in New York City; the statue at the center was the only sculpture to be commissioned as part of Central Park’s original design.

If you venture under the terrace by the fountain you find a little surprise, an unbelievably beautiful tile work design that is rich in vibrant color.

Also known as Angel of the Waters, she stands above four cherubim representing health, purity, temperance and peace. The Angel is a commemorative piece that celebrated the opening of the Croton Aqueduct which provided New York with fresh water during a time that the city was plagued by Cholera.

One of the great things about Central Park is that no matter what time of the year you visit you can always see people skating, whether it is rollerskating or ice skating. Today was jam skate day and it was awesome to watch the skill of these skaters.

Strawberry Fields is a 2.5 acre area lined with tall elm trees, shrubs, flowers and rocks that is dedicated to the late John Lennon, this plaque lists more than 120 countries that donated money to the maintenance of the area and have endorsed Strawberry Fields as a Garden of Peace.

The Imagine mosaic is adjacent to the park entrance by the Dakota Building where John Lennon and Yoko Ono lived and were coming home to when he was shot on December 8, 1980. It is in the center of Strawberry Fields and was designed by a team of Italian artists from Naples. Every time that I have gone, there has always been flowers left by various visitors and usually they are roses. Once someone had taken the rose petals and created a peace sign over the center of the piece but today it was the roses themselves that they decided to create a peace symbol with.

This intriguing character was sitting on one of the benches that lines the exit from the park and his sign made me laugh so hard that I had to give him his a dollar to hear my share of his bad advice. He looked long and hard at me and then declared I should always listen to my mother-in-law which I found absolutely hysterical.

Close to the street were these four musicians and in keeping with the area, they were taking requests and playing only songs by the Beatles and John Lennon, it was a great way to close my stroll through the park.

Of course I requested a song, one that is well known and they were actually very impressed with my selection as it is not one of the ones you hear all the time; what song did I request I wonder. 😉

Welcome back, on my last post I ended with a picture of Belvedere’s Castle and of course anything that I can climb, I will so into the Castle I went where you can really see some amazing views. It was so cool to be able to see so many New Yorkers out enjoying the Great Lawn with the skyline in the distance, there were a great deal of people out enjoying the weather that day.

Looking down at the pavilion next to the castle I caught sight of wedding number two, I was far enough away that I could not hear her but I always wonder what this new bride is saying to her bridesmaid.

A cold front had come in the night before which and was still blowing in which created the opportunity for some really fun shots, some look bright and sunny and others like this one appeared darker and a bit gloomy.

Being a native Texan I will always appreciate the contrast between the buildings and the park, it is so different from home to look at this wonderful greenery with the skyline in the distance.

In the short amount of time that I have been admiring the castle top views the clouds from the cold front have quickly approached giving an entirely different appearance to the Great Lawn.

This is a side view of the castle and you can see where I was taking the previous shots from. If you look at the corners you can see these awesome built in seats that my cousin and I had fun sitting in and posing in Conan the Barbarian-esque styles.

From there I cruised through a trail called The Bramble, only in Central Park can you get far enough away from the sounds of the city to feel as if you are out hiking in the country.

When I came out from The Bramble I was by this pond and I ask you, what is wrong with this picture? Why is she rowing the boat while he relaxes?

I had to stop to take this picture because I couldn’t resist the trees framing this view but in the center you can see the rooftop of the Dakota, a building which has an immense amount of New York history; some of it’s most famous residents were John Lennon and Yoko Ono, it was also the where the apartment in the film Rosemary’s Baby is located.

There are few things as absolutely beautiful as the smile of a new bride, I loved that I was able to catch this pair of lovebirds as they begin their new journey together.

In the next post we will continue our stroll through the park where you’ll see some sights that you’ve probably seen in films but there is so much of NYC that that can be said about and after that who knows what part of the city we will explore next; well, actually I do but you will have to check back … hahaha. I hope y’all are having a great week.