Central Park South

 This morning we headed out of the hotel and up Herald Square to catch the subway up to Columbus Circle to check out Central Park. We had originally planned on exploring Central Park all day. However, the heat and humidity ended up being a bit too uncomfortable, so we explored a bit in the morning, headed uptown to Hamilton Grange for a break from the heat, and then finished exploring the southern part of the park after lunch from Gray's Papaya. Here's what we saw:

As we entered the park from Columbus Circle, the first thing we encountered in the park in the Maine Monument, erected to memorialize those killed when the USS Maine exploded and sank in 1898, leading to the Spanish-American War. 

We headed further into the park with views of the surrounding city skyline.

We passed under Driprock Arch

and over to the Chess and Checkers House which is surrounded by a naturalistic gazebo constructed of twisted tree branches.

From there it was a short walk over to the Dairy.

From the Dairy there were some rock outcroppings with more great views of the Manhattan skyline.

We made our way to the Balto statue,

under the Willowdell Arch and then through the famous Mall and Literary Walk. 

We admired the statues of William Shakespeare,

Robert Burns,

and the Women's Rights Pioneers.

Bethesda Terrace was a bit of a disappointment. Not because it wasn't beautiful, but because it was under construction. At least the fountain and the area surrounding it. 

Despite the construction, there were still plenty of people with hired photographers having their pictures taken there.

From Bethesda Terrace we walked to the famous Bow Bridge,

In this section of Central Park there is a very conspicuous building that is very photogenic. It's called the San Remo and I loved taking pictures of it from many different angles.

We made our way towards The Lake and found a secret-feeling little spot called Wagner's Cove.

Then, we made our way up to Strawberry Fields and the famous Imagine mosaic inlaid in the walkway. 

From Strawberry Fields we moved further north around The Lake. We stopped for a short break at the Ladies Pavilion, 

and then found a rocky spot on the shore where turtles could be seen sunning themselves in the hazy light. 

We headed into the Ramble with the hope of seeing some birds. Amongst the species we saw were some cardinals 

and a night heron.

We passed Belvedere Castle

where a brave gray squirrel impressed some foreign visitors.

By the time we reached Shakespeare Garden, we were ready for a break from the heat.

We headed to 81st Street for the air-conditioned subway ride up to Hamilton Grange. 

After touring the Grange and getting lunch at Gray's Papaya, we returned to Central Park. By this part of the day the heat was really oppressive. We didn't do too much. We headed over to Conservatory Water where we found some shade and watched the model sailboats.

We walked past the Alice in Wonderland statue

and finished our time in the park at Cleopatra's Needle an actual Egyptian obelisk with real hieroglyphics. 

From there we took the subway down to Herald Square to cool off in our hotel for a bit.