North America Guitar Tour
Manhattan
July 28, 2014
As the plans for the previous and next days were already set, this day was a complete rest day, and Mr. P suggested going sightseeing in Manhattan. He himself doesn't like Manhattan, so I went alone. New York is known for its urban image, but Staten Island, where Mr. P lives, has the atmosphere of a rural town, with squirrels running around on the electric wires.
In the morning, we visited two music stores on the island. Mr. P seems to be a regular at both stores. As soon as we entered, he urged me to try out the instruments, so I played the instruments that were nearby as instructed. He seemed to enjoy watching the reactions of the store staff, and after getting in the car at both stores, he proudly said, "The fact that you can keep playing at that store and never get any complaints means that they recognize you." After returning home, I discovered that the second store we went to, Mandolin Brothers Ltd, is a must-see for acoustic guitar lovers. The list of customers is nothing short of luxurious, including Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Judy Collins, Sarah McLachlan, Don McLean, Sheryl Crow, Graham Nash, Bruce Springsteen, Stephen Stills, Dave Van Ronk, and Pat Metheny. At the end of 2015, there was news that the store was up for sale, but I don't know what happened after that news.
https://www.facebook.com/mandolinbrothers/
For lunch, we went to a nearby restaurant with a friend of Mr. P, who had also come to the garden party the night before. After that, I was taken to the ferry terminal, and headed to Manhattan alone with only my guitar, thinking that I might have a chance. The ferry was free.
After about 30 minutes, I arrived at the southern tip of Manhattan, with the Statue of Liberty in my sights. I stayed in Manhattan for a short time in the winter of 1981 and 1982, but this was my first time coming here in the summer (I went to the west coast to work in the summer of 1981, and returned to Japan in 1982). First of all, I was surprised by the number of tourists. I think it was because it was a different season, but times have changed. In 80's, the west side, where the Greyhound from Boston arrives, was an area I would rather not go near, and the Bronx, which I passed on the way, looked like a set of the movie "The Warriors". In 2014 however, wherever I went, there were tourists everywhere and I could not feel any tension at all. I was happy that the security had improved, but I felt something was missing in the lack of that tension. I also went to the old World Trade Center site, but I got a chill when I saw the new pyramid-shaped building right next to it, so I left immediately.
I guess I was still tired from the big trip the day before. As soon as I started walking, I regretted having my guitar on my back. I started walking to Central Park at least, but I soon stopped to cool off at Starbucks. While I was doing this, the battery on our iPhone became below half, and since Mr. P wouldn't come to pick us up if it became unusable, I decided to turn back. On the way there, we saw a sign that said "No unnecessary noise." I hope they put these up in Japan too.
The trip to Manhattan was fairly crowded, but it seemed to be even more so on the way back. I returned to Staten Island, watching the Manhattan night view gradually recede from the deck, and returned to Mr. P's house.
*People who appear in the text are referred to by their initials until we can confirm their identity.
Contents
Introduction
Until Departure
Seattle
To California
Day Off
Sunnyvale
To La
LA 2 Days
To Tucson
Albuquerque
To Colorado (beginning of Miracle)
Berthoud
Denver
to Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City 2 days
To Texas
San Antonio
Georgetown
Dallas
Houston 2 Days
Benton
Nashville (CAAS)
Roswell
Tampa 2 Days
Miami
Orland 2 Days
Myrtle Beach
Chapel Hill 3 Days
Kingsport
To Indiana
Indiana State Fingerstyle Guitar Festival
To Staten Island
Manhattan
Phillipsburg
Nazareth (Martin Guitar Factory)
To Massachusetts (end of Miracle)
Methuen
To Montreal
To Buffalo
Meadvill A Day Before
Meadvill Ghost Hotel
Detroit
Chicago
Minneapolice
Spin Off #1
Spin Off #2 "EU Tour IN 2008 / Until Departure
Czech 1
Czech 2
London
Liverpool
Chesham
To Germany
Lemgo
Ingolstadt
Bregenz
To Italy
Florence
The Last Gig
Going Home