Vessel Vertigo

Actually, I’m not trying to give you vertigo by suggesting you look straight down from the top of the Vessel in Hudson Yards. Only my Sony camera is extended over the handrail. I’m in no danger.

Look at that sleek design for the elevator on the left. The symmetry of this structure is captivating.

Have you put The Vessel on your bucket list? In my next blog, you’ll see views looking outside the Vessel.

New York’s New Icon

New York City has so many major tourist attractions, that a new iconic work of art and architecture can open without the whole world knowing about it. I’m talking about the Vessel in Hudson Yards, the new Eiffel Tower or Saint Louis Arch of the 21st century. It’s a unique structure: a circular copper staircase that you can ascend and admire the changing views and geometry of its structure from different angles.

The Vessel’s location in Hudson Yards is especially fascinating to me, since my daughter Erin, the structural engineer, worked on its foundation, which is a super strong platform over the train tracks adjacent to Penn Station. Imagine a platform that can simultaneously hold a skyscraper and a park! Long before I visited the site, I was amazed by the engineering behind this development.

While construction on many buildings in Hudson Yards is ongoing, the Vessel opened earlier in 2019 along with an adjacent mall anchored by the only Neiman Marcus in New York City. Numerous high-end shops and restaurants are open in the Mall, adding to the enjoyment of an outing to the Vessel.

You can buy entrance tickets to the Vessel online ahead of time that will give you admission any time on a particular date. If you wander over to Hudson Yards (convenient via subway), you can buy a same day ticket that grants admission for a particular hour, to prevent overcrowding.

I loved the Vessel, and will share several photos from my walk inside it. The Vessel is handicapped accessible with a cleverly designed elevator. Go ahead and put it on your bucket list!

Most Photographed Mountain in Iceland

Stock photos of Kirkjufell at sunset with three waterfalls in the foreground had captured my imagination before our Iceland trip. How I wanted to see that scene in person, and even take my own photo on location!  But alas, I realized that the sun doesn’t set in summer until close to midnight, and the logistics just would not work.

Would my only photo of Kirkjufell be this one through the bus window?

Polarizer in the bus window gave the sky an eerie effect, as I captured Kirkjufell while driving past. One can see the way the top of the mountain resembles a church (“kirk”) shape.

As our ship left the harbor that evening, I got one more chance to photograph Kirkjufell and the surrounding mountains. Note to Self: while capturing the iconic photo you admire can become a treasure hunt that grows into an obsession, there is much to be said for creating your own unique set of images, rather than duplicating the classic shot. In fact, I will remind myself that creating my own unique images is the best path to take.

Departing Grundarfjordur, Kirkjufell was sidelit in the evening light.