It's a Bird. It's a Plane. it's a Park.

Last week found me in my ancestral homeland--New Jersey--for my dad's birthday. After the big event, Older Daughter and I took the bus to NYC, where my sisters and niece joined us. Did the island of Manhattan tremble when the O'Deas landed? Nah, that was a train passing underground.

Times Square pulsed with tourists, costumed characters, conventioneers, and the occasional New Yorker caught in the madness. The blocks around Penn Station and Herald Square bustled. 

I like the energy and the opportunities for people-watching but needed a respite from noise and crowds. I found it about thirty steps above the city streets.

At nine on Monday morning, I shared the High Line with a few tourists and three groundskeepers. The High Line's a linear park built on a long-unused railroad trestle that extends from Gansevoort Street to West 30th at 10th Avenue. (Another northernly extension of the park is underway.)

I believe in re-using and re-adapting existing structures. The High Line celebrates its history with lush plants tucked between railroad tracks, but it's beautiful and important in its own right. Benches invite strollers to linger and enjoy the flowers, glimpses of the Hudson River, the sky, and the skyline.

I saw this:

And this:

And this:

And this:

My walk began in one neighborhood and ended in another so different from the first I could have been in another city.  That's my idea of a two-fer.

This trip showed me a park doesn't have to exist at ground-level. A green oasis awaits a couple of stories above the street.

Your turn: Have you discovered a rooftop garden or pocket park in an unexpected place? Have you walked the High Line? Share, please. I want to fill my bucket list with out-of-the-way green spaces.