Nearly all of my time in New York City has been spent south of 50th street. The weather has not yet been nice enough to justify a trip to Central Park.
Going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, however, is a trip worth making. I've forgotten the exact address, but rest assured, you will be traveling far north of 50th street to get there. I'd say that this qualifies as the "adventure of the week."
Anyone who is a fan of the movie "The Thomas Crown Affair" will recognize the museum interior and exterior. The whole premise of the movie is that Thomas Crown, bored billionaire, steals one of the most famous Monet (or is it Renoir…) paintings in existence, in broad daylight. I'm not going to spoil any details, but the caper is as slick and cool as you will ever see in film.
So my mission that Saturday afternoon was to find the painting at the center of the movie. Alas, it has been moved, but the exhibit itself is very recognizable. I think the ushers must get a lot of these questions, because when I finally worked up the courage to ask about the painting, one rolled his eyes and said, "No, no, no! The painting you are talking about? It is not here, no no!"
Well that response made me feel like Fred Farmer from Iowa, so I spent the rest of my time pretending like I had some insatiable thirst for art from all periods (strong facial expressions are key here). I find that this works best when browsing in the lightly traversed sections of the Museum. Try the modern art and stare at the Jackson Pollocks. There's no wrong answer with those.
