Traveling through time from the back seat of my yellow taxi, I have the sudden urge to disembark. “Stop!” I tell the driver, upon which the over- inflated tires come to a screetching halt at the corner of 5th Avenue and 49th Street. I peer out the window which faces the front facade of Saks Fifth Avenue, home to some of the city’s most magical holiday window installations. It won’t be long now! I gather my bags, pay the fare and open the creaky door to exit. I exchange pleasantries with the driver and bid adieu. As the taxi rumbles back into the crush of city traffic, I hear what sounds like the hauntingly familiar tune of a beloved Bing Crosby Christmas standard faintly emanating from the old cab’s interior
While collecting my wits and gathering my bearings, deciding where to go next, I pull my vintage burgundy boiled wool coat in just a tad tighter to protect against this suddenly chilly breeze. I can feel it all around me … that discernable, almost tangible shift in the air. It’s in the hustle and bustle on the streets, the fusion of familiar smells like pepperment, chocolate and chestnuts, the sounds of distant bells mingling with children’s laughter. As if on cue I look across the street and catch an aged ice skater swirling below the newly installed Norway Spruce tree at Rockefeller Center. She has been there for decades and is in her full glory just as that tree will be on the night it is officially lit. The first snowflake of the season tickles my nose. “Aagh, yes”, I say to myself with a knowing smile, “it is truly here at last.”
New York’s greatest production of all has arrived – The Holiday Season!
Ride along with me as we encounter the people, the places, the sights and the sounds that make our city as special as this joyful, awe-inspiring and fun-filled time of the year.
Well …what are you waiting for? We’ve got lots to do and tons to see.
TAXI!!!!!
