NYC Markets, episode 9. In which I love New York until we meet again.

Mari and I have been fortunate in our ability to travel to so many great cities and we constantly look forward to visiting and revisiting cities near and far.  I'm always itching to travel somewhere (there's a list!).  We love visiting New York because it has become familiar to both of us through the years.  We're still tourists despite my desire and attempts not to appear obviously so.  I keep binders full of Playbills and show tickets.  I have Container Store acid-free photo storage sleeves and boxes and film cassettes carefully archived along with iPhoto slide shows and images backed up digitally.  There are obsessively-crafted scrapbooks (oh boy, are there scrapbooks) and there are stored pouches of ticket stubs, maps, museum and historical site pamphlets waiting patiently to be forever fastened to colorful (sorted, organized, and hoarded) pages that will some day find their artfully ordered place in one of the formerly clearance-priced surplus Martha Stewart scrapbooks currently stockpiled in my systematized stockpile.  I'm a collector-documentarian (hoarder) bargain-hunter traveler, but essentially I am a tourist.  

What a view!

Even when you are in the midst of a fleamarket mission, take a reflectively appreciative moment to step back and enjoy a view (and photograph it so you can enjoy a view anew years later).

If you've been keeping up, you realize you can't possibly cover all of my recommended New York fleas in one trip, but that's actually a good thing (with thanks again to Ms. Stewart--this time for one of the catchiest of all catchphrases). Good because, like a good fleamarket, your visit to the City will be different every time and there will always be a temptation to return.  You could make an audacious attempt at covering the Brooklyn Flea and one of the Annex markets on Saturday, then the remaining Annex market and GreenFlea on Sunday (with the potential for back-to-back nutrient-replenishing visits to Schnipper's).  You COULD.  I enjoy fleamarketing, however, not just looking and not just buying, and definitely not just "going to a flea market." You shouldn't treat a fleamarket like a frantic last-minute Wal-Mart visit when you realize you are running desperately low on bathroom tissue (which for me is an inexplicably irrational 6-8 double-rolls) or your kids just told you they needed a poster board for a project that's due in 8 hours.  

Don't rush a fleamarket.

Indulge.

As you know, we have our favorites, but Mari and I are always open to new flea experiences.  The Brooklyn Flea was undiscovered fleamarket country until we abandoned our past routine (really tough for me as you might imagine) and gave it a shot.  Now, we look forward to a return visit.

It made the list.

Another new experience was a "pop up" street market we stumbled across just a cross-town block away from our hotel (I was probably looking for a Dunkin' Donuts) one bright Sunday morning.  Street markets will often feature new items like clothing, jewelry, watches (there's a watch collection to add to the list), scarves, New York and Broadway souvenir items, posters, and even colorfully original artwork and crafts.  I love the creativity of New Yorkers and street art in particular (Mari, of course, enjoys original jewelry designs).  There is always a wide variety of food and drink and often music as well.
All varieties, all cultures, all New York.  New Yorkers and tourists alike enjoy the opportunity to get out and enjoy beautiful weather, good food, and great bargains.

Don't forget the

I Love New York T-shirts!

One of the (few?) (many?) (awesome?) pitfalls (joys?) of being married to me is that you are frequently caught on camera or on video.  Sometimes posed and sometimes off guard.  I have always enjoyed this photo because I'm in one of our favorite cities enjoying one of my favorite pastimes, traveling with an amazingly supportive, adventurous, and loving wife, and I had just called to her to stop so I could catch up when she turned around and found my camera.  A treasured moment more valuable and precious than any bubble-wrapped bargain.

Sorry!  I'm a romantic!

I look forward to a fall fleamarketing weekend in New York, with crisp temperatures, colorful foliage, and secondhand collectibles given another chance to find my browsing gaze and my comforting protection as they journey to a new home (mine!).

I'm not completely sure (actually, I think I am--I dropped a big hint a few episodes ago) where we will travel together next time, dear reader, but know that there will be many tantalizing sights, many tasty bites, and many tempting delights.