The frugal travels of a vagabond

Shortly after this photo was taken, the guys were good samaritans and assisted a group carrying a man who had broken his leg bouldering; we then took the injured man to the regional hospital since his small car was not practical while we had 2 small SUVs

Visitors see only about 15% of the park area with the remaining 85% managed as wilderness; Joshua Tree sits at the confluence of three unique ecosystems - Mojave Desert in the north; San Bernardino Mountains in the west and Colorado Desert in the south

2.5 million years ago Joshua trees lived side by side with mammoths, ground sloths, and saber-toothed cats; in that early time it may have been the giant Shasta Ground Sloths who were responsible for helping to spread Joshua tree seeds

Roadrunner; the Joshua tree is not actually a tree but a type of grass-like flowering plant called a monocot (that would be a good Scrabble word); until recently, the Joshua tree was considered a member of the lily family

Skull Rock is among the most photographed of the thousands of rocks that decorate Joshua Tree National Park; the lily family has now been split into 40 separate plant families, and the Joshua tree has found its rightful place in the agave family

The park is 1235 sq mi (slightly larger than Rhode Island) and was first declared a national monument in 1936 before becoming a national park in 1994; Joshua trees only grow in the Mojave Desert at altitudes between 2000 and 6000 ft above sea level and can live 150+ years

This natural bridge was on the Hidden Valley Loop Trail; Palm Springs is roughly an hour from either the north (Mojave Desert) or south (Colorado Desert) entrance to the park; the entrances are 60 miles or a 90 minute drive apart

We walked the Hidden Valley and Barker Dam Loop Trails admiring the unique desert landscape such as this prickly pear cactus; widespread fascination with the Joshua tree arguably began when U2’s landmark Joshua Tree album was released in 1987

I wanted to stop at the World Famous Crochet Museum for Mike but, unfortunately, it wasn't open; the former Fotomat booth is stuffed with all sorts of crocheted pieces and is now featured in an HSBC ad campaign

The cholla cactus garden in Joshua Tree lies near the transition zone between the Colorado and Mohave Deserts; they inhabit a very small, but specific part of the Colorado Desert and disappeared altogether before we reached the southern exit

The guys were all excited about getting me a haircut but, alas, the salon was closed; Joshua Tree National Park is open 365 days a year and 24 hours a day with a $30 entrance fee per car good for 7 days

Barker Dam was built by cowboys to water their cattle in an era before climate change; in the late 1800s, 10 inches of rain fell here annually but now the average is only 2-5 which is not enough to support ranching

The beavertail cactus is the only type of prickly pear cactus without spines; the Cahuilla Native Americans used beavertail as a food staple with the buds cooked or steamed and the seeds ground into mush

California scrub jay; John C. Frémont of the US Army Corps of Topographical Engineers was the first settler to write about Joshua trees in 1844: …their stiff and ungraceful form makes them to the traveler the most repulsive tree in the vegetable kingdom

The cholla cactus has been nicknamed the teddy bear cactus due to it’s friendly look but do not be fooled!; also known as the jumping cactus, the chollas have a way of snagging feet and legs with thorns that are difficult to extract

Gorgeous Bethesda Fountain, designed by Emma Stebbins, was unveiled in 1873; Stebbins was the first woman to receive a public commission for a major work of art in New York City

The 6 acre Conservatory Garden, accessed through the ornate Vanderbilt Gate on Fifth Avenue, is Central Park’s formal garden and one of the most significant public gardens in New York City; too bad it wasn't springtime

The 1916 Pulitzer Fountain is in Grand Army Plaza at the SE (and most upscale) corner of Central Park; newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer died in 1911 and bequeathed $50,000 for the creation of the fountain

The Duke Ellington Memorial by sculptor Robert Graham was erected in 1997 in Duke Ellington Circle which is the NE corner of Central Park; it is at Fifth Avenue and 110th Street

The USS Maine National Monument is at the Merchants' Gate entrance to Central Park; dedicated in 1913, the monument memorializes the men who died when the USS Maine sank in Havana Harbor contributing to the outbreak of the Spanish–American War

I visited the Neue Galerie which is a museum of early twentieth-century German and Austrian art and design located in the William Starr Miller House at 86th Street and Fifth Avenue; it's quite small but seeing The Lady in Gold by Klimt was worth it

The Untermyer Fountain (1947), featuring a bronze cast of Walter Schott’s Three Dancing Maidens, adorns the northern section of the Conservatory Garden and is a memorial to civic leader Samuel Untermyer and his wife, cultural patroness Minnie Untermyer

Mike and I enjoyed visiting the Museum of the City of New York which is at the northern end of the Museum Mile on Fifth Avenue; founded in 1923, the museum was originally located in Gracie Mansion which is now the residence of the mayor

Hidden along a steep hillside below Belvedere Castle is the enchanting Shakespeare Garden; the four-acre space is densely planted with trees, shrubs, flowers, and herbs mentioned in William Shakespeare’s plays and poems

The Naumburg Bandshell, completed in 1923, is the only Neoclassical building in the Park, a striking contrast to the Park’s predominantly Victorian or Victorian-inspired architecture and design

The William Tecumseh Sherman Monument by Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1903) was the artist's last major monument and his crowning achievement; Sherman succeeded Ulysses S Grant as commander of the Union forces during the Civil War

The New-York Historical Society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum; it's on Central Park West at 77th Street and was worth visiting for the Tiffany lamp collection alone

The 1896 Gapstow Bridge spans the Pond near the SE corner of the Park; there are 30 ornamental bridges and arches in the Park today which allow different modes of transportation to circulate safely

Central Park was once run-down and unsafe, but starting in the 1980s it has been run by the Central Park Conservancy which has greatly improved the park; unfortunately, even in broad daylight, there are still plenty of unwanted visitors

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, built in 1872, anchors the Museum Mile; many of the world's most famous works of art are here in the 2+ million sq ft of exhibit space

Many American traditions have their roots in NYC, like Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade which starts at the American Museum of Natural History; the world's largest parade, it was the setting at the beginning of the 1947 classic film, Miracle on 34th Street

Clutha Pitcher, Christopher Dresser, ca. 1895; Dresser borrowed and abstracted decorative elements from diverse times and places in designing his work sold at London's posh Liberty and Co. department store

Antarctic Vase, Thomas Webb and Sons, ca. 1908-1911; George Woodall created this vase which shows British explorer Robert Falcon Scott on his race to the South Pole from 1901 to 1904

Milton Vase, John Northwood, 1878; shown at Paris' 1878 World's Fair, Northwood's masterwork (showing a scene from Paradise Lost) was one of the very first cameo-revival vases and helped stimulate interest in the technique

Neoclassical Candelabrum, ca. 1787; classically dressed figures who personify the seasons are depicted on each side of the ceramic base and represent the most fashionable style of the time

Candelabrum, ca. 1875; I appreciated the way in which the Chrysler organized its various glass galleries to better understand the evolution of styles and methods of production

Fairy Lamp and Epergne, Thomas Webb and Sons, ca. 1886; an epergne is a type of centerpiece that generally has a large central bowl sitting on three to five feet; from this bowl radiate branches supporting small baskets, dishes, or candleholders

Flowerform Vase, Stourbridge Glass Co., ca. 1897; the designer of this vase was working for Louis C. Tiffany who supplied his employees with photographs, specimens and drawings to help them execute his artistic vision

Bowl, ca. 1880; the most sophisticated work in British crystal during the later 1850s through the 1880s was decorated by engraving, often carried out by immigrant Bohemian craftsmen

Intruders (left, ca. 1893) and the Attack (1896), Thomas Webb and Sons; the Woodall brothers designed these plaques for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago; they had been in separate collections for 100+ years until reunited here

Cupid on a Panther, Hodgetts, Richardson and Son, 1877; this firm was based in Stourbridge (Worcestershire), center of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution; some of these cameo glass pieces sell for well over $100,000

Dragon Bowl, Thomas Webb and Sons, ca. 1885; cameo glass is created by a process of etching and carving through a layer of opaque white glass, leaving a white relief design on a darker colored glass body

Epergne, ca. 1890; during Queen Victoria's reign, England's growing middle class demanded new styles in glass for arranging flowers, setting the table and serving dinner; the abolition in 1845 of the British glass tax helped

Vase, Thomas Webb and Sons, ca. 1900; in 1889 Thomas Webb and Sons secured an American patent for their cameo glass process and exhibited with Tiffany and Company

Vase in the Chinese Taste, Thomas Webb and Sons, ca. 1885-1890; founded in 1837, Thomas Webb and Sons, considered the Crystal King of England, won top prizes at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851 and Paris’ Exposition Universelle of 1878

Before the Race, Thomas Webb and Sons, ca. 1890; the Woodall brothers, designers for this piece, were experts at the complex process required to make complicated cameo designs

Favrile Vase, Stourbridge Glass Co., ca. 1897-1899; the availability of coal (for fuel) and fireclay (for making furnaces and melting pots) made the Stourbridge area of the UK a perfect location for glass making

The Edge ranks as my favorite observation deck anywhere in the world with just phenomenal views; you're outdoors with plenty of room to explore a virtually 360 degree panorama of Manhattan

Completed in 2014, One World Trade Center dominates the skyline of lower Manhattan and is the tallest building in the country and the 6th tallest in the world; the name Freedom Tower is mainly used by non-New Yorkers

This observation deck, at 1,100 ft, opened in March 2020 and is the 2nd highest outdoor observation deck in the Western Hemisphere, after Toronto's CN Tower SkyTerrace at 1,122 ft

I enjoyed a great view of the Edge (far right) from my hotel room on 41st Street; the Edge is on the 100th and 101st floors of this 103 story skyscraper (only the 6th tallest building in the city)

The Edge is located at 30 Hudson Yards with major tenants TimeWarner, KKR, Facebook and Wells Fargo; the building is at the northernmost end of the High Line, a 1.5 mile long elevated park that has become one of the city's biggest attractions

The easiest way to access the Edge was to enter from the Hudson River side of the building where the Vessel sits; you then enter a mall with the Edge entrance located on the 4th floor (can you tell it took me forever to find the entrance?)

View of Madison Square Garden and the Empire State Building; it's still amazing that the Empire State Building was the world's tallest building from its completion in 1931 until the World Trade Center was built in 1972

The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island were easily visible as was the 42 story Goldman Sachs Tower in Jersey City designed by Cesar Pelli; completed in 2004, the Tower was the tallest building in NJ for 14 years until a nearby skyscraper dethroned it

Central Park (aka Nordstrom) Tower has the highest roof height of any building in the US at 1550 ft, surpassing Willis Tower in Chicago by 100 ft; completed in 2019, it is the tallest residential building in the world

Little Island is a new 2.4 acre park built on 132 tulip-shaped pillars in the Hudson River; the park, largely funded by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenburg, has been very popular so online reservations are required if visiting after noon

The Edge is conveniently located at the end of the 7 subway line at Hudson Yards; the 7 train stopped next to my hotel in Times Square before continuing on out to Flushing, Queens and the Billie Jean King USTA National Tennis Center

There are great views of The Edge all along the west side of Manhattan, such as this shot from Little Island; the Edge has variable pricing on its tickets with general admission running about $40

Jersey City; TimeWarner has studios for Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Newsroom, Cuomo Prime Time, Fareed Zakaria GPS, Outfront with Erin Burnett, CNN Tonight and Reliable Sources in the building

In 1893, James H. Dooley, a wealthy Richmond lawyer and philanthropist, and his wife, Sallie, completed their elaborate Gilded Age estate on a site high above the James River; Maymont today is a 100-acre Victorian estate and public park

Maymont’s naturalistic Japanese Garden—the oldest public Japanese Garden on the East Coast (1911) - includes trained and pruned trees and shrubs, raked sand pools and multiple water areas—all designed to create the impression of an old, naturally developed landscape

The Dooleys also built a summer home on Afton Mountain, Swannanoa (SW VA), which was completed in 1913 and modeled after the Villa Medici in Rome; companies based in Richmond include CarMax, Altria and Genworth FInancial

The 1200 sq ft stone barn was completed in 1908 and is rented out for functions now; as of 2016, Richmond had the second-highest rate of eviction filings and judgments of any US city with a population of 100,000+

Behind Fountain Plaza is the Carriage House; their Carriage Collection showcases horse-drawn transportation typical of country estates in Virginia during the period that the Dooleys lived at Maymont

The Robins Nature Center has just undergone a huge renovation but it's only open on weekends (I was there midweek); the animals there are nothing special but probably interesting for kids

Maymont's gardens are popular for outdoor weddings focused around the Italian Garden, the Japanese Garden (my favorite)and numerous gazebos located throughout the grounds; there are very few famous people from Richmond

Richmond is at the fall line of the James River, 44 miles west of Williamsburg and 66 miles east of Charlottesville; the city is home to both a U.S. Court of Appeals, one of 13 such courts, and a Federal Reserve Bank, one of 12 such banks

In 1856 James Dooley enrolled at Georgetown and was the first student to rank at the head of his class during each of his four years as an undergraduate; he graduated in 1860 and joined the Confederate Army (hmm)