BACK FROM NYC AND RHINEBECK - CHAPTER ONE
I had the best time in New York and at the Sheep & Wool Festival in Rhinebeck. I arrived in NYC on Wednesday, the 17th, and checked into a charming little B&B in the heart of the Chelsea District -- The Inn on 23rd Street -- for a two-night stay. Here's a picture of the entrance.

I could not have been more comfortable -- it was like staying at a friend's home. They had a beautiful breakfast each morning in the "Library". The muffins were still warm from the oven; there was fresh fruit, yogurt, granola, bagels, and freshly made hardboiled eggs. I was very happy. What a relaxing atmosphere. There was even a resident kittie.

I had only been in the room 10 minutes when I got a call from Margie and Charlie, so off I went on the subway to meet them for dinner in Soho/Nolita. After dinner, we "strolled" uptown on Fifth Avenue window gazing and enjoying the balmy weather. We had mid-70s the whole time we were in NY. It was unreal for the end of October.

On Thursday, after my yummy breakfast, I walked the 60 blocks from the Inn all the way up to 82nd Street to visit String's new store location in a renovated townhouse. Very nice.

Yes, it seems like a pretty long walk, but that's what you do in NY and I meandered my way up there, stopping at various places along the way, including Grand Central Terminal for a train ticket and Tender Buttons on 62nd Street. I departed TBs with new buttons for my stash. [Note: $61 worth of buttons -- very, very small bag.] After visiting String, I jumped on the subway down to Soho for a late lunch at "Once Upon a Tart" on Sullivan St. and to visit Purl, a very cute knit shop nextdoor. Here are a few pics of Purl:





Funky, little shop -- but very fun to visit and to look around in. I bought a felting book in Japanese. Thursday evening, after dinner, I came back to my room at the Inn, put my feet up, knitted and watched TV -- very content. I continued to work on a pair of Cookie A's "Monkey" socks that I had started on the plane. I managed to finish the first sock and start the second one that night; and I finished the pair on the trip. Here they are:

These are knit from the same skein of handspun yarn so each sock is unique -- the beauty of handspun. And, of course, I hand-dyed the rovings before I spun the yarn, which is a baby camel/silk blend plied with a merino/kid mohair blend. The "Monkey" pattern looks complicated, but it is oh, so easy! I think my friend, Sheree, might be working on her third pair of Monkeys.

Friday morning, I walked up to Grand Central (a mere 20-block walk) to take a 2-hour train ride north along the Hudson to Poughkeepsie. Here are a couple of pictures of the Hudson River from the train. One is blurry because the train was moving, but I wanted to show how wide and long the river is -- very foreign to a Californian.


At Poughkeepsie (the last stop on the Metro North), I rented a car and drove the 15 miles to Rhinebeck. After checking in at the Beekman Arms historic inn, I met Margie and Charlie at Morehouse Merinos to do a little shopping and $$$ damage. We were very sad to see a sign saying that the store was closing and going to online only. No more fishing around in the cubbies for unusual variegated skeins, which is so much a part of the experience and such fun. Very sad. Oh well!

We ended the evening with dinner at Terrapin, in a renovated church across from the Beekman Arms. We had a most wonderful dinner there -- comfort food -- since it was raining -- including squash soup, pumpkin ravioli, and the thickest porkchop I have ever laid eyes on for Charlie. We also partook of a bottle of good Spanish cabernet.
Next chapter -- the Rhinebeck festival.