Vitamin Z

It is a truth universally acknowledged at a certain socio-economic level in Manhattan, that a 3 or 4 person family must be in want of 2,400+ square feet worth of accommodations. When you compress 3 adults and 2 small children into a mere 900 square feet, zany things happen. 10-month-olds chew on electrical wires and push small tables across hardwood floors. 3.5-year-olds stomp wildly across non-soundproof apartments and compete wildly with younger siblings for attention and toys. Noise and motion abound, and all surfaces are lightly refinished with food.

This is all to the good, because a person can otherwise get all too accustomed to getting her own way. However, we also made sure to spend a lot of time outside in the fresh air and open spaces of New York City. (No snide remarks, please.)

On a sunny Saturday afternoon, around 2 p.m., you can join literally hundreds of like-minded anthropologists for a free ride on the Staten Island ferry. Tall teenagers from Germany stand on benches outside to block the view of mild-mannered persons behind them, but once you cotton on to their scheme, you learn to grab seats indoors by the window on the 2nd floor, where there is no deck and you can see the Statue of Liberty in all its glory. (Don't tell the teenagers. I'm sure they'd think of a way to dangle over the edge to enjoy this view if they could.)

We saw some regular garden-variety sailboats, and then this lovely vessel:

Further afield, these creatures adorn a park bench with a small sign saying "FREE HUGS" - the gray one on the left has long fabric arms that can embrace an entire family. As you can see, it is exhausting to ride in a stroller.

Here we discovered a rare variety of lily pads that allow you to (practically) walk on water. It was a real hit with the 3.5-year-old set:


Other discoveries were more perplexing. After all, porcupines don't grow on trees... do they?

As you can see, contrary to the cynical, narrow-minded naysayers who claim New York City is overrun with rats and pigeons, we saw quite an assortment of animals. We even glimpsed the elusive red panda on our expedition:


This post was brought to you by the letter Z - an essential vitamin for life fully lived.