Friday, November 6, 2009

Fall in the city

A friend of mine has a little house tucked away in the Poconos. She moved recently, and I haven't been to see her at her new (owned!) house yet, but I have no doubt that it's as charming a place as you could want for a quiet time by the fire with a hot cup of cocoa. I was hoping to get there this fall - with the pending move to Europe hovering somewhere in our near future, I realize that I could very well be spending my last fall here, and the foliage has struck me as particularly beautiful this year as I make my way through the city, trying to freeze the image of the soft, deepening colors in my head. I can only imagine how it would be at that look-out point to which my dear friend can hike, gazing down across rows of mountain tops that crackle with autumn in such intense ways that it makes your heart pound.

For now, because of busy schedules and weekends that seem to slide by under our noses without the courtesy of a pause, that visit will have to wait until the trees are bear and frozen. I only have the respite of city parks to carry me through the fall - a different but still sturdy alternative. In New York last weekend, I took a breath and some time to enjoy Central Park in all its foliage-laden glory, and was thankful that such a bustling city has havens for those craving a bit of quiet nature and seasonal celebration. The scapes were really beautiful, even if they weren't in the mountains.






If you look closely, you can see a little girl climbing the rock.


Maybe when I do make it to that look-out point, I'll have trees shimmering in snow cover waiting for me. In a last winter here in Pennsylvania, that would be at least some recompense for missing the fall. And that cup of hot cocoa will taste all the better in the cold!

3 comments:

  1. These pictures are especially compelling when enlarged. I was going to nominate the second one as the best (love the different textures as well as colors), but then the third one, with the little girl climbing the rock, was just too charming.

    Where in Europe?

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  2. Hmm. Apparently I need to make it to Central Park before ALL the leaves are gone. I've been sad that there's not much foliage to see around here. Nice photos!

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  3. Altadena Hiker - Belgium. My husband is from there, and we have vague but determined plans to go in the near future...

    Stephanie - You should get to Central Park! I know, though, it's always easier to see things when it's not the city you actually live in. I haven't even been to Fairmount Park, which is probably gorgeous this time of year, too.

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