Openhousenewyork (OHNY), a five borough-wide celebration of architecture and design takes place on October 11 & 12 2014. It engages the public in the built environment by offering free access to hundreds of sites that exemplify New York City’s diverse architectural, design, engineering, and cultural heritage. So I thought I’d visit 2 places this morning – the Jazz Lincoln Centre, and Mt Vernon Museum and Garden.

The Appel Room in the Lincoln Centre has a lovely aspect over Columbus Circle. A concert would have a fantastic backdrop at night!

Mt Vernon Museum….was initially constructed in 1799 as a carriage house and converted into a ‘hotel’ (day club) from 1826 to 1833. The museum transports visitors back to the 19thC resort for New Yorkers escaping the crowded city below 14th St. With industrialisation and increasing commercialism, the population of NY tripled in the 1820’s to 300,000. With a burgeoning middle class developing, leisure pursuits became a sought after commodity. The hotel was a place to come to, to relax, fish, do business deals, have a glass of ice tea, play cards…..and then return to the crowded zone.

When I left the museum, saw the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Bridge in large relief!! It has an upper and lower section for cars to drive on!!!! I came over it from Connecticut when I had my Kia Soul, before I left that at LaGuardia and became a subway junkie (in the nicest possible way!).

Every Sunday for more than a decade, rain or shine, with no vacations, a jazz concert has taken place in the parlor of Marjorie Eliot’s home on what she calls the northern tip of Harlem, just off W160 St. Her weekly mid afternoon free concerts in the living room of her apartment are legendary in Harlem and an institution for jazz lovers citywide. A small, diverse crowd people gathers in the cheerful living room, including neighbors in the building, local New Yorkers and tourists in the know. Ms. Eliot starts the session with piano, joined by equally talented musicians who sang, played cello, flute and sax. The room was filled with warmth and passion. It was an intimate moment where friends, strangers and the neighborhood connected. Another gorgeous NY moment.