Saturday 19 December 2009

Christmas in New York

Fairy lights glimmer at Rockefeller,
golden sparks leap from green firs;
their elfin flames twinkle in eyes
as I scan the ice,
searching for my sister
who stutters across the frozen sheet.

From here we board the red bus
that rides in the wrong city,
passing snowflakes fastened on the wall
of Bloomies, bullion colour flashing
in sequence to Carol of the Bells
chiming in my ears.

We peer at the Plaza, sited in grandeur
by Central Park, where children wrapped
in coats and scarves and bobble hats
throw tiny handfuls of greying snow
at black beauties standing in rank,
waiting for fools to pay $20 for a ride.

Car horns peal from traffic lined by
FAO Schwarz, where shoppers leave with
bulging bags of toys and treats and
tourists nervously hail taxis for
the Brooklyn Bridge, where they
gaze with glee at the Hudson River.

Ensared in the sleepless city,
we make way to Times Square, where
neon lights blaze, crowds pour from
subways, shops and Broadway shows, and some
buy salted pretzels from the shifty man
frozen on 47th.

Steam rises from subway grates on 49th,
as we hurry down to catch the R,
speeding us to the Empire State,
stemming proudly from the city's middle,
where we soar 102 floors
above the earth.

From this highest point we huddle,
bitter from the minus winds, and gaze at the
yellow ants crawling slowly around blocks
and rows of streets, inflamed by
the city's glow, like streams of lava,
as evening dusk finally falls.

7 comments:

  1. Wow! Knockout! Favourite bit:

    "the red bus
    that rides in the wrong city"

    Beautiful. Now do Swindon

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  2. i'm with ug--the bus line made me smile.

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  3. Great stuff. I've always dreamt of going to NYC - even more so now. Love the imagery. $20 for a ride is incredible - you wouldn't even get a handjob for that over here in the UK.
    http://plentymorefishoutofwater.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks for the comments everyone!

    UG: Hmm...not quite sure Christmas in Swindon would have the same effect.

    Hunter & Sarah: Thanks! That's my favourite line too.

    Fish: Yes, how did i know you would take the sexual inuendo from that line...you dirty bugger. You've tainted it now. Tainted forever! As for you paying for handjobs, i'd rather not know...

    :)

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  5. Happy Holidays and my wish for you in the coming year is that it will be overflowing with new and wonderful accomplishments.

    Best Regards,
    A.J.

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  6. Aww, thanks so much AJ. I hope so too. Merry Christmas to you too! :)

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