NJ-NY: A Covid 19 Cityscape
At first glance, this appears to be normal ciyscape-river view on a summer Friday afternoon. But it's not normal and after months of shut-down and 'stay at hom' mandates, I'm still not used to it looking like this. The helix roadway in the foreground is the artery that leads into (and out of) the Lincoln Tunnel that runs under the Hudson River between New Jersey and New York. On a typical Friday, especially on the weekend before July4th, it would be jam-packed with bumper to bumper busses, cars, trucks and other vehicles There would be the sound of police sirens and traffic police with bullhorns directing the tunnel entry overflow traffic on local roads. The empty parking lot for the building that juts out over the river would be filled to capacity with cars as people visit the restaurant for Happy Hour and enjoy dinner with the city view. The river would be alive with boat traffic - ferries crossing between the two states, weekend boaters, tourist cruises and yacht dinner cruises traveling up and down the river. The sky over the river and city would be dotted with helicopters ferrying people and small planes with advertising banners. But .it's not a normal weekend - much is still 'on hold' even though we are starting a Phase 2 opening. Normally on this weekend, the city would be packed with people attending PRIDE celebrations and excitement building wondering where the Macv's fireworks would be held and if/where they would be visible. But this year, none of that is happening. New York and New Jersey, just weeks ago the epicenter of the Covid-19 virus is now recovering, reassessing and slowly reopening but it is far from normal. As the peaks of this virus have moved into the South and Southwest, I hope that everyone will do all in their power to stay safe and protect each other. Note: This scene viewed from the palisade overlooking the waterfront in NJ.