end of summer vacay: hamptons and nyc

spent most of our time kickin' it at the beach, since after all it is the backyard. this is a photo of emma flying a kite; an old bud of Adrian's who's company I enjoyed very much. 

the kite, in mini, top right. that thing went up as high as the planes, as emma proclaimed "... he payed $400 for this contraption." 

spent a day in montauk, did some boating and good food eating. this dish was the best: grilled shrimp tacos garnished with mango, pineapple and red pepper. watermelon drink on the side. 

we went scavenging in Adrian's basement on the rainy day of the hurricane. no one goes down there, to my disbelief; it is filled treasures, literally. for example this 1869 unopened bottle of Bual we found. cabinets full of personal letters, photographs and document of Sara and Gerald Murphy (see last post). old Louis Vuitton luggage personalized to Gerald Murphy. all sorts of nick-nacks, really. 

we also attempted scavenging the garage, but there is just so much in there it is near impossible to get around. it is similarly filled with treasures beyond belief, a couple of which Adrian's mom was kind enough to pass onto me: an antique lamp and candle holder, both lovely additions to my bedroom. in there are antiques from the 1920s that would make any collector pull their hair out if they knew them to just be sitting around in a basement or garage: bureaus, tables, lamps, a Louis Vuitton wardrobe, picture frames, mirrors... sigh. 

following photos I took the liberty of taking in their lovely home: 

 

every single room in this house has breathtaking charm. with a constant breeze and sounds of waves roaring from the ocean, it is safe to say it is one of the most delightful places I have ever set foot. 

speaking of delights, Adrian's mother threw him a small belated birthday bash. very sweet, both the festivities and cake. 

my favorite: but a wee little Adrian. literally a poster child, he was aired on two tv segments in childhood: making fake snot with the author of a children's science book, and playing on the beach with nurf guns.

  the tale of hurricane earl: so while we were in east hampton, we had one day of bad weather. there was a hurricane on the atlantic that did not hit us directly, however did stir up some serious waves at the very least. we went out venturing, and most definitely payed the consequences; at least I know I did. about a half hour walk on the beach brought us to a point where these large rocks you see above are found. all was fun until one of those giant waves wiped me out, fully clothed, dSLR in hand. I was tumbled around the rocks, swirled in sand by the under-toe, and came back out fully drenched, without shoes, covered in heavy sand, and bleeding. the storm starting to kick-in at that point, and we had to run back, twister-style, to safety. the waves were then up to the dunes, and I had to run bare foot in them until we reached Adrian's house. I was in shock throughout the whole process to say the least, but in the end it was the perfect adrenaline rush and made for a highlight of our trip. the camera in is reparation as we speak, fingers crossed.

these photos are from our two day mid-week trip to nyc: 

we stayed with a friend of Adrian's who has an incredible loft right in the middle of SoHo. I would post pictures, but do not want to be too invasive. I have settled for this one window shot I could not resist, a view from the outside hallway. 

taking the subway was also interesting, different than our metro system here in mtl. more scary and complicated.  

shopping! a central part of our trip. 

the guggenheim is by far the most interesting building I have ever been in. with no stairs, this circular spectacle was quite the site to say the very least. I wish I could have taken pictures of the view from the top, but cameras were not aloud. up on the columns "dust to dust, ashes to ashes, earth to earth". 

"you will either fail, 

or you will find a way to succeed" 

got a couple tattoos. like them a lot. 

finished it off with a pic-nic in central park. 

I wish I could have taken pictures of every single moment, both in east hampton and nyc. the trip was absolutely fabulous. I met some more of Adrian's old friends, we had wonderful meals every single day, and spent tons of time at the beach. on our last night, we sat and watched fireworks by the ocean to a clear starry sky; followed by a fire, brews and friends on the beach. 

then we were off on the ferry the next day, homeward bound. 

a big thank you to Laura (Adrian's mom) for her generous hospitality.