City Views, Country Dreams

Happy Easter from New York!

I'm writing this as a fully retired person, and am surrounded in my little apartment by dozens of tulips and other gifts presented to me by my lovely work colleagues at a farewell sendoff.

Many photographs were taken during the farewell party.

I've decided...with only one exception...

not to share any of those photographs here.  I will definitely be sharing the pictures with the folks who attended the party.  I was so honored by all their kindness and generosity to me!

And so, moving on, I will show you what I saw today on my stroll over to the Fifth Avenue Easter Parade.  Taking a diagonal southeastern route through Central Park, I passed by lots of daffodils, and also the softball fields that will soon be in use.

Reaching Fifth Avenue and 57th Street, the uptown boundary of the Easter Parade just after noon, I saw lots of open pavement, and realized that as usual, most bonnet wearers would be promenading closer to St. Patrick's Cathedral and Rockefeller Center.

Some of you all may recognize the name on the building in the above picture.  I think that no one really wanted to linger in front of its entrance, in case some sort of demonstration might occur.

Quite a few of my photographs were taken on the hop, so to speak, and so you all might wish to click on the pictures to see an enlarged version.  Such clicking is optional.  There are many photographs in the post!

Madam has bananas on her hat while her consort kept his hat simple with s few colored eggs.

Lots of colorful floral exuberance on display above.

It was a bit chilly, but the sunshine felt great and made for fine lighting for the photographers, professional and amateur.

the hats in the above photograph were made from cut and furled paper, and were definitely being caught by the breezes.

The colorful fellow above was enjoying entertaining all passersby.

These ladies took a more subdued approach in their bonnet choices.

Balloon artists were able to make impromptu hats.  The cute little girl hiding behind the balloons in the next photograph smiled when I took her picture.

Some irresistible photo opportunities present themselves along the Avenue.  Did you all notice the golf course theme of the green hat?

As you can see, the crowd was thickening.

The lady chose a large rose; the gentleman in the background went for flags.

Ice cream cone on lavender hair was looking cool.

This little family group was adorable and cuddly.

This duo from other generations looked festively elegant.

This lady's blue jacket looked grand underneath her flower garden hat, complete with picket fence.

The decorated straw saucer hat above looked very elegant.  The extravagance of the creamy outfit below was definitely a one off.

Some chose to go green.

As in past years, I saw many retro fashion looks.

Bus service and other vehicular traffic was banned for the 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. duration of the parade, so this bus stop was claimed by a bunny ear head gear vendor.

How elegantly dramatic these ladies looked against the matte black wall proclaiming the opening of yet another Victoria's Secret shop.

Let us count the bunnies!

He gave up his cigar for a carrot today.

The Easter Bunny was giving out lots of hugs.

St. Patrick's Cathedral looked much more attractive this year, now that all the protective scaffolding had been removed following months of restoration work.

What a beautiful hat this lady had chosen to wear to church.

What an incredible floral cascade this lady chose to wear over her pale green coat.

And this fellow chose to delight folks of all ages with a light touch.

More retro bonnets worn by stylish ladies.

The following trio, standing in front of Saks, had made their own terrific hats.

As had these ladies, who were having a bit of trouble keeping those bonnets on their heads.

More pretty bonnets, and a jaunty fedora.

These gents were not taking any chances of being chilled.

Lots of folks were taking pictures of this family group, and so I had to wait a while to have a clear view.

When I wished the older boy Happy Easter, he obliged me with an action pose.

Over on the Esplanade at Rockefeller Center, these children were being tempted by the chocolates in the extravagant shop window.

I had to click my camera's button quickly to catch this dandy lion.

There was quite a lovely display around the Esplanade's fountains.

This little girl couldn't resist picking just one flower for her basket.  Her dad only allowed her that one posy.

Two couples moving to very different style beats.

Time for a little sit down, a snack, and a check of the smart phone.

Aren't these two children adorable?

Returning to Fifth Avenue, and beginning my homeward walk, I encountered this trio of ladies who had chosen the retro theme.

The man in the next photograph had decorated his hat with a series of wired black birds.  He actually had a lady friend helping him to walk through the crowds, so that the hat and passersby would not suddenly meet.  It was a great hat!

Here's a selection of bunnies!

The following couple had chosen forsythia for their theme, and also chosen to check their text messages.

The lady in the white feathered headdress towered over these two boys who wanted to be photographed with her.

For contrast, this photograph setting could appear in a magazine.

Here is another one off outfit.

If for any reason, someone felt under-dressed and needed to quickly assemble an Easter bonnet, this couple had provided all the ingredients for sale.

Now this is a bonnet!

Quite a fashion plate with her sash, perhaps advertising a shop.

These crafty gents were attracting a crowd.  In a way, their outfits are a sort of variation on those worn my London's Pearly Kings.

And just a few feet away, here is a touch of elegance.

I very much doubt that this pup chose this outfit.

What a stylish couple!

This bunny was having a little Zen moment of contemplation.

What a huge hat this very thin young lady was wearing!

Very cool, I'm sure.  We wished each other Happy Easter.

This family were taking pictures of Baby's first Easter Parade.

Although the main purpose of these heavy planters is to provide protection from vehicles leaving the street, accidentally or intentionally, it's nice that they have some swirly shrubs and daffs growing in them, too.

Just as I was nearing the 57th Street parade boundary I encountered this white suited, bunny-eared fellow rolling down the Avenue with his dog.

I thought that taking a few photographs of them was a fun way to conclude my Parade reporting for this year.

This was a fine day for a parade and I hope that you all will be able to get some notion of the spirit of the day.

Thank you all for your visit to my previous post and for your lovely comments, about the other parade and also wishing me well on my retirement decision.

I will be back with a new post before long...most likely not featuring a parade.  Happy Easter