Places· The City, Still· New York City

A Day Back in the City

The City, Still — You can leave New York without leaving it behind.

For many people here, New York never really stopped being part of life. It just became somewhere you return to.

Wood-panelled dining room at the Lotte New York Palace with a carved ceiling, a large painting over the fireplace and tables set with cups — A panelled dining room at the Lotte New York Palace, laid for morning.

Leaving the city rarely means leaving it entirely. A dinner, a play, an exhibition, an unplanned afternoon, the occasional night away — New York stays within reach, and that changes how life out here feels.

This collection is about that returning: not schedules or itineraries, but what it is like to go back, and to come home again.

The going

It’s great being only an hour or so from the city. I usually train in and walking off the train at Grand Central never disappoints.

The city, as a visitor who once lived there

I lived in NYC for 12 years and have been working there for 30. It’s always important for me to go in a few times a month to revisit my old haunts and see good friends.

Coming home

I’m always hunting for inspiration by finding new things along the way. A new street I’ve never walked down, a new restaurant I’ve been wanting to try, or a new band worth seeing live. It’s always great to get back home into the country again, knowing the city is there whenever I need it.

Harlem–125th Street station sign and a brick tower reflected in a train window at sunset — Harlem–125th Street, on the way in.

Looking up at lit Midtown towers and an American flag against a dusk sky — Midtown at dusk.

Grand Central Terminal's main concourse with its green constellation ceiling, arched windows and the information booth clock — Grand Central, under the painted sky.

Getting around town by Citi Bike, with a friend who came to visit.

Steam rising from an orange and white street stack, with the Chrysler Building spire behind at night — Steam, and the Chrysler Building, late.

The Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center lit at night, its tall arched windows showing chandeliers and murals, people on the plaza — Lincoln Center, before the curtain.

Looking down on the curving red-carpeted staircases and starburst chandeliers inside the Metropolitan Opera House — The stairs at the Met, from above.