Central Park

The Daily Plant : Thursday, June 28, 2007

Summer Interns Take A Walk In The Park

Photo by Margaret Zajkowska

Internship Coordinator Leslie Nusblatt recently arranged for Parks interns to take an afternoon stroll in the southern part of Central Park. The tour, guided by former Urban Park Ranger Gary Rozman, allowed interns both to learn about the park and to meet interns from other divisions.

Beginning with a brief history of Olmsted and his design for the park, the promenade included such highlights as Literary Walk, the Pond, Sheep Meadow, Tavern on the Green, and an explanation of the history of the park’s monuments and statues, along with identifying trees and wildlife.

For Winnie Yuen (Planning Intern), the excursion was her first visit to Central Park. “The curved roads and how they interact with nature is fascinating,” she commented after seeing Olmsted’s shady, meandering paths which Rozman explained were created to form the illusion of greater space within the urban limitations of the park.

Daniel Marfo (Bronx Forestry Intern) also observed, “My favorite part of the stroll had to be the entire Olmsted's design concept of Central Park. The idea of being in the park and forgetting you are in busy New York City is something that is hard to capture. The design of the cross roads or through roads, so that they would run below the regular elevation on the city streets especially brought that feeling alive.”

Even New Yorkers and prior visitors had the opportunity to discover some of the less well known history of Central Park. “I have lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan my whole life and there is actually a lot of stuff I didn’t know about Central Park,” remarked Sarah Bartges (NRG Intern). Jessica Bloom (Operations Intern) prophesied “My mom is gonna freak when she finds out this used to be a barn,” referring to Tavern on the Green’s past role as the former pen of the grass-trimming sheep of Sheep Meadow.

In mid-afternoon warmth, both the weather and the company could be called sunny. Alexia Friend (Specifications Intern) came in on a day she does not work, uniquely for the tour that she called “very enjoyable.” Jacob Press (Legal Intern), discussing his time thus far at Parks, described it as “the best internship I ever had.”

If your interns were unable to attend, but would like to learn about the park, please contact Leslie or Gary about a possible make-up tour.

Written by Lincoln Foran
(Community Resources Intern)

QUOTATION FOR THE DAY

“It is always easier to believe than to deny.
Our minds are naturally affirmative.”

John Burroughs
(1837 – 1921)

Know Before You Go

Harlem Meer Center (formerly Lasker Rink)

Harlem Meer Center