Tag: Strawberry Fields

Strawberry Fields in Central Park

Published on by juliebrannanLeave a comment

When John Lennon and Yoko Ono moved from Greenwich Village to the Dakota apartment building on West 72nd Street and Central Park South in 1973, the area of Central Park directly across from their apartment because a beloved “front yard.” New Yorkers were charmed to find them strolling through the park regularly. On the night of December 8, 1980, when Lennon was shot to death when coming home to the Dakota, grief-stricken fans gathered just inside the park at West 72nd Street, singing, holding candles, and leaving flowers.

Plans for a memorial to John Lennon in Central Park began shortly after his death, and his widow worked with the city to create what she hoped would be an international garden of peace. First New York City resolved to rename this area of the park Strawberry Fields, after Lennon’s 1967 song with The Beatles, “Strawberry Fields Forever.” The design of the area served as a redevelopment of what had become a run-down part of the park, and includes several meadows and a winding path that leads through a wooded area. Countries all over the world contributed to the development of Strawberry Fields, and a plaque on a large rock just off the path shows gratitude for those donations. A central mosaic with the simple word “Imagine” – a tribute to Lennon’s beloved solo recording – was created in and donated by the city of Naples, Italy. This iconic mosaic is surrounded by benches and soon began to regularly attract groups of people to sing Lennon’s music and play guitars.

Strawberry Fields was officially dedicated on what would have been John Lennon’s 45th birthday – October 9, 1985. Since then, on anniversaries of his birth, and perhaps particularly on each anniversary of his death, large crowds gather to sing and show their love and respect.

On December 8, 2025, I went by in the afternoon and found a large crowd gathered. There were more instrumentalists than the typical single acoustic guitar, and included amps, a keyboard, and drums. As I walked over, everyone was singing “If I Fell” (you can see a video of what it was like to walk up to the crowd HERE). It was a very cold day, but I stayed for many, many songs and regretted leaving when I had to. Perhaps a highlight was “We can work it out” (see a video I took of the song HERE). This song is one of the great examples of a true Lennon-McCartney collaboration, with the result being something much more than the sum of the two parts. Lennon’s weariness with the world’s constant struggles (“Life is very short/And there’s no time for fussing and fighting, my friend”) is a foil for McCartney’s sunnier optimism, constantly returning to the refrain “We can work it out.” In these troubled times, being in a group of strangers singing both to acknowledge the pain, and attempt to find hope, was a true balm to my soul.

I was back later, and generally show up on the evening of December 8th to be a part of the crowd. The singing continued well into the night, with candles added to the tributes on the Imagine mosaic, and people waving their phone flashlights in time to the beat, today’s version of holding up a lighter.

When it snows in Central Park, I am always impressed with how passersby keep the mosaic cleared and visible. Before too long, someone generally comes back to sing (see a recent video of someone singing “Girl” after a snowfall HERE). Quite often on any particular day, people will leave flowers, notes, or photographs at the memorial. I consider myself fortunate to live fairly nearby, and to walk through the park often. If I am able, I generally do try to walk through Strawberry Fields and feel my spirit lift just a bit. When people come to visit me, we often head to Strawberry Fields as part of a walk around my favorite spots in Central Park. There’s no denying the tragedy that occurred on December 8, 1980 – for his family and friends primarily, but also for the world. We will never know what he might have accomplished had he been given more time. But John Lennon’s spirit and desire to foster peace lives on through Strawberry Fields, a very special place for us to gather and remember – “You might say I’m a dreamer/But I’m not the only one.”

Central Park in winter (with photos)

Published on by juliebrannan1 Comment

Last week we missed having three feet of snow in the city as the storm veered east by about 50 miles, but we still had enough snow to make Central Park a winter wonderland. This made me think about the advantages of living near the park, and that they are not limited to warm weather months. My sister, who lives in Vermont, says that it’s important to find a winter weather sport to enjoy there so that one doesn’t get too much cabin fever during the long winter. There are far too many things to do in New York City for anyone to get cabin fever (although most cabins are larger than the average NYC apartment, I would speculate!), but it is important to be able to enjoy the outdoors and commune with nature year-round even in the city with so many indoor things to do.

There are two outdoor skating rinks in Central Park: Wollman Rink (now Trump Rink) in the southern part of the park, and Lasker Rink near the Harlem Meer in the northern part. Both rent skates and have a fee to enter, but Lasker Rink is less expensive and often less crowded. However, the views of the skyscrapers looming over the edges of the southern part of the park do make the views a little more picturesque at Wollman (Trump).

Every time it snows, certain areas of the park are well known as prime sledding spots. The best are both mid-park on the east side, Pilgrim Hill (enter at Fifth and 72nd) and Cedar Hill (enter at Fifth and 76th). Pilgrim Hill is steeper and Cedar Hill a little more gentle, but both get very crowded on a snow day. Bring your own sled, of course (or use a garbage bag or an empty pizza box in a pinch).

Every year, Central Park hosts a Winter Jam one weekend, mid-park near the Bandshell. Snow machines are brought in to create (or augment) snow and there are opportunities to learn snowshoeing, skiing, and kicksledding (equipment provided for all of these but lines can be long). There are also snowman building contests and a chance to sled, as well as pop-up food vendors.

After the park has received enough snow, you will see cross-country skiers and snowshoers in the park, but you don’t even need special equipment to truly enjoy the spectacular beauty of Central Park covered in white. Whether appreciating the permanent residents of the park (statuary) with a new layer of frosting to upgrade their look, seeing that someone has already cleared the Imagine mosaic in Strawberry Fields (do it yourself if no one else has), or appreciating a fresh look at the contrast of the stately buildings surrounding the park with the dazzling white of the park itself, Central Park in winter shows that the value of living in New York City within walking distance of the park is a year-round benefit.

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Central park : from the boat pond to Strawberry Fields

Published on by juliebrannan1 Comment

I had another blog post written for this week, complete with photos. Then, New York City decided to break into spring – finally, after a persistent and painful winter, it was suddenly warm, sunny, and bursting with new blooms. I was compelled to take a dérive in Central Park, as it beckoned a block from my office. A dérive, as described in more length in previous posts, is an unplanned walk within an urban landscape. While Central Park is undeniably beautiful and delivers a much-needed injection of nature into our lives in the concrete jungle, it is still supremely urban. One of the best aspects of Central Park is the way that massive buildings line the edges of the park, like an irregular geometric frame around a lush Impressionistic painting.

Entering the park at Fifth Avenue and 79th Street, the first thing that struck me was the fields of daffodils in bloom. Something I love about NYC is the way Christmas trees are recycled each year. As depressing as it can be to see dried trees lining the streets waiting to be picked up in January, they are turned into mulch that is used in city parks to protect and fertilize the bulbs that create these oceans of yellow in April! Walking roughly south, eventually you run into the sailboat pond, full of remote-controlled small boats on clear spring and summer days. Gazing at the pond, unless completely covered in climbing children, is the famous Alice in Wonderland statue. Commissioned in 1959 by George Delacorte, whose philanthropy has enriched many areas of the park, it was designed to be interacted with by children. The statue of Alice was based on the sculptor José de Creeft’s daughter, and the face of the Mad Hatter is a sly tribute to Delacorte himself. Also looking at the pond with his back to the west side, is a statue of Hans Christian Andersen absent-mindedly feeding a duck while staring at the apartment buildings on Fifth Avenue (perhaps looking for a hawk’s nest).

Heading west, you soon come across the Loeb Boathouse, an elegant restaurant (and, with Tavern on the Green gone, the only place within the park that deserves getting dressed up for). They even have a shuttle along upper Fifth Avenue for those who are too dressed up to walk to the restaurant through the park. The Boathouse sits on the location of an old functional structure that was used to store the rowboats that have launched from this location since the late 1800’s (and you can still rent them next to the restaurant). There is even a gondola for hire!

Walking past the Boathouse, roughly west, you come across the majestic clearing surrounding the Bethesda Fountain. Unveiled in 1873, Bethesda Fountain was created to commemorate the Civil War dead, based on a passage in the New Testament about a pool that healed anyone who stepped into it. However, to me it is always the symbol of healing from Tony Kushner’s brilliant Angels in America, when Prior says about it, “This angel. She’s my favorite angel. I like them best when they’re statuary. They commemorate death but suggest a world without dying. They are made of the heaviest things on earth, stone and iron, they weigh tons but they’re winged, they are engines and instruments of flight.” (Epilogue.17)

Continuing to head west, you enter Strawberry Fields. Dedicated to the memory of John Lennon and recognized by 121 countries as a Garden of Peace, it is officially a “quiet zone,” but you are likely to come across a performer playing Beatles tunes near the famous Imagine mosaic. The mosaic was given to the city of New York as a gift by the city of Naples, and was dedicated on October 9, 1985, on what would have been John Lennon’s 45th birthday.

So much to see on even such a relatively short walk in Central Park! The Park belongs to all New Yorkers, not just those fortunate enough to look out the windows of their homes and watch the seasons play out throughout the year. If you’re not a New Yorker, you are as always welcome to explore it as our guest; perhaps someone will even offer to take your picture at the Bethesda Foundation.Image