E/V Trains - 23 St.-Ely Ave. (Day 9, stop #392)

Out:  Not too many people here, right outside the Citi building in L.I.C.  There are some workers around, and the ones that are here are mostly white.  There are some empty lots near this big office tower, and the other buildings are all only a few stories tall and clad in brick for the most part.  In general, though, the area feels pretty empty.  Nearby there are a couple of Italian restaurants and a coffee shop along with some factories.  I also see some surprisingly well-preserved row houses, but many of the buildings look kind of run down.

In:  There are two platforms facing each other here, with off white tiles on the walls and a red tile stripe with black border.  There are red metal columns by the platform edge.  The lighting is decent, and the floors are grey tile.  There is peeling paint on the roof, and some artwork on the mezzanine, of a large circle surrounded by mosaic tile.

E/V Trains - Lexington Av.-53 St. (Day 9, stop #391)

Out:  The people around here are still mostly office workers, with fewer tourists.  There is not too much happening on the street, but some of the skyscrapers are pretty interesting, architecturally.  

The people around still look well-dressed with plenty of cash, and are of many ethnicities.  However, there are also a few homeless people over here as well.  The entrance to the subway is encased in glass here.  Most of the buildings around are skyscrapers, but there are a few smaller buildings down 53^rd St.

In:  The entrance here is brightly lit, and there is a long hallway visible for connection to the 6 train.  There is, interestingly, also a waterfall in the station.  There are lots of Orthodox kids hanging out here, for some reason, sitting by the turnstiles.  There is a mosaic tile mural of various shapes on the mezzanine.  The station here is quite crowded with lots of people.  I take a long escalator down to the platform level; deeper than 5 Av., but still not as bad as the F at Lex.  The layout here is only one platform, with trains in both directions.  The roof is long and arched, with peeling paint.  There are red metal columns by the platform.  There are no tiles on the walls, just a black and white arch with one red stripe saying “Lex Av-53 St.”.

E/V Trains - 5 Av.-53 St. (Day 9, stop #390)

Out:  There is some appealing granite work at the immediate exit to the station, as part of the attached building here.  The stop here is right next to St. Patrick’s cathedral.  

The people on the street are a mix of office workers, rich folk, and tourists.  There are a number of large office skyscrapers but also some smaller-scale offices, and the MoMA is down the block toward 6^th Ave.  

There are some carts selling food around, but otherwise there are only the expensive retail stores on 5^th Ave.; not too much to eat otherwise around here.  I walk over to Lex to the next stop.

In:  Large square white and red tiles, in a matte finish.  In this direction the station only appears to be one track, one platform; the other local track is upstairs, with a metal arched roof.  The express tracks are not visible here.  The station is dimly lit, in poor condition, with lots of peeling paint.  The station name is painted on red tiles.  There are narrow metal red columns by the platform edge, and the wall on the track side is black and untiled; this makes the station look even dimmer.  Here I take a long escalator up to the booth, but it’s not nearly as deep as the F stop at Lex.  The mezzanine has some retail shops attached to the exit.

B/D/F/V Trains - 47-50 St.-Rockefeller Ctr. (Day 9, stop #389)

Out:  The buildings here are mostly office towers and other skyscrapers, and the people on the street are primarily office workers leaving to go home a bit early on Friday (~ 4 p.m.).  

There are also a good number of tourists here.  On the corner here there are ice cream trucks and small food stands, as well as some restaurants and shops at street level of the tall buildings, especially on the side streets off 6^th Ave.  

Near the stop is Radio City Music Hall and plenty of people relaxing by the fountain across 6^th Ave.  

Inside the shops at Rockefeller Center I manage to finally use the bathroom after basically walking underground all the way over the 5^th Ave.

In:  This station has lots of entrances, many built into the sides of the nearby buildings.  Also there are many retail outlets and food places on the upper level of the station, called “The Concourse”.  There are white-tiled dodecahedrons near the platform, and there are grey and white floors.  The long mezzanine level has red metal columns and Lufthansa ads. The layout here is two platform, four track with local and express access.  The platforms here are not at equal height, so it’s kind of strange to look at the wrong level onto the neighboring track.  The walls have small white tiling with a reddish tile stripe.  The station name “47-50” is painted on small black wall tiles.

R/V Trains - Elmhurst Ave. (Day 9, stop #378)

Out:  This intersection is both busy and very ethnically mixed, as I am again approaching Jackson Heights.  The people around are Asian, Hispanic, white, Middle Eastern and South Asian.  The housing is mostly brick apartment buildings, but the diversity of both the people and commercial establishments makes sure that the surroundings of this station definitely no longer feel suburban.  Some of the stores and restaurants include the Asia Bank, a Chinese seafood restaurant, and a Latin restaurant.  

The “Winners” bar looks pretty shady, and the little shopping center across the street has both a Pho Bang and Pho Bac; maybe there are some Vietnamese folk around here as well.  Pretty interesting stop here.

In:  This station is similar to the previous ones under Queens Blvd., but in this case the wall tiles look dirtier than usual, plus there are yellow metal columns by the platform instead of blue.  Again the mezzanine is divided into controlled and uncontrolled by a chain link fence.  There are some retail shops attached to the exit of the train here, and on my way back in I bought a chorizo con arepa from a Colombian place; it literally is just a big sausage and a piece of semi-fried dough wrapped up in aluminum foil.

R/V Trains - Grand Ave.-Newtown (Day 9, stop #377)

Out:  Here there is a mix of large apartment buildings as well as some small houses off of Queens Blvd.  There is the “Post Time” Sports bar & beer garden.  

Over here there are more Asian people than before, as well as more signs in Chinese, but it’s still fairly mixed with some white and Hispanic.  A block off Queens Blvd, I see a number of Chinese establishments including a bakery and spa, among others.  

On Q.B. there’s a Levitz and some other big retail stores along with some restaurants.  The area still looks pretty residential and middle class, but maybe a little less wealthy than the previous stops farther out.

In:  Similar to previous stops under Queens Blvd., but the blue tiling might be a slightly darker color.  The mezzanine is again very long with different ways to access the controlled part of the station; here a typical black grating provides the partition, and the booth is in the middle of the station.

R/V Trains - Woodhaven Blvd.-Slattery Plaza (Day 9, stop #376)

Out:  As I exit the station here, I see why the exits were not focused towards exiting where I did: it’s only an on-ramp for I-495.  

The main attraction here is on the other side of Queens Blvd: there’s a huge suburban-style mall! Damn.  Somehow, that’s depressing.  But at least it explains the ads in the train station.  The residents seem to be mostly white, but it’s hard to tell who lives here and who is just in the area to shop.  Besides the mall, there is also a large office building, some large brick apartments, a McDonald’s, T-Mobile, and a few similar stores.  However, the mall definitely dominates the scene here.

In:  Similar to 63 Dr. on the platform, but the mezzanine is covered with backlit ads for California Pizza Kitchen at the Queens Center Mall.  There are also decorated, reflective metallic columns composed of various shapes on the mezzanine.  The exit to Woodhaven Blvd. involves walking through a circuitous maze of pedestrian tunnels; I see some kid skateboarding through them just to get around.

R/V Trains - 63 Dr.-Rego Park (Day 9, stop #375)

Out:  This area again seems predominantly white/Eastern European, with some Asians around.  Again seems very middle class, as well.  There is a similar mix of stores near the stop as I saw at 67 Ave., such as Pizza Hut and GNC, but there is also “Wiggles” which looks like a strip club.  There are again big apartment blocks for housing.  

A block or two away, though, this neighborhood tries to resemble the suburbs even more: there’s a big box strip mall with a Marshalls, Circuit City and a Bed Bath & Beyond.

In:  Similar to 67 Ave., except here the mezzanine is divided with separate turnstile access for the Manhattan and Queens-bound sides.

R/V Trains - 67 Ave. (Day 9, stop #374)

Out:  There are more large (~12 story) brick apartment buildings near the stop, as well as others more like ~6 stories.  

The people around include a mix of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and a few Asian, but the area seems mostly white/Eastern European.  

Again, what you expect for middle-class Queens. Some of the businesses around include a CVS, coffee shop, and Knish Knosh restaurant.  There’s also a Hungarian pastry place, the Kosher “King David” restaurant, and some signs in Russian, along with (gasp) a Starbucks.  I took advantage of this familiar establishment to buy a bottle of water and use the bathroom.

In:  The layout here is two platform, four track with express bypass.  The tile mosaic station sign is in the IND style, with a black background and sky blue border.  The tile stripe down the wall is in sky blue and there are royal blue metal columns by the platform edge.  The layout is similar to other stops under Queens Blvd, but here the booth is at the end of the mezzanine instead of in the middle.

E/F/R/V Trains - 71st Ave.-Continental Ave. (Day 9, stop #363)

Out:  The neighborhood here is very mixed, ethnically; not surprising for Queens.  There are Asians, whites, South Indian, black, and Hispanic people around, but it seems predominantly white.  

Queens Blvd. here is very wide, with 12 lanes across (6 in the middle are express lanes, with few turnoffs, while there are also three separated local lanes on each side).  

There are some large brick apartments nearby and plenty of stores.  Many are not open yet (9 a.m.) but still looks pretty pleasant in general; very middle class and mostly residential off of Queens Blvd.  Strangely, there is a large office tower directly on top of the station; I guess it could be considered convenient.

In:  Took the train all the way out to Queens on the E express to explore the stops out here and then work my way back towards Manhattan.  The layout here is two platform, four track, with local (R/V) and express (E/F) access.  The station looks old and dirty, and it is the last stop for the R and V.  There are dirty white tiles on the wall with a sea green tile stripe.  There are also sea green metal columns by the platform edge.  Even though it’s not too late in the day, it is HOT in here!  The mezzanine is long and dimly lit.  The Manhattan-bound platform is packed with commuters waiting for the express train.

B/D/F/V Trains - 42 St.-Bryant Park (Day 8, stop #359)

Out:  The exit here is right at the corner of Bryant Park.  Despite the late hour, there are still plenty of people lounging around in the park.  They seem to be mostly office workers who have gotten out of work recently.  

The streets are no longer too crowded, though, as it’s close to 8 p.m. and mostly past rush hour.  The nearby sandwich shops have closed by now.  The park is surrounded by the enormous modern skyscrapers of midtown; definitely in the thick of Manhattan here.  

Besides the office workers, there are some tourists around as well as people of all types (but most of them well-dressed).  Not too many obviously residential places here; definitely seems to be mostly office space.

In:  This station has better lighting inside, also with a two platform, four track layout.  There are grey floor tiles, white wall stiles, and red metal columns by the edge of the platform.  There is a red tile strips along the wall, following the grade of the platform.  There is a small “42” repeated frequently on black tiles.  There’s a long mezzanine in the station, with some included retails space (even though it’s currently unoccupied).  There’s a large mosaic wall mural containing sizeable brown tiles.  There is a quote as part of the mural: “Nature must not win the game but they cannot lose.  Jung”.  Not really clear what this environmental statement has to do with the subway, but whatever.

B/D/F/V Trains - 34 St.-Herald Sq. (Day 8, stop #358)

Out:  See 34 St. stop on N/R/Q/W Trains.

In:  Two platform, four track layout with B/D on express and F/V on local.  There are red metal columns by the platform edge, and the platforms are quite wide.  The station is pretty dirty and dingy, with low flat ceilings and grey floor tiles.  The walls have dirty white tiles.  There is harsh lighting hanging from the ceiling.  There is a transfer to the N/Q/R/W and access to the exits via  long system of ramps and stairs.

F/V Trains - 23 St. (Day 8, stop #357)

Out:  Right outside the stop here there is a shopping center embedded in a large building, with a Best Buy, WaMu, Burlington Coat Factory, and other big-box-style stores.  Again there are plenty of office workers, shoppers, tourists, etc.  

The buildings here are a bit larger scale than at 14 St., and I don’t see too many small houses near the stop.  There are still plenty of smaller stores, though.  Here I stopped into the Office Depot (again, one of the big box stores here) to pick up a new notebook.

In:  Similar to 14 St., with no columns by the platform.  Also here the booth is on the same level as the uptown track.

F/V Trains - 14 St. (Day 8, stop #356)

Out:  This intersection is quite busy, with lots of people of all types.  There’s a Starbucks, a Foot Locker, HSBC, and lots of other smaller shops (delis, etc.).  There are also a number of bars and restaurants.  

The housing is a mix of small old houses in brick as well as very large apartment buildings/offices.  The people around are mostly white, but there really is a mix of ethnicities.

In:  The layout visible here is only a single platform and single track.  This station has a strange dual-level design, with the uptown and downtown platforms stacked on top of each other.  Also, it’s not possible to see the express tracks.  There is a connection to the L at the end of the platform, and a connection to the 1/2/3 down a long tunnel.  There is a green mosaic tile station name and a green tile stripe down the wall.  There is a long, dim mezzanine with bad lighting to access the exit at 14^th St. and 6^th Ave.

A/C/E/B/D/F/V Trains - W. 4 St. (Day 8, stop #355)

Out: The streets here are crowded with tons of people. It’s a mixed between office workers, well-dressed young people, and some people dressed a little more aggressively. There’s the IFC Center right here, as well as some handball/basketball courts on the corner of W. 3 St. and 6^th Ave.

There is also the famous Village mix of tattoo shops, comedy clubs, and Blue Note jazz club right near by. The housing is primarily small row houses in brick as well as some mid-size apartment buildings. Definitely lots of activity around here.

In: This station has a strange three-level design, From the booth area at W. 3^rd St., there is a long tunnel with white tiling that leads down to the 8^th Ave. line platform. This level has a two platform, four track layout for local and express access. There are multiple staircases to access the middle level, which doesn’t have any trains on it, just a big concrete open space. The lower level again has a two platform, four track layout with B/D on the express track and F/V on the local. There are green metal columns by the platform edge, white tiles on the walls, a green tile stripe down the wall, and “W. 4” in small black tiles. The station here is dimly lit and looks dirty.

B/D/F/V Trains - Broadway-Lafayette St. (Day 8, stop #354)

Out:  Here on the border of SoHo, there are many fancy stores and well-dressed people (both shoppers and office workers).  There are huge ads around and well-maintained but older buildings; some look like former factories.

A pretty fancy corner, in general.  It’s surprising that there is actually a gas station at the corner of Houston and Lafayette…that’s some valuable real estate!

In:  There is two platform, four track setup, with the D/B trains on the inner tracks and the F/V on the outer.  There are blue metal columns on the platform, grety tile floors, and white tile walls.  The station is in decent condition and the lighting is ok.  I need to walk up a long flight of stairs to get to the exit.  There is also a long hallway which allows for transfer to the downtown 6.