Urban sights.

I had time to walk to an appointment today, so I figured I'd go down Park Avenue. It's not a street I'm on that often, and it was quieter than Lexington, Madison, and Fifth, which was the main factor. There aren't a whole lot of businesses along the stretch where I was this afternoon, with what few there are mostly being museum gift shops and cafes and the occasional private practice of some type or another. No storefronts as I'd usually think of them. Beautiful buildings as far as the eye could see, of course. Plenty of cultural hubs and social institutions.

It wasn't without advertising. There were all kinds of vans driving around, branded with one company or another, and plenty of taxis showcasing current Broadway productions on their little displays up top. But it was without a lot of the intrusions I'm used to on most streets. After a couple dozen blocks, down nearer to midtown, there started to be restaurants and stores, real estate firms, and those had window displays that were generally subdued enough they blended into the residential architecture. At least until midtown started at 59th street.

It hit me afterwards: Park Avenue is rich enough nobody's selling it anything. And "rich enough nobody's selling you anything" seems like an echelon where it's easy to forget the levels of intrusion everywhere else.

Though the lack of stores and ads might have been the product of forward-thinking, strongly enforced zoning regulations. Most likely, a bit of both.