Snow Day, Washington Square Park

From 2010

Many schools are closed. Flights have been canceled. Residents are encouraged to stay home. After watching the dire weather reports on TV and seeing the furious fall of snowflakes outside the window, it's understandable to want to stay in.

But it's so much fun to be outside and be a part of it, even for a few minutes. NYU had originally scheduled classes for today, but school officials announced this morning that the university would close at 1 p.m. Many college students gathered in the park, as well as professors, dog walkers, parents and toddlers. The east side and sections of the south side of Washington Square Park are closed for renovations, so mostly people convened in the fountain area (the area shown here) for snowball fights and snowman making. Looking at the Arch, the two buildings on either side are The Brevoort (left), a residential co-op building at 11 Fifth Avenue dating to 1956, and One Fifth Avenue, an early Art Deco tower from 1927.

Image: Washington Square Park, afternoon, February 10, 2010. Coming next on Walking Off the Big Apple - After Jury Duty: Points of Interest Near the Courthouses and Foley Square.