On Thursday night, three days short of the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, the Lincoln Center featured ‘Titanic Tales: Stories of Courage and Cowardice’ in the David Rubenstein Atrium. The show was billed as an evening of music and stories, but focused principally on the legal testimonies of survivors in the post-disaster US enquiry. So it was quite somber, contrasting with the munching, picnicking audience that often seems to accompany free events in NYC, and in the end I was happy to escape into the modern day. RIP RMS Titanic and to all the lost souls and altered opportunity. Forever onward…

The walk home took us through Columbus Circle down Broadway to Times Square, pausing briefly at the newly opened Aussie chain, Pie Face. The classic solution to hunger at this time of the night would have been a pie floater, but that not being available, we settled for a chunky beef and a chicken & mushroom pie. They were OK, but for some reason I couldn’t get the 35,000 eggs that set sail with the Titanic out of my head. So much anticipation…

On to Times Square where the action of the night was in full swing. Tourists everywhere and superheros on every corner – Mickey Mouse, Spongebob, Cookie Monster, not to mention an array of Statues of Liberty, all touting photos for finance. There was no sign of the Naked Cowboy, but it was a bit cool, and in any case Batman was the man of the moment. A fully suited black guy standing about 6’4″, and with amazing energy was literally sweeping people off their feet. He was engaging and entertaining, and people were queuing up to share the joy. By complete contrast a statue of Liberty skulked around in the background, watching the paying punters enviously, but he was unable to raise a torch to the Dark Knight. I guess in the end it doesn’t matter what you’re wearing, it’s the attitude that counts…