Episode 8: Central Park in NYC

[00:00:00] Welcome to English, please, the podcast where we explore captivating topics in under 10 minutes and clear, intermediate English. I’m your host, Christopher. I live and work in New York City, and I’m a language enthusiast who has always been interested in the most effective ways to learn a new language.  

Thank you for joining me for another episode designed to help you improve your English listening skills and vocabulary. 

I hope the start of 2024 has been good for you so far, wherever you’re located. In the eighth episode of English, please, we are going to visit one of the most famous parks in the world, and also what many people call the heart of New York City. Central Park is a must-visit destination for both locals and tourists, and I’m going to tell [00:01:00] you, in clear, intermediate English, a little bit about the design and creation of the park, as well as a few interesting stories.  

And don’t forget the transcript is available and is completely free. You can use it to help in case you miss anything. The link is available in the episode notes.  

Okay, let’s get started!  

To understand Central Park, we need to travel back in time to the middle of the 19th century. At that time, New York City lacked a significant public green space for residents, and the population of the city was exploding as people arrived from both inside and outside of the United States in search of a fresh start, and new opportunities.  

New Yorkers needed a place to escape the chaos. The idea of Central Park was born, but it wasn’t just a matter of planting a few trees. Instead, it was a grand vision that was masterfully conceived [00:02:00] by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, who won a design competition against 32 others in 1858. Olmsted and Vaux wanted a park that would feel natural and untouched, and they wanted it to be a giant oasis that would be a retreat from the busy city, accessible to everyone regardless of their social standing. The park was officially established in 1857, and construction began less than a year later, in 1858.  

How big is Central Park? Well, it covers 843 acres of Manhattan. For context, an acre equals a little more than 4,000 square meters. Let’s simplify that. Central Park is a rectangular shape. The length of the park from south to north is 2.5 miles, or four kilometers. [00:03:00] The width of the park from east to west is a half-mile or 0.8 kilometers. While it’s not the largest urban park in the world, Central Park takes up 7% of Manhattan, and the park itself is larger than the Principality of Monaco.  

As they transformed the landscape to build the park workers had to move over 4 million cubic feet of soil. And for context there, that’s enough dirt to fill the entire Empire State Building. The scale of the project shows how important it was to have a green space for New Yorkers. When the park was finished, there were meadows, a small untouched forest lakes, and even rocky cliffs. Everything was carefully designed to maintain a natural feel.  

Now, let’s touch on some of the [00:04:00] park’s most iconic landmarks that have become synonymous with Central Park’s identity. For example, Bethesda Terrace with a beautiful fountain and two grand staircases is a stunning architectural masterpiece that frequently appears as a backdrop for movies, TV shows, and music videos. The iconic Angel of the Waters statue, which is among the most recognizable things in the park, is also located here.  

You can see Bethesda Terrace with its fountain and sculpture in several films (while also practicing your English listening skills). Some of the films you may have heard of include Elf, Annie Hall, and Home Alone 2. Bethesda Terrace also overlooks a lake where visitors can enjoy a relaxing afternoon in a rowboat.  

On the east side of the park along Fifth Avenue is one of the largest and most important [00:05:00] museums in the world. The Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Met. Here, you can find art from all over the world, spanning over 5,000 years of history. Behind the Met inside the park, is Cleopatra’s Needle. Cleopatra’s Needle holds historical significance as an ancient Egyptian obelisk that was gifted to the United States by Egypt in the late 19th century. However, controversy surrounds the acquisition and placement of Cleopatra’s Needle, as there are many questions surrounding the ethics of relocating artifacts like this.  

Central Park has several bodies of water aside from the one next to Bethesda Terrace. The largest is the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir, named after the former First Lady of the U.S. and the wife of President John [00:06:00] F. Kennedy.  

The reservoir is enormous and it offers incredible views of the city skyline. It’s the perfect spot for jogging. In fact, you’ve probably seen pictures of this area since it’s such a good location for taking New York City photographs.  

A couple of other notable parts of the park include the historic Central Park Zoo, in the southern part of the park, and the Conservatory Garden, in the northern part. The Conservatory Garden is accessible through an historic gate, and there are three distinct sections, each designed in a unique style: one is in the French style, one in the Italian style, and one in the English style. I actually love to visit this area during the warmer months to read, to listen to a podcast or just to relax.  

Now, let’s change [00:07:00] gears a little bit.  

Beneath Central Park’s picturesque landscapes is a darker story of the past. Before the creation of the park, this area was home to a thriving community called Seneca Village. Established in the early 1820s, Seneca Village was one of the first communities of predominantly African-American property owners in New York. It also included Irish immigrants and German immigrants, as well. Seneca Village had a school, three churches, and several businesses. However, in the 1850s, as the plans for Central Park were in development, New York City authorities forced the residents of Seneca Village to leave, and their homes were destroyed in order to create an area for the park.  

This unfortunate story is a [00:08:00] reminder of the human impact of urban development and the often overlooked histories of communities that existed before central park was constructed. 

In the years since Central Park was completed, it has inspired many, many writers, and has played a role in numerous literary works. One of the most famous is J D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, in which the main character, Holden Caulfield, spends much time in central park thinking about his life and its meaning. John Lennon of the Beatles lived in the Dakota building on the west side of the park, and he was sadly murdered outside of that building in 1980. Today, the Imagine mosaic in Strawberry Fields, near where he lived and died, pays tribute to him, and it has become a gathering place for Beatles fans who visit from all over the world. It’s a poignant [00:09:00] reminder of the park’s ability to connect people across generations.  

Whether you’re strolling along its winding pathways, admiring its timeless landmarks, or uncovering the hidden stories beneath its surface, Central Park is an essential stop for anyone visiting or living in the Big Apple.  

While there’s a lot more to say about Central Park. I’ll stop here for now. Perhaps we’ll revisit the park in another episode soon.  

Thank you for listening! I hope you were able to understand most of this episode. And don’t forget as always. There’s a transcript available to help you with your understanding. You can find the link in the episode notes. I recommend listening again with the transcript to help with anything that wasn’t clear.  

Again, I’m Christopher. And I want to invite you to join me in future episodes of English, please to hear about many different topics, all focused on helping you with your English. Subscribe now, [00:10:00] wherever you listen to podcasts and let’s embark on an adventure together and clear, understandable English. I also encourage you to visit comullen.com/pod for more information. That’s
C-O-M-U-L-L-E-N dot com slash pod.  

Thanks again for listening, everyone.

See you soon!