On a Thursday afternoon in June, just before the summer solstice, the scene in Hudson River Park resembled a picturesque Thomas Cole painting. Bees and butterflies danced in the air, the water sparkled in the distance, and the less appealing aspects were softened by the midday sun.
Couples, seemingly inspired by tabloid images of the affectionate Bennifer, openly displayed their love, treating the public space as a canvas for romance. Beneath a tree, a couple pressed their faces together for selfies, while nearby, two bodies lay intertwined on the ground, hidden by a flannel shirt. Others lay side by side, gazing at the lush tree above.
As the evening approached, Brass Monkey in the meatpacking district witnessed a shift from tender moments to a more spirited atmosphere. With New York’s recent lifting of restrictions on bars and restaurants, all three floors of the establishment buzzed with patrons on their second or third drinks. Although groups stood close, they remained within their circles, akin to cliques at a middle-school dance.
Marisol Delarosa, the managing partner of Brass Monkey, predicted that soon the bar would witness crowded scenes with enamored individuals oblivious to their surroundings. She observed heightened enthusiasm among patrons in June compared to the initial reopening in April when people were still unsure about social interactions.
With the removal of restrictions, Delarosa noted a change in behavior, suggesting a lowered standard of hesitation among patrons. She shared an incident where a customer expressed a newfound willingness to engage romantically, a sentiment not present before the pandemic.
Despite the excitement, both Delarosa and her patrons felt a tension between the joy of a full reopening and the lingering threat of new coronavirus variants. Nevertheless, she emphasized the importance of living life fully amid the uncertainty.
The streets of lower Manhattan reflected this newfound freedom, packed with revelers as if celebrating a national holiday, compounded by the ongoing Pride Month. Bars like the Cubbyhole and Fiddlesticks Pub saw long lines and overflowing crowds, signaling a vibrant revival of nightlife.
Similar scenes unfolded across the city throughout June, marking a return to social interactions unseen since March 2020. Bars and clubs, including Metropolitan and the Boom Boom Room, embraced the revival with reopened dance floors, live music performances, and a palpable sense of exuberance. The hesitancy observed in previous months gave way to a collective permission slip for people to embrace the joy of socializing once again.