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My many years in NYC have allowed me the opulent luxury of knowing the MET intimately; sometimes going with the intention of seeing just one gallery room that i’m less familiar with, or one artist’s works.

Sunday mornings are bliss and can be preempted or followed by a stroll into Central Park, on Friday and Saturday eves the Astor, Temple of Dendur, and The Charles Engelhard (American Wing) courts are sublime; and suprisinginly few people take advantage of the bottomless well of the MET’s Thomas J. Watson Library.

I was a docent for corporate and student groups for years, so you might expect me to say this, but joining one of the many brilliant gallery tours is also a terrific feast.

(Even the sales area of the MET shop is a treasure trove for great birthday gifts that support the museum’s ambitious goals.)

Be sure to wear comfortable shoes; don’t use flash photography (which flash-by-flash destroys paintings) when you see a restroom, consider using it – they can be quite a hike to find.

So, go—and if you can, go often.

The many, many terraces, filled with improbably turquoise mineral-rich water, are framed with white mineral deposits. At sunset, the whole terraced hillside becomes this vast stained-glass window combining the colors of the water and sky. Unforgettably beautiful.