Rag Radio: Walking the Upper West Side's Streets With Yvonne Vavra

"By Claire Davenport Every Saturday, West Side Rag columnist Yvonne Vávra seems to have uncovered some hiding-in-plain-sight aspect of the Upper West Side that the rest of us have missed - because we were looking at our phones, or down at the sidewalk, or didn't have Vávra's sidekick Louie to make us pay close attention to our surroundings. Vávra's columns sometimes include long-lost history."

"Rag Radio took a walk with Vávra recently, starting at the Ansonia at Broadway and West 73rd Street. Among our discoveries was a beautiful vintage mail box - the kind of thing you notice, says Vávra, when you walk by yourself and pay attention to the neighborhood. Listen at the link below. Music courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions. And for earlier installments of Rag Radio segments with West Side Rag contributors, listen to our interviews with artist Robert Beck, Weekend columnist Tracy Zwick"

Yvonne Vávra uncovers hiding-in-plain-sight aspects of the Upper West Side by walking the neighborhood and urging attention to overlooked details. Her columns combine long-lost local history — such as the story of UWS mothers who defeated Robert Moses' plan to expand a Central Park parking lot — with practical advice to abandon habitual routes and explore new streets. Rag Radio accompanied Vávra starting at the Ansonia on Broadway and West 73rd Street and discovered a beautiful vintage mailbox. Music for the segment is courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions. Additional Rag Radio interviews with West Side Rag contributors are available.

Read at West Side Rag