PRESS

Here is a true story I had printed in the New York Times Metropolitan Diary column:

Dear Diary:

I am a tour guide who was taking a group of eighth graders through Central Park the other day when a magical encounter happened.

Before I take any group through any of the arches in the park, I stop them, gather them around me and give them this speech:

”Do you see that tunnel? That is the tunnel of love. If you walk through that tunnel from the beginning to the end within six inches of anyone, you will marry that person and live with that person for the rest of your life.”

Most of the kids take off running and zigzagging to avoid being next to anyone. Some hold hands or lock arms, and that gets a reaction.

Well, unbeknown to me, there was a young couple listening to my speech and following the group through the tunnel. When they got to the other side, he took out a ring and proposed marriage to her. The kids were ecstatic and I was dumbstruck.

The guy said he was planning on popping the question in the park when that chance encounter came up. Quite magical.

Phil Stein

“A Central Park Fantasy,” New York Times, July 4, 2012.

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An interview published in WestView News, The Voice of the West Village:

“Learning to Love the Tourists,” by Catherine Revland, August 2012.

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PHOTOS

I was walking through City Hall Park with a group of middle school kids from California when we spotted Mayor Bloomberg filming a promotional video. I introduced him to the group. He asked them where they were from, if they were enjoying New York, and wished them good luck. Then it was my turn to take over and point out the historic sites. As you can see from his expression, he is in a high state of awe.

I was a big fan of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s “The Gates” in Central Park. They were only up for the month of February 2005. I walked through The Gates a few times before the snow blanketed the park. When the snow fell, it made the experience so much better. The orange banners against the snow were very dramatic. One day I just happened to run into Jeanne-Claude herself. I didn’t have a camera, so I asked a Japanese guy if he could take a picture of us and e-mail it to me. He did.