These cartoons were excerpted from the graphic novel, Lost in NYC. As such, they don’t tell the whole story, but fair use and all that, permits only telling part of its story. They were in an exhibit of comics at the New York Transit Museum, where all of the cartoons displayed had a transit theme. These two comics portray a common troupe that of being lost in a strange city. The fact that this city is the biggest and the baddest of them all and that the party lost are children, makes them seem all the more imperiling. As these stories go, after many perilous adventures and frequent chase scenes our intrepid wanderers eventually find safe haven. This rescue is usually facilitated by some daunting denizen of the city who turns out to have a heart of gold. Don’t you love a happy ending?

A frequent scene in almost any NYC story is one set on the subway. As modes of transportation go it is exotic enough to find itself center stage in any tale there. Having ridden them some, I must say that you do get to meet many new friends. Their environment is frequently loud and certainly frightening to the uninitiated, but ride them enough and you can quickly gleam the unspoken rules, like don’t speak. It helps to have a seasoned guide to help you with this learning process.

Frequently annoying, but sometimes amazing are the buskers that perform on the trains. If you travel between Brooklyn and the Island then under the East River is a coveted venue. It offers a captive audience and an unusually long period between stops. The best act that I’ve seen is a mariachi band, in full costume. After their performance, they were well rewarded.

If you don’t mind the higher cost, it is usually more relaxing to take a car around town, instead of the subway. However, in a town where time is money and nothing is more expensive than a New York minute, it is frequently faster to take the train. Except when it isn’t, but at those times, it is too late to do otherwise.