Sometimes one needs a good secret garden to get a way from the hustle and bustle of life in the big parks. New York City's parks are rightfully famous. As salient green reservoirs in our packed urban landscape they've become as recognizable as the city's skyline. Right from their very beginning though, this means that our parks have always been quite crowded. A recent visit to Central Park seemed as populated as a stroll through Times Square. Fortunately, there are a number of smaller pools of tranquility dotting our landscape. They are gardens, so there's little chance of having to fend off errant frisbee throws, or unpleasantly find a speeding cyclists while lost in thought. They are an opportunity to cultivate your thoughts and if not stopping, slowing one's motion through the city to an unnatural pace of relaxed appreciation.