We’re really trying to explore different parts of New York on this trip, so today we headed out to Brooklyn.
We started the morning with a lap of Central Park. I’d normally take a week off post-marathon… Central Park is worth breaking the rules for!
The are a few mapped circuits of the park, with a full lap of 6.1 miles preferably anticlockwise. There were plenty of other runners out for the same lap. Running it made me realise how undulating it is – it looks quite flat in every photo from the air 😂 Again, I’m loving that we’ve managed to catch the start of Spring!
There’s so much to find in this park… I’m sure you could run or walk it for years and still find little pieces of history to learn about. We happened across the statue of Fred Lebow, founder and race director of the NY City marathon. It’s one of the largest in the world with over 50,000 participants. His statue depicts him checking his watch, and is moved to the marathon finish line each year.
At the other end of the scale is the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir. Covering 106 acres and holding 1 billion gallons of water it’s hard to miss! I still find it difficult to comprehend that this whole thing is in the middle of one of the craziest busiest most packed cities in the world!
Our adventure to Brooklyn started with a Brisbane connection. Artist CJ Hendry is known for her ‘hyper-realistic’ works using a technique that she describes as scribbling. Her work is incredibly detailed and hard to believe that she creates with coloured pencil.
Her exhibitions are known for having a large scale experiences alongside the pieces. The current exhibition ‘Plaid’ features colourful checks, and is complemented by a ‘Plaidground’ in a warehouse in Brooklyn. The intent was to connect adults with the joy of play… the reality is that word got out to NY parents, and hundreds of children and families have flocked to it. Who knows if they even realise it’s art?!?! It was hard to resist letting it bring out our inner child 🙂
We walked through Greenpoint and Williamsburg along Bedford Avenue. It’s a completely different side of New York – young, vibrant and arty. It’s diverse, with neighbourhoods that have clear Polish, African-American, Latino and Jewish heritage. We came across another urban green space on the Hudson near the Williamsburg Bridge, Domino Park, filled with families enjoying the spring weather. We have never seen so many large Hasidic Jew families… a reflection of the area.
The Williamsburg Bridge is a suspension bridge completed in 1903 that carries cars and subway lines today. From Domino Park the Hudson is wide and this is a huge imposing structure… again I can’t imagine what it took to build it over 100 years ago!
We headed down to see and walk the Brooklyn Bridge. It was the first fixed river crossing of the East Hudson, opened in 1883. It’s iconic, and a feature of so many images of New York so this afternoon its wooden walkway that sits above the traffic was filled with international tourists, instagrammers, and street sellers. It’s quite a challenge to capture moments without thousands of them in it 🙂
We walked back to Dumbo into the early evening to catch a shot of the Empire State Building through the Manhattan Bridge. Another iconic view of the city. The streets were full of people and energy as people moved into the weekend.
Again, a huge day in a great part of the city. It’s felt warm, diverse and creative, and a completely different pace to downtown Manhattan. So glad we’ve ventured out!
Love M and theGrady x
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