These Vagabond Shoes

Brooklyn is my favourite place in America. I have never actually lived there myself, but have been lucky to have family or close friends who I can hang out with there for many years now, and I think of it as home more than any other place on this continent. Brooklyn is everything good about NYC, without being nearly as noisy and overwhelming as Manhattan. There are trees here, you can see the sky and it doesn't stink as much in most places. It's actually possible to afford an apartment in some areas without a 6-figure income, and there are still a lot of working-class families and genuine neighborhoods. People sit on their stoops and chat while their kids play in the street. Think Sesame Street. Brooklyn is also full of hipster kids, good restaurants and pubs, fancy boutiques and if your lucky you can even get a decent cup of coffee.

This is what many of the buildings in Brooklyn look like. This street is in Park Slope which is the wealthiest part of Brooklyn. John's building looks a lot like this, but his neighborhood is a bit more run down. While no one I know can afford to live in this area, it's walking distance from John's 'hood so we can easily enjoy the nice restaurants and shops and stuff.

This is Prospect Park, the same place I played softball on my first day back. It is a wonderful place - beautiful fields perfect for sports, barbecues, running paths, places to skate - everything you could want from an urban park. And it's huge enough for all of Brooklyn to enjoy it without feeling crowded. The really cool thing about it is that it's designed to be used and enjoyed by everyone, not just looked at. No "keep off the grass" signs here.
Here's the Subway stop by John's house.
People have probably heard me say that one of the coolest things about New York is how every neighborhood has its own character and that a lot of them represent a particular ethnicity or nationality: Little Italy, China Town, etc. John's area is mostly Caribbean people; Haitians, Jamaicans, people from Barbados and Trinidad and places like that. So in the interest of exploration, I got John to take me down to Brighton Beach, a Russian neighborhood on Long Island Sound, right at the end of John's Subway line. Brighton Beach is also home to the famous Cony Island amusement park and boardwalk.You might recognise this if you've ever watched "The Sopranos." Tony has had some shady meetings along this beach, and a lot of his dreams are set here.Handball is a popular pastime here. It's fun to watch the old Russian guys go up against the young guys in wifebeaters and gold chains.
One of the weirdest carnival games I've ever seen. No giant teddy-bears as a prize, just the satisfaction of shooting a real guy with high-velocity paint balls.
This is the original Nathan's Hot Dogs, the place that invented the glorious food enjoyed by millions the world over. If any one ever wonders why, despite my Aussie accent, I will always pronounce it "hawt dawg" - they need only look to the origin of this blessed snack for their answer. This is also the home of the International Hot Dog Eating Competition, the title now back on American soil after a long run with the Japanese.After a couple of hot dogs, me and Johnny decided to check out some of the shops and stuff off the beach. This is what a lot of places in the outer boroughs look like, once the Subway comes up out of the ground and becomes the "L" - short for elevated rail.
I stopped to grab a pastry from this old Russian dude on the street. It wasn't so interesting by itself, but it was fantastic the next day when I heated it up and dipped it in John's chick-pea curry soup. Mmmmmm.
Apart from tooling around Brooklyn with John-boy, I also had the pleasure of taking my little sister out for her 21st birthday! It was a NYC extravaganza. When Jackie and I turned 21, Besh was living in NY, so she took us out for a great night on the town. Well, we continued the tradition and took Gracie to fancy dinner, including pink champagne, then to a fancy bar for her first legal drink and the to one of New York's awesome Karaoke bars in the West Village. A bunch of my friends showed up to round out the posse, there was much drinking and screaming and some tender moments, too. I'm pretty sure everyone melted when me and Grace did "I'll make love to you" by Boys to Men. Unfortunately, Besh sprained her OTHER ankle (one was already sprained) because she couldn't help jumping around when I did "Jump Around." These things happen.
This is Jackie and Wendy. Singing. Yup, Jackie singing. This was a big moment because Jackie has always refused to sing Karaoke until this night.
A couple of other random shots from New York to close this post out. This is Fort Greene Cemetery. It sits in the middle of one of the ugliest industrial areas of Brooklyn, but it is SO beautiful in there, and many of the grave sites have awesome views of the city. What a cool place to be buried!
And this is Canal St, the place in NY where you can buy anything and everything fake, pirated or that fell off the back of a truck. Anyone need a Louis Vuitton?

That's it for NY for now. I'll be back later in the year and will of course try to show some more coolness from the coolest city in the world. Next post I'll try and show a bit of what life is like down here in the ATL.