What a day! Yesterday (Monday) we probably did the most walking. We left our room around nine thirty and got back about ten hours later. Whew! But we knocked out the rest of Brooklyn, which was the goal.
I have to say I'm so glad I wore my legit tennis shoes. I know I'm so lame and out of shape, but I feel like I've been training for some sort of athletic event.
We had an amazing brunch in Park Slope to start out the morning.
We spent the next couple of hours walking around Park Slope. The brownstones are GORGEOUS and it was nice. But people did seem a little busier and less talkative than in some of the other areas we'd visiting, like Clinton Hill. I think some of that may have been the time of day- moms and nannies out running errands int he morning. I'm just not used to doing my errands with a stroller, ha!
Anyway, after that we took the subway to Carroll Gardens. We talked to a police officer in the train station and he was very kind and very helptful. He basically said to stay away from East New York, which we were planning to do anyway! Right after we got off the subway, we ran into a couple of ladies and ended up talking to them. They both seemed to be working class and I loved hearing a bit of their story. We walked around Carroll Gardens and I loved the beautiful front gardens.
It was an interesting little tour! We walked through Prospect Heights and then crossed Atlantic Avenue, which has a lot of shops on it. Right after you cross that big road you go through a bunch of projects. It was a little unnerving, but not terrible. We talked to a lady who needed her car jumped off. We also talked with a man in the area right after the public housing, which looked really nice. He told us he was going to see a play and that he loves Fort Greene. It's amazing how things can change so fast! We went through another set of projects and this one was a bit rougher. A guy crossed the street and started walking behind us and Peyton told me later that he had heard him jingle something in his pocket. It turned out to be a phone, but Peyton was unnerved and stopped for a minute to sort of throw the guy off. After that we waked through Clinton Hill and into Bed Stuy. That made me a little nervous. It looked a little rough, but we talked with a guy who lived there and he was really chill. We made a block and came back around to Clinton Hill and talked with a middle aged guy who was sitting with his family on his stoop. He said he had been there for thirty years and the neighborhood has always been good. He didn't really seem like he wanted to talk and Peyton and I discussed it later. While gentrification can be a great thing, it can also take families out of their homes by making rent unaffordable. It was sad to think that could happen to this guy. We talked about how difficult it is, too, because it's not something we felt comfortable discussing with him and likely he didn't feel comfortable talking to us about it because not only would it be awkward, but it would put him in a very vulnerable position to have to be so honest like that.
We came back to the room and Peyton picked up take out. I went to bed happy for the experiences, but also a little sad for that guy and with an understanding of what a spoiled, naive white girl I am.
Peyton: 7/10 for safety, beauty, and wonderful restaurants and shops, but pretty expensive and less diversity than some neighborhoods
SD: 7/10 for gorgeous brownstones and fun shopping and proximity to Prospect Park; drawbacks same as Peyton's
Anyway, after that we took the subway to Carroll Gardens. We talked to a police officer in the train station and he was very kind and very helptful. He basically said to stay away from East New York, which we were planning to do anyway! Right after we got off the subway, we ran into a couple of ladies and ended up talking to them. They both seemed to be working class and I loved hearing a bit of their story. We walked around Carroll Gardens and I loved the beautiful front gardens.
Peyton: 8/10 for somewhat diverse, well developed neighborhood and beautiful homes
SD: 8/10 because I love the front gardens (funny because our yard in Mississippi looks like Hell) and friendly people
We talked to a big bearded guy named Jeremy and he was very friendly and helpful, too. He told us how Brooklyn natives loved to talk about their neighborhoods because it was such a source of pride for them.
We headed to Cobble Hill and had lunch in a little sandwich place and it was so good.
We headed to Cobble Hill and had lunch in a little sandwich place and it was so good.
We asked a lady about the neighborhood and she was a little terse and short (to be honest, I think she thought we were selling something/prosletzing at first and just had her guard up).
Peyton: 7/10 for pretty housing and nice people
SD: 7/10 because it was a great neighborhood, but nothing super distinctive
After getting some ice cream, we headed back to Park Slope by train and then went back to the neigborhoods we had visited on Saturday. We went through Prospect Heights, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and a little bit into Bed Stuy (which is an area we were cautioned about).
It was an interesting little tour! We walked through Prospect Heights and then crossed Atlantic Avenue, which has a lot of shops on it. Right after you cross that big road you go through a bunch of projects. It was a little unnerving, but not terrible. We talked to a lady who needed her car jumped off. We also talked with a man in the area right after the public housing, which looked really nice. He told us he was going to see a play and that he loves Fort Greene. It's amazing how things can change so fast! We went through another set of projects and this one was a bit rougher. A guy crossed the street and started walking behind us and Peyton told me later that he had heard him jingle something in his pocket. It turned out to be a phone, but Peyton was unnerved and stopped for a minute to sort of throw the guy off. After that we waked through Clinton Hill and into Bed Stuy. That made me a little nervous. It looked a little rough, but we talked with a guy who lived there and he was really chill. We made a block and came back around to Clinton Hill and talked with a middle aged guy who was sitting with his family on his stoop. He said he had been there for thirty years and the neighborhood has always been good. He didn't really seem like he wanted to talk and Peyton and I discussed it later. While gentrification can be a great thing, it can also take families out of their homes by making rent unaffordable. It was sad to think that could happen to this guy. We talked about how difficult it is, too, because it's not something we felt comfortable discussing with him and likely he didn't feel comfortable talking to us about it because not only would it be awkward, but it would put him in a very vulnerable position to have to be so honest like that.
We came back to the room and Peyton picked up take out. I went to bed happy for the experiences, but also a little sad for that guy and with an understanding of what a spoiled, naive white girl I am.
We're having such a good time, but such a huge chunk of my heart is back home with these people:
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