Tagged With "Brooklyn"
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Re: Small Brooklyn: Three small but fascinating museums
Jonathan ... Would like to see a blog on your NYC Museum of the American Gangster if you ever get the itch.
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Re: A Bridge to Everywhere
I like bridges in gardens too. Something just so peaceful about them. Here's one from Rikugien Gardens Tokyo
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Apr. 20, 2014: Spring Comes to the Botanic Garden
Another view of spring, in your almost-neighbor right across the pond, London's St. James Park. I couldn't resist it (from Londonist today).
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Re: Brooklyn Heights Promenade: A Disaster Turned to Treasure
I have every intension of coming to Brooklyn to see the Promenade for myself. Will you take a few more pictures, please, when the trees are all leafed out later in the spring? I'd like to see it in all it's glory.
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Re: Brooklyn Heights Promenade: A Disaster Turned to Treasure
I seldom quote Gen. MacArthur, but "I shall return."
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Re: Strictly for the Birds...
While searching for some other photos, I came across these two that might have joined the birds above. One is a scene of well-mannered pigeons on a rail at the Musee Rodin in Paris, perhaps waiting their turn to annoy diners in the garden cafe; the other is yet another of those ironic meetings of statue-fied dignity with feathered pit stop...
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
I've often advised travelers with jam-packed itineraries to step back and leave themselves time to take a walk in a park or sit there a while, experiencing what the locals see and do. That is absolutely excellent advice. I hope that most people were wise enough to take your advice. Many of my best trip memories are made of such stuff. Thank you so much, PHeymont, for this walk in the park. It is just what my jangled nerves needed today.
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
I suspect a walk in the park is a habit acquired over time and familiarity with a place. I have a feeling, too, that the urge to go at top speed is the initial and overriding one. Or is it years and not travel experience that slows us down enough for such places to finally come into focus? Looking back over the decades I think maybe it's the latter.
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
I do think people's perspectives and priorities change with time. For example, I care little about a bar or nightlife scene in most of my destinations nowadays; that mattered more to me when I was much younger. I have always loved walking in parks because of the beautiful gardens, etc. But I think i'm much more into people watching in these places than I used to be. One of my favorite places to visit is the provincial park a short block from my home. It's grand to go for a walk in it, see...
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
Maybe travel advice of the very concrete sort then, hotels, trains, etc. is the most satisfying for all concerned. A suggestion to slow down just may not compute, something for each of us to discover on our own. So PHeymont may be preaching to the choir...may he continue.
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
Good advice is good advice. People can accept it or ignore it. I'm all for freedom of choice. But sometimes an alternative needs to be presented in a clear way, as PHeymont has nicely done in this piece.
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
I don't disagree. Just pointing out the nature of human beings and, like world peace, we can wish for it while not actually expecting everyone to join in. But lessons are learned from war too and how would we feel about every tourist in town flocking to OUR park.
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
I've mentioned in other pages that I love wide open spaces - like the State Delaware Park - but the designer of New York Central Park rung a Bell with me. Frederick Olmsted came to Liverpool to check out the "Peoples Garden" and he wrote in 1850 : "Five minutes of admiration, and a few more spent studying the manner in which art had been employed to obtain from nature so much beauty, and I was ready to admit that in democratic America there was nothing to be thought of as comparable with...
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
It is clear that the "dumb" animals always seem to know the best places to hang out. We can never have enough parks. Nice to read that Frederick Olmsted also knew a good park when he saw one. Thanks for that info GarryRF
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
Garry's note about Olmsted's travels (and he was quite a traveler) set me off on a quick look to find the park he was referring to (which I didn't; apparently "people's garden" was a description rather than a name?) and found that Liverpool has more parks and especially top-class parks than any British city besides London. The article also mentioned that for reasons of health—and keeping social unrest down—the city commissioners set out on a park-building spree starting about 1833. Many...
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
Another Park from the 1850s. People would escape Liverpool for the day and travel north to Hesketh Park. 20 minutes on the train. This is taken in Mid-Winter.
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Re: Sometimes a Trip is just a Walk in the Park
Originally Posted by Grouchy Gumbo: The last pic is of my cousin Priscilla, who lives in Prospect Park. I see that you gave her a little gnosh. Not that she needs it. She seems to be putting on a little extra "winter coat" this year. She has a fine home. I would really like to visit the park sometime. Grouchy, I'm curious how a squirrel manages long distance travel to visit relatives. Maybe you can enlighten us mere mortals.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Oct. 19, 2014: Creating an Urban Jungle
That's Art ! Something everyone can see - every day. Get art out of the dusty confines of a gallery and do it BIG That'll get the younger generation interested. Love it !!
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Aug. 17, 2014: Manhattan Distortion
Looks almost like a reflection in a pool of water.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, May 18, 2014: Lower Manhattan's New Skyline
It is truly a remarkable and unique skyline. I think Gehry's new building is brilliant. While some of his other buildings seem a little precious, I tend to enjoy his style. But this one's a stand out.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, May 18, 2014: Lower Manhattan's New Skyline
I've said it here before and I'll say it again, I love Gehry's buildings. Whether one is a fan of all of them, or not, it's an amazing thing to perceive such seemingly static materials used in such a visually malleable way. Almost reverting to a tribal sensibility when fabric was the stuff of shelter, the most exciting tent wins. I'm surprised more of his influence hasn't been expressed by others. Or in domestic architecture. Maybe some day. Or maybe they have and I just haven't seen them...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, May 18, 2014: Lower Manhattan's New Skyline
You may have noticed that NYC has 2 areas of very tall buildings - The Battery/Financial District and Midtown, separated by an large area where building height is limited. This was not just due to zoning. The reason is geological. The bedrock is very close to the surface in Midtown and Battery so there is support for very tall buildings. However, From 34th street down to Canal the bedrock is much deeper and the ground is more sandy/gravely, so it was unsafe to build tall buildings in area.
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Re: Manhattan from the Other Shore
excellent article and collection of pictures, PH. The Manhattan skyline is always fascinating to look at and the history of it is equally interesting
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Erasmus Hall, Brooklyn, NY: Where Gumbo Was (#81)
As my fellow New Yorker Jonathan L recognized right away, Gumbo was at Erasmus Hall High School, the oldest public school in New York, and certainly one of the most beautiful. The exterior seen in the puzzle picture, in "Collegiate...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Nov 6, 2013: The Brooklyn Museum...and Neighbors
Here’s the Brooklyn Museum, in a night view that has the dramatic lighting of a linen-era postcard. The museum is a world-class collection that doesn't get noticed as much as it should because it lives in the shadow of Manhattan’s...
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NYC&Co: We bring you tourists, we'll show you how to serve them
Taking a step beyond just beefing up the number of tourists arriving, New York City's tourism promotion agency, NYC&Co. has developed a program to help businesses and attractions in all five boroughs be ready for the numbers. And they are impressive numbers. Last year 56.4 million visitors came to New York; the city is pushing to hit 67 million by 2021. The new program, called "Tourism Ready" builds on Brooklyn's success in branding and marketing itself; experts including former...
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JetBlue's evolution: now it's into haute cuisine
JetBlue, originally noted for blue corn chips and friendly service on its one-class flights seems to be headed in a whole new direction. In addition to recently adding its business-class "Mint" service on longer flights, it now charges for...
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Brooklyn's Prospect Park Greenmarket
By a quick count, I’ve photographed markets in nearly three dozen cities in the U.S. and Europe; they’ve often appeared here on TravelGumbo. And yet the market I visit most often, and where my wife shops almost weekly, hasn’t found...
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Union Square Holiday Market - Annual New York Tradition
Samantha and her husband spent some time in New York City last Christmas. It was magical and they loved walking around the Union Square Holiday Market. It is a New York City tradition.
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Small Brooklyn: Three small but fascinating museums
Jonathan L takes us on a tour of some of Brooklyn's small and quirky museums.
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Strictly for the Birds...
Plaza de Armas, San Juan—a popular al fresco restaurant for pigeons I’m sure there must be some place without birds, but I haven’t been there. And everywhere I have been, the birds have caught my attention, sometimes to the...
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Spotted on the Road, Brooklyn: 1962 Plymouth Fury
Here's a car that hasn't gotten much respect. And that goes beyond its current "ready for restoration" condition; even when it was new it drew a lot of snorts and mockery. Laurence Jones of Curbside Classics...
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West Indian Parade in Brooklyn to draw 2 million
Paraders pass the Brooklyn Museum Photo: Fordmadoxfraud / Wikimedia Brooklyn's annual Labor Day West Indian parade is New York's biggest parade, and possibly the largest single Carnival celebration in...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Sept. 30, 2015: Phragmites in Winter
Phragmites—the common reed—grows everywhere there's water, and so successfully that in many places, including the lake in Brooklyn's Prospect Park, it's considered an invasive plant...but one that's proven resistant to attempts to get rid...
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A Park Grows in Brooklyn
Nearly 200 years ago, New York and Brooklyn, then separate cities and the greatest shipping centers on the East Coast, saw the land along the rivers—Hudson and East—begin to fill with docks, piers, warehouses and freight traffic....
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Not-so-famous museums with great exhibits
Since we're off from school for spring break, we've had time to catch up on a few exhibits at local museums...but not the big and famous, such as the Met or MoMA. Here are a few of interest, and one we haven't been to yet, but will! Neue Galerie has an exhibit with a dual purpose: reproducing the infamous Nazi exhibit "Degenerate Art" of 1937, and commenting on its effects, both then and now. Also at the Galerie, which focuses on German and Austrian art of the last century, is an exhibition...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, May 18, 2014: Lower Manhattan's New Skyline
Lower Manhattan, arguably the original home of the skyscraper, has seen its profile altered over the years by new buildings of varying size and quality. In the past half-dozen years, two new and very tall ones have taken the trend in different...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Apr. 20, 2014: Spring Comes to the Botanic Garden
It was a warm, bright day in Brooklyn yesterday; we took a long walk through Prospect Park to go shopping and returned through the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. It was enough to make me push today's planned Picture of the Day into June, and give this space...
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Manhattan from the Other Shore
Manhattan's skyline is constantly, although the changes are not always instantly obvious, at least not so much as the change between the city's days as a port where the ships lined the shore and the growth of huge buildings clustered together in their...
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Brooklyn Heights Promenade: A Disaster Turned to Treasure
The story of the Brooklyn Heights Promenade—the iconic walkway that lines the edge of ritzy Brooklyn Heights and gives tourists and locals alike amazing views of the East River and Manhattan—is the story of a potential eyesore that became...
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New York Harbor: View from a Tugboat
As travelers, we like to poke around in cities and look for the less-seen sights—but it’s easy to forget we have them at home, too. New York from the water is an example. In this century, we New Yorkers tend to forget how important...
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Brooklyn Museum: Three shows to visit, one closing soon
Following the "more than Manhattan" theme of the piece below, here are three current exhibits worth visiting at The Brooklyn Museum (America's most over-shadowed major museum) this season—but for one, you'll have to hurry, because it ends July...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Oct. 19, 2014: Creating an Urban Jungle
Neighborhood artists at work on Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn, seem to blend into the mural they are restoring on the wall of the Prospect Park subway station. The mural reflects the stations location near Prospect Park and its zoo, although the zoo's...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Aug. 17, 2014: Manhattan Distortion
The new 1 World Trade Center building and Frank Gehry's 8 Spruce Street apartment tower join the Brooklyn Bridge in this image shot through the imperfect plate glass walls of the carousel pavilion in Brooklyn Bridge Park.
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Early autumn in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
As summer turns to fall, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden shows off both the fading of the light and some spectacular colors.