Journals 1-4
1. Impressions of NYC:
First Impressions of New Your City
When asked what New York City means to me the first thing that comes to mind is it’s famous nickname, the Big Apple. The city received this name because of being one of if not the biggest/most exciting city in the world. People from all over the world, far and near, travel miles from abroad all just to experience the vast greatness the city has to offer. “The city that never sleeps,” another nickname earned from all the attributes that the city offers is always in constant jubilance and excitement either from the famous street dancers performing to the many different parades throughout the year none bigger than the Macy’s day parade. The city never has a dull moment where the second you step foot out of the train station or your car you are instantly hit with something that one city can only offer you; A beautiful mixture of cultural diversity and history all at once. One of my favorite things about the city is its diversity where you can get a taste of every type of culture all in one day. From china town, to little Italy to Spanish Harlem, to canal street the diversity is beaming off the walls waiting for you to experience it all. This is why the city also received its nickname the big melting pot, a mixture of any culture and heritage you can think of all in one city.
Now if you’re thinking, well what is there actually to do in the city? Then let me tell you there are plenty of fun and entertaining activities for adults and little kids to enjoy. There are many historical museums (museum of natural history, the metropolitan museum of art and the cloisters) to visit, thousands of stores for shopping, a wide variety of restaurants/eating areas for food and a ferry ride around the whole city, are just a small sample of things to do. The city doesn’t just run during the day. As stated above it is known for the city that never sleeps, where once nightfall comes the beauty and essence of the city is really exposed. The bright lights illuminating all the skyscrapers really allow the city to back up its nickname.
New York City to me just isn’t an ordinary city that one goes to for entertainment, but a city that if given the chance can teach and inform you of many different cultures while providing a thrilling experience at the same time.
First Impressions of New Your City
When asked what New York City means to me the first thing that comes to mind is it’s famous nickname, the Big Apple. The city received this name because of being one of if not the biggest/most exciting city in the world. People from all over the world, far and near, travel miles from abroad all just to experience the vast greatness the city has to offer. “The city that never sleeps,” another nickname earned from all the attributes that the city offers is always in constant jubilance and excitement either from the famous street dancers performing to the many different parades throughout the year none bigger than the Macy’s day parade. The city never has a dull moment where the second you step foot out of the train station or your car you are instantly hit with something that one city can only offer you; A beautiful mixture of cultural diversity and history all at once. One of my favorite things about the city is its diversity where you can get a taste of every type of culture all in one day. From china town, to little Italy to Spanish Harlem, to canal street the diversity is beaming off the walls waiting for you to experience it all. This is why the city also received its nickname the big melting pot, a mixture of any culture and heritage you can think of all in one city.
Now if you’re thinking, well what is there actually to do in the city? Then let me tell you there are plenty of fun and entertaining activities for adults and little kids to enjoy. There are many historical museums (museum of natural history, the metropolitan museum of art and the cloisters) to visit, thousands of stores for shopping, a wide variety of restaurants/eating areas for food and a ferry ride around the whole city, are just a small sample of things to do. The city doesn’t just run during the day. As stated above it is known for the city that never sleeps, where once nightfall comes the beauty and essence of the city is really exposed. The bright lights illuminating all the skyscrapers really allow the city to back up its nickname.
New York City to me just isn’t an ordinary city that one goes to for entertainment, but a city that if given the chance can teach and inform you of many different cultures while providing a thrilling experience at the same time.
2. Queens:
Today was our first trip into the city for class and much to my surprise we went to Queens. Queens originally named after Queen Catherine of England. When thinking about the city I never included Queens. However, after todays journey I will never make that mistake again. Queens is the true reason the city is called the big melting pot where it “is the most ethnically diverse county in the Untied States with over half of its residences born outside the United States” (ENY 213). Queens is so large that its considered “the fourth largest city in the United States” if it were its own city, only behind LA, Chicago, and Brooklyn. Queens in land size is the largest borough of them all and today we were able to travel via subway system to see much of it. (ENY213). Our Travels first started by taking the subway to Willets Point. After getting off at the station we walked over the overpass walking over Roosevelt Avenue leading us to Fresh Meadow Park. It is here that we first learned about the revolutionist himself, Robert Moses. Also known as the “master builder” Robert Moses was responsible for many of the “cross county parkways,” including: Grand Central parkway and Jackie Robinson parkway. Although he was responsible for his parkways in queens, his most famous endeavor in queens and probably his proudest moment of his career was the creation of Flushing Meadow Park and the World Fairs. The World Fairs which took place in “1939 and 1964 and was attended by 44 million people during its two seasons” (ENY219). After walking further into the park we came across the Unisphere. The Unisphere was “built to symbolize “mans Achievement on a Shrinking Globe and an Expanding Universe” (ENY 218). Since this was my first time venturing to these parts of Queens, to me the Unisphere along with the park was majestic. Once we made it past the Unisphere we then went to the Queens Museum. Here we learned about the different watersheds that supply the city’s water where I learned that the City’s water is in fact healthier and cleaner then Long Island’s water. In addition we were able to see the world famous Panorama that was first made in 1964 for the worlds fair. The Panorama was very cool because we got to see the whole city and all of the boroughs together. The Panorama was so thought out to the measurements where the buildings were made to a scale where every inch stood for a certain amount of feet it took up along with the yards/houses in the city. It was truly amazing. Next, we ventured off and were able to take the “International Express.” This train line, that rides elevated above ground level, is called the international express because “it takes passengers through some of the most ethnically diverse communities in North America” (ENY 215). After a couple of stops we got off in Jackson Heights. Jackson Heights is known for the “mock-Tudor and neo-Gothic style” apartment buildings. Living in these quarters are a wide varity of cultures where Jackson Heights is “considered one of the most diverse communities in the country having a mix of residents from Argentina, Columbia, South and East Asia” (ENY216). Once we got to Jackson Heights we then broke off for lunch. The particular place where went to eat was in little India where we had the opportunity to eat at an all you can eat Indian buffet called the Jackson Diner. This was my first time having Indian food but I can definitely say it will not be my last. This trip opened up my eyes to the Indian cultures food and as a result I fell in love. After eating Lunch we made our way to Astoria. Astoria was named after John Jacob Aster after his investment of $500 in the neighborhood. After investing the money and fighting for them to “name the county after him he not once ever stepped foot in the neighborhood” (ENY223). Astoria is one of the up and coming neighborhoods, going through gentrification, Astoria now is one of the hottest places to move to and live for fun and entertainment in Queens. While in Astoria we made the trip to the Museum of Moving images. The Museum arguably is “the most popular tourist attraction in Queens-boast one of the largest collections of film artifacts in the world” and for free we got to spend time seeing it all (ENY224). The museum held plenty of artifacts from various movies such as star wars and Mrs. Doubtfire. My favorite part of the Museum was the Chuck Jones section. Chuck Jones was known as the master of cartoon physics. Being responsible for the images of Bugs bunny, Road Runner, and the Grinch just to name a few, Jones revolutionized cartoons. Once we left the Museum, because of the weather made the trip back home skipping out on seeing Long Island City. All in all, being born in Queens when I was younger and going back to visit frequently, I never realized how many different parts there were that I had never taken the time to visit. Today was a great trip and educated me on the history of Queens along with exposing me to many different places that I will definitely go back to visit another time. |
3. Brooklyn:
Welcome back ladies and Gentlemen! After last weeks voyage into Queens, today we will be traveling into the borough of Brooklyn. Brooklyn, also known as “Kings County” is the “second most densely populated county in the United States, after Manhattan” where it resides 2.5 million people. Brooklyn is so populated that if it were its own city it would “rank as the third most populated city in the United States”(ENY191). Brooklyn, or Kings County, was named after King Charles the 2nd. It was here that “the first major battle of the Revolutionary War and largest battle of the entire conflict” took place in the battle of Long island (ENY191). Although Washington and his troops were forced to flee across the East River during the night and fog, they were able to live and see another day that helped propel the United States to victory. Our day started in Penn Station once again and from there we took a subway to our first destination in Brooklyn, Chambers. Once arriving in Chambers we then took off and set forth towards the Brooklyn Bridge. Upon arriving to the bridge we stopped off in front of City Hall. City hall has a renaissance revival style. In 1811 Clinton established the grid for north, east west, and south in the city. Due to the new coordinates, they made City Hall facing the rest of the city. At the time the City Hall was the most east part of the city where its back was facing the rest of the forestland. After further development of the city the Brooklyn Bridge was finally built and completed in 1893. The bridge took some time building where it took three different architectures to finish. The last one to take over, the wife of Washington Robly, Emily Robly, took over because of her husbands sickness and as a result was able to continue the bridges development and see it though completion. Once the bridge was completed it not only provided “strengthening of the ties between Brooklyn and Manhattan” but it also led to the eventual consolidation of all the boroughs in 1898 (ENY192). After City Hall it was finally time to cross the Brooklyn Bridge. I have never walked the bridge before so this was quite the experience for me. The 1.1 miles long bridge provided an amazing view of the city. Even though it was a little gloomy out, nothing could take away the beauty and essence of the bridge itself and the view that it provided. Once crossing over the bridge we then set forth to DUMBO which is an acronym standing for down under Manhattan bridge overpass. It is here where you truly got to appreciate the view of all three bridges, Williamsburg, Manhattan, and Brooklyn Bridge all from your seat. From different eating options to a Carousel for little kids to play there are many fun activities for one to enjoy while spending time at DUMBO. Once we left DUMBO we then made our trip to Brooklyn Heights. While making the trip there on foot I now see why they call it Brooklyn “Heights,” because of all the hills that we had to walk up to get there. Nether the less, the trip was well worth it. After only being in the heights for less then 10 minutes you can see how the area has become a booming hit for residential life. The beautiful view of the Hudson River and the city as well from your stoop speaks for itself. And of course you can’t forget about the multi million dollar brownstones that seem to populate the area. Seeing these apartments you learn a little history about who lived there. I learned that the stoops were made for extreme flooding that may occur. In addition, only well respected people and guest would enter from the stoop. All others such as the servants would enter from under the stoop, which would generally lead to the kitchen. The dynamics of all the houses in the area were quite similar, all having the stoop and alternate entrance along with multiple floors where the top floor would be where the servants manly stayed and slept. Next we continued walking where we past the exact place that George Washington and his troops retreated from during the battle of Long Island. Once we past there we made our way to Plymouth church. Here at Plymouth church we saw the church of Henry Ward Beecher, brother of Harriet Beecher Stowe. This church was historically significant because of Henry Beecher’s sermons and practices. It was said that hundreds and thousands came to listen to him preach. This was backed up by the statute of Beecher preaching to a man sitting in the crowed, none other then Abraham Lincoln himself. Finally we made our journey to the Historical society in Brooklyn. Founded in 1863, it stands as an “architectural treasure,” not only for the beautiful sculptures by Olin Levi Warner but because of the library inside which is arguable “one of the most beautiful libraries in New York” (ENY 205). In this museum we were able to learn about all the history that happened in Brooklyn. From the practices of Henry Beecher to many more abolitionists we were educated in the past struggles of slaves and women. All in all, my experience in Brooklyn today was quite the adventure. Learning a lot about our past history along with walking the bridge and seeing Brooklyn heights truly allowed me to get the full Brooklyn experience. Never seeing these parts of Brooklyn showed me that there really are nice parts of the borough, completely changing the way I now think of Brooklyn. |
4. The Village:
On todays journey we explored parts of the city and all that it had to offer. Our journey started like any other Saturday, meeting in Penn Station. However, today we fully learned about the history of Penn Station. The convoluted, over crowed, and honestly disgusting train station that we know today wasn’t always like this. It wasn’t until 1969 that the modern day station had come to replace the “masterpiece of Beaux-Arts style which was revered as one of the most impressive buildings in New York City” (ENY 114). This building was so beautiful architecturally that it was referred to as “a great Doric temple to transportation,” mixing elegance and transportation uniformly (ENY 114). McKim, Mead, and White all joined together to build this station and as a result they created a masterpiece. Sadly the beauty and elegance of the station wasn’t enough to keep it running. From 1910, when the station was first built, to 1963 the station struggled to maintain payments for the air rights of the city. As a result the new designs for the station was designed where the present day Madison Square Garden sits atop of the station. The very bleak and simple structure still criticized today still has a chance for revival. With plans and talks about relocating the entrance across the street to the Moynihan Station, a building also designed by the McKim, Mead, and White, would hopefully return the grace and beauty of Penn Station that it once had. Once we left Penn Station we took our travels to West Village first stopping off in Chelsea. Chelsea in 1750 was purchased by Thomas Clark and later passed down to his grandson, Clement Clark Moore. It was here that ”in the early 19th century, Moore developed the land on his estate, dividing it up into lots along 9th Avenue” (ENY83). After this the once farmland erupted into “stylish town houses” for the wealthy. It wasn’t long until 1820 that a big influx of the Irish immigrants came into the city and forced them to move out and turned the city into “the gritty, working class area until the 20th century” (ENY 83). In Chelsea we were able to walk on an amazing pathway elevated from ground level. This walking pathway, once used for a train line is called the Highline. This pathway was quite enjoyable where if you go on the right day like we did the surrounding flowers provide a serenity and peace of mind. Soon after we got off of the Highline and did something that a lot of rich people do in this area, Gallery hopping. Chelsea after 1990 became a popular place for art galleries because of all of the abandoned warehouses. The one gallery that intrigued me the most was Pace. Here in this gallery David Hockney was being displayed. Before today I never heard of Mr. Hockney but after viewing many of his images, drawings, and videos, I now see why he is so widely known. Once gallery hopping was finished we continued our travels deeper into Greenwich Village. Also known as “The Village” is most popularly known for being “one of the most delightful residential areas of New York” (ENY88). Filled with plenty of cafes and bookstores along with a “vibrant nightlife,” the area is able to attract all different ages (ENY 88). One bookstore that we were able to go into and check out was Printed Matter, Inc. If you have never been in this store before you might be a little surprised. As soon as you walk in the door you see magazines, pictures, books of nudity, exotic phrases and more. Nether the less the store was a nice experience. We later continued our journey into West Village. Home of the gay rights movement in the 1960’s, we were able to visit the same spots where the major riots took place. In addition we were able to go to Jefferson’s garden and see the beautiful garden itself. In the background as well we were able to see the “high Victorian Gothic-Style buildings,” which is one of the few remaining in New York City (ENY90). Next we continued deeper into the village passing through Bleekers Street where we saw tons and tons of places to eat with a wide variety of selections. It was a couple of blocks later that we decided to stop. It was finally time to eat and we were able to stop at a bar nearby called “1839,” I ate pretty swell. After lunch we took a stroll over to Washington Square Park, which was transformed, from a potters building. The parks elegance was topped off with the amazing Washington’s arch made by Stanford White in 1891. The Arch and park itself serves as a monument to president George Washington, representing him on one side during battle and on the other as president. After leaving the park we made our journey to one of the only historic houses outside and inside left in the city. The Merchant house sitting on 29 and east 4th street is a Greek revival style of house with federal architecture as well. The house was home to the Treadwell family who moved there in 1835. In 1840 Gertrude, the youngest child of the family was born, and it is here that she lived until she passed in 1933. Gertrude lived here in this house without ever changing it up even with all of the reforms going around the neighborhood. The house with no running water, no electric lights, or even a bathroom, we were truly able to see how a semi wealthy family lived back then. Once we left the Merchants house we then continued to go into east village where we entered the New academic building which is one of the most fuel efficient buildings in the city. We continued on to pass where the cooper Union address was held where it is said that Abraham Lincoln won the country over with his speech here. Finally we ended the night off with ice cream. Today by far was my favorite trip yet. From the tour of the merchant house, to visiting the historic venues such as George Washington Park and the Lincoln building, I learned a lot about our countries history that I never new existed in Manhattan. Cant wait for next week! |