Journal 1: What Does New York City Mean To Me?
09/04/2014
Bumper to bumper traffic, bright lights that interrupt your sleep, over populated streets, taxis that almost run you over, what is so great about New York City? Many people hear New York City and automatically picture all the things it has such as: Bright lights and skyscrapers everywhere you turn, Broadway shows, a 24 hour party central, restaurants with fancy food and pretty looking alcoholic beverages, and of course who can forget about Christmas time when the Rockettes perform and the Rockefeller tree is lit up allowing people to ice skate around it. Strangely, I have never been a fan of THAT city, there's too much movement and it just gives me a headache. I bet you are staring at the word that and wondering why its capitalized, and NO it was not a typo. Don't get me wrong, New York City is a beautiful place, and I don't want you to believe I hate it but it's not the lights, the shows, or the pretty looking alcoholic drinks that makes the city so great to me; It's the people and the diversity they bring to the city. Not many people realize that there's more to the city than what they hear. There are many areas in the city full of culture that will take your breath away. By taking this class I hope to not only learn about the history of the city, but mainly about the small areas hidden behind the flashy lights made by people of all cultures. In the end the city is not only a big area full with lights, it's an area full of DIVERSITY.
Journal 2: The QUEEN of the world!
09/05/2014
It was the first day of Gotham Class and when I woke up all I can think was "oh man, my feet are going to be killing me today!". Well that was definitely true! We began our journey at 11:00am in Penn Station. Once everyone had arrived we were off to Queens, the most ethnically diverse county in the United States with over half of its residents born outside the United States (ENY p.213). By going to Queens we were encountering the world! When getting off the train, we were in front of Citi Field, the new Mets baseball team stadium. I thought, "Hey lets go there!" but we continued to walk, we were in Fresh Meadows Corona Park. Exhausted already because of the tremendous heat, I was glad to see a few benches; little did I know it was only the beginning. Right across from the benches where we sat was the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Canter, the worlds largest tennis facility and the home of the US Open Tennis Tournament (ENY p.218). I have never been good at playing tennis but i'm pretty sure if I was to practice there, I would be a pro in no time. While sitting on the benches across the tennis court, we discussed all the different locations we would be traveling today. We than got up to begin our walk to the next location.
While we were walking we came across the Unisphere Monumental which I could not stop staring out. We than came to learn that the Unisphere was constructed for the World Fair of 1964-1965 and symbolizes man achievement of a shrinking globe and an expanding universe (ENY p.218). Building this structure was a hard process due to the fact that it was heavy and difficult to position without it falling. Shamefully, the World Fair is no longer done due to economic reasons.
After many photos and getting wet by the fountain water, we were off to the Queens Museum where I saw the most amazing piece of art i have ever encountered, The Panorama of New York City. The Panorama was created by Robert Moses and Raymond Lester to be shown at the World Fair 1964-1965. I was astonished by all the little details that went into this artwork. Every building constructed before 1992 was there, even the Laguardia and JFK airport! (ENY p.221)
After learning about the NYC Panorama, I was starving! it was perfect timing because we than hopped on the train and went to Jackson Heights to eat at the Jackson Diner, an Indian buffet. I myself can not eat spicy food so when I found out it was Indian food I was beyond nervous. To my surprise a lot of the food was not spicy at all and I enjoyed trying the different types of dishes there!
We were all stuffed! But, we still had more too see. On to Astoria! In Astoria we went to the Museum of the Moving Images which collaborates the history and art of moving making (ENY p.224).The Museum of the Moving Image is one of the biggest tourist attraction in queens, and is the most successful film-making property on the east coast (Blue Guide, p.499). There was 3 floors of fascinating facts and tools that allowed us to learn more about the subject. There were tons of unique activities that allowed us to feel like film makers Such as the one below. The way this video was made, was with a serious of pictures that is flipped making it seem like it is moving.
Out of all the locations we went to, my favorite had to be the last location; Gantry Plaza State Park. I am a sucker for great scenery locations. Once class was over and everyone went their separate ways, I went back to Gantry Plaza State Park and sat down to watch the view. I know it might not seem like much but sitting and watching a breathtaking view is very relaxing. It was exactly what I needed after all the walking that day. I loved exploring Queens and learning about all the different cultures that are in that area. I can't wait to see Brooklyn next Friday!
09/05/2014
It was the first day of Gotham Class and when I woke up all I can think was "oh man, my feet are going to be killing me today!". Well that was definitely true! We began our journey at 11:00am in Penn Station. Once everyone had arrived we were off to Queens, the most ethnically diverse county in the United States with over half of its residents born outside the United States (ENY p.213). By going to Queens we were encountering the world! When getting off the train, we were in front of Citi Field, the new Mets baseball team stadium. I thought, "Hey lets go there!" but we continued to walk, we were in Fresh Meadows Corona Park. Exhausted already because of the tremendous heat, I was glad to see a few benches; little did I know it was only the beginning. Right across from the benches where we sat was the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Canter, the worlds largest tennis facility and the home of the US Open Tennis Tournament (ENY p.218). I have never been good at playing tennis but i'm pretty sure if I was to practice there, I would be a pro in no time. While sitting on the benches across the tennis court, we discussed all the different locations we would be traveling today. We than got up to begin our walk to the next location.
While we were walking we came across the Unisphere Monumental which I could not stop staring out. We than came to learn that the Unisphere was constructed for the World Fair of 1964-1965 and symbolizes man achievement of a shrinking globe and an expanding universe (ENY p.218). Building this structure was a hard process due to the fact that it was heavy and difficult to position without it falling. Shamefully, the World Fair is no longer done due to economic reasons.
After many photos and getting wet by the fountain water, we were off to the Queens Museum where I saw the most amazing piece of art i have ever encountered, The Panorama of New York City. The Panorama was created by Robert Moses and Raymond Lester to be shown at the World Fair 1964-1965. I was astonished by all the little details that went into this artwork. Every building constructed before 1992 was there, even the Laguardia and JFK airport! (ENY p.221)
After learning about the NYC Panorama, I was starving! it was perfect timing because we than hopped on the train and went to Jackson Heights to eat at the Jackson Diner, an Indian buffet. I myself can not eat spicy food so when I found out it was Indian food I was beyond nervous. To my surprise a lot of the food was not spicy at all and I enjoyed trying the different types of dishes there!
We were all stuffed! But, we still had more too see. On to Astoria! In Astoria we went to the Museum of the Moving Images which collaborates the history and art of moving making (ENY p.224).The Museum of the Moving Image is one of the biggest tourist attraction in queens, and is the most successful film-making property on the east coast (Blue Guide, p.499). There was 3 floors of fascinating facts and tools that allowed us to learn more about the subject. There were tons of unique activities that allowed us to feel like film makers Such as the one below. The way this video was made, was with a serious of pictures that is flipped making it seem like it is moving.
Out of all the locations we went to, my favorite had to be the last location; Gantry Plaza State Park. I am a sucker for great scenery locations. Once class was over and everyone went their separate ways, I went back to Gantry Plaza State Park and sat down to watch the view. I know it might not seem like much but sitting and watching a breathtaking view is very relaxing. It was exactly what I needed after all the walking that day. I loved exploring Queens and learning about all the different cultures that are in that area. I can't wait to see Brooklyn next Friday!
Journal 3: I'm Miss BROOKLYN, so fuhgeddaboudit!
09/12/2014
With 2.5. Million people, Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs as well as being the second most densely populated county in the United States (ENY p.191). Being a Brooklynese I can say that I have had the pleasure of growing up in the best borough in New York (and no I am not being biased). When I found out we were going to Brooklyn for one of the classes I was beyond ecstatic! I love exploring new places in my city, although I have lived in Brooklyn my whole life there are still many areas I have never explored. The first stop on our Brooklyn Gotham journey was Coney Island. Originally, Coney Island was an actual island, being separated from the mainland of Brooklyn by a creek, which was only much later filled in to turn Coney Island into the peninsula that it is today (ENY p.193). Because Mike and Meritta are the best professors, they gave us an hour in a half to do whatever we wanted; and of course because I am always hungry why not go to Grimaldi’s pizzeria. Grimaldi’s Pizzeria is part of a famous chain that makes some of the best thin crust pizza in New York (ENY p.210). With a few friends, we ordered a regular thin crust pizza and I must say it was pretty good, but it does not compare to my bay ridge pizza. I guess it’s true what they say, someone from bay ridge always thinks there food is better than any place else. After enjoying lunch at Grimaldi’s, I decided to walk around Luna Park to enjoy the view of the beautiful view of the beach and see all of the rides. Shamefully, I was too full from the pizza to go on any rides but plan on doing it another time.
After walking around the park and seeing all the different rides our break was over so we hopped on the F train and headed to Jay Street in Downtown Brooklyn to visit the Transit Museum. The Transit Museum is a museum dedicated to the history of mass transportation in New York (ENY p.203). Once we arrived, we went on a 20 minute guided tour where we learned about the historic information on the design and building of the New York subway system (ENY p.203). The best part of the museum was being able to see the collection of subway cars and viewing how much they have changed over time.
After leaving the Transit Museum we walked to Brooklyn Borough Hall and had a brief Greek art history lesson on Columns. I Learned there are 3 types of columns: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The Doric column was the most plain, where the Ionic column was famous for scrolls, and lastly the Corinthian column had the fanciest design. Brooklyn Borough Hall is considered one of New York’s finest Greek revival structures and was built to celebrate the spirit of the Jeffersonian common man (ENY p.203). In the end, when it comes to Greek columns, we must always remember that the Greeks were D.I.C’s.
After Brooklyn Borough Hall, we worked our way to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. The view from the promenade is absolutely breathtaking! Living in Brooklyn, I regularly take my dogs to walk around the promenade so while they do their business outside, I get to enjoy the view of my beautiful city. While standing in the promenade, there is an astonishing view of the Brooklyn Bridge Park that was being restored by our former mayor Bloomberg that began to give back to Brooklyn what Robert Moses took away, like Meritta said ”if it was up to Moses we would be living in a world of highways”.
Before walking down to the Brooklyn Bridge Park, we decided to take a quick detour to Plymouth Church. Once we arrived, in the garden we saw a statue depicting Beecher and two slave children (Blue Guide, p.467). There, we learned about Henry Ward Beecher, or as Mike said “the Justin Bieber of the 19th century”. Beecher was such a famous preacher that “Beecher Boats” had to run on Sundays to pick up people and bring them to his service (ENY p.206).
After we were done at the church, we walked to DUMBO (down under the Manhattan overpass) where we than walked to Jane’s Carousel and learned about BMW, no not the car but the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge and the Williamsburg Bridge. After we listened to some great music near the brudges, we walked over to the best ice cream parlor in DUMBO, Jacques Torres, where I enjoyed the best mango sorbet I have ever had. I Love my Brooklyn and I wouldn’t trade it in for anything! I’m so glad we spent the day in my city and I can’t wait to see what’s next to exploring in Chelsea next week!
09/12/2014
With 2.5. Million people, Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs as well as being the second most densely populated county in the United States (ENY p.191). Being a Brooklynese I can say that I have had the pleasure of growing up in the best borough in New York (and no I am not being biased). When I found out we were going to Brooklyn for one of the classes I was beyond ecstatic! I love exploring new places in my city, although I have lived in Brooklyn my whole life there are still many areas I have never explored. The first stop on our Brooklyn Gotham journey was Coney Island. Originally, Coney Island was an actual island, being separated from the mainland of Brooklyn by a creek, which was only much later filled in to turn Coney Island into the peninsula that it is today (ENY p.193). Because Mike and Meritta are the best professors, they gave us an hour in a half to do whatever we wanted; and of course because I am always hungry why not go to Grimaldi’s pizzeria. Grimaldi’s Pizzeria is part of a famous chain that makes some of the best thin crust pizza in New York (ENY p.210). With a few friends, we ordered a regular thin crust pizza and I must say it was pretty good, but it does not compare to my bay ridge pizza. I guess it’s true what they say, someone from bay ridge always thinks there food is better than any place else. After enjoying lunch at Grimaldi’s, I decided to walk around Luna Park to enjoy the view of the beautiful view of the beach and see all of the rides. Shamefully, I was too full from the pizza to go on any rides but plan on doing it another time.
After walking around the park and seeing all the different rides our break was over so we hopped on the F train and headed to Jay Street in Downtown Brooklyn to visit the Transit Museum. The Transit Museum is a museum dedicated to the history of mass transportation in New York (ENY p.203). Once we arrived, we went on a 20 minute guided tour where we learned about the historic information on the design and building of the New York subway system (ENY p.203). The best part of the museum was being able to see the collection of subway cars and viewing how much they have changed over time.
After leaving the Transit Museum we walked to Brooklyn Borough Hall and had a brief Greek art history lesson on Columns. I Learned there are 3 types of columns: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The Doric column was the most plain, where the Ionic column was famous for scrolls, and lastly the Corinthian column had the fanciest design. Brooklyn Borough Hall is considered one of New York’s finest Greek revival structures and was built to celebrate the spirit of the Jeffersonian common man (ENY p.203). In the end, when it comes to Greek columns, we must always remember that the Greeks were D.I.C’s.
After Brooklyn Borough Hall, we worked our way to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. The view from the promenade is absolutely breathtaking! Living in Brooklyn, I regularly take my dogs to walk around the promenade so while they do their business outside, I get to enjoy the view of my beautiful city. While standing in the promenade, there is an astonishing view of the Brooklyn Bridge Park that was being restored by our former mayor Bloomberg that began to give back to Brooklyn what Robert Moses took away, like Meritta said ”if it was up to Moses we would be living in a world of highways”.
Before walking down to the Brooklyn Bridge Park, we decided to take a quick detour to Plymouth Church. Once we arrived, in the garden we saw a statue depicting Beecher and two slave children (Blue Guide, p.467). There, we learned about Henry Ward Beecher, or as Mike said “the Justin Bieber of the 19th century”. Beecher was such a famous preacher that “Beecher Boats” had to run on Sundays to pick up people and bring them to his service (ENY p.206).
After we were done at the church, we walked to DUMBO (down under the Manhattan overpass) where we than walked to Jane’s Carousel and learned about BMW, no not the car but the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge and the Williamsburg Bridge. After we listened to some great music near the brudges, we walked over to the best ice cream parlor in DUMBO, Jacques Torres, where I enjoyed the best mango sorbet I have ever had. I Love my Brooklyn and I wouldn’t trade it in for anything! I’m so glad we spent the day in my city and I can’t wait to see what’s next to exploring in Chelsea next week!
Journal 4: CHELSEA and the VILLAGES
9/19/2014
The first stop of the day was right off of Penn Station. We walked to W30th and 10th Ave where we learned that 10th Ave killed many people and back than was known as death Ave. Although it may look ugly, because of all the construction going on, Chelsea is known as the most exclusive place in the city. After walking through some of the construction work happening in Chelsea, we walked to the High Line; an elevated abandoned train track that's now a park with beautiful view of the water and city buildings. I know this may be hard to believe, but on the High Line the strangest thing happened. WE LOST MIKE AND MERITTA! The funny thing was that we didn't even know we lost them until one of the students realized we weren't following anyone but each other. After all the calling and texting, we finally found him and continued on with the day. After getting off the High Line, we ran into some galleries and discussed how in the 80’s there were no galleries in Chelsea, but now they are full of them! A gallery and a museum are different, the gallery changes and the pieces go for sale as for a museum it does not. Strangely, the garbage looking pieces go for millions of dollars! So whenever in a gallery, NEVER make a negative remark towards any piece you see because the person next to you may be the artist. From the two galleries we went too, two pieces struck my interest. Out of the three galleries we went to my two favorites have to be the Mike Weiss Gallery because of the wonderful use of colors in all of the work and the fact we were allowed to ride the swings. The second gallery is the Jack Shainman Gallery; the reason why I enjoyed this one so much was because of the wooden horses. Ever since I was a little girl I have been severely allergic to horses; being able to get close to these sculptures I was able to experience the formation and beautiful aspects that a horse acquires without all the sneezing I usually get. After the galleries we walked through the Chelsea’s historical district where we saw the wealthiest houses in the district. We learned that each house has the same inside during the early 19 century's; when the late 19 century’s came, people became snotty and demanded to change their houses into mansions.
After exploring most of Chelsea, we than walked over to the West Village and learned about the expansion of the Citibikes. The West Village was the home to a sizable gay and lesbian population, even during those periods in the city’s history when homosexual behavior was generally frowned upon (ENY, p.89). In the West Village, the Gay Rights Movement began in the 1960s, and since then the area around Christopher Street has traditionally been a center of social life for New York gay population (ENY, p. 90)
The heart of Greenwich Village is Washington squared park, the arch in the park was built to commemorate the centennial of George Washington's inauguration (Blue Guide, p.131). In the past, the area was known as the execution park with the oldest tree used to hang people. In 1826, they turned the park into the Washington military parade ground and then it became a respectful place. Before when you use to walk through the park people used to offer sex and drugs every step you took. But because of former Mayor Giuliani, the park is now a clean center for people to walk through, relax and enjoy the view of the beautiful fountain in the middle. After our brief history lesson on the Washington square park, we walked to what I like to call little Disney. Don’t worry that’s not what it was really called, it was called the Washington Muse which was an area used to walk the horse by, surprisingly the original cobble stones were still there. When we were done admiring the little houses we walked over to McDougal Street and split up for lunch. Me and a few friends were craving gyros so we walked into this cute Mediterranean restaurant called Turkiss, and ordered some lamb gyros. After lunch, we walked to the Merchants House Museum. The Merchants House is a wonderfully preserved federal-style house, filled with period furnishings and decorations (ENY, p.99). Seabury Tredwell lived in that house with his wife, 8 kids, and 4 servants. Two things that I learned about this house that had me puzzled was the role of the wife and the bathroom situations. To be wife back in that time required you to always be in the presence of guest, you and to walk around with a card and speak to other but NEVER of you your private life. What I found interesting about the bathroom situation was that they had no bathrooms! Showering wasn't such a necessity back then, if they needed to shower they can go to a place to bath or just have the servants fetch some water while the sponged down. Knowing this makes me really thankful for my shower at home! After we finished the museum, walked to the Cooper Union where we learned that in the past was a college offered to students for free. They now have a new academic building with a postmodern style; it looks like a beehive to me.
The Last Village of the day, the East Village or NOHO as most of the residents there would like to be called. We walked to alphabet city, which is called that because there was no more numbers left. Instead of naming the streets -1,-2,-3 they just moved on to letters. While walking up the letters, we ran into a a neighborhood community garden where we learned that it was built on rubble and they rebuilt as a community garden. One of the ladies there informed us that the community we were in had the most community gardens and wanted recognition from the government to be known as that area and to keep all of the gardens and no let them be taken away by the city to build more buildings. The last stop of the day for most people was walking through Tompkins Square Park. The strangest thing about this park, everything is gated in! In the past, the park was known for riots. A riot happened every 10 years, but the two big ones was 1863 the civil war draft riot (Which was done because the poor were tired of the rich just paying a fine to avoid going to war and the poor could not do that since they had no money) and the 1988 riot (where members of the community fought with the police against them kicking them out and doing gentrification). Today the park is renovated and safe for anyone to walk through with closing time at 1 am. Today I learned so much about the different villages in the city, next week were doing the East Side. I CAN’T WAIT!
9/19/2014
The first stop of the day was right off of Penn Station. We walked to W30th and 10th Ave where we learned that 10th Ave killed many people and back than was known as death Ave. Although it may look ugly, because of all the construction going on, Chelsea is known as the most exclusive place in the city. After walking through some of the construction work happening in Chelsea, we walked to the High Line; an elevated abandoned train track that's now a park with beautiful view of the water and city buildings. I know this may be hard to believe, but on the High Line the strangest thing happened. WE LOST MIKE AND MERITTA! The funny thing was that we didn't even know we lost them until one of the students realized we weren't following anyone but each other. After all the calling and texting, we finally found him and continued on with the day. After getting off the High Line, we ran into some galleries and discussed how in the 80’s there were no galleries in Chelsea, but now they are full of them! A gallery and a museum are different, the gallery changes and the pieces go for sale as for a museum it does not. Strangely, the garbage looking pieces go for millions of dollars! So whenever in a gallery, NEVER make a negative remark towards any piece you see because the person next to you may be the artist. From the two galleries we went too, two pieces struck my interest. Out of the three galleries we went to my two favorites have to be the Mike Weiss Gallery because of the wonderful use of colors in all of the work and the fact we were allowed to ride the swings. The second gallery is the Jack Shainman Gallery; the reason why I enjoyed this one so much was because of the wooden horses. Ever since I was a little girl I have been severely allergic to horses; being able to get close to these sculptures I was able to experience the formation and beautiful aspects that a horse acquires without all the sneezing I usually get. After the galleries we walked through the Chelsea’s historical district where we saw the wealthiest houses in the district. We learned that each house has the same inside during the early 19 century's; when the late 19 century’s came, people became snotty and demanded to change their houses into mansions.
After exploring most of Chelsea, we than walked over to the West Village and learned about the expansion of the Citibikes. The West Village was the home to a sizable gay and lesbian population, even during those periods in the city’s history when homosexual behavior was generally frowned upon (ENY, p.89). In the West Village, the Gay Rights Movement began in the 1960s, and since then the area around Christopher Street has traditionally been a center of social life for New York gay population (ENY, p. 90)
The heart of Greenwich Village is Washington squared park, the arch in the park was built to commemorate the centennial of George Washington's inauguration (Blue Guide, p.131). In the past, the area was known as the execution park with the oldest tree used to hang people. In 1826, they turned the park into the Washington military parade ground and then it became a respectful place. Before when you use to walk through the park people used to offer sex and drugs every step you took. But because of former Mayor Giuliani, the park is now a clean center for people to walk through, relax and enjoy the view of the beautiful fountain in the middle. After our brief history lesson on the Washington square park, we walked to what I like to call little Disney. Don’t worry that’s not what it was really called, it was called the Washington Muse which was an area used to walk the horse by, surprisingly the original cobble stones were still there. When we were done admiring the little houses we walked over to McDougal Street and split up for lunch. Me and a few friends were craving gyros so we walked into this cute Mediterranean restaurant called Turkiss, and ordered some lamb gyros. After lunch, we walked to the Merchants House Museum. The Merchants House is a wonderfully preserved federal-style house, filled with period furnishings and decorations (ENY, p.99). Seabury Tredwell lived in that house with his wife, 8 kids, and 4 servants. Two things that I learned about this house that had me puzzled was the role of the wife and the bathroom situations. To be wife back in that time required you to always be in the presence of guest, you and to walk around with a card and speak to other but NEVER of you your private life. What I found interesting about the bathroom situation was that they had no bathrooms! Showering wasn't such a necessity back then, if they needed to shower they can go to a place to bath or just have the servants fetch some water while the sponged down. Knowing this makes me really thankful for my shower at home! After we finished the museum, walked to the Cooper Union where we learned that in the past was a college offered to students for free. They now have a new academic building with a postmodern style; it looks like a beehive to me.
The Last Village of the day, the East Village or NOHO as most of the residents there would like to be called. We walked to alphabet city, which is called that because there was no more numbers left. Instead of naming the streets -1,-2,-3 they just moved on to letters. While walking up the letters, we ran into a a neighborhood community garden where we learned that it was built on rubble and they rebuilt as a community garden. One of the ladies there informed us that the community we were in had the most community gardens and wanted recognition from the government to be known as that area and to keep all of the gardens and no let them be taken away by the city to build more buildings. The last stop of the day for most people was walking through Tompkins Square Park. The strangest thing about this park, everything is gated in! In the past, the park was known for riots. A riot happened every 10 years, but the two big ones was 1863 the civil war draft riot (Which was done because the poor were tired of the rich just paying a fine to avoid going to war and the poor could not do that since they had no money) and the 1988 riot (where members of the community fought with the police against them kicking them out and doing gentrification). Today the park is renovated and safe for anyone to walk through with closing time at 1 am. Today I learned so much about the different villages in the city, next week were doing the East Side. I CAN’T WAIT!