The saga of finding an apartment continues for Ed and I but that is a story I'll leave for another post. I originally felt I wanted to stay in Manhattan but we have recently re-considered Brooklyn again, as we can get a bigger space for our budget and the city is only just a hop, skip and jump away.
With Ed pre-occupied with business, being all important and all I was left to go apartment hunting on my own! I had two viewings scheduled; one in Greenpoint and one in Williamsburg. We've only spent a small amount of time in Brooklyn so far, as there is just so much to do in the city but I do believe, especially after today, that this is a mistake made not just by myself but also by many tourists on vacation who just don't get around to getting over the bridge. I also believe that people have the misconception that Brooklyn can be a little dangerous and dodgy but that could not be further from the truth.
As I walked from Greenpoint down to Williamsburg and then onto Brooklyn Heights, the place grew more and more on me and when I got to Brooklyn Heights, it was love at first sight!
I took the 7 train heading towards Flushing - Main Street from 42nd Street Time Square subway station and jumped off at Vernon Blvd - Jackson Ave. This stop actually placed me just over the Pulaski Bridge in Queens but with a ten - fifteen minute walk over the bridge, which featured beautiful views of Manhattan I was in Greenpoint, Brooklyn and just in time for my first apartment viewing.
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| View from the Pulaski Bridge |
After the first viewing I had some time to kill and also wanted to get to know the Greenpoint area better. I started to head down Manhattan Avenue as this pretty much took me right to the start of Williamsburg but I got distracted looking down streets and zig zagged a little, going down one and back up another. I got distracted by the old brownstone buildings with the classic stoop and the streets lined with overhanging tree's. Then I would spot a trendy clothes store or an eclectic furniture store, that I'd quickly pop my head in, to see if there was anything I liked.
As I continued to walk down Manhattan Avenue taking everything in, a donut bakery caught my eye! I've previously mentioned in my
44 & X post that I have a list of 101 Things to Do in NYC from
Time Out and I vaguely remembered this Donut Bakery being on the list because I loved that it is called the
Peter Pan Donut Bakery. The bakery was established back in the 50's and still has a very 50's look and vibe to it. It has two small square counters where you can sit and enjoy a freshly baked donut and hot cup of brewed "cawfie" or you can join the long line and get a dozen or just one packed up to go. I went with just one, a chocolate cake donut and I'm not really much of a donut fan but boy was this one delicious!
Once I finished my apartment viewing in Williamsburg I decided I liked the walk down from Greenpoint so much that I'd walk to Brooklyn Heights, as I was yet to visit that area. I'd previously on another occasion spent a morning in Williamsburg so that's why I didn't decide to hang around there but if it is your first time visiting I do recommend exploring the area and checking out Bedford Avenue. I would also suggest jumping on the subway to Brooklyn Heights as the walk takes about an hour and a half and didn't have as many sights to see as the walk from Greenpoint to Williamsburg.
Once I finally made it to Brooklyn Heights it was love at first sight! It went from an industrial like area with an express way into tree lined streets and beautiful old 19th century brownstone row houses. The buildings were absolutely adorable, I think I took a gazillion pictures of them as I slowly made my way down to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. And once I made it to the promenade I think I accidentally said aloud to myself "that's amazing". What I saw was a spectacular view over the East River of the Statue of Liberty, the skyline of Manhattan, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Empire State Building off in the distance. I think I spent about a half an hour just in awe of this view, again taking about a gazillion pictures of the bridge, then the skyline, then the adorable brownstones, back to the bridge and then a selfie, the skyline, then I tried a panorama view, a snapchat video, another selfie and well you get my point.
If it didn't start to rain and if my feet didn't feel like they were about to fall off I would have considered walking the Brooklyn Bridge back over to Manhattan but I think I'd like to leave that adventure for when Ed can join me. I jumped on the R train from Brooklyn Heights back to Time Square and spent the evening with my feet up going through my gazillion pictures.
A fun fact I learnt off google about Brooklyn Heights fruit streets is; in the nineteenth century Lady Middagh, a descendant of one of the earliest families to settle in the area, didn't like that at the time the streets were named after aristocratic families that lived on them. She found them to be pretentious so she took them down and replaced them with her own, Pineapple, Cranberry and Orange.
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| Montague Street, Brooklyn Heights |
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| View of Manhattan from Brooklyn Heights Promenade |
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| View of the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn Heights Promenade |
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| One of the fruit streets in Brooklyn Heights |
I adore Brooklyn! I think it's a great place to visit as well as to live. Brooklyn Heights is so quaint and adorable, and Greenpoint is growing at such an amazing pace as well. :)
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