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06/02/2008: "Tales of Brooklyn"

I've been in Brooklyn just a little more than a month now. I recall investigating New York neighborhoods to live in and naively asked someone what they thought of Brooklyn. The response contained something about Brooklyn being the size of Philadelphia. For the record, Brooklyn has 2.5 million residents, more than Manhattan. Philadelphia has only 1,517,550.

If it were anywhere except beside Manhattan, it would be much better known. There's so much in Brooklyn that I feel should be much more widely known than it is. Prospect Park, Olmsted's crowning achievement, Grand Army Plaza, the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, Brooklyn Bridge Park, just to name a few are well deserving of being a destination in their own right. The Brooklyn Museum and Botanical Garden are also world-class institutions.

I also see many paralells between Brooklyn and "Allegheny," the part of Pittsburgh I came here from. Both were once their own city. Both still retain a seperate identity, but unlike Allegheny, Brooklyn retains its name. Allegheny is now called "North Side."

Like the North Side, lots of people who aren't familiar with Brooklyn think of it as dangerous. That may be true sometimes in some places, and yes, parts of Brooklyn are filled with "pushers," but not the kind you may think. These pushers walk, or jog, behind baby carriages.

Which brings me to a few more observations. Brooklyn seems to have more baby's per capita, more organic stores per capita, worse coffee than many places, better pizza, and while there's no smoking, I'd guess there are more smokers.

Watch these pages for a continuation and updates.

Eric Miller, on 06.02.08 @ 18:19PST