Sunday Special – Brooklyn (NYC), USA

Today, a dear friend of mine is starting a grand adventure. She will head off to New York City and then fly across the Atlantic to South Africa for a couple weeks. I am so very excited for T and wish her best of times. In honour of her trip, today’s spotlight will be on The Big Apple.

Where to start when focusing on such an iconic city? New York has such variety and many well-known places, activities and areas. A city made up of five boroughs with each one having more than enough to offer. These boroughs are Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island. Since T will be staying in Brooklyn we’ll look there (though she is planning on visiting Manhattan and Staten Island as well).

Brooklyn is probably best known for its bridge, which at the time it was built was a significant engineering accomplishment. The Brooklyn Bridge was completed in 1883 and is a suspension/hybrid cable bridge that has 6 lanes that connects Brooklyn to Manhattan. Another area famous in this borough is Coney Island. This neighbourhood has arts, amusement parks, beaches and even a minor league baseball team: The Brooklyn Cyclones. Other neighbourhoods in Brooklyn to check out include trendy Williamsburg, historic Bedford-Stuyvesant (Bed-Stuy), artsy DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass) and old-world Brighton Beach.

Brooklyn Bridge, New York. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons – Photo taken and owned by Keith Pomakis