Brooklyn appears to be the underdog of all the boroughs in NYC. It’s not as trendy as being in Manhattan but for some reason the pace is less frenetic. There aren’t busy New Yorkers rushing past you or tourists asking for directions.
Instead on the street, locals are singing. As we were walking along, a middle aged tough looking guy in a leather jacket and boots started belting out; “I believe I can fly, I believe I can touch the sky…” I almost responded by singing the next line of the song.
Visit Prospect Park
In Prospect Park locals were going about their daily exercise and were completely unfazed by the snow from the recent blizzard. In Long Meadow, the biggest stretch of meadow in the 585-acre park, children were sledding, squealing with laughter and tirelessly dragging their sleds back uphill. I was watching them enviously. I had no sled and no idea where everyone had bought their sleds from.
After resorting to using a trash can that didn’t have any traction on the snow, one Brooklynite tween felt pity on me – the Australian girl who obviously had no clue – and lent me her sled. I promptly hopped on, glided downhill at 100km an hour and almost crashed into a tree.
“WATCH OUT!” the kids kept screaming at me until I hopped off at the last second.
Very gracefully I picked myself up and thanked the tween who asked, “Was it better than the trash can lid?”
“A 100 times better,” I replied.
The Best Pizza in Brooklyn
All the NYC guidebooks tell you to try pizza from Grimaldi’s which is right by the Brooklyn Bridge, only there was a crazy long line that practically went all the way down bridge. Rather than joining the queue, we headed to Fascati’s Pizza on 80 Henry Street. We took away slices of cheese pizza dosed heavily with chilli flakes before walking to Brooklyn Bridge Park.
A Priceless View from Brooklyn Bridge Park
The only way to enjoy the view of NYC’s skyline is with your steaming slice of pizza in hand. I’d only spent a short time over the other side of the bridge but Brooklyn had surprised me – it was like the ‘suburban’ side of NYC – friendly locals, great food and with a more relaxed pace. In Brooklyn, it is possible to believe you can fly!
