Travel story: a day in Brooklyn

New York City is said to be one of the most bustling places in the world. Staying in Midtown, I initially felt that I hadn’t really experienced the atmosphere I was expecting from New York. On my second day in the city, I decided to venture across Brooklyn Bridge into unknown territory.

Having known basically nothing about this area except what I watched off of Gossip Girl — not a very good guide, as it turns out — I was taken aback by how at home I felt walking these streets. I started off my day at Brooklyn Bridge and made my way over to Williamsburg.

With only one day in Brooklyn, I was surprised by how much I was able to do and how well my day went.

9.00am:

Start the day off at the top of Brooklyn Bridge, which is certain to please the eye — and the camera. The closest subway station is Fulton Street. You can either walk across the bridge or hire a bike from Citi Bike who has sharing stations dotted all over the place — there are three near the station.

Having reached the other side of the bridge, you can either keep your bike for the day or be a bit lazier and put it back and take the subway — as I did.

9.30am:

I headed over towards the water to ‘Jane’s Carousel’, a restored 1922 children’s ride that offers all the creepiness that you imagine it would, as well as spectacular views of the bridge, river and Manhattan Island! After wandering more into town, my desire for coffee grew and I searched up the nearest coffee shop which happened to be ‘Almondine Bakery’. This is the one thing I had not planned out for the day and turned out to be one of my highlights – the coffee and croissants were delicious.

After wandering more into town, my desire for coffee grew and I searched up the nearest coffee shop which happened to be ‘Almondine Bakery’. This is the one thing I had not planned out for the day and turned out to be one of my highlights. The coffee and croissants were delicious.

9.45-10.45am:

Before heading to the Brooklyn Museum, I decided to pit stop at a vintage shop that many of my friends had raved about — ‘Beacon’s Closet’.

Because of my innate yearning to shop, I had no choice but to go. This vintage shop was everything I could’ve hoped for, selling loads of designer clothes/shoes/everything from previous seasons.

Clark Street to Bergen Street on the 2 to Flatbush Avenue

11am:

By the time I reached Brooklyn Museum, it had just opened and unfortunately, I was not the only one who had the brilliant idea of coming at opening time. The wait was long but that is pretty much inevitable at any museum in New York.

I’m not sure if this was just because I came on the first day of the week for the museum — the museum is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays — or if this is a usual thing. Nonetheless, the queue is well worth it! The museum is impressive in every sense.

The collection boasts 4,000 items in the Egyptian collection. The highlight for me was the centre in the museum which was completely devoted to feminist art. On the first Saturday of every month, tickets are free between 5pm and 11pm. Normally, they are $16 for adults and $10 for students. Recommended time spent in the museum would be around 2 hours.

Closest station: Eastern Parkway (take the 2 or 3)

1.30pm:

Lunch at Glady’s. Around 7 minutes walk from the museum, this Caribbean eatery almost makes you believe you are on an island. Make sure to order the Rum Punch, the jerk chicken, goat curry, and spicy slaw if you are particularly hungry.

2.00pm:

Make your way back to Prospect Park and spend a few hours here. It truly is an amazing park — it topped Central Park for me. There are lots of things going out at every corner — yoga lessons, weird guitar-playing people, and football games.

My favourite part was the ridiculous amount of puppies I saw. If you’re feeling fidgety, walk over to the Botanical Gardens — although, it is said to be really it’s best in spring.

4.00pm:

At this point, I headed over to Williamsburg for more vintage shopping. The best places I found were Malin Landaeus, Awoke, Amarcord, About Glamour, Antoinette, and The L Train in Williamsburg and continued along towards Bushwick Avenue for more shops like Friends and Fox and Fawn.

7.30pm:

All that shopping had me tired and so I was ready for a rest and another meal. Heading back towards Williamsburg Bridge, I went to St. Anselm for a well-deserved steak. This place is tiny and easy to miss but has a lot of character and atmosphere. The hanger steak was amazing and just what I needed.

9.00pm:

Enjoy an obscure beer at Spuyten Duyvil as a nightcap then head home.