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| The Manhattan Bridge from DUMBO |
There were a couple of options as to where the ship would dock in New York. One in the mid-town area on the west side of Manhattan. The other option was across the East River from Manhattan in Brooklyn. While most folks were probably hoping for the Manhattan location we were wishing for the Brooklyn location. We were pulling for Brooklyn because it would allow us to easily explore some new areas of the city without having to deal with the crowds in Manhattan. Our wish came true and we docked at the Red Hook Cruise Terminal, which is located on the mid-western side of Brooklyn. Our location gave us a great view across to the Statue of Liberty.
About 8.4 million people live in the five boroughs of New York. Brooklyn's population is just over 2.6 million, or roughly 30 percent of the entire population of the city. It truly is a big chunk of the "Big Apple"!
We headed out shortly after docking, with our sites set on exploring an area of Brooklyn with a somewhat unique but quite logical name. The area we had in mind was about two miles from the terminal and is known as DUMBO, which stands for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. It's actually in the area where both the Manhattan Bridge and the more famous Brooklyn Bridge come within a few blocks of each other. The area has undergone a major renaissance in recent years, with old warehouses being converted to shops, apartments and condominiums. There is also a nice mix of greenspace along the waterfront, making it a great place to spend a day if you're visiting or to live. Speaking of living there, we enjoyed saying hello to our nephew's fiancee, Nermin at their apartment which is located in this area.
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| A selfie from the rooftop of Kyle and Nermin's apartment |
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| A Brooklyn City park between the cruise terminal and DUMBO |
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| There is a pedestrian walkway that connects Brooklyn to Manhattan. You'll have great views of the Manhattan skyline from the Bridge. Once in Brooklyn you'll be on the edge of the DUMBO area |
By the end of the day we had covered close to twelve miles of Brooklyn. I'm sure there are many other interesting areas of Brooklyn to explore but our feet were tired and the skies were quickly turning gray. We almost made it back to the ship before the rain started coming down in buckets
The soaking rain actually felt good after roaming around just a tiny portion of this huge borough.
If you're looking for a new or different New York experience check out the DUMBO area. If you're staying in Manhattan it's an easy walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. I think you'll love it as well as the views back across the East River to the Manhattan skyline.
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| Lower Manhattan from the Brooklyn Bridge Park |
