Bridge Walks

So this weekend was a better weekend than my first few here in the Big Apple. I decided early in the week that I was going to do ‘something’ and not watch every single crime investigation show that digitally converted non-cable tv has to offer. To my surprise and delight I got a call from my mom Thursday night saying that she and my two cousins were coming for the weekend because my cousin Linda was called for an audition for America’s Got Talent. I guess that’s an interesting tidbit. She feels that she did well so I guess I’ll stay tuned for that. What does this have to do with bridges you ask? Well hold your horses my faithful few readers.

On Monday of the week I decided that my first big weekend activity was going to be walking the Brooklyn Bridge. I was going to make a whole event out of it and go to the famous Grimaldi’s Pizza http://www.grimaldis.com/, the Ice Cream Factory http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/brooklyn-ice-cream-factory/ and stroll Fulton’s Ferry when I got to the other side. I thought this was a good start to the weekend. I didn’t really have solid plans for the rest of the weekend but I was confident that I would get something figured out.

When I got the news that my family was coming I was ready to cancel my plans. My mom said they wouldn’t get in until after midnight so I decided to proceed. I got off work Friday, ran a few errands and headed downtown. I got off the train and headed in the wrong direction like I do every time I get off at a stop anywhere besides 125th and Lenox. I headed to Southstreet Seaport http://www.southstreetseaport.com/ to meet my sorority sister Keira for drinks (it was our four year anniversary in the sorority). So after the first margarita in the chilly outdoors we decided to move indoors for another which was a bad idea. The next thing I know we looked up and it was almost 11:00 pm and my mom was to arrive around 1:00am from her 7:00 pm update. I was on the brink of bailing on the bridge walk again. I started making excuses about it being cold and needing to get home to meet the family and decided to cut the crap and hit the bridge. (Side note: my family ended up waiting for me in the car for an hour because the trains were crazy Friday night & I partly don’t know where I’m going outside of my normal routine and I’m too cool to pull out my map these days).

It took us a while to find the entrance to the bridge but when we finally got there it was a really pleasant walk. I’m fascinated by architecture and engineering (my buddy Larry is an engineer and often talks to me about the complexities of building bridges and buildings and such, I wish I was smart like that). Anyhow, this thing was amazing. It was incredible seeing the city at night and looking one way to Brooklyn and the other to Manhattan. The structure itself is pretty unbelievable and massive. One of my favorite structures in Cleveland was the Detroit Superior Bridge near my garden. I thought this bridge was one of the most amazing things I’d ever seen, massive. I would often jog (okay quickly walk) the bridge and my amazing Bootcamp instructor Rungsinee would often hold our classes on the bridge. I thought this bridge was something and not saying it’s not but these NYC bridges are really something to see. I’ve decided that I’m going to start incorporating more subway riding for reading purposes and bridges walks for exploration purposes into my down time. They seem to be great ways to entertain myself and explore and they are free (work provides my monthly metro card). So check out the pictures below of some of my time on bridges.
Cleveland or NYC, You Decide…