Trip to Governor's Island
Sep. 3rd, 2023 08:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkatManaged to go to Governor's Island finally with Wales. Governor's Island is an island in the middle of the New York City Harbor. New York has several islands. Staten Island (which keeps gobbling or trying to gobble my doctors - stop it Staten Island or I'll wish a hurricane chomps on your ass, it also plagues us with insane conservative representatives, but that's also Southern Brooklyn). Liberty Island has the Statue of Liberty. Ellis Island with the Immigrant Entry Point for those who reach the States by Sea (legally). Randall's Island where they are having the Electric Zoo Concert, and other musical concerts. Governor's Island - where Fort Jay used to reside, and it was once a military outpost - now they are turning it into an environmental research and conceptual art location, with sustainable urban farming, spa, and glamping (luxury camping). In addition there's Manhattan, Long Island, Riker's Island, Roosevelt Island, and another one I can't remember the name of. There's a lot of islands around New York and New Jersey.
It took about forty-five minutes to get to the Ferry. I was convinced it would take an hour (because I thought the ferry was further away from my doctor's office than it actually was - it was five minutes not twenty as I'd expected). Fifteen minute train ride, approximately twenty-thirty minutes walking. View from the ferry is below:
As you can see? It was a beautiful day - in the seventies and blue skies. Today looks like it is going to be equally beautiful with blue skies and temperatures in the upper 80s. We reached 81 yesterday.
When we arrived on Governor's island - we discovered...
Wales: This is all they have in the way of bathrooms?
Me: Well they do have portable restroom sections in four different locations...
Wales: Really? This is it? Why aren't there more restrooms? I mean there's older people here.
The one we used did have five booths in a portable trailer like facility about a block or two from the ferry landing. It was nicer than I expected. The booths were red and wooden, with decent sinks, toilets, and towels. But cramped. And the trash bins were outside the men's bathroom. Also, she had a point - it was hard to find them anywhere else. The one's that were supposed to be located on the other end of the island, were in the area "under construction" and "blocked off to the public". And there were none available near the eateries.
A lot of the island was under construction or closed off to the public. Most of the buildings were. It was disappointing. Also many of the buildings looked worn down and not revitalized as expected. Obviously they are renovating the place.
After wandering about for a bit, looking at the views...
Me: I think that's Ellis Island.
Wales: No it's not - Ellis Island is on the Statue of Liberty.
Me: No, I think they are separate.
Wales: No, I remember visiting them both with my parents and they were in the same place.
Me: I think it was at one point - but it moved back to Ellis Island. But they are separate.
Wales: No, they are the same. I remember going to both with my parents on the same island.
Turns out I was right... Statue of Liberty is located on Liberty Island, a short distance from Ellis Island. I decided not to text her this information. Let her believe whatever she wants. But proof once again that memory lies.
There were a lot of people, and a lot of wheeled cycles - basically every type of bicycle known to man or beast. Surreys, big wheels, carts, go-carts, scooters, bicycles, electric bikes...the only thing they didn't have was motorized bikes. Although they did have golf carts.
Also lots of little eateries. Food trucks. We ended up eating at Little Evas Food Stand - which wasn't as good as advertised. I thought everything was gluten-free, it wasn't. I tried to order the fish tacos, and ended up with BBQ chicken on salad greens, and we split an order of skinny fries, which weren't as good as the ones you get at fast food establishments. The food and drinks on the island weren't cheap. Which explained why a lot of folks brought their own food and picnic baskets.
And there was an art festival, and weirdly a children's play area - that looked like someone's idea of kids slum? Honestly I think the place was built by artists trying to remember how a kid thinks, and how they'd build a play area if they were kids. I don't why it existed - it's not like there was a shortage of playgrounds on the island and things to do with kids. Lots of large groups of kids on the island.
The concept behind The Yards was to provide a place for interactive play, with kids only, and adults could only accompany their kids or not at all. That was kind of confusing. The adults seemed to be hanging out on a hill outside of this enclosed area watching the staff and the kids play. It was kind of an interactive conceptual art project - redefining play?
The Yard is a kids-only space stewarded by trained playworkers. The main play area is recommended for young people ages 6 to 12 and the family play area welcomes children under 5. The Yard supplies young people with loose parts materials for building, exploring, imagining and destroying.
We walked up the hill to a row of quaint old New England Houses (that look like many of the homes in my neighborhood. We entered the one that housed The American Indian Community (aka Native American Community), and contained various artwork created by Native Americans, along with poetry.
One of the exhibits contained the names of all the missing indigenous women across the country, and signified their tragic loss with red dresses - over twenty empty red dresses on the walls, ceiling and in the middle of the floor, with more than fifty names printed around them. On one wall was a narrative about the missing women. It was a powerful piece and a painful one. On the wall opposite was a lengthy prose poem by the Chief of the Tribe, who denounced the Whites for deigning "to own land or property, while the American Indian or Native American (his words not mine) and the Red Man sees land and earth and trees as not something we can own or buy or sell. It is not ours, but a gift for us to respect and live with. But Whites don't understand this, and fight over it, and War over it. They destroy the land as opposed to caring for it." There was a lot of anger in this art, and I understood the anger. Yet also beauty, love and community. Both existed hand in hand.
After that - we headed back to the ferry. Since it was about 2:40 and the ferry's took off on the hour. The last ferry is at six pm. Both tired of wandering about. We'd been wandering about off and on for about four hours.
We'd arrived around 11:25, it was a fifteen minute ferry ride, if that. And left around 3 PM, arriving back in Brooklyn at 3:15 or 3:20, if that. Again only a 15 minute ferry ride - took longer to embark and disembark with all the people.
And there were a lot of people getting on and off the ferry regardless of the time. Big groups of people. Families. Tourists.
Wales was disappointed it was such a short ride - I was relieved. It was rocky with lots of waves. And I get motion sickness easily. We sat on top, so not as bad - also better views.
After the ferry ride we hung out for a bit at pier 6, which had a volleyball court on sand, an outdoor restaurant, restrooms,and lots of grassy meadows, and a place filled with wild flowers (they apparently went with wild more than any thing else - since it was kind of overgrown with wild flowers). Ordered a couple of slushies with a touch of rum added to them for refreshment. Then finally wandered back to our respective homes. On the way, we stopped by The Saltwater, which is an upscale New England style bath and kitchen ware shop, that served bagels, and gluten free baked goods. The Bagel weren't gluten free, but they had gluten free doughnuts which I could not pass up. I've not had a good gluten-free doughnut since 2016, when I was working in Midtown. (I don't bother with the frozen gluten-free ones any longer). Also got some "Matcha Latte" which was thankfully unsweetened. We sat and chatted for a bit, and were struck by the extremely wealthy, upscale twenty-somethings that flitted into and out of the shop, with model bodies, and chic clothing. Perfect makeup. And perfect hair. I felt old and dowdy, even though I was dressed in khaki capri pants, a nice partial sleeve knit with stars and my hair was the current windblown bob style for most people my age.
Overall - we walked at least 6.7 miles according to my phone, and 14,281 steps. Not bad. More than I've walked in a long time. Wales thinks we'll both be sore tomorrow.
I'm writing this tomorrow - and no, I'm not sore. But I also average between 2-4 miles daily, with commute and errands. My main mode of transportation is my feet. Six to ten floors is average. And at least 1-2 miles is average just to get to and from most places. And I'm doing yoga stretches more now, and trying to stay in shape. Might add weights. I also walk to the park, Greenwood Cemetery, and the thirty minutes to the Food Coop and Health Food Store.
Wales though, will be sore. She walks maybe half a mile each day. And doesn't do as much walking as I do.
It took about forty-five minutes to get to the Ferry. I was convinced it would take an hour (because I thought the ferry was further away from my doctor's office than it actually was - it was five minutes not twenty as I'd expected). Fifteen minute train ride, approximately twenty-thirty minutes walking. View from the ferry is below:
As you can see? It was a beautiful day - in the seventies and blue skies. Today looks like it is going to be equally beautiful with blue skies and temperatures in the upper 80s. We reached 81 yesterday.
When we arrived on Governor's island - we discovered...
Wales: This is all they have in the way of bathrooms?
Me: Well they do have portable restroom sections in four different locations...
Wales: Really? This is it? Why aren't there more restrooms? I mean there's older people here.
The one we used did have five booths in a portable trailer like facility about a block or two from the ferry landing. It was nicer than I expected. The booths were red and wooden, with decent sinks, toilets, and towels. But cramped. And the trash bins were outside the men's bathroom. Also, she had a point - it was hard to find them anywhere else. The one's that were supposed to be located on the other end of the island, were in the area "under construction" and "blocked off to the public". And there were none available near the eateries.
A lot of the island was under construction or closed off to the public. Most of the buildings were. It was disappointing. Also many of the buildings looked worn down and not revitalized as expected. Obviously they are renovating the place.
After wandering about for a bit, looking at the views...
Me: I think that's Ellis Island.
Wales: No it's not - Ellis Island is on the Statue of Liberty.
Me: No, I think they are separate.
Wales: No, I remember visiting them both with my parents and they were in the same place.
Me: I think it was at one point - but it moved back to Ellis Island. But they are separate.
Wales: No, they are the same. I remember going to both with my parents on the same island.
Turns out I was right... Statue of Liberty is located on Liberty Island, a short distance from Ellis Island. I decided not to text her this information. Let her believe whatever she wants. But proof once again that memory lies.
There were a lot of people, and a lot of wheeled cycles - basically every type of bicycle known to man or beast. Surreys, big wheels, carts, go-carts, scooters, bicycles, electric bikes...the only thing they didn't have was motorized bikes. Although they did have golf carts.
Also lots of little eateries. Food trucks. We ended up eating at Little Evas Food Stand - which wasn't as good as advertised. I thought everything was gluten-free, it wasn't. I tried to order the fish tacos, and ended up with BBQ chicken on salad greens, and we split an order of skinny fries, which weren't as good as the ones you get at fast food establishments. The food and drinks on the island weren't cheap. Which explained why a lot of folks brought their own food and picnic baskets.
And there was an art festival, and weirdly a children's play area - that looked like someone's idea of kids slum? Honestly I think the place was built by artists trying to remember how a kid thinks, and how they'd build a play area if they were kids. I don't why it existed - it's not like there was a shortage of playgrounds on the island and things to do with kids. Lots of large groups of kids on the island.
The concept behind The Yards was to provide a place for interactive play, with kids only, and adults could only accompany their kids or not at all. That was kind of confusing. The adults seemed to be hanging out on a hill outside of this enclosed area watching the staff and the kids play. It was kind of an interactive conceptual art project - redefining play?
The Yard is a kids-only space stewarded by trained playworkers. The main play area is recommended for young people ages 6 to 12 and the family play area welcomes children under 5. The Yard supplies young people with loose parts materials for building, exploring, imagining and destroying.
We walked up the hill to a row of quaint old New England Houses (that look like many of the homes in my neighborhood. We entered the one that housed The American Indian Community (aka Native American Community), and contained various artwork created by Native Americans, along with poetry.
One of the exhibits contained the names of all the missing indigenous women across the country, and signified their tragic loss with red dresses - over twenty empty red dresses on the walls, ceiling and in the middle of the floor, with more than fifty names printed around them. On one wall was a narrative about the missing women. It was a powerful piece and a painful one. On the wall opposite was a lengthy prose poem by the Chief of the Tribe, who denounced the Whites for deigning "to own land or property, while the American Indian or Native American (his words not mine) and the Red Man sees land and earth and trees as not something we can own or buy or sell. It is not ours, but a gift for us to respect and live with. But Whites don't understand this, and fight over it, and War over it. They destroy the land as opposed to caring for it." There was a lot of anger in this art, and I understood the anger. Yet also beauty, love and community. Both existed hand in hand.
After that - we headed back to the ferry. Since it was about 2:40 and the ferry's took off on the hour. The last ferry is at six pm. Both tired of wandering about. We'd been wandering about off and on for about four hours.
We'd arrived around 11:25, it was a fifteen minute ferry ride, if that. And left around 3 PM, arriving back in Brooklyn at 3:15 or 3:20, if that. Again only a 15 minute ferry ride - took longer to embark and disembark with all the people.
And there were a lot of people getting on and off the ferry regardless of the time. Big groups of people. Families. Tourists.
Wales was disappointed it was such a short ride - I was relieved. It was rocky with lots of waves. And I get motion sickness easily. We sat on top, so not as bad - also better views.
After the ferry ride we hung out for a bit at pier 6, which had a volleyball court on sand, an outdoor restaurant, restrooms,and lots of grassy meadows, and a place filled with wild flowers (they apparently went with wild more than any thing else - since it was kind of overgrown with wild flowers). Ordered a couple of slushies with a touch of rum added to them for refreshment. Then finally wandered back to our respective homes. On the way, we stopped by The Saltwater, which is an upscale New England style bath and kitchen ware shop, that served bagels, and gluten free baked goods. The Bagel weren't gluten free, but they had gluten free doughnuts which I could not pass up. I've not had a good gluten-free doughnut since 2016, when I was working in Midtown. (I don't bother with the frozen gluten-free ones any longer). Also got some "Matcha Latte" which was thankfully unsweetened. We sat and chatted for a bit, and were struck by the extremely wealthy, upscale twenty-somethings that flitted into and out of the shop, with model bodies, and chic clothing. Perfect makeup. And perfect hair. I felt old and dowdy, even though I was dressed in khaki capri pants, a nice partial sleeve knit with stars and my hair was the current windblown bob style for most people my age.
Overall - we walked at least 6.7 miles according to my phone, and 14,281 steps. Not bad. More than I've walked in a long time. Wales thinks we'll both be sore tomorrow.
I'm writing this tomorrow - and no, I'm not sore. But I also average between 2-4 miles daily, with commute and errands. My main mode of transportation is my feet. Six to ten floors is average. And at least 1-2 miles is average just to get to and from most places. And I'm doing yoga stretches more now, and trying to stay in shape. Might add weights. I also walk to the park, Greenwood Cemetery, and the thirty minutes to the Food Coop and Health Food Store.
Wales though, will be sore. She walks maybe half a mile each day. And doesn't do as much walking as I do.
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