Tugboat on the East River

This little tugboat toots along the East River with the big boys, like the Staten Island ferry, tourist cruise ship and other gigantic carriers. In the background, you can also see masted boats and water taxi.

So do you toot your own horn?

Chasing Pigeons

This kid was chasing after pigeons at the Brooklyn Promenade. He had a great time. The pigeons, not so much.

So what or who have you chased after?

It's A Dog's Life

I saw this cute little dog at the Brooklyn promenade a couple weeks ago. It looked totally content sitting on the bench with its owner enjoying the beautiful weather outside.

So when are you most content?

Brooklyn Directions

If you ever get lost in Brooklyn, this manhole cover will help you find your way home. It is located on the street level by the entrance to the Brooklyn Bridge.

So have you ever gotten lost?

Update: There were numerous questions on DUMBO in the comments so I'm posting the answer here. DUMBO is short for District Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass, which is a fancy word to say it's under the bridge, folks! It's a newly coined neighborhood on the Brooklyn waterfront. The word, I think, was created by real estate companies to create a buzz for an otherwise, unpleasant sounding part of town. Imagine telling a potential client, "I have a beautiful property under the Manhattan Bridge I would like to show you" vs. "I have a beautiful property in a hip new neighborhood in Brooklyn called, DUMBO!"

Other acronyms you will find in NYC are: SoHo (South of Houston Street), NoHo (North of Houston Street), TriBeCa (Triangle Below Canal Street), and NoLIta (North of Little Italy).

A Bird in the Bush...

This photo would have been perfect for Christmas Day but it was taken yesterday morning. I was less than 3 feet (1.5 meters) away but the bird ignored me and continued eating red berries from the holly bush while I took over a half dozen photos of it. It was probably thinking, "How rude!"

So do you think it is rude to take photos of people (or animals) while they are eating?

Brooklyn Public Library

This is the front entrance to the Brooklyn Public Library near Park Slope, Brooklyn. It may not be as recognizable as the New York (Manhattan) Public Library but I think it is just as majestic. During this trip, I did not get a chance to go inside. I will the next time I'm in the area.

So where do you usually get the books you read?

Urban Ballerina

I saw this performance artist dancing on Smith Street in Brooklyn a couple weekends ago. The plastic skirt she was wearing had little solar panels that generated enough electricity to play a weird static-like sound/music on the mini-speakers that were also attached to the skirt too.

But the funniest thing was hardly anyone on the street stopped to look at her except me and another passerby. It seems that New Yorkers are so desensitized to this sort of stunts that they don't even bother to look at them any more. I mean, we have the Naked Cowboy at Times Square.

So what is the oddest thing you ever saw on the street?

Brooklyn Heights Promenade

This is the Brooklyn Heights Promenade on the western edge of Brooklyn overlooking the vista of Lower Manhattan across the East River. I took this photo last Saturday and edited the image before posting it on here. I enhanced the contrast and reduced the brightness. Then I cropped the photo to give it the image I want.

So do you edit your photos?

Restaurant Flowers

This is a macro shot of a simple flower arrangement at a Thai restaurant on Court Street between 3rd and 4th Place in Brooklyn where I had dinner with a friend last week. The small pink bloom with yellow center is probably about 3/4 of an inch across.

My iPhone died on Monday night. Since I don't have a land line at home, I had to wait till I got to the office on Tuesday morning to call the 1-800 tech support hotline to for advice. Unfortunately, nothing can be done so I will have to make an appointment to visit one of the tech support guys at the Genius Bar inside the Apple Store.

It feels weird not to have a cell phone (or a telephone, in general) available even though I have no need to call anyone right now. My only access to the outside world now is the internet. Please, please, please....don't let my internet connection fail before I get my iPhone working again.

I feel soooo vulnerable. Have you ever felt so lost?

Parachute Jump at Coney Island

This is the Parachute Jump, a relic of an old amusement park attraction in Coney Island, Brooklyn. I found out on Wikipedia that it was built in 1939 for the New York's World's Fair in Flushing-Meadows, Queens but was moved to the Coney Island Steeplechase Amusement Park in Brooklyn later. Incidentally, I have also photographed the famous structure from the 1964 World's Fair -- the Unisphere which I posted earlier this month.

I have lived in NYC for exactly 10 years now -- I came out here in August 1998 immediately after graduate school. In all that time, I have never visited or seen the Unisphere and the Parachute Jump until very recently. That was because (1) both the Unisphere and the Parachute Jump are located outside my usual haunts or places I regularly go; (2) they were both featured in a Louis Vuitton advertisement and a Gossip Girl promotional photo respectively; and (3) after seeing those images, I decided to photograph them myself for this blog.

So what is your motivation in your photography?

Alma Restaurant at Columbia Street Waterfront District

Last night, my out-of-town friends (former college buddies) and I met up with another alumnus at a restaurant in Brooklyn called, Alma Restaurant in the Columbia Street Waterfront District. This is a part of Brooklyn that I have never visited before so I was excited to see the neighborhood. The restaurant is set near the water so the Manhattan skyline was clearly visible from the third floor rooftop dining patio. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera (UGH!!!) and missed out on a great opportunity to photograph the awesome view of the city.

This photo above was taken with my cell phone. The other photos I took with it did not come out great. I will have to make another trip back to the neighborhood with my camera in the near future.

So have you ever have a missed opportunity?

N.B.: Click on the two links above to see what scenery I was talking about.

Murakami Exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum

I went to the Brooklyn Museum a couple weeks ago to see the Murakami Exhibition but it had already closed. All that was left were a balloon and a statue by the artist at the inside entrance area of the museum. The day wasn't a total waste though. I got a chance to visit an old friend and we explored the different neighborhoods of Brooklyn. Like the saying goes: when life gives you lemon, make lemonade.

So do you have a favorite quote or phrase to share with us?

Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn

This is the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn. The artificial waterway, completed in 1867, used to be an important commercial harbor until the 1960s when large container ships became too big to navigate up the canal. It was also one of the most polluted waterways in the area with heavy sewage clogging the flow of water.

Only recently has the area begun to make a come back. The waterway has gotten cleaner over the years and constructions along the water's edge are slowly going up. It separates the hip and trendy Park Slope from its less glamorous stepsister, Carroll Gardens.

So did you have a favorite fairy tale when you were a kid?

Champs-Élysées de Brooklyn

This photo, taken on Prospect Park West (9th Avenue) looking north at the Grand Army Plaza, reminded me of the fame Arc de Triomphe and Champs-Élysées in Paris. The Grand Army Plaza is a oval shaped island with an arched structure in the middle of it. It also serves as a focal point of 5 avenues radiating out from the middle.

So what are your plans for the weekend?

Piss Clam for Dinner??

After dinner with a friend in Cobble Hill (Brooklyn) last night, we came upon this sign outside PJ Hanley's, a restaurant bar on the corner of Court Street and 4th Place. It was a sign advertising the dinner special for the day: lobster roll and piss clams. PISS CLAMS? It doesn't sound very appetizing, does it?

So have you ever had piss clams? Would you be interested to try them?

N.B.: Click here if you are interested to find out what piss clams are.

Water Taxi at South Street Seaport

This water taxi service have limited number of stops in lower Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn and New Jersey but it cuts down on travel time for those living near the rivers. Notice the sign on the side of the boat for free water taxi to IKEA Brooklyn? We finally have an IKEA outlet in the city and it's in Red Hook on the south east side of Brooklyn.

The free water taxi service to IKEA leaves Pier 11 (Wall Street) in lower Manhattan and crosses the East River to Red Hook in 12 minutes. Thanks, Eliane for the information.

So do you have an IKEA near you?

Mermaid Parade at Coney Island

Yesterday (Saturday) was the first day of summer. It was also the day for the Mermaid Parade at Coney Island, the stretch of beaches and amusement parks on the southern edge of Brooklyn on the Atlantic Ocean. And here is a collage of the photos from the parade. [Click on the photo to see the large format.]

So what did you do on the first day of summer?

Brooklyn Bridge After A Snow Storm

We had a huge snow storm on Friday morning and as a result, my office was closed. So a couple of out-of-town friends and I decided to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan. Why you ask? Because we could! This photo was taken as we got on the bridge from Brooklyn Heights. You can see the skyline of Manhattan in the background.

So what was the craziest thing you ever did during a snow storm?

Mid-Month Theme: Subway Day

This is the New York City subway map. On the left is Manhattan Island. On the right is Long Island, which houses Queens (n0rth) and Brooklyn (south) . On the top is the Bronx and on the south (tip showing) is Staten Island. These five boroughs make up New York City.

Subway day is a mid-month theme shared by the following blogs:
New York City Daily Photo - Stockholm by Pixels

Junior's Cheesecake

Almost everyone who has tasted Junior's cheesecake says it is the best cheesecake in world. The company, started by Harry Rosen, began as a humble diner in downtown Brooklyn in 1929. The name of the diner was changed to Junior's in 1950 after Harry's children, Walter and Marvin, took over the business. Today, Junior's is a successful mail order business selling cheesecakes and other pastries, in addition to its original diner in Brooklyn and two new restaurants in Times Square and Grand Central Station.

When I used to work in downtown Brooklyn, I would occasionally stop by the original Junior's diner to get some cheesecakes and coffee. The diner, in my opinion, has lost much of its appeal due to poor customer service and mediocre food, but the cheesecake is still king. I have not been to the other two Junior's restaurants in Times Square or Grand Central Station but I hear the food and service are better there.

During holiday seasons, it is not uncommon to see a line of people at the diner and restaurants. especially at the take-out bakery section. It seems like everyone is there to buy a cheesecake (or two) for their families or friends.

So do you have a favorite dessert?