Uncovering the hidden side of New York City
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FeaturedNewark – Hidden gems amidst the blight
After the thrill of seeing The Late Show in person (and getting the chance to shake Colbert’s hand as he walked by the seats :D) in late September, decided to look up whether he was doing any shows/appearances. Turns out he would be appearing with Meryl Streep at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC)… Read more
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Return to Brownsville
Trudging along in the cold autumn air, I noticed a sprawling construction site opposite the Weeksville Heritage Center. Initially I thought it was going to be a commercialised property when looking at the modern exterior, but checking it now reveals that it’s a health and rehabilitation center. Along the way, there were multiple delis, and… Read more
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Weeksville – Formerly the second largest free Black community in America
If you were to mention Weeksville to the average non-Black New Yorker, chances are you would be met with blank looks – perhaps understandably so. Weeksville’s history stretches back almost two centuries ago to 1838, where it was envisioned as a safe haven for African Americans who wanted to live on their own terms, and… Read more
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Brownsville – The Murder Capital of New York City
As the morning of 4 December dawned, the weather had thawed considerably and I made the decision – to visit New York City’s infamous murder capital, a neighbourhood named Brownsville in the heart of Brooklyn. The decision was not made lightly, but at the time, crime had decreased significantly in many parts of NYC, including… Read more
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The former crack capital of USA – Red Hook
On an overcast October Saturday, I decided to head into another Brooklyn neighbourhood, in search of a Haitian exhibition titled Potoprens (Haiti’s capital is Port-au-prince) at an artist space called Pioneer Works. I had to take the F train to a subway station in Carroll Gardens before it was about a 20 minutes walk. As… Read more
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Morrisania, South Bronx (Part 2)
Following the previous post, we took a fairly clean elevator and after the WHEDco staff unlocked a door, we emerged to see one of the most spectacular views of New York City, one that is likely that very few tourists have ever seen. We were pretty awestruck by the view, but started musing how the… Read more
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Morrisania, South Bronx (Part 1)
Following our departure from East Harlem’s 110th St. station on the 6 train, we got off at the 125th St. station and transferred to the 4 train. It was my first time taking the subway to the Bronx (I had taken the Metro-North train to Fordham station the very first time) and it was surprisingly… Read more
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My first foray into East Harlem (Part 3) – 13.10.2018
In this part, I will wrap up the first destination of the day. As previously written in the first two parts, Molina takes the time to curate his collection, dividing them into different aisles and sections. The cover photo for this part above shows different memorabilia and photos, they seem to be taken at the… Read more
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My first foray into East Harlem (Part 2) – 13.10.2018
As I trudged upwards through the dimly lit stairway, a plethora of different paintings adorned the walls. I stepped in and it took a few moments to sink in at the scale of the entire place. Every inch of the walls were covered in paintings, drawings, posters, adornments of every type one could imagine. The… Read more
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My first foray into East Harlem (Part 1) – 13.10.2018
As the subway doors of the 6 train closed at the 96th street station, the final station on the edge of the Upper East Side where the likes of Ivanka Trump reside in, I quickly noted the remaining strap-hangers were either of Latin American or African American descent. Even so, no one seemed to pay… Read more
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Finding hidden gems in the underbelly of NYC 