today we got to visit pam’s church in harlem called “newsong”. it was a warm community church that reminded us a lot of our own church in chicago. we enjoyed the soulful music and the friendly atmosphere. afterwards we decided to visit brooklyn since we had heard of the brooklyn bridge flea market, and of course wanted to see the beautiful suspension bridge. there was a lovely park and pier which offered amazing views of the brooklyn bridge.

for lunch, we wanted to try the famous pizza from grimaldi’s. pam was very smart and called in a takeout order, so we were able to walk right past the VERY long line and get our pizza in 20 minutes! delicious!

at the brooklyn flea market, which was located right under the bridge, we found lots of vintage clothing and fun knick knacks. and we saw our first celebrity: doogie howser himself! we decided not to take a pic though.

to get back into manhattan, we walked back across the brooklyn bridge. it was constructed in 1883, and at the time was the longest steel-wire suspension bridge of its era. we could see the statue of liberty in the distance on our left, and the empire state building on our right.

with some time to spare, we went to union square for some people-watching. there were guys breakdancing and street art.

in the evening we went to see the new high line, a park that was created on top of an old elevated freight railroad. now it is a modern public space, and at night, it’s really pretty with the lighting and view of the city.

we had a somewhat lazy morning in elizabethtown and enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with james and jana. thanks so much for having us! then on our way back on the road, we took one last look at the quaint town. note the parking meter: 30 minutes for a nickel!

then we drove another few hours to arrive into new york city. note the george washington bridge toll: $8 each car!

we found our way to pam’s new apartment in harlem and after a short rest, got started on exploring nyc. first stop was washington square, adjacent to nyu in greenwich village. we walked through the park, then along broadway street where there’s a lot of shopping.

this one’s for you kimu.

oh, don’t you know? joe’s brother is a big new york designer…

joseph.

our first glimpse of the empire state building.

times square! since earlier this year, traffic through times square has been limited, allowing a lot more pedestrian access. it creates a really neat vibe with hundreds of people sitting around and milling about.

michael jackson fans dancing to “thriller”.

we are off on a roadtrip from chicago to new york city! today we started early at 6:30AM, armed with a 5 pound bag of coins, and drove 11 hours to elizabethtown, pennsylvania. the tolls certainly took their toll (get it?) on us; so far a hefty $40 or so! (i think we’ll try taking the non-toll road back).

i prepared some lunch: chinese liang mien (cold noodles). so much better than fast food, although we were very impressed with the ohio and pennsylvania service stations, which made the tolls a little bit worth it.

as we approached e-town, it started to pour torrentially, but luckily we found our way to james and jana’s home safely. here is joe trying to escape the rain.

after a yummy dinner, we played with their new puppy kai, a jack russell terrier. she’s really smart and hyper… you should see how high she can jump!

the paterson’s invited us over for a delicious meal: beer-can-smoked-chicken. it’s made exactly how it sounds, and it was sooo juicy… good job brian! we’re coming back for smoked turkey next time!

i’m not sure why it took me three years to visit the hyde park art center despite passing it a billion times, but i finally dropped in to check it out for the first time. in addition to offering many programs for the community, the center exhibits work from emerging artists from the chicago area. i like it.