I had heard about the new New York City ferries and with a
perfectly clear and only warm day (no blast of heat), friends and I decided to
take advantage of what is the cheapest “cruise boat” ride going. Okay, you’re not going to hear anyone call
out the sights, but for the price of $2.75, the same as a bus or subway, who
cares? This is the first of many articles on this new NYC treasure!
We drove to the Rockaway landing located at Beach 108. There is a parking lot that charges $8 for
the whole day, or you can park on the street.
Most of the commuters are in the lots as they are traveling from this
spot to Wall St. The ferry first stops
at Sunset Park in Brooklyn in case you work around that area and there is a
free transfer if you want to continue to Wall St.
Personally, I was seeking what one could do on
off-hours. The four of us boarded the
Lunch Box ferry (They were all named and that’s another story) for the 2:15 pm
ride. You can sit downstairs or
upstairs, although there are not many seats at the top. If you can’t climb stairs, stay on the
enclosed main level.
At present there is a food and drink service area. They were serving snacks and beverages
including wine and beer. If that’s not
what you want to have during your trip, then bring your own.
I’m not familiar with the Sunset Park area, but will do
so. There is another free transfer
location to Red Hook as well. I’m going
to look into that one.
The NYC Ferry is owned by Hornblower Cruises with a location
at South Street Seaport. It is around 6 blocks from the landing. We did not take advantage of touring the
seaport but waited for the next ferry to go back. It takes one hour each way from Rockaway to
Wall Street.
Although we drove from the Woodhaven area, an alternative
for those living in the Rockaways is a free shuttle bus that has several stops
both East and West of the dock.
We decided to have an early dinner at Thai Rock, located at
Beach 92nd as I was celebrating my birthday. Robert and Metta Haskell are the proud
owners. Rob told me that it is quite
walkable from the dock via one of the schools in the area, in case you don’t
have a car. I love the food and my relative
was being introduced to Thai cuisine.
Having gone here and writing about this restaurant prior, I
decided to taste some foods that I hadn’t delved into beginning with the
Chicken Satay. It was not overly
seasoned and came with an excellent peanut sauce thanks to the head chef,
Metta’s sister.
Not everyone can make the perfect duck. Rob told me that they cook it twice. The second time delivers the crispiness of
the skin resulting in having most of the fat cooked out but still maintaining
both the juiciness and crunch.
There are a number of styles and sauces to choose from. I do not like spicy food, although I find
their Massaman
Curry quite delicious enough to
tolerate the “kick.” The curry is made
with potato, red onion, peanuts and bay leaves in a dried
chili coconut sauce.
My relative ordered the Pad Thai with shrimp: stir-fried rice noodles, eggs, bean sprouts, scallion, black tofu
and peanuts with sweet fish sauce.
“Yummy” was the reaction.
A candle was placed atop the Sweet Roti, thin fried bread rolled with sweetened condensed milk and sugar
and sliced. Looked like a flat sweet pizza and tasted divine.
Best drink to order (if you don’t want
alcohol) is the fresh honey-ginger tea.
I requested it “iced.” Most
refreshing!
Is the NYC Ferry the best “invention” since sliced
bread? Here are some ideas about food
and places to visit (for now). On your
way to the ferry via Cross Bay Blvd, stop at Cross Bay Sea Shell Fish Market
for some steamed goodies to bring onto the boat. I am talking about lobster and shrimp (You
can purchase the cocktail sauce there, too).
You have to call in advance: 718-835-2987.
Refreshments are available on the ferry or
bring your own. Just in case you didn’t
get the info….the ferry costs $2.75 one way with lots of connections.
Don’t always expect to board “the next ferry” as
crowds of travelers have heard much about this inexpensive and easy way to get
around the city. The original idea of
this ferry was an alternative for commuters to get to work and alleviate both
time and packed trains and buses. If you
have to wait for another boat, then rather than complain take Mass Transit. If the amount of people on line at a movie
filled to the capacity, you would have to wait for next one. But then again, these are probably the same
folks that honk their horns as soon as the light turns green.
It takes about an hour to get to Wall Street where
the South Street Seaport is just blocks away.
Explore the seaport and especially the museum where there is a new
exhibition entitled Millions: Migrants and Millionaires aboard the Great
Liners, 1900-1914, opening June 23 and running through January 7, 2018. It is one of the first
exhibitions to examine, side-by-side, the dichotomy between First Class and
Third Class passengers aboard ocean liners in the early 20th century.
Ships such as Titanic, Olympic, Lusitania,
Mauretania, Aquitania, and Imperator transported thousands of
people as First-Class passengers luxuriously sailed across the Atlantic while
Third-Class passengers made the voyage in the stuffy lower decks.
According to information
given to me, “From 1900 to 1914, nearly 13 million immigrants traveling in
Third Class arrived in the United States. During this same period, America's
wealthiest citizens, totaling no more than a hundred thousand passengers each
year, traveled to Europe in First Class, spending over $11.5 billion (2017) on
luxury vacations. Even though First Class and Third Class sailed on the same
ships, their journeys were worlds apart.”
“This exhibition will
feature both original and reproduced artifacts from the South Street Seaport
Museum's permanent collection including ocean liner memorabilia and ephemera,
ceramics, and luggage trunks from both immigrants and First Class passengers.
The exhibition will highlight a few ship models of New York Harbor working
vessels that played critical roles in immigration, including a model of the
Museum's lightship Ambrose
(LV-87).”
“Ambrose , a floating lighthouse, stood watch at the
front door to New York Harbor during the greatest period of immigration in US
history. Her official duty was to mark the entrance to the Ambrose Channel, a
deep channel dredged between 1900 and 1907 to allow larger ocean liners, the
largest of which had doubled in size in those same years, safe access into the
harbor. But Ambrose had another
vital role; her light was the first thing an immigrant would see as they
entered New York Harbor, long before the buildings and piers on the waterfront,
long before the Manhattan skyline, and long before the lighted torch of the
Statue of Liberty.”
“Evoking the spirit of
First-Class grandeur, a piece of wood paneling that once adorned the interior
of the Smoking Room of the RMS Mauretania
will be recreated by master woodcarver Deborah Mills throughout the run of the
show. This work-in-progress will be on view in the exhibition space during
regular hours Thursday through Sunday. Each Wednesday visitors can visit the
Museum's Maritime Craft Center at 209 Water Street and watch as the artist
brings the piece closer to the original. Throughout the exhibition, there will
be screenings of films which feature ocean liners and immigrants in their
critical roles in New York Harbor life at a time when this city was the busiest
port in the world.”
The exhibition is
included with Museum admission: South Street Seaport Museum members: FREE, $12
for adults, $8 for students and seniors, and $6 for children ages 2 - 17.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.southstreetseaportmuseum.org or in
person at 12 Fulton St.
Hornblower is the company
that has provided the ferry boats. They
are located at dock #15, where you can purchase tix to a boat tour. www.hornblowernewyorkcity.com
The Rubin Museum of Art
is not in walking distance but still considered “downtown” with its location at
150 W. 20th Street. They are
having a new exhibit that’s all about music, entitled The World Is Sound. Here
is what it says: “Learn
to listen with your whole body. Visitors will explore how sound and our sense
of hearing shape our daily lives, our traditions, our history, and all of
existence. The World Is Sound
employs sound in new ways to animate and intensify the experience of art in the
Rubin’s collection.”
Take in a free concert at the base of the spiral staircase on Wednesday,
July 5 from 6 to 9 pm as Yael Acher-Modiano performs her flute-solos. According
with info on the site, “A native of Tel Aviv, Yael graduated with a BA in
Classical Flute from the Rubin Academy in Jerusalem. After living in Copenhagen
for a decade, she moved to New York City as a Fulbright Scholar to study
composition at NYU in 2005. She has resided in New York City ever since. She
works in contemporary, classical, free, meditation, electro-acoustic, jazz, and
hip-hop music as a soloist, with chamber groups, and as leader of her
progressive jazz band “Kat” Modiano Quartet. Acher-Modiano also collaborates
with choreographers and composes live electro-acoustic soundtracks to
screenings of legendary silent films.”
I have heard her perform and well worth enjoying even at a cost! www.modianomusic.net
Take advantage of the Green Market locations, one of which is located in
Union Square. You can find them all
around NYC. I can’t stress how Ronnybrook
Farms is like the best source for dairy.
There is nothing like having milk that has not been homogenized. It only means that the cream comes to the top
of the container. You can get a better
price on all their products than going to the stores. Ice cream, drinkable yogurt, cinnamon toast
butter, crème fraiche and so much more. Breakfast
idea: French toast cooked in the butter.
Top with Ginger Crème Brulee ice cream.
They don’t make their Chocolate Raspberry Truffle all of the time. Get
it while it’s around now. Lines are long
so you have to get their early. Check
them out at www.ronnybrook.com
Fairytale Brownies is something you can’t get in New York. I was first hooked on their brownies. They are like “fudge” and use Belgian
chocolate. Then they came along with
cookies. Soft batch cookies. Soft batch chocolate mint cookies…with drizzles of
chocolate atop. Tell me, what would you
do for “brownie points?” If you don’t
want any of their products for yourself, think about someone you love or
someone you owe a favor to. Good news is
that they are coming here in October for a chocolate show. Don’t wait until then. www.brownies.com
Truth be told…birthday….I put a candle atop a mint chocolate cookie and
“nursed” it with a glass of really cold whole milk. I cut the cookie in half and spread the cream
at the top of the milk in between the cookie. OMG. You really have to try it!!!
SHARE
