23 Comments

Imagine seeing all these names like New Utrecht or Breukelen (Brooklyn), but also New York was originally New Amsterdam, and knowing we swapped it (with a slightly heavy conviction from England) for Suriname.

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Well, maybe its time to support Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy's plan.

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😆 I do like his plan, it will be a seamless integration 😆 Half-seriously, I would love to see FDR Drive turned into a European style riviera.

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That shirtless jogger probably does that in every weather condition. God bless him for that. It's funny (not "funny haha") to see the same grifter bullshit coming out of that bloated orange windhole even then. To think that this laughingstock would get to where he is now...also not funny.

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Running is painful enough as it is, no need to add frostbite to the equation!

At least the cheetoh in chief has been consistent?

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I love your photographs...the shadows, light, colors, textures....your eye is just wonderful! thank you

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Thank you Gaye!

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Where is the best and most colorful bakery in Brooklyn: Villabate??? 18th Ave.

Love your blog!!!

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Thank you! Grabbed a couple of sfogliatelle from Villabate this week!

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Hmmmmm wonder what that shadowy person on the brick wall was up to?

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That's probably what the people who were watching me take the photograph were wondering about me.

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😂

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Wow. I had no idea that the Italian population had dwindled so much in Bensonhurst

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And those numbers were from a few years ago, so I'm sure it's gone down further. Everyone moved to Staten Island or New Jersey

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"...unlawful possession of a jackpot." Journalists in NYC really had yarn-spinning capabilities then.

I have to wonder if choirmaster William Crane was in any way related to NYC-chronicling novelist and short story writer Stephen Crane...

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That was a particularly evocative retelling of the situation!

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Good to know the Loyal Order of Moose have some branches in the UK, although it’s not an organisation run by elk-like creatures.

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Your comment reminded me to research the Loyal Order of Moose (LOOM), which led me to the Gustin–Kenny incident.

During an initiation ceremony in 1913, two Moose candidates were shown a glowing brand with the Moose emblem on it. They were then blindfolded and disrobed, while a chilled rubber emblem was pressed against their chests and electric shocks were applied to their legs—creating the illusion that they were actually being branded. Both men had heart attacks and died. So, thanks for bringing this to my attention. I think.

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Wow

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Bensonhurst was the first neighborhood I lived in when I moved to Brooklyn! I lived in a room in a couple's basement and they would frequently invite me upstairs for dinner to eat something called "veal" that I'd never tried before. They had multiple birds that flew freely through their home and a little dog named Fefe. It was a perfect introduction to the neighborhood.

Even then in 2007/8 I could tell there were some serious tensions between the longstanding Italian population and the newer Asian immigrants; I overheard quite a lot of racist shit (not from the people I lived with thankfully). I really miss the delicious and actually affordable Asian food in that area though! Pho Tay Ho has my favorite bowl of pho and I miss living super close to a Yaya Tea location.

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That sounds like the setting for a Gabriel García Márquez novel set in Brooklyn. I heard good things about Pho Tay Ho! Bensonhurst changed fast. What other neighborhood has a Pastosa Ravioli and a Jmart?

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Ha- Gerben-Jan! An interesting neighborhood and wow more than 200 to go - although I hope you will restart when you get there- because you articles are amazing!

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The photos with the shadow of the person on the roof are great! Glad you pushed through to cover this neighborhood. Lots of links to dig into with this one

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