Weekend Excursions

Until yesterday I'd only almost been to Manhattan, but I'd almost been there several times: Once, when I was about 15 and was taken to see the Statue of Liberty with my friend, Sarah, and her family; a second time last week when Blake, Garrett and I almost walked all the way across the Brooklyn Bridge (we figured we'd seen the best of it by the time we were 3/4 of the way across, and you just might have too if your feet were worn out from walking and it was hot outside); and I'm not sure exactly how you count living in Brooklyn, just a few blocks away from a view of the Manhattan skyline, but I'd certainly say it's only almost going into the city itself. So yesterday our little family hopped on the subway for a day-trip excursion into the city because, good heavens -- almost is only going to take me so far.

We got off the subway at Madison Square Park and walked a few blocks to see where Blake spends his days at work:


His office is on the 12th floor and, to save you from having to count, yes, that is the top. Top floors are nice for views of the Empire State Building, not too unlike this one:


Pretty cool, huh? Blake told me that during one part of his interview, he was sitting in the office of one of the company higher-ups. At one point during the conversation he stood up by his window, pointed to the Empire State Building, and said to Blake, "What do you think of this?" Kind of iconic, don't you think? Like a Hollywood film just landed in Blake's lap.

After that we wandered over to some incredibly crowded touristy parts of town. We saw the New York Public Library, nearby Bryant Park, and a striking view of the Chrysler Building, as well as did a little snooping around in Macy's. At Grand Central Station we hopped on the subway again and headed up to Central Park. Good grief, that park is huge! We entered near the Met after realizing that it wouldn't be so much of a good idea to take a cranky baby into the echo-y galleries of the museum (however, we didn't deny ourselves a little gift shop browsing). After we walked so much our feet were ready to be replaced, we got back on the subway and trekked home. Blake and I enjoyed ourselves, but I'm not so sure about Garrett:


So there you go. No more almost going into New York City for me. Now I can really say that I've been there. It's a crazy city, though. It's dirty, it's loud, it's crowded, but at the same time it's also exhilarating and beautiful. It'll be fun to go back...only I think I'll wait for a day when Garrett's not so cranky. (Oh, we did take more pictures than this of our excursion into the city. Click here to see more.)

Today we went to church. Getting to church has proved to be quite the adventure. The building is about 3 miles away and, since we have no car, we have to rely totally on public transportation. We found a bus line that drops us off a few blocks from the building, which we took today. It worked pretty well: walk about 10 minutes from our apartment to the bus stop, ride 20ish minutes on the bus, then walk another 10 minutes or so from the bus stop to the church. However, it's transformed church from a 3 hour affair into more of a 5 hour one. Oh well, it's worth it, right?

I like our ward. And I like how the church is the same no matter where you go. It's the same, but there's always a different sort of flavor. Brooklyn's flavor is keeping me on my toes -- or maybe I should say my ears. Our ward is very ethnically diverse, with people hailing from China, Hong Kong, Hawaii and other Polynesian islands, Ukraine, Mexico, and many others. Most of the members don't speak English as their first language, so between listening to heavily accented versions of English and thick Brooklyn accents, I have to always be sure I'm listening hard so that I don't completely misunderstand what someone is telling me. Despite a plethora of potential communication barriers, the people in this ward couldn't be more welcoming. They've sucked us right into the crowd and have made us feel right at home.

Even though we're living in a city that is building UP rather than OUT, the meetinghouse looks pretty much the same as any other around the world, only it's a lot smaller. Its perimeter's are heavily fenced and gated, which is probably a good thing, seeing as it sits in the middle of a busy thoroughfare. An elevated line of the subway runs above the busy street, the sounds of which, as the train rumbles by, adds a different sort of twist to a usually very quiet Relief Society meeting. I kinda like it.

And there you have it. Church in Brooklyn. Hopefully that answers some of the questions that I'm guessing were floating around about what church is like here. And if not, well, maybe you should just come see us so we can take you to church so that you can get them answered first-hand. Hint hint. (Seriously, though, we'd love to see any of you if you ever find yourselves in the city!)

And now if you'll excuse me, I need to go put my feet up and get ready for a much more relaxing Labor Day holiday. Ciao!