Sunday, July 5, 2009

White Ales and a Weekend on the Islands

Since I haven't won the lottery yet, we didn't have a beach house to escape to for the 4th of July. Instead, we stayed in NYC and did things we normally eschew for the laziness of the couch.

I had been dying to go see the Gustave Caillebotte exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum because it features a few of my favorite things: water, boats and impressionist paintings. And I should disclose that I'm a francophile. I liked this one the best because of the perspective.




This really got me in the mood to do stuff on the water. So off we went to Coney Island to see the hot dog eaters, amazon women volleyball players, and sample local delights like Coney Island's own beer. I loved the Albino Python, which is a white lager, perfect for a hot summer day.



Here are a few other pics from Coney Island:


The Cyclone rollercoaster, which is nice to look at, but you couldn't pay me to ride, and



the Parachute Jump, which my grandmother use to go on as a teenager. Apparently she was quite a wild one.

So getting back to the beer, another nice white I had this weekend is the Hitachino Nest White Ale, from Kiuchi Brewery in Japan. I was able to get it at my local bar, but not without paying through the nose. I will have to find a place to buy it myself.



After all this beer, I switch to wine and packed a picnic for our trip to Governor's Island, which is literally a 5 minute FREE ferry ride from lower Manhattan. It's simply amazing. It's a complex of lawns, paths, and buildings that make you feel like you're at some mellow college campus. You can rent a bike or bring your own and tool around the island. The ocean breeze was divine, and with views like this, how can you complain about staying in the City?


View of the Statue of Liberty from the picnic area.

One of the expansive lawns and historic houses on the Island. There is also a series of public art installations by CreativeTime.


View of the New Jersey shipping yards, and a cool boat. Or ship? Does anyone know what to call this?


Ferry landing on Governor's Island looking directly at the Battery and lower Manhattan.

1 comment:

  1. I say it's a ship! I'm totally inspired to check out Governor's island and the beer at Coney Island - what a busy weekend you had.

    ReplyDelete