Manhattan to Brooklyn and Back Again

As we headed out on Day Two, Stirling took us through the streets of SoHo and then through Little Italy and Chinatown (not many surprises in the later two). I can see the draw of SoHo - the shops, restaurants, the curb appeal of the buildings with facades that are easily changeable - a good vibe and good energy.

We had decided to visit the Financial District and head over to Brooklyn. Along the way we are approached by Peter-the-Attorney in front of the Courthouse who should have been appointed Manhattan Ambassador as his love and passion for the City is clearly evident. Peter proceeded to walk us to a park bench and with great detail, informed us of what he believed to be the best itinerary for our day.

As we headed over to walk the circumference of Ground Zero (based on Peter's advice) we learned we must stop and get Taylor a pair of Flojos since his islander-like feet were developing blisters (In what City have we traveled that Taylor hasn't needed a new pair of flip-flops??!!).

After we see little progress made on Ground Zero (almost 8 years post 9/11), we head over to St. Pauls' Chapel, Wall Street, the Trinity Church and, of course, the Bull. I was amazed to see how many people wanted pictures in front of the Bull's Behind???!!! Smiling people happy to be standing right under his rear and wanting their picture taken - interesting to say the least.

We then took the subway over to Brooklyn (Peter further informed us that if we wanted to walk the bridge, to walk it FROM Brooklyn so we would be taking in the Manhattan skyline - good advice, Thank you Peter)! But first, we must try the Best Pizza in the City - Grimaldi's. Peter was right again!

I will admit it. I have a thing for bridges (yes, climbing the Sydney Bridge was indeed a lifetime highlight). Maybe it's my design background or just the sheer engineering brilliance behind most of the world's most recognizable bridges...the Brooklyn Bridge being one. It left nothing to be desired...the walk was great amongst people of all types - workers, bikers, tourists alike. The wood plank construction of the pedestrian/bike area coupled with the suspension cables and brick facade, what a marvel!

Of course, Stirling had other aspirations for the journey - using his iPhone to track our GPS progress (see our route across lower bridge in dark blue below):

After our long day, and even longer journey, we decided to take a cab back to the apartment so we could clean up for dinner at La Sirene followed by drinks at a speakeasy (drinks served in teacups - a throwback to prohibition times to allude cops)- both were divine.