Things to do in Brooklyn for an afternoon?
September 8, 2015 9:09 AM Subscribe
I'm going to be in Brooklyn for one night. I'm going to watch Cecil Baldwin read smut in the evening (and I'm staying near there), but my afternoon is free. What should I do?
Oh, if you like ships (heheh) the Waterfront Museum should be open by then. That and the Mary Whalen are a short bike ride or medium walk (or easy but eternal bus ride) from your neighborhood.
posted by moonmilk at 9:37 AM on September 8, 2015
posted by moonmilk at 9:37 AM on September 8, 2015
Well, what do you LIKE to do?
Using geography alone as the factor (i.e., I'm going to suggest things that are within walking distance/a short subway ride), you can
* Hit up the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
* Go to Prospect Park and check out their zoo
* Get a cone at any of the Ample Hills locations
* Go people-watching in Williamsburg, or take a tour of the Brooklyn Brewery and then check out Mast Brothers' flagship store
* Eat your weight in cheesecake at Junior's
* Lunch at Habana Outpost followed by a stroll through the neighborhood Fort Greene
* A snack at Baked, followed by a stroll along Red Hook's waterfront, followed by another snack at Steve's Authentic Key Lime Pie
* Check out Brooklyn Bridge Park, where they have roller skating, handball, volleyball, and a carousel, all of which should still be open in October (they have way more stuff, but some of it is summer-centric)
* Go for a walk in Greenwood Cemetery, using their app to guide you to the gravesites of famous folk like Basquiat, Boss Tweed, Leonard Bernstein, and Louis Comfort Tiffany, among many others
* Just check out any of the following neighborhoods: a) Gowanus (where you are), b) Carroll Gardens, c) Red Hook, d) Cobble Hill, e) Boerum Hill, or f) Park Slope. Brooklyn is walkable and varied.
If you post a follow-up with specifics about whether you want food, walking, museums, culture, sports, or what, I can narrow it down some. (And I'm actually now considering that thing at the bell House too, myself.)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 9:37 AM on September 8, 2015 [2 favorites]
Using geography alone as the factor (i.e., I'm going to suggest things that are within walking distance/a short subway ride), you can
* Hit up the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
* Go to Prospect Park and check out their zoo
* Get a cone at any of the Ample Hills locations
* Go people-watching in Williamsburg, or take a tour of the Brooklyn Brewery and then check out Mast Brothers' flagship store
* Eat your weight in cheesecake at Junior's
* Lunch at Habana Outpost followed by a stroll through the neighborhood Fort Greene
* A snack at Baked, followed by a stroll along Red Hook's waterfront, followed by another snack at Steve's Authentic Key Lime Pie
* Check out Brooklyn Bridge Park, where they have roller skating, handball, volleyball, and a carousel, all of which should still be open in October (they have way more stuff, but some of it is summer-centric)
* Go for a walk in Greenwood Cemetery, using their app to guide you to the gravesites of famous folk like Basquiat, Boss Tweed, Leonard Bernstein, and Louis Comfort Tiffany, among many others
* Just check out any of the following neighborhoods: a) Gowanus (where you are), b) Carroll Gardens, c) Red Hook, d) Cobble Hill, e) Boerum Hill, or f) Park Slope. Brooklyn is walkable and varied.
If you post a follow-up with specifics about whether you want food, walking, museums, culture, sports, or what, I can narrow it down some. (And I'm actually now considering that thing at the bell House too, myself.)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 9:37 AM on September 8, 2015 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Culture and stuff, I guess? Anything arty?
And I have an extra ticket if you want it. I couldn't convince anyone else to go. :)
posted by missrachael at 10:16 AM on September 8, 2015
And I have an extra ticket if you want it. I couldn't convince anyone else to go. :)
posted by missrachael at 10:16 AM on September 8, 2015
So, Brooklyn is pretty huge, and traveling between 'regions', as it were, is fairly tough via public transportation (in a lot of cases you actually need to go out to Manhattan and then back in to Brooklyn to get around), so unless you're OK paying for cabs or don't mind spending 45 minutes on a subway you should stick to stuff that's not too far from Gowanus (where the Bell House is). Most notably, though, this rules out anything in Williamsburg and Greenpoint.
EmpressCallipygos covered most of what I would suggest for areas nearby and stuff to do, though I'd also add the Brooklyn Museum for art, and Threes brewery in Gowanus if you want to grab some great beer and a bite to eat.
posted by Itaxpica at 12:00 PM on September 8, 2015
EmpressCallipygos covered most of what I would suggest for areas nearby and stuff to do, though I'd also add the Brooklyn Museum for art, and Threes brewery in Gowanus if you want to grab some great beer and a bite to eat.
posted by Itaxpica at 12:00 PM on September 8, 2015
Actually, I guess you won't be too far from the G, so you could do Williamsburg if you want.
posted by Itaxpica at 12:01 PM on September 8, 2015
posted by Itaxpica at 12:01 PM on September 8, 2015
To redirect from Itaxpica said -
While it's true that it's not as easy to go anywhere where you'd have to switch from one subway line to the next, the borough does have a fairly extensive bus system, so I would actually disagree that travelling between neighborhoods in Brooklyn is "fairly tough" and disagree that it'd require you to spring for cabs, unless you're planning on going to, like, Coney Island or something.
Moreover, the Bell House - and also near where you're staying - is one subway stop away from the Atlantic Avenue Subway/LIRR Terminal, which is a main connecting point for about four or five of the major subway lines.
Best rule of thumb - if you have access to GoogleMaps in your hotel room, check the address of where you're considering going before setting out and check the public transit time. I've found GoogleMaps to be the best (Lonely Island was right).
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:11 PM on September 8, 2015
While it's true that it's not as easy to go anywhere where you'd have to switch from one subway line to the next, the borough does have a fairly extensive bus system, so I would actually disagree that travelling between neighborhoods in Brooklyn is "fairly tough" and disagree that it'd require you to spring for cabs, unless you're planning on going to, like, Coney Island or something.
Moreover, the Bell House - and also near where you're staying - is one subway stop away from the Atlantic Avenue Subway/LIRR Terminal, which is a main connecting point for about four or five of the major subway lines.
Best rule of thumb - if you have access to GoogleMaps in your hotel room, check the address of where you're considering going before setting out and check the public transit time. I've found GoogleMaps to be the best (Lonely Island was right).
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:11 PM on September 8, 2015
It definitely isn't for everyone, but if you care about roller coasters at all (or if you have an obsession with the movie Annie Hall) then a trip to Coney Island to ride the Cyclone is a must. People that it's not for: Anyone who doesn't like being punched in the spine.
posted by clorox at 11:40 PM on September 8, 2015
posted by clorox at 11:40 PM on September 8, 2015
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Also only a few blocks from there is delicious delicious pie.
There's a rock climbing gym a little bit farther, if you're into that kind of thing.
posted by moonmilk at 9:25 AM on September 8, 2015 [1 favorite]