New York Butovo

Photos and text: Alexander Belenky

New York look good in movies, life is this mad raging stream, Brownian motion, the mess. Well, roughly the same as in Moscow. Cities are surprisingly similar to each other, despite the fact that they are completely, abslolyutno different.



There are also parks, on sidewalks and in two rows.



Where half the cars - broken.



And thumps on the streets. Ukrainian vodka!

There is no time to solve the entire problem, it is easier to hang a piece of paper that you know about them.



The only thing that has happened to New York for two years - there were green taxi. And not because of yellow zadolbali and need to change the look of the city. Zelenushechki is the last thing that made Makyl Bloomberg in the mayoral post. It turns out that the famous yellow cabs go only on the island of Manhattan and beyond do not go. Theoretically, they can, but it will cost you so expensive that it is cheaper to go nowhere. And outside of Manhattan, you could not catch a taxi at all. yaZelёnye also travel around the city, and quite different rates.



New York, of course, is not America, as well as Moscow is not Russia. But bezrybe still stayed on an extra day in the city and went for a walk.



Communal garden in Lower Manhattan. Everyone can come, get a free piece of land and grow carrots. Or tomatoes.



So, I decided to go to Staten Island. It would seem that for some reason in a developed country in the 21st century in the largest city in the world need to go to the island by boat? Why not be a tunnel, a bridge, in the end? Road bridge is, even two. But they connect land with Brooklyn or nearby New Jersey, and leads straight to the ferry to Manhattan. The tunnel is also planned, to build it began in 1923. It was completed only 45 meters, after which the construction stopped. He now abandoned.



In general, the authorities in New York believed that ferry for passenger transport is most advantageous, and he's walking today. Twice per hour. Free!

Can you imagine that in our town anyone would build a free metro line from some of Balashikha, just to hundreds of thousands of people there did not come to the already downtrodden center every day by car! Yes, it's a good deterrent because bridges in New York paid!



Ferry to Staten Island itself seemed to me a rusty trough, which nobody uses. The crowd you've already seen. But the ferry. Huge, serious, ocean. Yes, in the Canary Islands is less!



When the flow of people penetrates immediately clear who travel this transport to work every day and who is tourists and visitors. Local sit inside and read the newspaper, visitors immediately run to the open deck.



The ferry terminal. Interestingly, there are still using the tree on the dock. Why is that? To iron ship is not scratched in the collision? There are also rubber tires, and the Americans certainly know about it. No ulterior motive here is the short-lived in a damp material. There must be something ratsonalnoe.



The nearby pier used for tourist purposes, hence the boats go to the Statue of Liberty.



"Water Taxi" is actually one more entertaining boat. He carries tourists to the same article, as well as around Manhattan, approaching from different parts. Funny thing, given that you will be able to see the city from the water, and a ticket for the whole day with unlimited number of "visits" is $ 30.



Sitting inside the ferry quite interesting, even from outside and blowing. For the second time in New York, and again no luck with the weather!



Float island with statues, a respectful disposal. Of course, the money did not take per-view, which is close to a swim? In fact, the ferry likely more precipitation and as close to the island, he just can not pass. Closer article we will discuss on the way back.



We did briefly enter the waters of the neighboring state of New Jersey. In fact, of course, all this has long merged with New York.



Passing the huge cargo ships, however remember that New York is not only a show-off and financial center, not only gleam of lights and skyscrapers. This is a huge ocean port.



Old lighthouse.



Through a dense fog is already visible Plot: journey time of just about twenty minutes, and that's already seen the streets of Staten Island.



Neighborhood-Island begins with gigatnskoy "intercepting" parking. It is not free, but about five dollars a day, that this city just pennies. For one only have to pay the bridge 13. The average price of parking in Manhattan - $ 25 per day.



There are several old houses, but if you have traveled across the United States - it is boring.



Coach station. From here routes around the island. Which, though considered the most sparsely populated areas of New York, in size three times larger than Manhattan!



But the bus is not interesting. Another thing - the subway! Here is his own, not connected to the line-wide. Officially, it's not even the subway, and "railroad", although the cars are the same, and more like our station near Moscow, where trains go.



I heard a lot, but now tried in practice. Between cars in New York subway can be quite easy to move. It seems that this "chips" does not exist in the new cars, but here on Staten Island, cruising the old structure of the eighties and nineties.



Time for everything was not so much a cloudy day and is about to rain could begin. Explore the entire island by public transport long and awkward. I poked at the map of the island railway station in the Old Town: there is something to be interesting! The station looks like any platform "Precepts of Ilyich" in the distant suburbs.



Out on the street (there are no turnstiles, which further adds to the similarity of the train station in a wilderness, there is not even the birds), I buried in the plate in "Welcome to the historic Old Town!". The first "European & quot; People settled here already in 1661, the year!



"Thank you for stealing flowers! We here in the area of ​​trying to make it better. You are inferior creature! And by the way, while you're reading this, you have removed the hidden camera! »



And the area as a region. Crime does not smell, it does not seem in the ghetto. Just very far from the center. But it looks decent. As Butovo, which is considered the worst area is actually completely well, but is too far.



But my disappointment was keen. In the "old town" in the "historic old town" turned out to be nothing to see. Absolutely. Generally. It's nothing. I spent an hour to get here by ferry and subway, and here -obyknovennaya America. Like 49 other states far away from major cities.

Probably still tell the story of Staten Island, and even longer to insert it nowhere. Moreover, the story is short. Why is no one on the island lives, why he is not built skyscrapers? And in general, is located in the business center of your time here, and not on a nearby island in less than three times, maybe New York would have been a completely different city. Yes, just at the place of bad fame. Once upon a time, a hundred years old, we lived here immigrants from Italy, who gathered around the city garbage and dragged here. Neapolitans, probably. No waste incineration plants did not exist, and they are just organized garbage at home. In the garbage they naturally pay money. They themselves have lived side by side, because it is free, and a good half of Staten Island was a dump. Now this is no longer, but to live on the former dump still no one wants to show-off in New York have their own weight.



But the district came to taste the new immigrants, they have opened their churches in a former bank.



In short, take a walk on the "old town" for about twenty minutes, I got to the station, with the firm intention to go away from here. But there it was! Trains to wait another half an hour!

Apparently, the local railway line used only to get to the ferry terminal, and for vnutreostrovnogo messages use buses or private cars. But trains going "toward the center", synchronized with the ferry. Come train, you go to the station, waiting for about ten minutes to be loaded on the ship.



We wait, when there will be a crowd. Mixed with the other. Here, again on the ferry.



This smaller boat, there is no open decks.





The return flight is perfect to take pictures of the skyscrapers of Manhattan from afar. But the weather is totally out of luck.



But suddenly, the clouds dispersed and there are the first two days the sun's rays.



And the Statue of Liberty becomes visible much better. And closer.



I want to be in New York, when else? Hardly. But if I am - so be it.



Although, I have one dream. I told her to your friends, but never wrote. To get from Europe to New York regularly ocean voyage. From Le Havre or London over the Atlantic. Not on a cruise ship and passenger "okeanobuse." But all this is in the past. Do not give out more than "blue ribbons", people simply stopped traveling on the water. It's like "Concord", which will never fly. Unfulfilled? Well, that is what the dream.



Source: newslol.net