Walking Under the Elevated

The other day I met my old friend Tze at Broadway Junction and we walked up Fulton through Cypress Hills and into Woodhaven.

It wasn't on purpose, but we spent a lot of the day under the elevated. First the J, and later, the A.

Emerging from Broadway Junction at Van Sinderen and Tuxton is intense, because the bulk of the station looms above you and fences you in.

The picture below was the first shot of the day. And what came next is below. These photos are sequential until I get back on the train at the end.

We had to travel under the mess of train lines to escape.

Fulton Street. I've known Tze for 20 years and his path across the planet is even weirder than mine.

I peaked through a hole in a fence and saw this and it's clear to me that I am and will always be toy.

Still Fulton.

Really enjoy wandering with Tze. He's a wise head. But sometimes I feel like we're two psychonauts cosplaying as undercover cops.

We ate a bunch of food and I took pictures of most everything we ate and I hate myself for it.

We got sucked in by the arch of Santa Catalina and then had a beer and this INCREDIBLE Baleada Hondureña, which somehow I'd never had before.

Marie recommended this place El Pulgarcito de America. We had pupusas. Empty when we got there full when we left. Really good food.

Imagine being a tree in New York City.

Or a brick.

Franklin K. Lane High School. HS 420. Built in 1937 and named after Woodrow Wilson's Interior Secretary. The Brooklyn/Queens border runs through this building. John Gotti went to school here, but didn't graduate.

PSA?

This door will take you to Amiens in 1437.

We had a Guinness at Neir's where my friend knew the staff. I didn't take any pictures on my phone but I did take the group shot for a big group of women having brunch. One of them had a shirt that said Send Memes.

This bar is old af starting in 1829 and operating continuously with the same name. It's the oldest continuously operating bar in NYC.

Tze know's the chef of this place and ran into him on the street earlier in the day and had the vague plan to bring me here. So glad we went. Caleta 111 Cevicheria.

The chef here is Luis Caballero and it's obvious the moment you walk into the space that he's a mad genius. He talks a thousand miles a minute and between his Peruvian accent and Tze's Caribbean one I was definitely the dumb one in the conversation. We all went out for a smoke when this plate arrived, which gave it more time to soak.

Smoke break.

Legitimately one of the five best dishes I"ve eaten in my life.

Luis was right there talking with us the whole time and fucking with the music. A bunch of customers came in around this time and his staff had to ask him to turn the music down because we were getting a little rowdy.

At this point we tried to go for a walk but ended up back at the restaurant then my friend Marie showed up and Tze put us all in a car and Luis was right there about to get in but then he was gone and we all understood. When you got a restaurant, you gotta stay close to the restaurant.

We didn't go very far in the car but by accident Tze took us to within just a few blocks from the house where Marie grew up, even though they'd just met like ten minutes prior.

After we saw her house we walked for awhile and then found ourselves on Liberty Avenue in Ozone Park.

The cold was killing the vibe.

Tze went home.

Marie and I had some really nice jerk tofu in a place full of yelling men.

Then I took the long ride on the A from 104th Street back to 145th Street.

This was a simple trip. I was home early. But it still added a bunch of stuff to my map, changed my sense of New York City and it's boundaries, and above all, helped me realize how much more there is that I don't know that I don't know.

Thanks for riding along,

Morgan