South Street Seaport in the Sunshine

Miraculously sunny day here in NYC ~ hooray!~ so I celebrated by venturing to lower Manhattan’s South Street Seaport. Apparently this area has the highest concentration of historic buildings in Manhattan and seems to have done a great job of maintaining that old maritime feeling (I actually felt like I should cheers with an ice-cold beer and yell “argh!” in a loud gruffy voice…maybe throw a barstool, etc.) with contemporary additions (shops and such) that add a bit of a Disneyland sort of animated feeling to the area.

The more recent appearances of J.Crew and Abercrombie & Fitch aside, mercantile buildings from the 19th century that have been renovated, sailing ships such as the Peking from 1911, old wooden planks, and creeky docks, I’m happy to say, still take center stage.

Well, for me they did.

So here are my tips for visiting the South Street Seaport:

1. Take a moment to appreciate the history.  The heydey of the seaport was from 1820 – 1860!  (I never stop loving the feeling of historic roots in NYC… I’m a bit of a nerd that way.)

2. Investigate the view– the Brooklyn Bridge, the juxtaposition of old and new, etc.

3. Eat/drink something while sitting outside.  Lots of fun little/big cafes and eateries.

4. Wear sunscreen. Oops!

5. Take pictures.  : )