Urban poetry

A detailed look at the Brooklyn Bridge, this time in black and white.

I love this picture.

More urban poetry

Here's the other bridge view -- the Manhattan Bridge as seen from the on-ramp to the Brooklyn Bridge. That's the Empire State Building in the distance.

Urban poetry

Here's another picture from the Battle of the Bridges: the Statue of Liberty through the crosshatched steel of the Brooklyn Bridge, taken from the Manhattan Bridge.

Why I HATE crossing the Brooklyn Bridge

First of all, you never have it to yourself. Although the car traffic is on a lower level on either side of the pedestrian path so you have unimpeded views on both sides, the walkway itself is narrow and it's full of walkers, bikers, and lots and lots of tourists.

Then there's this.

The walkway is a little longer than a mile, but once you're actually on the bridge, the pavement gives way to wooden slats. And you can see the East River, far below, between the slats. The bridge underwent a complete renovation just a few years ago, so I suppose it's safe.

But it doesn't feel safe. It had probably been at least ten years since I'd crossed, and though I remembered that I didn't like it, I'd forgotten exactly how much. I really wanted to take pictures, so I gritted my teeth and tried not to look down, but my knees were literally wobbling until I was safely back on Manhattan asphalt.

Why I love crossing the Brooklyn Bridge

Because it looks like this.

One of the photo groups I belong to on Flickr is called Engineering as Art, and that's a perfect capsule description of this bridge. It's a landmark in engineering -- it was the first steel cable suspension bridge, and for many years was the longest suspension bridge in the world. And at 135 years, it's one of the oldest roadway bridges in the United States, so well built that it's still in heavy use at an age when most bridges would have been long retired.

None of which would matter much if it weren't so beautiful, whether you're seeing it from a distance spanning the river, or from below on one of the Circle Line boats. But this is the best view, from the walkway in the middle of the bridge, with the granite towers above you and the steel webbing on every side.

Urban poetry

You can't get much more poetic than this; you definitely can't get more urban: the skyline of Lower Manhattan, as seen from the Brooklyn Bridge this afternoon.

I spent two days at a conference in downtown Brooklyn and because I'm too claustrophobic to take subways unless I absolutely have to, I took advantage of the warm weather and walked over the East River.