New York: Day Two

Coney Island, Brighton Beach

On Sunday it was sufficiently cloudy and windy so, logically, we decided to go to Brighton Beach and walk the boardwalk. On the way we strolled through Coney Island, which even under the best conditions has this eerie, carny feel about it with cracked paint on the signage, strange 70s artifacts serving as decorations and a Ferris wheel that looks like it's just about ready to shed whatever mortal coil it has left. Still, it was great to walk around this semi-deserted amusement park, and I even paid one dollar to shoot at a piece of paper with a fully automatic BB gun (one of the few games left open).

Continuing on the sand-covered boardwalk, Coney Island gradually turned into Brighton Beach with Russian voices all around, restaurants with names like Volna or Tatiana or Odessa, old men playing chess on the benches, neon signs pimping Kvass for sale, and a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach that was either nostalgia or hunger. Heading away from the beach, we walked along Brighton Beach Ave. -- an area completely owned by Russians -- stopping only to buy some Soviet-style candy and to check out a few music/video stores (which to my disappointment carried only legally distributed merchandise). We finished off with lunch at Cafe Shish-Kebab where I introduced Audrea to kvass & pelmeni.

Lower East Side

Being soundly tired of walking around all day, we headed back to Manhattan to unwind and chill for a bit.

First, we crashed at the Cake Shop, a cafe/lounge with a small record store at the back blasting indy rock & Motown, and a 2-for-1 deal on all beer between 5 and 8pm. So I doubled up on Heinekens and Audrea got herself a cappuccino or whatever and we just killed some time there reading local weeklies and listening to music.

When it started getting late, we went looking onto a more hopping spot and stumbled onto Max Fish just down the street. Fish is somewhat of an arty bar; plus there was some kind of photography exhibition happening at the time, which probably explained the crowd AND why giant photos of naked girls were projected on the wall. Heh, I loves me some art!

After getting a bit fed up with the electro-funk that was being played by one of them New York hipster bands, we walked a few doors down the street to Pianos, arriving just in time to catch a tail end of a stand-up comedy show that was actually funny! Kudos to you, guy whose name I didn't get! We loitered a bit longer at the bar (made of solid concrete!) and headed home after running out of cash.

• View my Flickr photos from Day 2

Map


Music

GOGOL BORDELLO

While I was visiting, Audrea introduced me to this amazingly awesome New York band. Combining Ukrainian gypsy music with punk rock, Gogol Bordello pretty much created a unique niche for themselves and it's a bloody shame that I didn't get to see them perform while I was in there. The group is fronted by Eugene Hutz who heeds from my hometown in Ukraine and who sings in a mix of Russian and English or whatever else conveniently fits the rhyming sheme. As an intersting aside, Eugene also stared opposite of Elijah Wood in Everything is Illuminated.

Now I figure, since Day Two was in large part about exploring the Russian parts of New York, it's only fitting to share some songs:

Through the Roof n' Underground
A paranoid trip of a song:

"When there's a trap set up for you
In every corner of this town
And so you learn the only way to go is underground
When there's a trap set up for you
In every corner of your room
And so you learn the only way to go is through the roof

Ooohoohoooh through the roof, underground
Ooohoohoooh through the roof, underground

And as we're crossing border after border
We realize that difference is none
It's underdogs who, and if you want it
You always have to make your own fun"

Punk-Rock Parranda
A rather unflattering portrait of New York:

"And if there is no guitar in a house,
You know its owner, he cannot be trusted.
And if there is no drumset in the office,
Don't be surprised when the business get busted.

And if your spouse doesn't play a sitar,
Don't expect a whole lot of commitment.
And if President doesn't play the sax,
He will not get an under-table treatment.

And in this kind of town,
Say you kick somebody in the head -
They just, they likely sue you,
But mad, no they don't get mad!"