Coney Island

I went to Coney Island yesterday. I figured it would be a good place to take pictures. I went to the Mermaid Parade in 2008, and there was lots of great, folky art around. And the parks are going to be knocked down for condos very soon.

I missed the hotdog eating contest, but I did see lots of interesting things. As a matter of fact, there was so much to see, hear, do, taste, and smell, it was a little overwhelming.

Fishy Car Purple Door Jesus Christ

More Staten Island street art

Murals of Port Richmond

Port Richmond is a neighborhood on Staten Island. It is on the west side, facing New Jersey. It's one of the older places on the island, and was once an important center of activity on the Island. Then the Verrazano bridge got built and it kind of died.

Nowadays, a large number of Mexican immigrants have moved in and are revitalizing the neighborhood by opening shops and restaurants. There's even a chapter of Make the Road by Walking out here. There are lots of old industrial buildings scattered around, so it kind of reminds me of Bushwick, Brooklyn. It has a similar abandoned vibe to it.

Many of the buildings in Port Richmond have murals on them. They're pretty different from what you'll see on the rest of the Island, where if a piece gets let alone at all, it's usually something patriotic. Here, there's a lot more variety, and in a rather concentrated area. These were mostly taken along a 10 block stretch of road.








Then there's this tag on a dumpster, which I just think is pretty funny considering our borough's proud history of being New York City's personal landfill.