tokyo bound
My flight to Tokyo was leaving from JFK airport in New York City on Monday a little bit after noon, so I decided to head up the day before in order to avoid the hassle of trying to get there from Philadelphia by 10:30 am. Even under the best of conditions, JFK is at least two and a half hours from Philadelphia, and there's zero guarantee of having the best conditions.
I had contacted the Rev. Matt Brown of Park Slope PCA church in Brooklyn to see if he knew of any place to crash for the night and he not only welcomed me to stay at his place, but also offered to drive me to the airport the next morning. So I set out for Brooklyn from Philadelphia's 30th Street Station, a grand old train station from the 1930s, which remains the country's largest train station and second busiest:
Amtrak, however, proved unreliable (as it sadly does rather often) and my train left 30th Street an hour and a half late. But I did arrive easily enough in New York City, the wisdom of leaving a day early very much confirmed. From Penn Station it was a relatively short subway ride to Brooklyn.
Matt lives in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn, within a block of where his church currently assembles and from his office. Here's a picture of Matt celebrating their weekly eucharist, taken by one of his church members:
Park Slope sounds like a vibrant congregation in a great part of Brooklyn, full of great restaurants, shops, used bookstores, and beautiful brownstone residences.
Matt and I spent an evening talking, enjoying some Mexican food and beer, conversing with his new neighbors, and walking around the nearby blocks of homes and shops. The next morning he dropped me off at JFK airport where I checked my luggage and awaited my 14 hour direct flight to Tokyo's Narita airport.
(continue to next post: arrival in tokyo)
I had contacted the Rev. Matt Brown of Park Slope PCA church in Brooklyn to see if he knew of any place to crash for the night and he not only welcomed me to stay at his place, but also offered to drive me to the airport the next morning. So I set out for Brooklyn from Philadelphia's 30th Street Station, a grand old train station from the 1930s, which remains the country's largest train station and second busiest:
Amtrak, however, proved unreliable (as it sadly does rather often) and my train left 30th Street an hour and a half late. But I did arrive easily enough in New York City, the wisdom of leaving a day early very much confirmed. From Penn Station it was a relatively short subway ride to Brooklyn.
Matt lives in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn, within a block of where his church currently assembles and from his office. Here's a picture of Matt celebrating their weekly eucharist, taken by one of his church members:
Park Slope sounds like a vibrant congregation in a great part of Brooklyn, full of great restaurants, shops, used bookstores, and beautiful brownstone residences.
Matt and I spent an evening talking, enjoying some Mexican food and beer, conversing with his new neighbors, and walking around the nearby blocks of homes and shops. The next morning he dropped me off at JFK airport where I checked my luggage and awaited my 14 hour direct flight to Tokyo's Narita airport.
(continue to next post: arrival in tokyo)
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