NO girl

Essay by calmdownkillaCollege, UndergraduateA+, November 2014

download word file, 2 pages 0.0

Kayla Ramos

Professor Conlon

The Contemporary City - UR 151

Project 1

I took a stroll through parts of both Hoboken and Jersey City. I am unfamiliar with these two cities in general, so I walked where ever the wind pulled me. This was beneficial to not only me personally but for the purpose of observation. These strolls occurred in the afternoon around 4o'clock. It was rush hour, but things were moving particularly slow.

In Jersey City I focused more on architecture and what seemed to be a lot of renovation. Everywhere I looked there was construction going on. I even walked past a huge group of construction workers (off-site) that asked to be photographed. The newer buildings were beautiful visually but I'm more fond of older buildings with stories stored in their walls. I saw old buildings being "fixed" up, renovated building I could tell weren't totally new, and brand new structures all within blocks of each other.

As soon as I stepped out the station though I did see the building with all the flags waving in front of it which reminded me of flags of surrender. The building seemed generally new and the flags represent the cities diversity which is argued does not exist when gentrification is in action. I didn't see a lot going on pertaining to side walk traffic but looking around there's a lot going on in terms of gentrification.

Walking around Hoboken was a new experience for me. I am from Newark so walking alone in strange neighborhoods is very dangerous but the environment in Hoboken is very inviting. There were not a lot of people on the streets, but there was a lot to look at and do. I focused on more of the culture when I took my pictures. Hoboken is a prestigious city so I wanted to show that a city is not always bland culturally when it is prosperous. There was so much business competition in terms of restaurants and bars especially. I went during daylight but I am sure the city flourishes at night. I probably went at an odd time but I can tell the cities always busy due to all the locked bikes and the way the taxi men kept practically begging people to take rides. The housing complexes all looked similar and bland, although beautiful but one I passed in particular caught my eye because it seemed old, the fire escape was rusted, and the first floors windows were barred.

Every ones perceptions of cities are based on experience and actual knowledge. When being taught about cities and going out and experiencing them, you look at everything differently. You are more prone to notice change when you are more familiar with a city because you point out things you have never noticed before because of the new knowledge. For a city being culturally in tact and diverse is important for the success of the city in all aspects. Architecture and aesthetics are also important for a cities success but there's debate on whether the cities soul is lost when a city is flipped into renovation like Jersey City, all in the name of profit. There should be a fine balance between old and new to keep the city interesting.