I don't like New Jersey. Got that out of the way. So what I'm about to say next may sound contradictory.
To all the people who are leaving New Jersey - stop. You are all nuts for leaving the state and you have no idea how nice you have it. The Florida's, Texas's, New Mexico's have nothing over New Jersey. New Jersey has been a bedrock of America since 1776. Its communities offering the perfect complement to raise families to the workaholic life in New York and Philadelphia. Great communities with great civics, great education systems, great police departments, great fire departments, great hospitals...You have it all. You are the City on the Hill. And you know what? That costs money. And I get that politicians squander money and could be more efficient but compare what New Jersey has built, squandered money, inefficient spending and all, and compare it to Florida and Texas (forget the South Carolina, Alabama, and Mississippi comparisons, that's too easy). Florida and Texas have nothing over New Jersey. You'd be foolish to leave the great communities of the North for the less civic oriented South.
There's no Morristown in the South. There's no Summit. No Princeton. No New Brunswick. And if you think you can win an argument by pointing out the disappointments that are Newark, Trenton, and Camden...The South has plenty of cities like those. Entire states like those. None of them with the heydays of Newark or Trenton and none with the potential for a turnaround either because they lack the ability to imagine civic and community pride.
To all the people who are leaving New Jersey - stop. You are all nuts for leaving the state and you have no idea how nice you have it. The Florida's, Texas's, New Mexico's have nothing over New Jersey. New Jersey has been a bedrock of America since 1776. Its communities offering the perfect complement to raise families to the workaholic life in New York and Philadelphia. Great communities with great civics, great education systems, great police departments, great fire departments, great hospitals...You have it all. You are the City on the Hill. And you know what? That costs money. And I get that politicians squander money and could be more efficient but compare what New Jersey has built, squandered money, inefficient spending and all, and compare it to Florida and Texas (forget the South Carolina, Alabama, and Mississippi comparisons, that's too easy). Florida and Texas have nothing over New Jersey. You'd be foolish to leave the great communities of the North for the less civic oriented South.
There's no Morristown in the South. There's no Summit. No Princeton. No New Brunswick. And if you think you can win an argument by pointing out the disappointments that are Newark, Trenton, and Camden...The South has plenty of cities like those. Entire states like those. None of them with the heydays of Newark or Trenton and none with the potential for a turnaround either because they lack the ability to imagine civic and community pride.
MORRISTOWN
New Jersey has several beautiful, historical, small towns among which Morristown is included. Morristown's defining feature is its green square in the center of town from which all commercial activity radiates. An initial ring of restaurants and financial offices give way to a combination of mom and pop shops and larger chains. Dotted throughout the commercial mix are a few historical buildings indicating that Morristown has always been a great place to live. The most prominent of these historical sites is the Morris County Courthouse - a placard out front proudly proclaims the Courthouse as the best example of the Federal architectural style in New Jersey.
New Jersey has several beautiful, historical, small towns among which Morristown is included. Morristown's defining feature is its green square in the center of town from which all commercial activity radiates. An initial ring of restaurants and financial offices give way to a combination of mom and pop shops and larger chains. Dotted throughout the commercial mix are a few historical buildings indicating that Morristown has always been a great place to live. The most prominent of these historical sites is the Morris County Courthouse - a placard out front proudly proclaims the Courthouse as the best example of the Federal architectural style in New Jersey.
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Ten minutes west of the Green Square is Morristown National Historic Park where the Continental Army camped TWO winters during the revolutionary war. If you time your visit right you may be able to see an encampment re-enacted where a bunch of revolutionary war enthusiasts recreate the scene from when Washington was in the area.
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Thomas Edison - Steve Jobs is often recognized as one of the best business minds of the 20th century for his role in creating three companies - Apple, Pixar, then raising Apple again from the ashes. Thomas Edison created INDUSTRIES thirty companies - two of which the first movie company and phonograph Jobs essentially copied to create his three companies. Like Jobs, Edison was primarily an enhancer of existing ideas although his greatest original thought - recording then airing voices - is unarguably the greatest invention ever and paved the way for internet connections today. Without Edison's phonograph graham bell wouldn't have been able to invent the phone.
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I'm not sure how much of the laboratory is original but it sure feels like you are stepping right into how Edison left it. To the right of the entrance is Edison's library which contains over 10,000 books. The ground floor also contains the manufacturing equipment Edison's staff used to create prototypes. A similar, smaller manufacturing area is on the second floor and lab rooms, a sketching office, and a dark room occupy the third floor. The near end of the third floor has a phonograph exhibit in a room where the first motion pictures were created. The lasting impression is that even after learning about Edison during the visit you'll want to learn even more after leaving.
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Drive to Home
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YOGI BERRA MUSEUM
If it I didn't like it, I still would have liked it. Is that close to a Yogism? Few baseball players transcended the sport quite like Yogi Berra. There are opposing players I respect, who I think are talented and deserve the accolades...the only one I actually like is Yogi Berra. I never saw him play but I loved his quotes. He has a small museum located on Montclair University's campus, near their baseball field. It's a worthwhile place to stop if you combine the Museum with a few other area attractions like Edison's workshop and lunch in one of the Orange's or Morristown. I spent less than an hour in the museum which included killing time watching the video presentations. |
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NEWARK
Newark is another town on the NJ Transit Trenton Train Line I've always thought about hopping off and checking out on my way to New York. Even more so now that Cory Booker is a Presidential candidate. I'm curious if Newark is truly a bastion of urban success or whether it more closely resembles Trenton.
Like New Brunswick, the train line bisects the city into distinct areas. To the left is the business district - the intersection of Broad and Market Streets is the epicenter. From the train I was impressed with the skyline but at ground level the business district is more spread out with a lot of nothing. Broad Street has a Trentonian feel - cheap stores and homeless but with a ridiculous amount of potential. If Cory Booker had been able to transform this corridor and bring the locals along with the economic development he'd be the next President. I'm not saying that because he didn't is a disqualifier, I'm saying the transformation would have been that impressive.
Newark is another town on the NJ Transit Trenton Train Line I've always thought about hopping off and checking out on my way to New York. Even more so now that Cory Booker is a Presidential candidate. I'm curious if Newark is truly a bastion of urban success or whether it more closely resembles Trenton.
Like New Brunswick, the train line bisects the city into distinct areas. To the left is the business district - the intersection of Broad and Market Streets is the epicenter. From the train I was impressed with the skyline but at ground level the business district is more spread out with a lot of nothing. Broad Street has a Trentonian feel - cheap stores and homeless but with a ridiculous amount of potential. If Cory Booker had been able to transform this corridor and bring the locals along with the economic development he'd be the next President. I'm not saying that because he didn't is a disqualifier, I'm saying the transformation would have been that impressive.
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East of the train tracks is the Ironbound neighborhood which has served as an enclave of Spanish and Portuguese immigrants for the past 100 years. As such there is a high concentration of restaurants offering cuisine from these countries. I ordered a couple of tapas at Forno de Spain and will check out Iberia should I ever get off at Newark Penn Station in the future.
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As for assessing Cory Booker? It's tough to tell and the articles I read while waiting for the tapas seemed to reach a similar conclusion. Booker seems like a passionate, likable person who is more of a cheerleader than a tactician. I visited the city because of Booker's cheerleading. From my time the city appears to be on continued upward trend although like everywhere else that trend doesn't appear to include the city's poorest.
Sacred Heart Cathedral is located in a northern neighborhood.
Sacred Heart Cathedral is located in a northern neighborhood.
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HOBOKEN
I've wanted to check out Hoboken for 15 years. The town has always been pitched as a cheaper alternative to NYC living but...it's not NYC. I could never find an "attraction" to visit until I stumbled upon Elysian Fields while moving around Google Maps. Elysian Fields is recognized as the site of the first baseball game. Now I had a reason to visit Hoboken. There's a commemorative plaque identifying the location, otherwise you'd mistake the field for the dog park at a riverfront apartment complex...because the field is currently a dog park at a riverfront apartment complex. There's a second marker at the intersection of 11th Street and Washington. Washington is Hoboken's main thoroughfare and home to cafes, restaurants, and bars.
The Hoboken waterfront has great shots across the Hudson River of the NYC skyline, although after gazing at the Hong Kong skyline from Kowloon the Hoboken view of NYC is kind of depressing.
I've wanted to check out Hoboken for 15 years. The town has always been pitched as a cheaper alternative to NYC living but...it's not NYC. I could never find an "attraction" to visit until I stumbled upon Elysian Fields while moving around Google Maps. Elysian Fields is recognized as the site of the first baseball game. Now I had a reason to visit Hoboken. There's a commemorative plaque identifying the location, otherwise you'd mistake the field for the dog park at a riverfront apartment complex...because the field is currently a dog park at a riverfront apartment complex. There's a second marker at the intersection of 11th Street and Washington. Washington is Hoboken's main thoroughfare and home to cafes, restaurants, and bars.
The Hoboken waterfront has great shots across the Hudson River of the NYC skyline, although after gazing at the Hong Kong skyline from Kowloon the Hoboken view of NYC is kind of depressing.
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DINERS
New Jersey is a state known for its diners. The cozy eateries are often have a trapped in Time environment and are a.great way to experience New Jerseyian culture. The all look the same, the all serve similar food, so how do you pick one from the masses? Go with the oldest, The Summit Diner in Summit, NJ. There's debate over which NJ diner is the oldest - The Summit Diner's claim is that was the first in 1929 with the caveat that it moved into its current dining car in 1938. The location didn't change. Other diners claiming to be older so so with the caveat that have been in the same building since before 1938. I'm giving the oldest claim to the Summit Diner. I went with the Taylor Ham (pork roll to Philadelphian's), egg, and cheese sandwich a greasy mess of a sandwich which has flavor dating back to 1938.
While my destination was the diner, the rest of Summit looked nice during the drive in and back out. There was an historical commercial street and a couple of side streets with a modern flair.
On the way to Newark from Hoboken I stopped at the White Mana Diner, the only remaining diner from the 1939 New York World's Fair, whatever significance that means. Five bucks got me a nostalgic burger and fry dining experience.
New Jersey is a state known for its diners. The cozy eateries are often have a trapped in Time environment and are a.great way to experience New Jerseyian culture. The all look the same, the all serve similar food, so how do you pick one from the masses? Go with the oldest, The Summit Diner in Summit, NJ. There's debate over which NJ diner is the oldest - The Summit Diner's claim is that was the first in 1929 with the caveat that it moved into its current dining car in 1938. The location didn't change. Other diners claiming to be older so so with the caveat that have been in the same building since before 1938. I'm giving the oldest claim to the Summit Diner. I went with the Taylor Ham (pork roll to Philadelphian's), egg, and cheese sandwich a greasy mess of a sandwich which has flavor dating back to 1938.
While my destination was the diner, the rest of Summit looked nice during the drive in and back out. There was an historical commercial street and a couple of side streets with a modern flair.
On the way to Newark from Hoboken I stopped at the White Mana Diner, the only remaining diner from the 1939 New York World's Fair, whatever significance that means. Five bucks got me a nostalgic burger and fry dining experience.
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NORTH JERSEY HOT DOGS
Bourdain did a North Jersey show in which he visited restaurants from his youth. There were two hot dog places, Hiram's and Rutt’s Hut (4.6 and 4.5 Google ratings, respectively) and given that hot dogs don't take up much room in your stomach I visited both of these places on the same food trip journey. Hiram’s is located in Fort Lee and the more family friendly of the two. Fort Lee's waterfront has great views of the Manhattan Skyline. Rutt's Hit is about 20 minutes west and has a grittier feel - remove the signage from the photos and you can easily tell the two places apart from the photos. It’s the sort of place a trucker would stop after completing a cross country haul. Rutt's hot dogs are called Rippers, because they are cooked until they rip. I prefer Rutt's distinct dogs and environment to Hiram’s.
Bourdain did a North Jersey show in which he visited restaurants from his youth. There were two hot dog places, Hiram's and Rutt’s Hut (4.6 and 4.5 Google ratings, respectively) and given that hot dogs don't take up much room in your stomach I visited both of these places on the same food trip journey. Hiram’s is located in Fort Lee and the more family friendly of the two. Fort Lee's waterfront has great views of the Manhattan Skyline. Rutt's Hit is about 20 minutes west and has a grittier feel - remove the signage from the photos and you can easily tell the two places apart from the photos. It’s the sort of place a trucker would stop after completing a cross country haul. Rutt's hot dogs are called Rippers, because they are cooked until they rip. I prefer Rutt's distinct dogs and environment to Hiram’s.
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