Around the World (half the world) in 8 Days
Author: Mosaiko EditorPosted on: Mar 12th 2010
Greek text 
Achilles Peklaris is travelling to NYC, Washington DC, San Francisco and Paris and reports back through his iPhone
The countdown has begun for what is expected to be an interesting, fast and condensed trip! I will be travelling to four major cities within eight days – landmark cities such as New York, Washington DC, San Francisco and Paris.
Hold your breath, because I’m holding mine:
- On Saturday, 02/20/2010, in the morning I’m flying from Athens International Airport to New York City. I will stay there for two days (Saturday and Sunday) and will hit the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn to pin down the atmosphere in this period of economic crisis.
- On Monday, 02/22 and Tuesday 02/23/2010, I’ll be in Washington DC, where I’ll visit the White House and the State Department in the framework of s tour organized by the U.S. Foreign Press Center.
- On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (02/24-02/26), for the purposes of the same tour, I’ll be in San Francisco, where we’ll tour the Headquarters of Facebook, Twitter and Google/MySpace and discuss with various executives.
- I will then leave the West Coast behind me and on the weekend (02/27-02/28) I will be in Paris. I will stay at a nasty youth hostel in a rough suburb of the city called St. Denis, and will hit the streets for some reporting on the neighborhoods that got burnt down due to incidents with migrants over the past years.
The entire trip will be covered in a multimedia fashion: With my brand new iPhone I will be uploading videos, photos and articles, 24/7, from any location, like a travel log. I will begin from JFK and end at Charles De Gaulle.
The entire material will be uploaded on a special section at the Athensvoice website, called Planet Voices. All links to posts will also appear on my personal Facebook page.
Live transmission begins early Sunday morning, Greek time! Stay tuned!!
DAY 1 / NEW YORK: NYC’s BEST BURGER
It is by far the best! In St. Mark’s Palce.
Paul’s burgers is known for its juiciest, most delicious and well cooked burger in the entire Manhattan area, but also for the endless queue one has to wait for a table for two. It’s on the corner of St. Mark’s Place and 3rd Avenue, in an area which resembles our own Monastiraki, with many tattoo studios, Shops, hooka pipes, cheap sunglasses and young hipsters. Right across a theater which presents the show STOMP for over 12 years now…
DAY 2 / NEW YORK: At the Bed-Stuy Ghetto
“Do or Die, Bed-Stuy”: One of the roughest areas in New York
It the largest African-American neighborhood in the States. It is considered as one of the toughest ghettos in New York. The birthplace for East Coast’s hip-hop, and home to hip-hop icons such as Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, Lil’ Kim, Aaliyah, M.I.A., Mos Def and many more. This is where Michael Jordan started. And Mike Tyson. And Spike Lee.
Bedford Stuyvesant, in the heart of Brooklyn, is a symbol of the black culture of New York, at a time when Harlem has started to lose its identity because of all the white people who have moved there looking for cheaper rent.
We are walking down Franklin Avenue, Fulton Street and Bedford Avenue. The sun is shining, the snow is melting…
Popeye’s, which is like a McDonald’s for the blacks, is the first thing one sees getting off the subway, in this busy commercial street. It sells fried chicken (a typical favorite for African-Americans along with watermelon, from the times of slavery) in all possible forms, from burgers to wings, even as fried cookie.
Jewelry shops on both sides of the street, dollar signs and crosses, Jesus and box gloves, all covered in diamonds to be worn by the aspiring rapper. The sign on the window writes: “We make gold teeth and gold chains with your name inscribed.”
Four murals across Franklin Avenue represent heroes (alive or dead) of the area. Obama posters on the barber shops’ windows, specializing in African-American hair does. Sops with wigs and fake nails in all colors and food delights from the Caribbean smell wonderfully.
Shops with clothes, bright shinny suits, gold hoodies, that have woofers on the pave ways, make noise from as early as 10 in the morning. T shirts of the first African-American, Biggie, are sold.
Baptist churches for gospel mamas, with huge lion marbles at the entrance, and double glazed windows, and lavish colorful dresses for the Sunday sermons. A huge mosque for the Muslims and temples for all sorts of strange religious beliefs, next to shops that sell religious ornaments for all the above, plus accessories for voodoo and Indian god statues.
It’s another world, just twenty minutes from shinny Manhattan with lines A and C. under the close supervision of NYPD cameras, in every corner…
DAY 2 / NEW YORK: Ο Willy from Haiti at Fort Greene
A barber from Port au Prince tells his story
Haitians in New York are now more than 1.5 million. So when you walk down Fort Green, the Jamaican ghetto in Brooklyn, you are likely to bump onto a Haitian, when entering a random barber shop for some trimming. A barber shop that sells clothes, DVDs, music, jewelry and offers photocopying services…
Will was not aware of the special relationship between his country and Greece – Haiti is the first country to have identified us as an independent country, after the 1821 revolution. “Thank you for teaching that to me,” he said looking proud that bonds were discovered between our two countries.
He lost his 16-year old sister in the earthquake: “They haven’t found her yet. A building had fallen on top of her.” Doesn’t he want to go there and help himself? “I do not have the money for airfare, and I’ll lose my job if I leave. And my sister is not going to come back…” My friend from East New York, Shirley Blaze, is down there with a group of humanitarian aid…
“Thank god for them,” says Willy. Does he believe that the U.S. is going to help his country rebuild? Are things going to be better than before? “I will believe that when I see it. Wars are occurying regarding this reconstruction. This is huge business…” he says. At least he knows what he is talking about. And even in a miserable state, he is trying to smile. Even for Haitians, life still goes on..
To be continued…
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