Bed and Breakfast in Harlem, New York

This a question that I am frequently asked.


One way to find out is to look at crime statistics.Our precinct # is 30 and if you click here you can see the crime statistics for this district and you can compare them to other areas in the city.


However that ugly concrete building that you see on the website is 10 blocks north of here and this is an entirely different neighborhood.You can even see a distinct difference if you just walk up the hill across Amsterdam Ave. and down onto Broadway.It is a 5 minute walk but you feel like you are in the Caribbean.You see older men sitting on stools,on the sidewalks playing dominoes, the streets are filled with Latin music,mostly salsa.


Over on this side of the hill and further down the area is quiet with mostly middle class African Americans,and some new arrivals that are both black,white and Asian .You will see architecture that looks like this on Convent ave or like this on Hamilton Terrace.There is a museum just half a block away,Hamilton Grange,a memorial for Alexander Hamilton, the first secretary of the treasury,and one of the founding fathers.There is also a fairly large park St.Nicolas Park,just 2 minutes walk the from Sugar Hill.City College starts at 140 st and Convent and fills the entire area from Amsterdam to the park and down to 135st.There are 3 theaters within 5 minutes walk from Sugar Hill Harlem Inn. The Classic Theater of Harlem,The Gate House and Aaron Davis Hall


I hope this gives you an idea of what the area is like.Bernadette is a 60 year old woman and she has never had any problems walking in the neighborhood.I feel very safe walking around day or night.


I often go upstate to an area,called the Catskills, near Woodstock.I go walking in the woods and look for different wild plants and pieces of dead wood that I bring back to my garden in Harlem,but I have to be very careful.There are ticks everywhere.The whole country side is infested.Unfortunately they carry Lyme Disease and I got it twice last summer. Yes I feel considerably safer in Harlem than up in the woods in the Catskills.

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What is a hand car?That is the hand crank railway car that is featured in some movies,always a comedy. The opening scene of Blazing Saddles, depicting railroad construction, features a handcar.There was also a scene in Oh Brother Where Art Thou?

A handcar or pump trolley is a maintenance railroad car powered by its passengers, or by people pushing the car from behind. A typical design consists of an arm that pivots, seesaw-like, on a base, which the passengers alternately push down and pull up to move the car.

In Japan, dozens of commercially operated handcar railway lines, called human car tramways existed in early 20th century. Those were purely built for its service, and "drivers" pushed small train cars all the way. The first line, Fujieda-Yaizu Tramway, opened in 1891, and most of others opened before 1910. Most lines were very short with less than 10 km lengths.Almost all the lines were closed before 1945.

Dressin refers to pedal-powered rail-cycles which were used by railroad maintenance workers in Finland, Sweden and Norway until about 1950.

Now dressins are used for recreation on several unused rail lines in Sweden, Norway, Poland and some other northern European countries. There are several companies renting dressins in Sweden.

In Finland there has been annual competition "Resiina-ralli" (translates "Draisine Rally"), which involves several draisine teams traveling many days in the railroads from one corner of the country to another. The rally is televised and is popular among TV-viewers.

This is just the beginning of an idea and perhaps some more thought should be put into it before posting this blog.But if you have some thoughts or ideas on how this could be incorporated into New York Transit.This is obviously not rapid transit but why does everything have to be so fast?I think we could consider this as an alternative to a 2nd ave line,which is talked about but we see little action beyond that.I see a loop that goes up 1st ave along 125st and down 2nd ave onto Chrystie St. along Canal and then back up Allen and onto 1st ave.Hundreds of hand cars would be left on these tracks and anyone who wanted could use it to go as far as he or she wanted.If nobody was using it the car would automatically lift itself off the track so it would not interfere with the movement of other cars.I think it would lend a carnival like atmosphere to a city that takes itself far too seriously and tourists would flock to see this city that would allow themselves to be seen in such a lighthearted way,exercising and moving together.

A roof could be added with solar panels to heat in the winter and help power the vehicles.Hand cars would always have the right of way.Each car would emit a pleasant sound to let pedestrians know they were coming down the tracks.





This may sound like a ridiculous idea but the subway was considered ridiculous when the idea was first introduced.Either way a decision to lay back the tracks that were covered over or torn up will be made and perhaps the handcar will never be implemented but some kind of tram or street car system is inevitable and it will have to be free to use so that we all use it and leave our cars where they belong,in the history books.

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Take AirTrain to Newark Airport Train Station.

At Newark Airport Train Station, take a NJ TRANSIT or Amtrak train to New York Penn Station.

It takes less than 1 hour and is great if you are arriving at a time when there is likely to be traffic heading through the Lincoln Tunnel (which is unpredictable, but almost always backed-up midweek at 8:00am-10am and 4:30pm-6:30pm).

Fare is about $14 and is probably the best and most economical way to get to NYC from EWR.
You can then take the A train from Penn Station.It is only 4 stops and will take about 15 minutes.

Bus- there is a large coach bus that travels from Newark to either Port Authority, or Penn Station; Fare is $14/each way ($23/RT) and buses depart every 10-15 minutes
Here is the link to the bus service that will take you to Port Authority,(slightly better than Penn Station)

Taxi- travel time can vary widely depending upon traffic... 1 hour is a good guestimate, but can be as quick as 45 minutes or as long as 1 1/2+ hours! Rates are fixed depending upon destination. Base rate for one stop is $56+ $6 toll . There is also a $1 charge for each oversized bag.

Supershuttle This may be OK if you are landing at LaGuardia.Otherwise do not choose this option.By the time you get here it will be time to turn around and go back home.

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Contact: Susannah Morrow Tel: 212-903-9753
E-mail: smmorrow@carnegiehall.org Harlem Stage Contact:Heidi Riegler CommunicationsContact: Heidi RieglerPhone: 718-340-3018E-mail: hrarts@earthlink.net

MALIAN ARTISTS ABDOULAYE DIABATÉ AND NÉBA SOLO PERFORM AT HARLEM STAGE ON MAY 15 AT 7:30 PM

Free Concert Is Part of the Carnegie Hall / Citi Neighborhood Concert SeriesMusic of Mali
Has Been Featured Throughout Carnegie Hall’s Season in Education Programs and Concert Presentations

On Tuesday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m., Carnegie Hall, in collaboration with Harlem Stage, presents renowned griot singer Abdoulaye Diabaté and balafon virtuoso Néba Solo as part of the Carnegie Hall/Citi Neighborhood Concert series.
The free concert is a rare New York appearance for Abdoulaye Diabaté, and he appears with a band made up of some of Mali’s best-known musicians. Opening the show will be the ensemble of Néba Solo, showcasing spectacular dancers and songs that comment on contemporary Malian social issues.

The performance takes place at Harlem Stage, West 135th Street and Convent Avenue. To reserve tickets for this free concert, please contact the Harlem Stage Hotline at 212-650-7100.

Labels: Mr.Harlem Renaissance Man

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