Favorite brunch in Greenpoint. Get the caesar salad, the salmon gravlax, tortilla and pancakes. You can do no wrong.

Dumbo, which stands for 'Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass,' is a neat neighborhood in Brooklyn that is at an awesome vantage point of Manhattan. There are cool rocks on the shore of Brooklyn Bridge Park that are fun to relax on and sneak alcoholic beverages.

You can't say you've seen NYC until you've seen it from a boat. Hop on the ferry from anywhere to anywhere and you'll see what I mean. Not only will you see excellent old buildings and factories--the inner workings of the old industrial city--but you'll head out under working bridges and see the skyscrapers in all their towering glory. And once you've done it, do it again, at night.

I love enjoying some Amazing Vietnamese food at this place before heading out to the different bars around Jefferson on L. The restaurant is just behind Elsewhere so you have a nice mix of things to do if you start your night here.

Somewhat off the beaten Williamsburg-track, Brooklyn Art Library is nestled on a mostly residential street. It’s home to tens of thousands of artist sketchbooks known as “The Sketchbook Project”. Over 100 countries are represented and their “collection houses books from small communities in Mongolia next to professional illustrators from New York.” You can donate one of your very own! All the sketchbooks have been cataloged for easy searching of their vast shelves, by artist and subject, and visitors are invited to browse what feels much like a hands-on museum. The Art Library also remains one of the few places to find art supplies (while limited) in the neighborhood, and if you’re in the market for a special gift (including books, totes and the cutest retro pennants) for your favorite art-lovin’ bibliophile, you might just get lucky here.