If I lived closer to the West Village I’d go over to Jack’s every morning for a coffee and occasionally having what is probably the best chocolate chip cookie in New York (and it’s just a dollar!). Even though it’s rarely in my way I try to go here now and then, maybe in combination with a stroll down the beautiful Bleeker Street or to read a book sitting in their window.

At first, this park felt too arranged and perfect for me but somehow it became my safe place. Going here always picks me up. The piers have a breathtaking view of the downtown Manhattan skyline, The Statue of Liberty, and The Brooklyn Bridge. Undeniably magical. The piers host picnic spots, soccer fields, roller skating, basketball, outdoor gyms, tennis walls, grills for barbeque, and more. I also appreciate how they designed the plantations with so much care and it’s just a lovely space overall for anyone to enjoy.

The Bronx Botanical Garden is a place my father and I have been going to since I was a child. Here's a photograph I took of him here. It has hundreds of species of trees and flowers. Sitting in the middle of the Bronx, it's most recognizable as a green oasis from the grays and concrete of city life. 

Empty, but not abandoned, this cavernous Brooklyn loading dock was once considered the largest individual building in the world.

An institution in Carroll Gardens that never lets you down. Don’t miss the prunes dessert or the wine bar, Franks, next door.