The Staten Island Ferry sign in Manhattan, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams
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A Non-Tourist’s View of Staten Island

Last Monday I played the role of tourist with a trip to Staten Island.  The original goal of my trip was to have a taste of Sri Lankan food.  (Who knew that the largest community of Sri Lankans in the US reside just across the water in the St. George area of Staten Island?)  But I also wanted to see what had happened to the borough in the time since I left.

The Staten Island Ferry sign in Manhattan, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

When I first came to NYC, I stayed at a bed and breakfast in Staten Island.  The rotting, Victorian mansion was an absolute zoo with various wild characters coming and going all through my stay.  (At one point we had a Russian circus taking up one floor of the place.)  The house was owned by an English woman whose ultimate goal was to become the girlfriend of one of the local Italian mobsters.  Her counterpoint at the inn was an ornery Arab guy who sought to bring some semblance of management to the place.  If only I had been a photographer then.

The state of Staten Island seems to have gone downhill, but perhaps it was always that way and I just remember it more fondly.  I ate at San Rasa, and had the entire restaurant to myself.  Sri Lankan food, which is akin to Indian food but perhaps a bit spicier, was an interesting palate adjustment.  After lunch I bought some roasted curry powder and spicy coffee at Lanka, the local Sri Lankan grocery store.  The day ended with a drink at Jade Palace, Staten Island’s finest tiki bar.  Though a tad expensive (more than double what you would pay for a mai tai at King Yum in Queens), the decor makes the bar worth the trip.  Enjoy the photos.

At the Staten Island Ferry terminal, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Tourists on the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Tourists on the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Tourists on the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Tourists on the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

On the Staten Island Ferry, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

At the Staten Island Ferry terminal in St. George, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

At the Staten Island Ferry terminal in St. George, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island bus, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island employment center, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island construction worker, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island resident, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island Chamber of Commerce, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

 

Jingle bells on a fence, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams
Jingle bells on a fence

Abandoned Staten Island lot with Eric Garner sign, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island resident, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island resident, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Lunch at San Rasa in Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Kid looking in to San Rasa in Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Clove Lakes Park in Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Hair transplant sign in Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Abandoned hospital in Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Latourette Park in Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

Staten Island Mall sign, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

At the Staten Island Ferry terminal in St. George, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

At the Staten Island Ferry terminal in St. George, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams

NYC skyline from Staten Island, by NYC photographer, Kelly Williams


If you would like to see more Staten Island photos, please visit my website.

 

 

 

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