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Blizzard Jonas and an Evening Visit to a Museum

Letter from New York! Right after winter break, Luise Müller's New York is buried under snow.

Feb 19, 2016

The neoclassical building, where the collections of the Brooklyn Museum are housed, as seen at night.

The neoclassical building, where the collections of the Brooklyn Museum are housed, as seen at night.
Image Credit: Private

The Brooklyn Public Library, which opened in 1896, is the fifth largest public library in the United States.

The Brooklyn Public Library, which opened in 1896, is the fifth largest public library in the United States.
Image Credit: Private

Prospect Park is very popular with joggers. Luise's housemate runs there every day.

Prospect Park is very popular with joggers. Luise's housemate runs there every day.
Image Credit: Private

In January the snow in New York was still so high that the cars parked outside were half buried.

In January the snow in New York was still so high that the cars parked outside were half buried.
Image Credit: Private

After spending Christmas with my family, I arrived back in New York fresh and rejuvenated and was met with a layer of snow a meter high. Blizzard Jonas, a fierce snowstorm, had New York completely closed down. Even days later and despite sunny weather, there were huge piles of snow on the roadsides.

The first week back after the holidays, things were very quiet at the university, so I mainly stayed in my neighborhood. There I made a wonderful discovery: the Brooklyn Public Library. The impressive building is located at the north end of Prospect Park, and it attracts a variety of people: high school students preparing for math tests, members of the large Jewish community in Brooklyn who are looking up the Torah commentaries, and a few New Yorkers who are temporarily homeless and come in to warm up and relax among the bookshelves.

A Public Library for Everyone...

Everyone is allowed to enter the library and browse around without registering or paying. The Public Library is actually public and a great place for me to write. Speaking of writing…. I hope to submit my dissertation in six months and am therefore writing feverishly. So far it is going well. That might be at least partly because in New York, everyone is always so busy — that is infectious and motivating. A highlight on the way to the library is walking through Prospect Park, which is still covered with snow.

... and an Evening in a Museum

On Thursday evening I went with friends to an event in the Brooklyn Museum, which is the second-largest museum in New York. With free admission, there were events lasting until late in the evening: lectures, tours, and refreshments at the bar. A great combination, as it turned out. The collections are a mixture of European painting, American photography, feminist modern art, Egyptian mummies, and modern art from Africa. The building itself is very special: a huge neoclassical building from the late 19th century. And it is right next to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and the Prospect Park Zoo.

Further Information

In our campus.leben series "Letters from ..." six students, two doctoral candidates, and an apprentice are reporting on their experiences abroad. Here we introduced the nine travelers, and here are Luise Müller's previous reports.