Rodney St Between Hope St and Grand Street

Continuing along the meandering path around this neighborhood, Rodney Street offers very little in the way of things to look at or enjoy. But it's proximity to the BQE allows for some interesting views (even if they come along with deafening noise). The industrial nature of this area offers a stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of restaurants just a few blocks away.

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Hope St Between Keap St and Rodney St

The biggest feature on this short, industrial block is the massive multi-artist mural on the south-side of the street. Taking up nearly an entire building this piece of street art is wonderful not only for it's excellent work, but also (and I apologize to anyone who feels it's disrespectful) for the tagging and defacing on top of the "formal" art. The multiple levels of graffiti show something interesting about how quickly things like this change out in the real world. The building across the street is relatively sparse, holding only a few tags.

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North 8th St Between Bedford Ave and Berry St

Continuing my inadvertently obsessive coverage of North 6th St, today we get to take a stroll down the block between Bedford Avenue and Berry Street. Home to such touchstones as Brooklyn Industries and Northside Bakery, this block also has some great pieces of street art. One of the things I almost walked right by was the robot freshly drawn into the sidewalk. If someone would shed some more light on what's going on with that guy, I'd love to know.

Otherwise, here you'll encounter your typical lineup of houses, apartments, alleyways and graffiti. Also, a block in Brooklyn just wouldn't be complete without some piece of new construction, and this stretch is no exception.

One of my favorite things was at the end of the block on the side wall of the Brooklyn Ale House: a posted piece of street art depicting Audrey Hepburn. Something about it was just so perfect for the area- I mean, you jut have to love the tagging in her hair.

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North 6th St Between Havemeyer St and Meeker Ave

Walking away from the hotbed of Bedford avenue towards the big open sky around the BQE yields some interesting stuff along the way. Unique doors, interesting architecture, fun graffiti all find a home on this block. Dominating the the first half here is the AmaxPrint.com building, complete with it's scary logo. Questionably parked right outside the very same building was a Playgirl van. I'm not entirely sure why.

I wonder how long the short houses and apartments in this area will last.  I wonder how long until some large developer buys up the whole lot and replaces the entire street with condo. I can't imagine it'll be too long, the proximity to subway, bus and the expressway could make it a lucrative spot for people looking to live in New York, but not Manhattan.

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Kent Ave Between North 9th St and North 8th St

A hotbed of construction madness for the past few years, this area of town is home to some pretty crazy views of Manhattan. Of course, I picked the coldest day on record to come down and take photos, so I could only stand on the wind-swept block for only a few minutes before my hands began to freeze off and my already-hacking cough got worse.

The humbler of the new constructions was a low dark building on the corner of North 8th and Kent which featured massive windows looking out onto the river. The sheer size of the windows made it nearly impossible NOT to see inside the various apartments - and into the painfully luxurious lives of the tenants. This apartment sat right across from the park which only weeks before was at the center of a campaign to keep it open during the winter. Instead it sat closed, with a sign indicating it's re-opening in April.

The scarier, larger developments down the block seem just ridiculous in the current economic climate. I haven't the slightest idea who is going to be filling up these things once they're done.

I hope to come back here in the summer, the views of the river, Manhattan and the Williamsburg bridge are unparalleled...until of course, it's developed all to hell.

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North 9th St Between Berry St and Wythe Ave

A few blocks off the beaten path of Bedford Avenue, as one walks towards the East River, things calm down a bit. The air is colder, the houses quieter, the stores fewer and farther between. Even the frequency of street art seemed to go down (of course the occasional stencil or tag remain).

The rows of apartments seemed to make way for rows of actual houses, each mimicing the last all the while mainting their own character through unique ironwork or paint jobs. An animal hospital seemed to be the sole "commercial" entity on the block. Towards the west end a "newer" apartment building with an interesting buzzer sat next to a loading dock. Unless you live here, or are on your way to somewhere, I would see little reason to come down this way.

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