Fifty Hook-ups – Riv Vu
December 3, 2010
It is early December, and we are
back camping in Jersey
City...behind the Colgate Clock.
It must be hard to imagine us or
anyone else for that matter camping
in Jersey City. Liberty Harbor
Marina and RV Park is, however,
one of the neater places we have
hooked up. It is connected to major
public transportation: NY
Waterways to Wall Street across
the parking lot, NJ Light Rail one
block away and Path Trains just a
few blocks up Marin Blvd. So it
is easy to get to and from
Manhattan and Brooklyn. We
are within walking distance of
many nice restaurants and
stores. Public transportation
and reasonable walking
distances are really important
to us as we stay in places
around the country. Here in
Jersey City we are even able
to walk for 
good coffee and
yummy muffins at Beechwood
Cafe on Grove Street. Not the
Boat House in Central Park,
but nice and dogs are allowed inside in the morning.
One evening last August we walked for dinner at the Light Horse Tavern. We ate outside on a beautiful evening and watched the world of Jersey City walk by while we enjoyed an excellent meal. Bernie had the baked meatloaf wrapped in bacon with whipped potatoes and Sautéed Baby Spinach. I had the Duck Breast Peking Style with a Basil Soba Noodle Cake, Sesame Eggplant, Cilantro Chili Sauce and Ginger Soy. (See what I mean?) Oh yes, plenty of wine and beer. For dessert we shared the Chocolate Bread Pudding with Caramel Ice Cream and the warm peach tart with vanilla cream. Sharing is caring, but I really wanted all the bread pudding for myself. We waddled back to the camp ground on a path between the train track and the marina. A pleasant walk home.
The nearby Paulus Hook Brick Oven is a great place to get ready-made Italian food to take home and heat and eat. Iʼm good at that. Eggplant Parmesan, Mushroom Ravioli and Penne Ala Vodka were all tasty. There were a few tables at the place, but we ordered a lot and carried it back to the campground to relax and pig-out after a long day. Yes there was wine waiting for us as well. The plain pizza was good too, but we passed on the build your own pizza option.
The weather was beautiful while we were there last summer and we did walk around the city for an hour or two many mornings. Lots of murals, graffiti and interesting buildings. Now that it is December, it is cold but we are still walking for coffee and muffins.
A short scenic stroll around Jersey City
Our only disappointment is that the The Sandbar Nightclub next to the campground is still closed down due to a fire. The dancing cages are forlornly piled up outside the damaged building. Libertyʼs website had advised us "...that on Friday and Saturday nights, the club runs events with special guest performers. The nightclub operates until 2:30 AM and music can be overheard in the RV Parking Area." Frankly we were planning to go check it out and certainly do something clever with our cameras. Of course it did make it more suitable for Benjamin to visit us for a couple of nights.
