It will be some time before I complete my article on Jewish tailoring of Crown Heights in Brooklyn, New York, as a lot of my writing will need to be approved for publishing and there are a lot of interesting facts that I need to check with a Rabbi in Sydney. However, I thought I might share with you just one image from my visit to Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The first item to note is the traditional fedora Borsalino hats and the second is the coats which are worn by Jews all over the world but more frequently in New York. The coats are called 'kapotes' and they are often made in or near the shops that sell the coats. Because the Jewish population of each city is usually limited, for example, approximately 40,000 Jews reside in Sydney, it is not uncommon for Jews of Australia to source their kapotes and fedora hats from New York directly where there is a larger Jewish population and businesses which specifically cater for Jews. More to come on that later.
The suburb of Crown Heights in Brooklyn is yet another part of New York which seems to come from a movie set. The number of black and white dressed Hasidic Jews casually walking the street is surreal for a first timer. It was an absolute pleasure to be shown around by my contact Zalman who took me to a deli to try herring with jalapenos for my first time and then on to meet some of the interesting characters of the community. Had I known that herring was so good to eat I might not have rejected it at shabbas dinners in the past. Specifically I can tell you that I ate Benz's herring which I got from here.
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