Special Yom Tov Project: 24 Hours Around Boro Park (Part 4)

9:00 pm– Grabbing a bite 

Around town, eateries, takeouts and restaurants welcome patrons who come in for a bit to eat or to strike their next business deal.

9:30 pm- Sanctifying the moon 

At shuls, shtieblach, and minyan centers, groups of Yidden can be seen coming together, wishing each other sholom aleichem, as they recite kiddush levanah.

10:00 pm – Perusing the stacks 

It’s is already dark outside, but by the light of the small lamp outside the used seforim store, afficionados and collectors will not allow a night to pass without going through the new cache of the day. 

10:30 pm- Outside the sanctum 

The hour is late, but Yidden gather in the waiting rooms of Admorim and Rabbonim to receive counsel and blessing in good times and better times. 

11:00 pm- the night is young 

Judging by the crush of traffic, it may as well be in middle of the day, as drivers are angling to get their cars out following a simcha in town.

11:30 pm- the night shift 

As the town falls into a slumber, some shopkeepers must catch up on an overload of work while the store is shuttered, and they can focus exclusively on the work in front of them. 

12:00 am- Midnight work 

For enormous work projects that require closure of an important street, special crews will be brought in to work in the overnight hours. 

12:30 am- Prime advertising space 

It is half past midnight, and workers are making their way around town to job sites, posting enormous notices and advertisements with special glue. 

1:00 am- Toiling through the night 

As the rest of Boro Park sleeps, these heroic men spend these exalted hours in the holiest pursuit of limud haTorah—standing guard over a slumbering city.

1:30 am- Overnight shopping 

Some find the stillness of the night the perfect time to get in their shopping, when aisles are empty, and the cashier will give them their full attention. 

2:00 am- Fresh from the oven 

While Boro Park is sound asleep, bakeries are a hive of activity, ensuring that shelves will be stocked with fresh bread and pastries by morning.

2:30 am- Winding down 

All night they provided joyful and beautiful music on someone’s special night… but after the chosson kallah and mechutanim have left, they remain behind to pack up their special equipment.  

3:00 am- The night is yet long 

For many, this may be early morning—but many others find minyanim for maariv at this hour, following their return from an out-of-town wedding, or any other host of reasons that would bring them to Shomrei Shabbos at this hour. 

3:30 am- Standing guard 

The darkness and the stillness of the night provides just the right cover for criminals and thieves—but not if Boro Park’s dedicated civilian patrols can help it. Making their rounds patrolling Boro Park overnight, they prevent crime, and stop criminals in the act. 

4:00 am– locking up

After everyone has finally left the hall, and they have put things into motion for the following day, the wedding hall managers can finally go home, locking the door on their way out. 

4:30 am– The Milkman Comes 

Utilizing the empty Boro Park streets, the milk trucks make their way from grocery to shul, from supermarket to yeshiva, ensuring that mispalelim will have thousands of cups of coffee, and customers and students will have their dairy that day.

5:00 am–the cycle begins anew 

For some, the early-morning hours—when the mind is still clear and they have not yet been consumed with the mundane daily tasks— are the prime time for their daily learning. As they will head out into the business world, they will carry the sweet taste with them throughout the day.