Tuesday Travels: Summer Streets

This past Saturday Jon went to get his haircut and came back and suggested that for our run we take advantage of Summer Streets. Summer Streets is a program run by the city that on Saturday, August 8th, Saturday, August 15th and Saturday, August 22nd Park Avenue was closed from Central Park all the way down until the Brooklyn Bridge!

I have to say that it was the weirdest feeling just running in the middle of Park Avenue. It was awesome though we just did a 3 mile loop - 1.5 miles downtown and then back up the other side of Park Avenue. All along the road as we were running there were bike rental places (although I'm pretty sure they were free rentals), there were mini-tennis courts for kids to begin to learn to tennis, different vendors providing information about their services, and plenty of traffic cops and crossing guards as there are a couple of busy intersections where they were letting the traffic cross Park Avenue when they had the light. The entire 1.5 miles down though we were only stopped 3 times (which in NYC is amazing!) For a full list of activities, click here!

This is definitely a great program. People were biking, running, you could tell that there were marathoners out on a long training run, group runs and families taking a stroll. It was so great to be outside in NYC in a different area (ie: not Central Park or the West Side Highway for a change) and be surrounded by other New Yorkers enjoying a beautiful day in the city by being active!

If you live in NYC and don't have plans this Saturday maybe you should rent bikes on Saturday and ride from Central Park down to the Brooklyn Bridge. I know if we were in town this weekend that's what we would be doing.

Post in Comments:

What is your favorite outdoor space in NYC?

Entertainment Thursday: In the Heights

In the Heights

As I said in my previous post, my friend Katie and I decided to start a little Broadway Tradition. Once a year we're going to get in line at TKTS and get tickets to a show together! I'm so psyched about this tradition, you all know how much I love to go to the theater.

This past Sunday was the day. I got to TKTS at 10:20AM about 40 minutes prior to TKTS opening. I was shocked by the line at that time. I read in line and made friends with a guy from Peru (Marco) we swapped theater stories about what we'd seen and liked recently. Katie got there a little before 11AM. I was surprised by how quickly the line moved. I'm not going to lie I was kind of dreading getting in that long line but it flew. We had our tickets by 11:30AM AND we got the show we wanted.

We snagged 2 orchestra seats to In the Heights. We had great seats - Row O, Seat 14 & 16. I was concerned we'd be too far to the side but the center section of the theater was much smaller then in other theaters so we were just slightly right of the center. I didn't really know much about this show other than that it featured some rap music, Latin Music and took place in NYC.

The basic premise is that Nina Rosario comes back to her old neighborhood, Washington Heights, after not doing as well at Stanford as her family & friends had hoped. It explores many people's views on their neighborhood - the relationships formed, the expectations, the people, etc.

It was phenomenal!!!! It was fun & funny - I was dancing in my seat. The music was so great. There were many elements of rap, but also great vocals, specifically from the character Benny (he was amazing!) It was very Latin which I also loved. In the Heights made me realize that what I love best about musicals are the ensemble numbers with all or a large part of the cast. In this play almost every song was sung by numerous people making each song powerful. Each song was better than the next (I can't wait to get the soundtrack!) To get an idea of the music you can click here for their Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade performace.

I also felt that they handled the Spanish language much better in this play then in West Side Story. They did use it in the dialogue but more for small sayings (ie: Bueno, no me diga, caridad, etc). It didn't take away from the show at all only added to it (in my opinion). They did sing a lot in Spanish but every song that was sung in Spanish was also sung in English if that makes sense. They would essentially translate the song for the audience so you never felt you couldn't understand. Granted I'm a little biased in this statement becuase I could for the most part understand the Spanish so it didn't seem that bad to me but I'm not sure what it would be like if you didn't know Spanish, maybe it would take away from the show.

All in all, I would give this show 5 stars. It's one I would see again, and like I said I can't wait to get the soundtrack!!!

Post in Comments:

Have you seen In the Heights? What did you think of it?

Tuesday Travels: NYC High Line Walkway

The High Line was a train track that was lifted 30 feet above ground. It ran along the West Side. No trains have run on the track since 1980. This non-profit group called Friends of the High Line, formed in 1999 when this historic landmark was threatened by demolition. They are working with the City of New York to turn this elevated landmark into a NYC Public Park.

Jon and I had heard a lot of buzz about the High Line. (See my friend Shion's review. Our computer is broken currently so I can't load up my pictures from Sunday. Shion's review has great pictures! ) Right now the section from Gansevoort to 20th Street is open to the public. They are currently working on the next section which I believe will run from 20th Street to 30th Street. We were looking for something to do on Sunday morning after church that wouldn't take the whole day, but that would allow us to spend some time outdoors. Exploring the new High Line was a natural fit.

We entered at the 20th Street entrance and climbed the stairs to the high line walkway. The great thing is that they do have an elevator so people with strollers or who are in a wheelchair can also get up to the walkway to explore. We walked the path all the way down to Gansvoort and back to 16th Street (which only took us about 15-20 minutes). We enjoyed the views of the water, the Statue of Liberty and just NYC in general. I loved how they incorporated the old tracks into the design. I think the plantings mixed in with the train tracks looks so cool.

The whole walkway follows a very sleek, clean and simple design. It has very smooth lines and I thought that they took the space and made it a very nice, modern, community, public park! They also have plenty of options of seating for people to take advantage of. Getting their early on a Saturday or Sunday and grabbing one of the wooden lounge chairs to read for a bit I think would be a great way to start a weekend day. Hopefully we'll make it back soon to do just that!

Afterwards we wandered through Chelsea Market, which I had never visited before. I plan to go back and have breakfast there with Jon one weekend and perhaps take the Chelsea Market Tour (which we discovered existed when we were there) and I'll do a full and proper blog post on it!

Post in Comments:

Have you visited the High Line yet? Do you feel it is a good addition of Park Space in NYC?

Entertainment Thursday: West Side Story

For my 30th birthday Jon got us tickets to see West Side Story. I had been saying for years "When are they going to bring West Side Story back to Broadway??" Low and behold the year of my 30th birthday was the answer.

I was so excited to go! I love the story, the music, everything about West Side Story. We had dinner beforehand and then walked over to the Theater which is at Broadway and 47th Street.

Our seats were in the last row of the orchestra. The last three rows of the orchestra were a raised section though so we had a clear view of the stage.

The play did not disappoint! The music and the dancing (espcially the dancing) was amazing! The choreography, especially during the fight scenes, was awesome. My favorite song, "America" sung by Anita and friends was easily the best song of the night. It had power, dancing, color, humor, it was spot on. And Karen Olivo, who played Anita stole the show I thought with her spunky character. She was amazing.

Maria, played by Josefina Scaglione, was also very good. Her soprano voice (she was trained as an opera singer) was beautiful. She nailed every song!

I did have two complaints though about the show. First, I though Tony, played by Matt Cavenaugh, was weak. He had a great singing voice and when he and Maria were singing their duets I loved him. However, when he spoke his voice was so "over-acted" that it really took away from his character. He just sounded ridiculous.

Second, the play was partly in Spanish. I didn't mind that so much because I was able to understand most of it, but I thought that was an interesting decision by the director, given that the average American probably does not have a solid grip on the Spanish language. The other weird part about it was that in my opinion, you either needed to commit to all The Sharks (girls & guys) speaking Spanish every time they spoke or they shouldn't speak in Spanish at all. Instead, it was very sporadic. Sometimes the characters would speak in Spanish, sometimes they wouldn't. Sometimes every other sentence was in Spanish. There were two whole songs in Spanish - "I Feel Pretty" and "A Boy Like That". It was a bummer not to be able to hear and enjoy the version that we know and love. In addition, Anita & Maria sing "A Boy Like That" in Spanish and as they finish they lead into another song "I Have a Love" that they proceeded to sing in English. The inconsistency just bothered me.

Overall, though I LOVED IT! I had so much fun watching the story unfold and I just enjoyed hearing all of the songs sung live right in front of my eyes. I would definitely recommend it to people, as long as, part of the play being in Spanish doesn't bother you. If you know the story, you'll get the gist of what's going on...

Post In Comments:

Have you seen West Side Story yet on Broadway? If so, what was your favorite song?

Tuesday Travels: NYC Museum Rankings

Well, we've finally done it. We visited every museum that was on our list to visit in NYC. That does not mean that we've visited every museum in NYC just the ones that we felt interested us or were just too famous to miss. I've reviewed many of them (although not all) but thought it would be interesting to compile a ranking of the 12 museums we visited. I've solicited Jon for his input as well.

Jon's NYC Museum Rankings

1 - The Frick
2 - The Metropolitan Museum of Art
3 - Ellis Island
4 - Museum of Natural History
5 - The New York Historical Society
6 - The Whitney
7 - The Tenement Museum
8 - The Museum of Modern Art
9 - The Folk Art Museum
10 - The Guggenheim
11 - The Skyscraper Museum
12 - The Museum of the City of New York

Beth's NYC Museum Rankings

1 - The Frick
2 - The Metropolitan Museum of Art
3 - Ellis Island
4 - The Tenement Museum
5 - The Whitney
6 - Museum of Natural History
7 - The Museum of Modern Art
8 - The New York Historical Society
9 - The Folk Art Museum
10 - The Museum of the City of New York
11 - The Guggenheim
12 - The Skyscraper Museum

The only museum on the list that I feel I wouldn't recommend to someone is The Skyscraper Museum. It just wasn't impressive at all and although only $5 to get, you'd do better going across the street and having a glass of wine while looking at the Statue of Liberty from Wagner Park!

All the others I think are definitely worth the visit and would be a good use of 2 hours on a rainy or winter or cold day. I find it interesting that our Top 3 were spot on...but then we have differing opinions.

Now we are concentrating on re-visiting some of the big ones (The MET, Museum of Natural History, MOMA, etc). I'll review them as we go.

Post in Comments:

How would you rank the museum in NYC that you've visited?

What is your favorite NYC Museum?

Tuesday Travels: The New York Historical Society

I have openly admitted numerous times on this blog that Jon & I are historical junkies. We have thoroughly been enjoying learning more about the history of the city that we live in and decided to cap that off with a visit to the New York Historical Society. This was our last museum on our museum list for NYC. Now we get to go back and visit some of our favorites.

The New York Historical Society is located on Central Park West at 77th Street. We weren't quite sure what to expect and were pleasantly surprised. We started on the top floor at The Henry Luce III Center for The Study of American Culture. Almost the entire floor is dedicated to artifacts from New York's history. They house the largest collection of Tiffany lamps for example. You'll see busts, sculptures, toys, a real horse drawn carriage and furniture among many other things. We spent a good part of our visit wandering this floor and pointing out things from NYC's past.

There were some paintings on the 3rd Floor, but most are on the 2nd Floor. One whole side was portraits of children and adults alike, some who were even family members, all real New Yorkers. The other part of the floor was dedicated to paintings that were Hudson River School landscapes. They were large and beautiful almost entirely landscapes without people in them.

The first floor we first took in the visiting exhibition of "Landmarks of New York". This is a collection of over 80 photographs of New York's more important landmarks. They are separated out by the year in which they were built, so as you walk through the room you essentially watch New York evolve. It was hands down our favorite exhibit.

The second visiting exhibition we saw was Harlem: Photographs of Camilo Jose Vergara 1970-2009. This was a collection of photographs that would show one storefront in Harlem from the 70's, then that storefront again in the 90's and then again in present day. Not just storefronts but schools, apartment buildings, streets, etc. There were also just great photographs of Harlem in general in this exhibit. I'd have to say the coolest thing about this exhibit though was seeing the changes of time right in front of your eyes when you see how something was at one time and then you see it again in the present. Those of us that haven't lived here our entire lives don't have those images in our heads. I found it very intersting.

The last visiting exhibit that we visited which was on the second floor was Abraham Lincoln in His Own Words. This was a very small exhibit that had writing samples and letters directly from Abraham Lincoln. It was basically set up as a U shape and took you through highlights of his career. It was small but incredibly powerful (especially to one so interested in the President's). I mean to see an actual letter that Abraham Lincoln wrote, his handwriting and all...pretty cool.

All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to The New York Historical Society. It was the perfect size, we were able to meander our way through in 2 hours or so. I can't say that it's a museum that would have me coming back again and again, unless they had a great visiting exhibit I wanted to see, but I was certainly glad that we took the time out of our day to have the experience. New York is full of history and it's always interesting to learn more about the place where we live!

Post in Comments:

Have you ever been to the New York Historical Society?

What is your favorite time in NYC history?

Tuesday Travels: The Botanical Gardens

(Jon in the Haupt Conservatory in the Palm Room).

On Memorial Day Jon and I were looking at our NYC list trying to find something we hadn't done yet that we wanted to do. After some discussion we agreed to visit the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx. You can take the Metro-North train to the Botanical Garden stop. It's only a 20 minute ride and $10 round trip per person, not too bad!

We checked the schedule before we left and agreed that we would spend about 2 1/2 hours walking around the Botanical Gardens so that we could get back and still have some of the day/night to enjoy (cooking dinner, watching a movie, etc).

(A picture of the fountain in the Haupt Conservatory that features aquatic plants).

The Haupt Conservatory is the nation's largest Victorian glasshouse. It features a sampling of different climates & environments. There is the Palm Room, the Desert Room, the Rainforest Room, the Aquatic Plant Room and the Seasonal Flower Room.

(A cactus that looks like a "seat" in the Desert Room - don't sit on it!)

If I had to pick a favorite section of the Haupt Conservatory I would say either the desert or the Season Flower section. Either way the Haupt Conservatory is a neat place to explore and walk through.

(Some of my favorite flowers from the Season Flowers section!)

After we fully explored the Haupt Conservatory we wandered around through the "marshlands", through the "forest" and enjoyed the peace and quiet that is the Botanical Gardens. Next time I would pack up a back pack with sandwiches and drinks and have a picnic while we were there.

(Me with yellow roses in the Rockefeller Rose Garden).

The last place that we visited before we left was the Rockefeller Rose Garden. The Garden was designed in 1916, but it was not until 1987 that the Garden was totally rebuilt to the original design thanks to a generous donation made by David Rockefeller in honor of his wife Peggy Rockefeller. The rose garden was beautiful. There were all different colors and kinds of roses and it was just a really pretty place to wander and walk.

All in all, Jon & I really enjoyed our visit to the Botanical Gardens. It was nice to get out of NYC for a while and be in a quiet peaceful place. It was a beautiful day, perfect for strolling through such a picturesque place. I would definitely recommend a visit to the Botanical Gardens to everyone & anyone.

Post in Comments:

Have you ever been to the Botanical Gardens?

What was your favorite section?

Foodie Wednesday: Arthur Avenue

As a continuation of Mother's Day after the Bronx Zoo we picked up Tim's wife Christine and drove over to Ann & Tony's restaurant on Arthur Avenue.

Arthur Avenue, is the heart of The Bronx's Little Italy. My mom had heard a lot about it and wanted to go try it out. She had done her research which landed us at Ann & Tony's restaurant. We were probably the only "non-regulars" and non-Italian people in the place! They literally had to put a table together for us towards the front of the restaurant. It was pretty cool!

We started off with a bottle of Chianti (yum!) and bread with olive oil. The olive oil was only the best dipping olive oil any of us had ever had. From what we could tell it was a combination of olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic and crushed red pepper. It was divine. They had to bring us seconds because none of us could stop eating it!

It was a prix fixed menu so for our appetizer they brought out for the table: eggplant parmesean and fried mozzerella cheese. They were both delicious although I perferred the cheese because I'm not quite an eggplant lover yet. Then they brought out our pasta. We had a choice of two and I chose the penne in vodka sauce. It was delish! I should have bought some to bring home it was that good. Even though I knew I had another dish coming I just could not stop myself from finishing the bowl!

My entree was chicken parm (of course!) and it was huge. I brought 3/4 of it home for Jon for dinner that night so he got to enjoy a taste of Arthur Avenue as well. Lastly, we all had a small bowl of ice cream for dessert. We had wanted gelato but their freezer had been left over and their basement was covered in gelato so that was not meant to be.

The meal lasted about 3-3.5 hours! It was a lot of food but it was over a lot of time and it was so good. I came home and immediately changed for the gym and was down there for 90 minutes. I felt fine the next day!

Overall, I loved eating on Arthur Avenue. I would definitely return (with reservations again of course.) I would know to eat light before going next time:) It's a hidden gem and next time I would love to look in the Italian Deli's and Gourmet Food Shops to see what unique ingredients I might be able to pick up.

Post in Comments:

Have you ever eaten on Arthur Avenue?

What's your favorite Italian restaurant?

Tuesday Travels - The Bronx Zoo

(Tim on the tram as we're trying to meet up with our parents & Bridget!)

For Mother's Day my mom wanted to go to The Bronx Zoo. I hadn't been to The Bronx Zoo since I was probably 12 (oh if you could only see the photos from that trip - bad haircut and all!) So my brother and I met up and took the 5 train (because I have an aversion to the 1,2,3 trains) to 145th Street where we promptly had to switch to the 2 train because that was the only way to get to the Zoo (oops sorry Tim!)

We walked the couple of blocks from the subway station to the Zoo and were ready to go. Only problem, my parents were in Parking Lot B waiting for us and they had already purchased our tickets. We realize Gate A is not where we need to be so we ask the woman there how to get to Parking Lot B. She tells us to go out the corner and up the block and turn right when the street ends. So we walk the 15 minutes in the direction she says only to end up in Parking Lot C! Yikes. We walk up to the guy collecting money from the cars (and yes, a car pulled up behind us as we were asking him directions!) He informed us that Parking Lot B was literally on the opposite side of the Zoo from where we were and that the best way to get to them was to go through the Zoo.

We discovered that our parents could return the tickets they had purchased for us so we bought tickets and then tickets on the shuttle because everyone informed us that we couldn't possibly walk to where we needed to go. As we were on the shuttle driving to the other side of the park my brother was looking at the map and realized it would have taken us 10-15 minutes to walk it. Oh well...lesson learned.

(The trainer feeding the sea lions.)

After meeting up with our mom, dad & Bridget (our grandmother) we caught the feeding of the sea lions! I love the sea lions. They did all sorts of fun tricks and it was fun to watch them.

(A picture of the baby sea lion - he was just a pup!)

After the Sea Lions we walked through the monkey house, saw the bears, baboons, tigers, etc. We also took a tram ride through the Asia section of the park. There we got to see the elephants, rhinoceros, different kinds of deer, wild horses among other things. We spent a good 2 1/2 hours wandering the zoo.

(The Giraffes!)

All in all once we met up we really had a nice time at the zoo. We just walked our own pace and saw what we were able to see. Everyone had a really nice time! Jon and I need to go back this summer...I didn't get to see the gorillas which I'd like to see and Jon has never been to The Bronx Zoo and it's on our NYC list. So I'm sure I'll be posting about it again. It's a great day trip for people of ALL ages!

Post in Comments:

What is your favorite animal to see at the Zoo?

Mine is easily the penguins or the giraffes!

Tuesday Travels: A Day in Downtown NYC

(Tiffany & I outside Fraunces Tavern after lunch!)

Ever since Jon and I moved to NYC - we've been talking with our friends Gary & Tiffany about doing a downtown New York tourist day. After two years of talking about it last Saturday we actually did it! We started out with lunch at Fraunces Tavern. This was an establishment frequented by General George Washington himself. He was good friends with the then owner and this building was used for many secret meetings. He gave his farewell address to his officers on the eve of his retirement on December 4, 1783. It's a pretty historic place. We went there for lunch and ate in the Tavern side. It was pretty empty, which I wasn't that surprised by. What did surprise us was the quality of the food. We were expecting an over-priced tourist trap and while it was a little overpriced I have to say that the Turkey Club was amazing!!! I would definitely go back there again - I love being that close to history.

(Jon and I standing where George Washington was inaugurated as the 1st President of the United States.)

After that we mosied on down past the Stock Exchange to the place where George Washington was inaugurated as the 1st President of theUnited States. We stood up on the stairs and imagined what it must have been like with the streets lined with people during the birth of our Nation. Pretty powerful stuff!

(A View of Trinity Church from Wall Street.)

Then we headed up to Trinity Church. This building used to be the tallest building in New York prior to the building of the skyscrapers. Pretty crazy to think about now! The church on the inside is beautiful but very small. Much smaller than I was expecting. We went in and walked around and then spent some time meandering through the graveyard. Alexander Hamilton and Robert Foulton (inventor of the Steam Ship) are both buried here so we found their tombs and read a few others.

(Jon, myself, Tiffany & Gary with the bull!)

We then of course went and got our picture taken with the Bull! He looks pretty angry. The main purpose of our day was that we were going to visit the Skyscraper Museum over in Battery Park. It was only $5 to get in but once inside we understood why. It's pretty small, just one floor, and we were unfortunately disappointed. Don't get me wrong we were glad we went because we would have wondered what it was like, but it didn't live up to our expectations. I thought there would be all these great exhibits on the building of the skyscrapers in NYC during the early 1900's. You know all those old pictures of the guys sitting way up in the sky on those beams seeming to not have a care in the world??? Instead there was none of that and the whole museum is a visiting exhibit. So the exhibit we saw was about Hong Kong and how it compared to New York - which is the Skyscraper capital of the world. We're all glad we went but it's not something we would recommend.

Afer that we walked down to Wagner Park where you can see the Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island. We went to Gigino a little restaurant right there with outdoor seating and enjoyed a couple of glasses of wine and bruschetta (delish!) It was a nice way to end the day with great conversation, great friends, great wine, and great views! I think that Jon and I may have to go back there this summer for dinner because the food looked amazing.

Post in Comments:

Have you spent time exploring downtown NYC? If so, what's your favorite thing to do downtown?

Tuesday Travels: Biking Around NYC

(Jon on the West Side Highway path - with Jersey in the background!)

One of the items on our list of things to do in NYC was to bike around the entire island of Manhattan. Now we didn't quiet accomplish that on Sunday, April 26th when we headed up to the Upper East Side to rent bikes & helmets, but we still had fun. We rented our bikes from Bike Heaven on East 62nd between 2nd and 1st. It didn't take that long and we were off on our way.

I'm not an incredibly strong biker, I probably bike once a year, and it's always a challenging experience for me, yet I continue to suggest these crazy bike riding ideas and end up doing them. Last year when we biked Valley Forge (another one of my crazy ideas that almost got us killed when our bus driver dropped us off in the wrong spot on the side of an almost highway that we had to cross...but that's another story for another time) I broke the bike (chain fell off) and didn't learn how to use the gears until we were almost done (and let me tell you those hills at Valley Forge without bike gears - really tough!)

So needless to say, you can imagine how nervous I was about biking in NYC. I informed Jon that I was going to walk my bike to the path about 3 blocks away along the river because I wasn't comfortable riding next to the taxis on 2nd Avenue. He met me there opting to ride.

(Me at the top of the stairs on the East Side River after we carried our bikes up - Roosevelt Island is behind me - I think!)

We biked up the east river to about 116th street where the path ended. We opted to just go straight across the island as opposed to going North and going all the way around. I made it across the island biking in the road with the cars although it wasn't nearly as congested up at 116th street. When we got to the West Side Highway or River Side Park we biked down to about 67th street.

At that time we decided to be adventurous because Jon really wanted to bike in Central Park. We biked part way across Manhattan in a pretty congested area to Central Park and entered at 72nd Street (and yes, we survived and it wasn't nearly as scary as I thought it would be but I was also feeling more comfortable on the bike having been on it for about 2 hours). We biked down Central Park and exited on the Southeast corner and then rode in the streets again heading back to the bike shop.

It was definitely an adventure. It was such a great way to see NYC in a different way. It was calming, relaxing, there were a ton of other people out on the paths enjoying the perfect NY day, and we just really loved every minute of it.

Next time I think we're going to rent bikes down by the Seaport and bike along the path towards the Southern part of the island! I'll make sure to blog and let you know how it goes....:)

Post in Comments:

Have you ever biked in NYC? Do you enjoy it or find it hectic?

What is your favorite bike route?

Catch-All Fridays: Bar Review, Donnybrook

Friends of mine in Boston started ABC Club last year. The premise is that every other Thursday a group of people get together at a bar and over the course of the year you work your way through bars A-Z!

Recently, Shion, Jenn and myself started the NYC Chapter of ABC Club. So I've decided that every other Friday (or every Friday until I catch up) I'm going to review the alphabet bar that we visited.

ABC Club is awesome for a number of reasons: 1) It's the perfect excuse to get together with all of your friends on a Thursday night. 2) It's a great way to explore the bars of Manhattan. Not only are we working our way through the alphabet but we're also visiting different neighborhoods in NYC. 3) It's a great opportunity to meet new people whether it's to network for work, make a love connection or just make a new friend! 4) It's just a fun time!

Last night was D Bar, we're already 4 letters in. D Bar was Donnybrook in the Lower East Side. Donnybrook is a relatively new bar with an upscale Irish pub interior. The set up is great for a large group because there are tables that line the wall and chairs that line the bar and a lot of empty space in the middle for people to congregate. Meghan the owner was very accomodating. I called before hand and she reserved two large tables for us, arranged happy hour to be extended from 7-10PM for ABC Club NYC members and then even showed up and introduced herself! The bartenders were very attentive and the music was perfect - a little bit of DMB, U2, music you want to hear when you're out.

All in all Donnybrook was a great find. Everyone that was there last night seemed to really love the bar and I would definitely return for a chill night in the LES. The one downfall I guess is that they do not serve food. In typical NYC fashion they do have take-out menus at the bar and you can order food to be delivered to the bar.

We had a great time there. I would definitely recommend it.

Post in Comments:

Are you a member of ABC Club NYC or ABC Club Boston? If so, what's been your favorite bar so far?

Recipe Wednesdays: The Cupcake

I am a sugar addict - there - I said it! Every afternoon I get this craving for something sugary whether it's chocolate, candy, a cookie, whatever. Sometimes I give in to my craving and sometimes I just have the snack I packed.

Since moving to NYC I have been eagerly awaiting trying the infamous Magnolia Bakery cupcake. However, the location was not really close to my house, and the long lines that I constantly heard about kept me away.

That was until last December on the way to our Theater Benefit, my co-worker Rachelle and I, spotted Magnolia Bakery midtown (photo above). We were very excited! We decided that for the next birthday or celebration we'd have Magnolia cupcakes.


The first celebratory event was the engagement of our other co-worker. I gladly walked to the corner of 49th and 6th (not too far from our offices) to have my first Magnolia Baker experience. It smells like heaven when you walk inside. There are separate lines depending on what it is you are looking for (cakes, cookies, cupcakes, etc). See the cute cupcake sign to the left!

Since that day last fall we have had 3 other occassions for celebration and I've decided which cupcake I prefer. The first time I got a cupcake I got chocolate cake with vanilla frosting. It was delicious but it was a little too sugary and that's saying a lot coming from me. The red velvet frosting looking more creamy then sugary so I wasn't really interested in that, but the chocolate cake with choclate frosting intrigued me....

It is so deliciously decadent, it is everything that a cupcake should be! NYC is cupcake central. I've had Crumbs cupcakes (they're alright - I personally do not like their frosting), I've had Sugar Sweet Sunshine Bakery's cupcakes (those are pretty good), I've had Amy's Bread's cupcakes (those are delish) and now I've had Magnolia's Bakery (I don't think I'll return to a different cupcake store when I can get Magnolia!

So when you come to NYC and you see that line the answer is, Yes, it's worth it, you should wait, they're delicious!

Post in Comments:

Have you had a Magnolia Bakery Cupcake? Did you think they were worth the wait?

If not, what's your favorite cupcake in NYC? And if you're not from NYC, what's your favorite cupcake place from where you're from?

Entertainment Thursday: Phantom of the Opera - The Play vs. The Movie

On Friday Jon and I saw The Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic Theater. It was a treat to ourselves. Back in December orchestera seats were on sale for $60 per ticket which is essentially buy one get one free in the orchestra. We had each seen Phantom once before. I was definitely in middle school when I saw Phantom and Jon saw Phantom for the first time in 2003. We both love love love the music from this show and decided that at buy one get one free it was time to see it again!

All I have to say is Phantom and Les Mis, in my opinion, are just in totally different stratospheres compared to other Broadway shows and it's not just the music, it's the entire theatrical production that puts them on such a different level. When the Phantom takes Christine to his lair and their in the boat and you just feel like they're really floating on water with the fog and the lighting it's just amazing (possibly my favorite scene besides the opening or masquerade)!

I cried at the end because I just think that The Phantom of the Opera is such a tragic character. His one desire is to be loved but he doesn't understand what love is....I don't want to say more in the event that anyone reading this blog post hasn't seen the show or movie!

On our 15 block walk home Jon and I were singing songs from the show, talking about our favorite scenes, disecting which performances we liked the best and which the least, and just in a general state of europhia from seeing a live show on Broadway.

As we were walking we started comparing the show to the movie that was released in 2004 starring Gerard Butler as Phantom and Emmy Rossum as Christine. We saw the movie in the theater and then later purchased it and have watched it quite a few times. We LOVE it - it allows us to see the story & music unfold again and again without having to pay the hefty theater ticket price. However, over the past 5 years as I've spoken to people about it there seems to be a strong dislike for the movie among those that love the show in the theater. Jon and I agree that of course while it's better in the theater, we feel that the movie is a good representation of the show and the music and sticks very closely to the story which we like.

Regardless, of which you prefer, The Phantom of the Opera, in my opinion, is a must see theater experience. My favorite songs from the show were Music of the Night, All I Ask of You, Point of No Return and of course The Phantom of the Opera. I think after writing this blogpost I might have to put the CD on:)

Post in Comments:

What is your favorite song from The Phantom of the Opera?

Do you prefer the theatrical production or the movie? And why?

Tuesday Travels: The Empire State Building

Well, it's about time that we crossed this NYC experience off our list - The Empire State Building! We had both been there before moving to New York City but seeing as we live so close to this massive and beautiful building we felt that it would be sad to be it's neighbor for 3 years and never visit it.

The other weekend we saw that there was no line outside and decided "today is the day!" No line outside does not mean no line inside. It probably took us a good hour to get to the top between waiting online for tickets, waiting on line for one elevator, waiting on line for another elevator, etc.

The views however are amazing! I definitely appreciated the visit more as a New Yorker then ever as a visitor to the city because I finally knew what I was looking at. I knew all the buildings, the rivers, what direction I was facing, etc. It really is breathtaking to see the park, the Chrysler Building (see picture above), and the southern tip of NYC (also see pic above). We spent a good 30-40 minutes up at the top pointing out different sites, talking about what it must have been like to build the Empire State Building and just enjoying the view.

I would definitely recommend this to visitors and native New Yorkers alike. Next tall building to visit...Top of the Rock so we can enjoy the view of the Empire State Building!

Post in Comments:

Have you ever been to the top of the Empire State Building?

Favorite Things Friday - Musicals

Who doesn't love musicals? The feeling you get when you're sitting in your seat and the lights go out and then the curtain lifts and TADA the musical begins...it gives me chills just thinking about it. I went to my first musical, Les Miserable, when I was 10-11 years old. Leading up to the big night my dad would play the soundtrack over and over again so that I would know the songs when we went to see the show. It was a magical moment. I've seen Les Mis 6 times since then...2 more times in New York, twice in London, once in Boston and once in Witchita, Kansas just last summer! It is hands down my favorite show, probably because it was my first that I saw, or the first that I knew all the words to, but I never tire of seeing it and I cry every time.

My parents were really great about taking us to see musicals as we grew up. We usually went at least once a year as a family. I wish I had kept track of all the plays that I've seen - I'll try to list them all below at the bottom of this post - I'm sure I'll be missing a few.

Jon and I saw numerous plays when we lived in Boston. We tried to go every year. Living in NYC surrounded by theater it's hard not to go see a show (although the prices make you think long and hard before you go...) I've seen 8 shows since I moved back here just 2 years ago. Most recently Jon and I saw South Pacific on February 13th. It was our big Christmas present from my parents. We loved it (there is nothing like a dame...nothing in the world...)! It's playing at the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center and the theater is set up so that literally there is not a bad seat in the house. The coolest thing about the theater is that the stage moves back so that you can see the Orchestra while they're playing! The show was lighthearted and fun at times and more serious at others - the perfect mix for a good musical.

Next on our agenda: Phantom of the Opera on Friday, March 13th. This is Jon's favorite musical and we've both only seen it once. In December I stumbled upon a buy one get one free ticket promotion for Phantom so we decided to splurge and see it again. I can't wait.

List of Shows I've Seen (not all musicals & seen in various locations including NYC, Boston, Providence, London, Witchita & Oklahoma City)

Les Miserable
Phantom of the Opera
Miss Saigon
1776
The Lion King
Pal Joey
The Drowsy Chaperone
The Producers
Cyrano de Bergerac
Pygmallion
Avenue Q
A Chorus Line
South Pacific
Brigadoon
Death of a Saleman
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to th eForum
Peter Pan
Evita
Tommy
Mamma Mia!
Damn Yankees
Billy Elliot
Guys and Dolls
Jersey Boys
Rent
Bring in the Noise Bring in the Funk
Stomp
Blue Man Group
Hairspray
Urinetown
Blood Brothers
The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged
A Chorus Line

That's all I can think of off the top of my head! Not too shabby!

The Tenement Museum

Jon and I continue to "Staycation" - or rather explore our surroundings in the remarkable city we live in full of wonderful new learning experiences! A couple of weeks ago we visited a museum that we've tried to visit 3 times since we've moved here - The Tenement Museum.

I'm sure you're asking yourself "What do you mean tried to visit mulitple times?" The first time we went we could not find it, literally. The 2nd time we tried to go during the weekend of my grandmother's 75th bday extravaganza but the family lost steam and interest and The Tenement Museum was swapped for shopping and the South Street Seaport.

Thus, on this our 3rd time we were determined to find it and enjoy our experience. We got to the street it is on and once again could not find it. We hopped into a visitor's center for the Lower East Side and they kindly gave us the correct address (our guidebook had it wrong!) We walked back up the street to 108 Orchard Street and found the visitor's center for the Museum. It was jammin' - tons of people deciding which tour to go on.

There are 5 tours in all: Getting By, Piecing It Together, The Moores: An Irish Family in America, Confino Family Living History Program, and the Lower East Side Walking Tour. After researching the different tours and the times we decided that for our first visit to The Tenement Museum we were going to do the Getting By: Immigrants Weathering Hard Times. The description reads as follows:

Discover how immigrants survived economic depressions at 97 Orchard Street between 1863 and 1935. Visit the restored homes of the German-Jewish Gumpertz family, whose patriarch disappeared during the Panic of 1873, and the Italian-Catholic Baldizzi family, who lived through the Great Depression.

We felt that given the economic times in NYC currently this tour would be very interesting. After purchasing our tickets we watched the 2 short films they show in the visitor center. The first film is about The Tenement Museum, the history of the museum, the programs the museum offers, etc. The second film is part of a documentary from the hisorty channel about the history of life in the tennements on the Lower East Side. Both were very interesting and an enjoyable way to pass the time as we waited for our tour.

The Tenement Museum is best saved for a nice weather day. Part of the tour is outside and even the part that is inside is in a very very old building that doesn't have the luxury of central heat. We started out our tour on Orchard Street where our guide (wish I remembered his name because he was great!) gave us a general overview of life in the tenements on the Lower East Side and tried to paint the picture of what it might be like to be an immigrant new to this country back in the 19th Century.

Then we walked over to 97 Orchard Street just across the street where we were able to enter this building built in 1863. It was like stepping back in time. The hallways were narrow and dark and we spent some time initially in the front stairwell talking about what life would be like in the common spaces shared by the 110 occupants in the building. When the building was originally built there were outside privy's (no indoor plumbing in the building then!)

After our discussion in the stairwell we walked up one flight of stairs and entered the Gumpertz Apartment. What's so fascinating about The Tenement Museum is that the stories of the families that they share with you are true. They've actually found living family members who know the outcomes of what happened to these people and they research any documents they can find in any kind of public records. This makes the experience so much more interesting because you stand their imagining a real family in this tiny 300+ square foot apartment and what it must have been like for them.

Once we heard the story of the Gumpertz Family we moved down the hall to another re-furbished apartment of the Baldizzi family. Here we even got to hear a tape of an interview with the daughter of the family that actually lived in the apartment. The tour was informative, and everyone on our tour was full of questions and were great participators making the whole experience interactive and engaging.

Jon and I had such a great day visiting The Tenement Museum and we cannot wait to come back and take the other 4 tours that are available. It's definitely worth the visit - it's a very different museum experience in NYC. As we left we stopped at Gus' pickles where they have barrels of pickles out on the sidewalk like the old times - we got two sour dill pickles for $1. Rare that you can get anything for $1 nowadays - they were delicious!

After our tour we sauntered over to McSorley's Old Ale House for an afternoon pint sticking with our theme of "transporting" ourselves back in time. You certainly feel transported as you walk into McSorley's filled with people lining up at the bar and sharing old round wooden tables, sawdust on the floor and waiters carrying upwards of 10 half pints in each hand! It was a fun way to relax and take some time to talk about our experience at the museum and what it must have been like to live in the tenements back in the days and for that matter what it's like to live in the tenements in the Lower East Side today.

All in all it was another great day exploring NYC!

A Day on the Upper West Side

As I said in my previous post, we took advantage of the 3-day weekend to do some sightseeing! One of the neighborhoods that we have barely explored since we moved to NYC is the Upper West Side. So MLK day we set off for a full half day on the Upper West Side.

First stop was the much talked about Popover Cafe. I've heard so much about this place and I've wanted to try it for awhile. We kept it simple and each ordered a popover with strawberry preserves and a fruit salad to share. The popovers are sooo good! Light & fluffy and just delicious with jam or without. The atmostphere of the restaurant is incredibly cozy and friendly. We loved it!

Next we headed up to Ulysses S. Grant's tomb. It was designed after Napoleon's tomb in Paris, which we visited back in 2005. I love learning about the President's so I was very excited for this particular part of our day. We were greeted by a very eager National Parks ranger. I would imagine people aren't pouring into Grant's Tomb. We spent the first 30 minutes in conversation with the Ranger. We had lots of questions and he was more than happy to provide us with the answers. Then we read the two bulletins they have set up that provide information on Ulysses S. Grant's childhood, marriage, presidency and the civil war. While off the beaten path a little I would definitely recommend visiting this National Park. It's a quick visit and you learn a bit about history while you're at it. The space is beautiful - it's right along the path along the Hudson and has a big park leading up to it. It's quite magnificent looking and I would image even prettier when not covered in snow.

Then we walked over to Columbia and walked the campus - neither of us had ever been there. Next we headed over to St. John the Divine's - a beautiful unfinished Cathedral. We spent a good 30-40 minutes exploring the cathedral and appreciating the amazing stained glass windows.

Our last stop on our little UWS tour was to head to Tom's Restaurant most notably known as the place the Seinfeld gang frequented. Jon loves Seinfeld so this my little surprise for him. The outside is exactly the same but the inside is very different - they obviously didn't really eat there during the show:) The food however was very good. We both had turkey burgers and they were delish. It was crowded and fast paced but I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and would return in a heart beat if I ever found myself at West 110th and Broadway!

All in all it was a great day and we thoroughly enjoyed our Upper West Side Adventure!

The Whitney

MLK Weekend we took advantage of three consecutive days off to tackle some of the items left on our NYC list of things we still need to do.

Since it was cold outside we decided that an indoor activity wouldn't be a bad idea so we decided to check out The Whitney Museum. Mind you we had tried to go to The Whitney on January 2nd and the line was around the corner (we also tried to go to The Guggenheim on January 2nd and that line was around the corner. Apparently January 2nd is museum day in NYC - note to self for next year!)

We got there right as it was opening. The permanent collection at The Whitney was Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney personal collection of 20th Century American artists and offered it to The MET who didn't want them. She then decided to found her own museum to house her collection.

The top two floors house the permanent collection. There are some beautiful beautiful Ed Hoppers in the collection and overall I enjoyed seeing it. We worked our way downstairs to the Alexander Calder exhibit. Calder is a sculptor who specializes in the use of wire. The whole floor was filled with really cool wire sculptures. My favorite was The Circus (which is part of the permanent collection)! He made an entire circus out of wire & metal and it's on display at the museum. In addition, you can watch this clip of him performing The Circus - it was so funny. It was neat to be standing among all of these people, young, old, New Yorkers and tourists all laughing and smiling as we watched this video. If you'd like to watch the video click here. And enjoy! It was my favorite part of the museum.

The thing I love about some of the smaller museums in New York is that you can have this great experience, see beautiful art, and do it all in 2 hours or less. I love The MET but sometimes it can be overwhelming. We were also fortunate that the visiting exhibits were cool to see.

I would recommend The Whitney - Jon and I really enjoyed our visit.

New York, New York!

So back at the end of 2008 I mentioned that Jon and I would be moving to Hoboken. Little did I know that I was telling you all a fib! Ok, well an unintentional fib. We started looking in Hoboken and since February 1st is such a bizarre time to be renting a place we just weren't finding what we were looking for. Jon went back to our landlord and negotiated our rent down so we're staying in the NYC for another year!

I have to say, when I first moved here I didn't embrace it. I missed Boston, I missed our friends in Boston and running in Boston...well you get the picture. New York to me at that time was just crowded, exhausting, expensive, pushy and too big!

How surprised was I to find that I was sad at the prospect of leaving NYC. When we were talking about our move I found myself saying I'm going to miss the convenience of everything (the museums, the restaurants, the theater, etc, etc). I'm going to miss all of our great New York friends. I'm going to miss our apartment and being able to walk wherever we need to go. And so on, and so on. So how happy was I when we decided to stay? So Happy! Another year and I want to make the most of it!

Here is the list I posted back in 2007 when I started this blog of all the things that Jon & I wanted to do in NYC while we were here. We've been pretty good about getting out and experiencing the city. I've bolded everything we've done and added some new ones. I'll keep you posted on our progress!

1) Go to the top of the Empire State Building
2) Visit Museums (Moma, Frick, Folk Art Museum, the MET, Museum of Natural History, The Museum of the City of New York, Guggenheim, Whitney, Tenement Museum, and the Skyscraper Museum.)
3) See Broadway Shows (Pal Joey, The Drowsy Chaperone, Avenue Q, Cyrano de Bergerac, A Chorus Line, Pygmallion and Jersey Boys. We have tickets in February for South Pacific and tickets in March for Phantom of the Opera.)
4) Explore Central Park (run in CP, rent a row boat in CP, take a walking tour of CP, go ice skating in CP, etc)
5) Visit the Botanical Gardens
6) See the Radio City Music Christmas Show!
7) Watch the balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade get blown up!
8) Hike in the Adirondacks
9) Give my DH the true Jersey Shore experience
10) Take the Circle Line tour
11) Bike around the Island of Manhattan
12) Try to see the David Letterman Show
13) Visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
14) Take the Staten Island Ferry
15) Explore all the different neighborhoods of NYC (Brooklyn, Battery Park, UWS, UES, LES, Little Italy, Soho, the Village, Midtown, Hell's Kitchen, etc)
16) Become more involved in Red Sox nation in NYC
17) Take one of those Red Bus Tours through NYC
18) Go to Medieval Times
19) Go to the Bronx Zoo
20) Visit the Cloisters (that's for you Mom!)
21) Go to a Little Italy festival
22) Spend some time exploring and appreciating Grand Central Station
23) Visit the Intrepid
24) Carnegie Hall & Deli
25) Top of the Rock Observation Deck
26) Dare I say, New York City for New Year's Eve....we'll see!
27) Eat at Peter Luger's
28) Walk from the top of Manhattan (Marble Hill) to the tip of Manhattan (Wall Street) via Broadway
29) Ulysses S. Grant's tomb
30) Tour the Wall Street Area (eat at the pub where Washington used to eat, Trinity Church, the bull, etc)
31) Explore Chelsea Market

Also, if anyone has any fun suggestions I'm all ears. So leave a comment!