*** This post was first shared in January 2014 after I finished a year of doing a new activity in New York every day. This blog is largely defunct so this post is a great place to start if you’re visiting New York and looking for things to do! For more on this project, visit …
Read MoreTag / 2013
January 1, 2014
…started off the New Year with a bang at Prospect Park
New Year’s Eve can be rubbish can’t it? The first year I got here, I paid $100 to get into a creepy club with sticky floors, lecherous men and no way of getting to the bar. I vowed never to do it again. This year I also had to factor in a 7 a.m. shift …
Read MoreDecember 31, 2013
…watched the ball rise
Tonight after work I scuttled up to Bryant Park after spotting that its regular juggling class was still going ahead, despite looming New Year celebrations. But when I got there – there wasn’t a bean bag in sight. Gaah. Wandering around the park at a loss for what to do, I spied a crowd gathering …
Read MoreNovember 27, 2013
…visited the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons
Thanksgiving may be America’s most beloved tradition, but following close behind is the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which bobs its way through the city each year before everyone settles down to turkey and sprouts. I’ll be in the office for Thanksgiving but I didn’t want to miss out entirely – so tonight I headed to …
Read MoreNovember 16, 2013
…saw the Frick Collection
Saturday = Tourist Day. Today I went to the Frick Collection, an art museum on the east side of Central Park and the sort of place that features on tourist ‘to do’ lists. But while it’s a famous spot, I had zero idea what would be inside. As it turns out, it’s filled with recognizable paintings by the European masters, …
Read MoreNovember 13, 2013
…saw Holiday Under the Stars
It’s not too early to start Christmas shopping, is it? If you fancy hitting the stores at the Times Warner Center at Columbus Circle, you’ll be in for an extra festive treat: Holiday Under the Stars. Suspended in the atrium of the shopping centre are 14 LED stars of varying sizes. From 5pm each night, …
Read MoreNovember 5, 2013
…voted (kind of)
We’ve been gearing up for the mayoral election here in New York City for months now – sexting scandals and all – so I knew today’s new activity should be a nod to that (the election, not the sexting). And what better way to experience it than to be part of the democratic process by …
Read MoreNovember 3, 2013
…cheered at the New York City Marathon
When I woke up late after a few G&Ts last night, thousands of others were already in Staten Island to start a 26.2-mile run through the city. Feeling surprisingly okay and excited by the idea of cheering them along as they completed this amazing feat, I headed to the ING New York City Marathon’s route with …
Read MoreNovember 3, 2013
…went on a Vintage Crawl
Brooklyn is bursting with vintage stores and once every year, there’s a day you can get your hands on their beautiful wares for cut-down prices: The Vintage Crawl. The Crawl features about 25 stores across Bushwick, Greenpoint and Williamsburg, where items have anywhere between 10 and 50 per cent off. The event makes vintage pieces …
Read MoreOctober 31, 2013
…marched in the Halloween parade
In the U.K., Halloween passes without so much as a ‘boo’. I’ve been to a couple of parties and donned a fair few homemade costumes over the years, but nothing on the same scale as they do over here in the U.S. As I walked home from work, I dodged swarms of mini monsters and …
Read MoreOctober 29, 2013
…got spooked at a haunted house
In the spirit of Halloween, I decided to give myself a fright tonight at a haunted house. To be honest, before I went, I was pretty skeptical about whether or not I’d actually feel the fear. But oh dear god, it scared the bejeezus out of me. I headed to ‘Killers2‘ housed at the Clemente Soto …
Read MoreOctober 18, 2013
…raised a glass to Cider Week
Fridays usually mean a bevvy or five – but this week there was an excuse: The start of Cider Week 2013. The 10-day festival features talks, tastings and classes at around 50 different pubs, bars and markets across the city – and tonight was the kickoff event: The night market at Union Square. Ryan and …
Read MoreOctober 16, 2013
…bought American-made crafts
All summer I’ve enjoyed New York’s outdoor markets, but it’s getting chillier and darker, and no one wants to be browsing in the cold. Tonight I checked out a market celebrating crafts made in America – but thankfully this was under the gorgeous blue skies of Grand Central Station. The two-day fair, American Made, is …
Read MoreOctober 13, 2013
…snooped around a stranger’s home with Open House NY
Even though moving apartments is always a pain, I love it because you get to snoop around other people’s houses. So when I learned there was a city-wide event this weekend where you could do exactly that without having to feign interest in moving in, I was very keen. Open House New York has been …
Read MoreOctober 6, 2013
…went to the Havemeyer Sugar Sweets Festival
I had asked friends to come to the Fourth Havemeyer Sugar Sweets Festival with me today but they backed out. I was not only left confounded as to why anyone wouldn’t want to go to a giant bake sale, I was also left not really wanting to go myself. But this is where the power …
Read MoreSeptember 30, 2013
…joined the crowds at Atlantic Antic
You’d have thought that the horrifying San Gennaro would be enough to put me off street fairs for life but this weekend, the city’s biggest street festival was in town and I couldn’t resist. Atlantic Antic is the oldest (it started in 1974) and largest (it has 500 vendors along one mile) street fair in …
Read MoreSeptember 26, 2013
…visited Photoville
In the past six months, somehow I’ve become a crier. I used to let stories I wrote at work wash over me, but now I’m forever fumbling for the tissues. One of my news editors even told me recently that she can tell it’s a good story if she hears a sniff from my desk. I’m …
Read MoreSeptember 13, 2013
…feasted at San Gennaro
Last year when I lived in Little Italy, there was nothing I dreaded more than the Feast of San Gennaro. Every year for 10 days, the festival fills the six blocks stretching from Prince Street to Canal Street – and my recollection of it is noise, tackiness and stinky, greasy food. Of course, living there, …
Read MoreSeptember 11, 2013
…visited the 9/11 Tiles for America
It’s been 12 years since Mr Caldicot sat down our Year 10 drama class and told us America had been attacked. I remember Rebecca getting upset – her father was traveling in the States that day – but the rest of us sat in a numb, confused silence. The sheer scale and enormous heartbreak surrounding …
Read MoreSeptember 10, 2013
…square danced in Bryant Park
After work today, I was tired and just wanted to go home. But Ryan and I had made plans to go square dancing for my new thing, so I dragged myself to Bryant Park and screamed, ‘I hate todaysthedayi!‘ when I met him. Thankfully, it turns out that square dancing is the best remedy for …
Read MoreSeptember 8, 2013
…gorged at the Vendys
Food trucks are an integral part of the New York foodie landscape but I’ve not visited one since the start of this blog. Today I more than made up for lost time with a crash course in the city’s best food trucks – at the annual Vendy Awards. The Vendy Awards showcase around 25 of …
Read MoreSeptember 1, 2013
…danced at a music festival in Sussex
Summer is music festival season but I’ve not had one lined up for years. So when I heard there was one happening in my home county of West Sussex, I thought it was worth a weekend trip across the Atlantic. Especially because this one was very close to home: It was in my parents’ back …
Read MoreAugust 27, 2013
…played musical chairs in Bryant Park
I’ve played tag on Wall Street and taken part in a massive pillow fight at Washington Square Park, and today I headed to Bryant Park for another of New York’s bizarre free activities: Musical chairs on a very, very large scale. A team of meticulous organizers had placed 20 circles of chairs with around 25 …
Read MoreJuly 31, 2013
…went to a beer festival
I know you must think I’m a bit of a lush after a week of inventing cocktails and necking shots of vodka, so I’m sure you won’t be surprised to learn that yesterday’s new experience was getting a little merry at a beer festival. Good Beer was held at 82Mercer, a sprawling warehouse-esque conference hall …
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