A couple of weeks ago, I learned there’s a castle right in the middle of Central Park. Today was crisp and sunny – and seemed to be the perfect day for a visit. And when I got up there this morning, there was an added treat as the leaves are just changing, turning the park orange and red. Belvedere …
Read MoreTag / NYC
October 24, 2013
…went to a literary night
All year I’ve seen literary readings – prose and poetry – popping up on events calendars but it has taken me 10-and-a-half months to go to one. And this was definitely a great pick as my friend Jim was reading some of his work – and it was cracking. I headed to No. 8, a …
Read MoreOctober 23, 2013
…visited the Time Landscape
Venture to the northeast corner of West Houston and LaGuardia Place, and you’ll also venture back in time. A tiny public park called the ‘Time Landscape’ sits on the corner and features plants and trees that existed in that spot – and across the rest of Manhattan – before the Subways, Starbucks and disgruntled millions …
Read MoreOctober 22, 2013
…saw Stomp
Stomp was first performed in 1991 in Brighton, which is the nearest city to my childhood town – and as it happens, the show is my neighbor here too. I finally decided to head to the Orpheum Theater in the East Village to see it tonight – and I’m very glad I was given this second …
Read MoreOctober 21, 2013
…drank at McSorley’s – New York’s oldest Irish tavern
As a Brit who’s also enjoyed a beer or two in Ireland, I’d like to think I know a real pub when I see one. A lot of bars here in New York claim to be Irish but I’ve never seen any half as authentic as McSorley’s – the city’s first Irish tavern. This East …
Read MoreOctober 20, 2013
…visited Greenpoint’s rooftop farm
When I first visited New York in 2009, my first impression was woah, this place is vertical. Even though the buildings spread out more the further you get away from Manhattan, residents still need to make the most of every inch of possible space. So while people in the country enjoy acres of green land …
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 16, 2013
…saw Art in Odd Places
If you take 14th Street and walk across the city, it’s sheer madness. The street, which is one of the widest downtown, sweeps you past neon chain stores, four-lane roads and the mania of Union Square. And for this week only, it also takes you past an array of outdoor art – but you’d better …
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 12, 2013
…visited The Cloisters
Today I jumped on the subway and about half an hour later, I was in Europe. Or so it seemed. I visited the Cloisters – a museum in Fort Tryon Park in Washington Heights that’s built from European architecture dating between the 12th and 15th centuries. The building and its gardens – which are part …
Read MoreOctober 10, 2013
…ate Carvel
Every now and then I get a reminder that my American friends and I did childhood very differently. Few know who Count Duckula is or the honor that comes with owning a Blue Peter badge, and none understand the joys of a Caramac bar. And it seems I missed out on traditions too; after they …
Read MoreOctober 9, 2013
…saw Madison Square Park’s tree sculptures
I had a date with Katia after work tonight so I had to scuttle to a new thing ASAP. Thankfully this is Manhattan, so finding a great, quick experience nearby wasn’t too hard. Madison Square Park has a new outdoor art exhibit and I wanted to see it before it started getting dark out, so …
Read MoreOctober 3, 2013
…spotted an animation from the Q train
Ryan and I were traveling on the Q train from Brooklyn to Manhattan tonight when he told me to look out the right-hand-side window. Before I knew it, I was looking at a colorful animation created by panels on the walls underground. Check out the video: As you can see, we slowed down halfway through, …
Read MoreOctober 2, 2013
…walked around the Harlem Meer
I was right about needing to make the most of summer and the outdoors before autumn came, because today I was caught out. I had trekked 100 blocks north to check out Central Park’s Conservatory Garden, lured by its lush lawns and dusk closing time. But when I got there, this was all I could …
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 29, 2013
…took a trip to Governors Island
If you look at a map of New York City, there are a few islands dotted around Manhattan. I’ve already been to Roosevelt Island, if you remember, and today I ventured to another: Governors Island – which was good timing because this is the last weekend of the year that it’s open. This is where …
Read MoreSeptember 25, 2013
…shopped at the Union Square Greenmarket
I keep meaning to make a pie with the apples Ryan and I picked at Stone Ridge Orchard on Saturday. So today after work, I nipped up to Union Square to get some extra ingredients. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the Union Square Greenmarket sells fresh and local produce, baked goods and flowers until 6pm. I …
Read MoreSeptember 23, 2013
…watched the sun set from the Brooklyn Heights Promenade
It’s getting darker earlier, and soon enough it’ll be pitch black when I leave work. Today I checked sunset time – 6.51pm – and realized I’d better make the most of dusk while it still exists. And what better way than with the city skyline? After work I jumped on the F train to Jay Street …
Read MoreSeptember 19, 2013
…got the dirt on the Earth Room
New York is full of bizarre things – sheep sculptures at gas stations, zombie parades and loos with transparent walls – but none as bizarre as what I encountered today: A room filled with nothing but 280,000 pounds of dirt. At lunchtime, Hayley and I headed a few blocks north to the Earth Room at …
Read MoreSeptember 17, 2013
…traveled to a ghost subway stop
The subway platform for the 6 train at City Hall used to be one of the most opulent in the transit system’s underground maze. The station, which opened in 1904, was dripping with chandeliers and decked with colored tiles – and some of Manhattan’s richest residents would venture to its vaults after dinner just for …
Read MoreSeptember 14, 2013
…identified trees in Carroll Gardens
New York City isn’t all skyscrapers, office blocks and coffee shops – believe it or not, there are actually a few trees here. But before today, I rarely looked at them – and definitely had no idea what they were. This morning, Hillary and I headed to Carroll Gardens in Brooklyn to wander the beautiful …
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 12, 2013
…ate spaghetti ice cream
A few days ago, I spotted something bouncing around on Twitter: Spaghetti ice cream. Yes, I double took too. What exactly did it mean? Spaghetti with a dollop of ice cream? Ice cream flavored like spaghetti? In fact, it’s something far more delicious: Ice cream piped to look just like your favourite Italian dish. Ryan …
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