New York's Village Halloween Parade

New York's Village Halloween Parade is one of the most extravagant, artistic, diverse, and enthusiastic Halloween celebration in the world Anyone with a costume can take part in the parade and people travel from all over the globe to take part in the parade.  Every year on Halloween these revelers dance up 6th Avenue celebrating New York's creative minds, whacky characters, and of course ward off the evil spirits of All Hallows Eve.

The parade started as the brain child of mask maker Ralph Lee.  It began as a production of Theatre for the New City.  It was meant to be a mile-long "theatrical event" celebrating masks, giant puppets, and musicians.  As it wound through the twisty turn windy circuitous streets of the village, the parade took residents by surprise.  Fortunately is was a delightful surprise and many onlooking even joined in the festivities!  So successful was the parade that it was revived the next year and won an OBIE award!  The Village Voice said it awarded the parade an OBIE "to recognize its artistic achievement and to encourage it to become an annual tradition."  And become a tradition it did!  The next year the parade gained not-for-profit status and was awarded grants to help fund it.  

This year, after being "Frankenstormed" out by Sandy last year, the parade will celebrate its 40th year.  The theme is "Hallelujah Halloween Revival."  It almost didn't happen at all!  Hurricane Sandy did more than dampen the 2012 Parade, it dampened the funding for the 2013 parade as well.  So the Parade did something unprecedented, it launched a kickstarter campaign.   At the last minute, the parade SURPASSED its goal of $50,000 and was even able to raise enough to fun a new float honoring Sandy Relief Helpers & the Cornell Weill Transplant Center.  

This year the parade will feature giant puppet, including the return of the crowd favorite, Basil Twist's "Clock Tower Spider" which last made its parade appearance in 2009.  Dancers, musicians, floats, puppets, masks, and revelers will dance up 6th Avenue beginning at Spring Street and 16th Street.  Anyone with a costume can join in at Spring or Canal Street.  Vehicles must pre-register.  More importantly anyone and everyone who wishes to capture the spirit of New York on Halloween will be watching the parade if they are not in it.  It will be crowded.  It will be crazy.  It will be one New York experience you do not want to miss!:)  See you there!


P.S. Fun Fact.  My very first year in NYC I was IN the parade.  A seamstress friend of mine made me and all of our friends costumes.  We were "Famous Works of Art."  I was the Winged Isis.    Here are embarrassing and incriminating photos.  See if you can name the different works of art we represent as well.

Awesome things happening this weekend - Halloween Edition

This is a very exciting weekend in NYC as its the start of Halloween.  First of all, there are THREE dog costume parades this Saturday, October 26th!   The Battery Park City Dogs Halloween Parade kicks things off at 11:30, followed by the most famous Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade at noon, with SEEPAWS Halloween Costume Contest rounding things out the the South Street Seaport at 2 p.m.  Basically if you love dogs in costumes, Saturday is your day!  New Yorkers love their dogs and creativity runs rampant.

Oh wait - and there is another mini-dog costume contest on Saturday at PUMPKIN FEST in Central Park!  Pumpkin fest is a super fun fall festival in Central Park with live music, pumpkins, and delicious food.  Make sure you get there early though, supplies run out relatively quickly.  

The Saturday event that honestly looks the most intriguing to me is the Haunted Highline Halloween.    This is mainly because I'm a big history nerd and I love the idea meeting historical ghosts while walking down the old elevated railroad.  Pony rides, trick or treating, haunted train tunnels and hay-bale mazes don't sound half bad either.  

Sunday at twilight in Central Park there is a giant pumpkin flotilla/pumpkin sail.  I wish I were free to observe this - it sounds so magical!  

If you're not feeling Halloween-y just yet, you're in luck.  There is a pickle festival happening on Sunday!  12-5 p.m. eat pickles and watch pickling contests.  Follow the link to the Lower East Side Pickle Day.  

I'm also going to give some friends a shout out.  I have several friends who give ghost tours of the city. I feel these are great ways to learn about the city's history as well as get into the Halloween spirit.  My friend Amada Anderson gives spooktacular Haunted Broadway Tours.    (Side note: did the person who coined to term "Spooktacular" trade mark it?  They'd be making bank by now.)  A company I used to work for, Ghosts of New York, also has absolutely wonderful ghost tours.  

Also this is the perfect time of year to visit the Merchant's House Museum - New York's most haunted house!  All weekend they will be hosting candle-lit ghost tours of the house and on Sunday they will have an 1865 funeral re-enactment and graveyard procession at 5:30 p.m.  There are guided tours daily.

So get out there and celebrate Halloween New York Style - or eat a lot of pickles!:)

  

Winter Village at Bryant Park

Bryant Park's Winter Village is about to return!  NEXT WEEKEND!

Everyone loves the Winter Village!  First of all there is a free ice skating rink!  Well, it's not exactly free.  If you have you own ice skates and don't want to put anything in a locker, it's free.  They have lockers but you must provide your own lock or rent a "bag" to put your belonging in.  You also have to pay for ice skate rental.  Other than that it's FREE!  More importantly, it is super fun.  You can skate outdoors while viewing the Empire State Building, Bank of America Building, Bryant Park Library, and the Winter Village Shops that have been set up around the rink.

If you prefer watching the ice skating, you can visit Celius, a two-story lounge that is set up overlooking the rink.  You can enjoy fancy cocktails and hip music while watching couples simultaneously try to romance each other while clinging on to an ice skating rink wall for dear life on the skating rink below.  The one time I went to Celius the drinks were delicious.

The holiday shops are usually the main draw.  There are over 125 boutique-style holiday shops set up around Bryant Park. You can buy locally handmade jewelry, Christmas scented candles, giant oversized Jacques Torres cookies and hot chocolates, mittens that look like alligators, Albert Einstein finger puppets, scented salts from the dead-sea to help make your bath time more exotic, etc… Basically if you're looking for fun quirky gifts, get thee to the Winter Village Holiday Shops.  

Here is what the rink and the shops look like at the moment as they set up in Bryant Park!

Awesome Things Happening in NYC

Sorry this entry is rather short -it's hard to be in two operas running in rep, working, and auditioning, but there is awesomeness happening this weekend and I thought you should know about it!:)

If you're walking through the Village - visit the Jefferson Market Garden Festival - they will have pumpkins and Halloween crafts!
http://www.jeffersonmarketgarden.org

FIND A BANKSY!  Accalimed and elusive street artist Banksy is engaged in a monthlong "residency" here in New York City.  Every day he created and unveils a new piece of street art.  After he completes his masterpiece, he posts abut it on residencies official website.  Some pieces are even accompanied by audio guides.
http://www.banksyny.com

Visit a haunted house!  No one does extravagant haunted houses like NYC!
http://www.bloodmanor.com

Visit the South Street Seaport for their Fall Festival.  Gone are the summer days of lobster rolls and Smorgasbar slushies, but never mind, giant pretzels, bratwurst, and beer have taken their place!
http://www.southstreetseaport.com/events/#

HONK!  And extravaganza of global street music!
http://honkfest.org/external_pages/honk-nyc/


Also  - I will soon be moving this blog over to a wordpress page.  I also need a new name for the blog so any and all ideas are welcome!  Let me know!:)

And here's a beautiful photo of the seaport taken from a boat on this perfect afternoon!  

I found a Banksy!

I found the Banksy 9/11 tribute on Staple and Jay!  More on Banksy and street later but I was so excited I wanted to share the news!:-)

Awesome Things Happening this Weekend - October 12/13 edition

Awesome things happening in NYC this weekend!

If you are hungry and want a taste of New York - make you way to Williamsburg, Brooklyn this Saturday and visit Smorgasburg.  (They will be in DUMBO on Sunday.)  No place in the world does street food the way New York City does, and Smorgasburg brings together the best of the best in one lot.  I took a group to Smorgasburg last weekend and they were incredibly impressed with the variety, creativity, and witty names of all the food stands.  Their favorite name was "Bite Me,"  a stand that sold bite sized cheesecakes.  They were intrigues by "Ramen Burger,"  a burger stand that used ramen noodles instead of buns.  They ended up getting smoked ribs from a Jamaican food stand while I got chicken and and waffles from "The Buttermilk Channel NYC."   The last weekend to visit Smorgasburg is that of Novemeber 23+24.

If you are feeling more Halloweeny, get thee to the Pumpkin Garden at the New York Botanical Garden in Brooklyn.  If you can't go this week  there will be a repeat next week where they will even have celebrity pumpkin carver Ray Villafane there carving pumpkins!  

This weekend there will also be free admission to the Edgar Allan Poe Cottage.  Why not check out a former haunt of this spooky poet who at times called New York his home?  Many say his ghost still visits the cottage, so you never know, you may encounter the supernatural!  

And if you don't feel like leaving Manhattan, you can go to the Little Red Light House Festival.  

And if you share my newfound passion for New York street art, go to the City Museum of New York and check out the Live Graffiti Art Demonstration.  

 ***

Images from Smorgasburg last weekend.

Bite Me cheesecakes

Ramen Burgers with Ramen buns.

My chicken and waffles.

Sticky rice in bamboo confections.


***

And on a slightly self promotional note, you can also see a production of Mozart's "Magic Flute" this weekend.  There are five different casts, my cast performs on Saturday, but all casts are wonderful.  It's being put on by Amore Opera which is a continuation of Tony Amato's Amato Opera.  Amato Opera was hailed as the "smallest grand opera company in the world."  Here is a fun backstage photo of myself playing Papagena and my Papageno.

Poe in NYC - a very brief account

Tonight I went to the Brooklyn Winery in Williamsburg to listen to fellow tour guides read Edgar Allan Poe stories.  I am woefully un-read when it comes to Poe, which has always given me a bit of an inferiority complex.  Tonight fixed that as guides read lively renditions of "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Cask of Amontillado," and of course, "The Raven."  This all happened while I sipped a flight of locally harvested Riesling.

Why do New York Tour Guides love Poe so much?  Well, throughout his short life, Edgar Allan Poe continuously returned to New York City seeking prosperity in the publishing world.  He had hoped to find a welcoming community of artists and writers where he could thrive.  Sadly, Poe never found the immediate success he sought in New York, but its surroundings did inspire him to write works such as "The Cask of Amontillado."  It is also said that his ghost still comes and haunts the many dwellings he inhabited while living in New York City.  Perhaps his ghost is still seeking the recognition of his fellow artists that he sought so desperately during his lifetime.

If you want to seek out Poe's ghost - here is a list of places he lived within the five boroughs.

Places Poe lived in NYC:
1837: Sixth Avenue and Waverly Place
1837: 113 ½ Carmine Street
1844: 130 Greenwich Street
1844: West 84th St., btwn Amsterdam Ave. and Broadway
1845: 154 Greenwich St.
1845: 195 E. Broadway
1845: 85 Amity St. (later it was called 85 W. Third St.)
1846: East 47th Street near the East River in what is now Turtle Bay
1846: Poe Cottage, 2460 Grand Concourse and East Kingsbridge Rd., the 
Bronx

Or you could always just go to Il Buco on 47 Bond Street.  It is said that Poe's ghost haunts the basement of Il Buco.  Waiters will go down to the wine cellar and find corked bottles of wine completely empty!  The only explanation is a ghost came and got themselves a little drink.  During his lifetime, Poe used to frequent the wine cellar at 47 Bond Street, and it was in this very wine cellar that he was inspired to write "The Cask of Amontillado."

Matt Baker prepares to read Poe

Matt Baker reading "The Cask of Amontillado" 

Wine Casks filled with local wine at the Brooklyn Winery.

Me and Matt Baker celebrating an evening of Poe.

Big Gay Ice Cream

II went to the Big Gay Ice Cream shop. 

I don't think I understood it when I went.  You see, I'm a bit of an ice cream snob.  My friends often make fun of my as my favorite ice cream/gelato in the city is Grom.  Grom is actually the most expensive ice cream per ounce in New York.  It's imported from the Piedmont region of Italy and it just rich creamy deliciousness.  After From I tend to go for other artisanal options like Il Laboratorio Del Gelato and the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory.  Long story short, I've never been one for Mister Softee.

So when I went to the Big Gay Ice Cream store, I was expecting some kind of miraculous quality from the ice cream.  It's actually, Mister Softee Ice Cream.  What makes the flavors is not the ice cream (which only some in three flavors each day) it's the toppings.  So ice cream options with crazy names like "The Salty Pimp" are really just cones of vanilla Mister Softee ice cream covered in dulce de leche sauce, salt, and a chocolate dip.  I was disappointed.  Still, I had walked all the way there, may as well try it.  I got the "Mermaid" since I have a more than slight mermaid obsession.  The "Mermaid" is a sundae of vanilla ice cream with key lime curd, graham crackers, and whipped cream.  It was fine.  Not mind blowing amazing.  It was just fine.  

So I was reluctant to write a blog entry about it because I don't like writing negative reviews.  But here's the thing, I didn't understand what Big Gay Ice Cream was all about.  It's SUPPOSED to be Mister Softee with fun toppings.  Nothing else.  It's supposed to make you smile and give you a throw back to your childhood with a high class creative twist.  The names are supposed to make you laugh.  The flavor combinations are supposed to make you smile.  It's supposed to be a cross between Mister Softee and my beloved Grom and that is exactly what it is.  It's a no pressure low key creative ice cream experience. It succeeds in this triumphantly.  It is also the perfect dessert to follow a slice of pizza from Two Boots down the road!  

Zelda the Turkey

I SAW ZELDA THE TURKEY!  This is an extremely exciting event for me as I have never seen a wild turkey before.  I actually have gone out seeking wild turkeys, but they always elude me. I had heard tale of a female turkey named Zelda who roamed the Battery.  Several other tour guides posts photos of Zelda, but others claimed she was a myth.  Then, yesterday, I saw her with my own two eyes!  She was just sitting across from the East Coast Memorial, calmly observing the scenery of Battery Park.  She is not an urban legend, Zelda is real.  

Zelda gets her name from Zelda Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald's wife.  Their tempestuous marriage combine with Zelda's penchant for alcohol caused Zelda to have several meltdowns, as well as be admitted into mental hospitals on multiple occasions.  During one of her meltdowns she found herself several miles from home in Battery Park.  This incident is what inspired those who first spotted the turkey in Battery Park Zelda.  

It is thought that Zelda entered Manhattan through the Bronx in 2003 before taking up residence in the Battery. She has been spotted as far north as TriBeCa, but is always returned to the Battery.  

If you are interested in learning more - you can read this Q&A article published in the New York Times  in 2009.  Enjoy!:)

  

AWESOME THINGS HAPPENING IN NYC THIS WEEKEND! October 4th-6th edition!

Once again this weekend there are AWESOME THINGS HAPPENING IN NYC.  Here are my top picks for this weekend!

If you have some money to spend, check out The New Yorker Festival!  This is a series of panels with various celebrities ranging from Burlesque Stars, to Malcolm Gladwell, to media personalities examining New York a year after Hurricane Sandy.  Tickets to the panels range from $35-$50.  Click here to see a full list of panels you can attend this year.  

If you're feeling like reveling in the autumn, check out the Queens County Farm Kick Off to Fall.  (This is where me and my friends will be Sunday - which means I am so excited about this I will be missing my beloved Baltimore Ravens play the Miami Dolphins.)  Dating back to 1697, Queens County Farm is the largest undisturbed farmland remaining in New York City!  The Kick Off to Fall will include cider, donuts, a corn maze, a pumpkin patch, and live music!  Admission to this event is free, so it's good for starving artists.  If you can't make it to the Kick Off to Fall, check out all of the other events they have going on this October!  

If you don't fell like trekking out to Queens, but want a free event, check out the Giuseppe Verdi Bicentennial Parade Sunday, October 6 at 12:30 p.m. at Verdi Square on 72nd Street and Broadway.  The public will come and sing "Va Pensiero" from Verdi's Opera Nabucco.  The parade will continue downtown from Verdi Square to St. Stephen's Church at 120 West 69th Street concluding with a concert in the church at 2 p.m.  For all the official information checkout this website. 

If you're looking for contemporary art, make your way over to Lincoln Center.  There you will find 14 colorful sculptures by an artist named Aaron Curry.  These sculptures make up an installation known as "Melt to Earth."  The installation will remain until January 16th, but this is its first weekend inhabiting Lincoln Center so if you want to be first in line to see it, go now.  Here is an article the New York Times published expounding on the installation and Aaron Curry's career.  

I leave you now with this photo of a very festive apartment building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.  They are getting into the Halloween spirit NYC style!