The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is one of the many traditions I have missed while living in NYC just short of 11 years. My family decided to travel in this year for the holiday, so it just seemed wrong not to go and take a look. The weather on thursday was mild but it was nothing more was needed than a warm winter coat and accessories to go with. There are crowds and all sorts of barriers to get around but it is a once in a lifetime thing to see live.
The parade began last night with the blowing up of the enormous balloon characters in and around Central park. I attempted to get a look but the streets and sidewalks uptown were overflowing with traffic, so I just settled for a nice walk in the Park and a view from afar and stopped to get a pre-holiday cocktail with my mom on the way home.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade has a wonderful history. It began as a promotional event for Macy’s which featured first generation emigrant employees who wanted to celebrate this holiday and at the same time encourage people to come and do their Christmas shopping at Macy’s. The parade in 1924 was much longer then the present day. The procession of singers, dancers, musicians, and animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo made their way down from Harlem (145th St.) to the flagship store at Herald Square. In recent years, there has been a few mishaps and tragedy’s due to unpredictable winter weather trapping balloons in street light posts and pushing them into groups of spectators. Macy’s itself has faced some financial difficulties which has led them close to stopping the expensive event all together.
The holidays for 2010-11 have officially begun. Let the christmas caroling, holiday shopping and wrapping begin.
For those frugal travelers coming into NYC for some deals on Black Friday there is some hope of having a good time even after the wallet is empty. NYC is, like many other cities is much more fun without a budget but there’s still so much to do. It just requires a little more thinking, planning and possible a little more walking or time on the subway. One of the best ways to spend an afternoon after exercising the wallet here in NYC is spending some time at a local ice rink. It doesn’t have to be crazy over the top expensive. Here are some choices which can keep the budget in check while visiting NYC this weekend.
Skating in the Park
There a number of places around Manhattan to skate. If you can bring your own skates it’s less expensive and even free in some locations. The first one that comes to mind to most is Rockefeller Center. Some people just dream about coming here to skate and there’s nothing wrong with making a dream come true. It’s good to know what you are getting into beforehand. Well…it maybe an icon but it’s small (the Ice Rink website even says no more than 150 skaters at a time), usually packed (line at peak times is 1-2 hours long), and expensive (you can skate as long as you want but it’s $10-14 for admission and $8 for the rental if they have your size). If you have to go it’s a good idea to go first thing, during the week and way before the holiday season. This year that means in the next couple days.
If you really want to skate but $18-22 per person exceeds the budget I suggest a couple of very nice, larger and more affordable places. The first one that comes to mind is the Ice Rink that is just a few blocks away from the Rock and it’s located inside of the historic Bryant Park. There is 17,000 square feet of open ice for skaters to twirl around in. They do not charge admission so if you bring your own skates it’s FREE, but the skate rental is $13 (rumor has it is that they are clean and comfortable if that makes you feel better). Bring your own lock and your shoes can be safely stashed away for free. (the Rock’s lockers are for members only…sorry) Just keep any bags and larger items back at the room because they charge $7-10 for bag check at Bryant Park. I didn’t say it was all free. It just can be if you are frugal and think ahead.
On the northern end of Central Park sites the Lasker Rink and Pool that was built in the 1960’s. The park as two rinks. One for the hip checking high school hockey players and another for all ages. The park charges $6.50 for adults, $3.50 for youths, and $2.25 for seniors. The skate rentals for all are $5.50 for all and a lock costs $7.50 but you get back $4 of it when the lock is returned. That’s fair. If you have your own skates then it’s a bargain at $2.50-6.50 per person.
photo credit: SETH WERKHEISER of BatteryParkCity.com
There are some unfortunate rinks that didn’t make it out this season. One of the tops on my list in the rink located in Battery Park downtown. They didn’t seem to find the right contractor to take over the job. The site also had some problems due to extremely cold temperatures, larger amounts of snow fall and incidence of fallen debris from nearby construction sites. Skating is not fun when windows and plywood are in the way. The skating was $10 with or without rentals which was the best deal around. I can only hope it maybe makes a late season debut or comes back next year. I have a feeling the price may go up as it usually does in NYC.
For more info on other area rinks check out the New York Led which has put together a great guide to these and other NYC metro area rinks.
Get out and enjoy the kind weather we have been enjoying this mild fall here in NYC. Black Friday can be a fun day if you include some outdoor activities like skating. Happy Skating..and shopping as well!!
San Francisco has always been a great food city. The Bay Area is a locavores paradise. Food sold here is locally produced and grown within 100 miles of the city year round. The Bay Area is experiencing a food cart trend has peaked and is very similar to the food cart culture of NYC. This was until the Off the Grid SF was created in June 2010.
photo by official Off the Grid Facebook page M. Cohen
The Off the GridSF website describes it as “a roaming mobile food extravaganza that travels to different locations daily to serve delicious food, with a free side of amazing music, craft and soul. We’re bringing all your favorite gourmet food vendors together to create a market like you’ve never seen before.” Vendors include the Creme Brulee Cart, TaKorea, The is only one venue worth mentioning that even comes close to it here in NYC/Brooklyn and it is the Red Hood Ball Field Food Vendors.
"Rain is Not an Obstacle" at the Red Hook Ball Fields by Yelper Marcos A.
For about the past 40 years vendors have set up their grills and blenders during the July and August sports season along the fringes of this remote Brooklyn 59 acre facility. There were no places when the field was build near the low income housing in Red Hook to get food or drink, so logically picnic goers brought their own. As the years passed artists and the like escaping the rent increases in Manhattan were naturally attracted to this area. They, like Columbus, soon “discovered” what was going on at the park. Local mags/blogs began spreading the word about the cheap sports and eating event that took place each summer in their hood. Word spread and the Red Hook Food Vendors eventually got a shout out by the NYTimes food section. And, you guessed it, The New York City Board of health soon paid a visit as well. They weren’t too happy with the open fires, improper cooking facilities and vendors not following proper food sanitation practices that other licensed vendors did throughout the city. Threats were soon made by the Parks Department but due to huge public uproar which included a plea from Senator Chuck Schumer .
The Travel Channel’s Anthony Bourdain with his show No Reservations stopped by and filmed right before the possible closing was announced. Big names in the New York food scene along with the hard work of executive director of the Food Vendors Committee Cesar Fuentes and his community support, the vendors were back to work. Some had to throw in the towel because the list of regulations to follow and proper procedures to abide by was just too long. They had to readjust in many ways and of course many say it’s just not the same.
Food bloggers voices were heard as well as many blogged in support of the food vendors. One particular blogger J. Slab of The Porkchop-Express did an extensive entry on the history of the field. This mercado seems to be showing signs of having a bright future as seen in this article in the NYTimes this past April. It may not be the same as 40 years ago but it still gives those who have stuck around an income and local spectators good food to eat while watching Brooklyn’s own Cabinet Soccer Club vs. Beşiktaş Football Club, league champions of Turkey.
The Off the Grid SF is and inspiration for NYC since it’s a well organized and food community driven event that happens year round and many times during the week. It has brought new life to Fort Mason that has had it’s ups and downs financially since it was designated as a national park in 1976. The mobile food market sponsored here by SF Food carts which is run and was started by Mark Cohen has been proven to be a way to revitalize communities as others have been welcomed into the Mission, Haight/Ashbury and the Civic Center/Tenderloin neighborhoods of SF.
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New York City has no shortage of food and street vendors who offer up just about anything these days. What is missing is a venue where a number of vendors can get together like at Off the Grid in SF and the Mobile Pods in Portland OR. Why not and make a night or day of good eating and live entertainment instead of just getting lunch or a small bite during the work day? I got an idea…how about putting one by the old wharfs below Brooklyn Heights? Do you out there know of an empty parking lot or other open space for such an event? Where would you put one…?
After a few days of celebrating the Giants win it is time to see the city they call home. There are the usual attractions that people flock to which include the cablecars, Alcatraz, the Golden Gate bridge to name a few, but if you have been before or just want to learn more about the city why not find an off beat way of doing it. One of the big highlights of visiting any city is exploring it by way of public art. San Francisco has plenty of it to share and a visitor needs to do is head out, slow down a few feet per minute and look closer to your surroundings which includes what’s above you.
Many artists have made a living by making large sculptures that can only fit inside a large space like the Tate Modern and other galleries around the world or just outdoors. The lucky ones are able to find sponsors who will provide the funds to transport, create and/or maintain great works for just the purpose of allowing the public to view their works.
There are five particular pieces that are currently on view outdoors in the city of San Francisco. The first one is entitled Cupids Span by Claes Oldenburg and his wife Coosje van Bruggen in 2002. The couple have been making these colossal pieces since the late 1970’s and they have been placed all over Europe, the US, England and parts of Asia. Cupids Span in Rincon Park in the Embarcadero area of downtown San Francisco is a 60 ft. tall 140 ft. wide piece was commissioned by Donald and Doris Fisher, founders of Gap Inc., who donated it to the City of San Francisco and was installed in November 2002. More information about the sculpture is found here.
A neighbor of the Cupid Span is a tall silver spaceship docked near the newly renovated Ferry Building on the Embarcadero. The ship is called the Raygun Gothic Rocketship and was created by a collaboration of artists who were sponsored by the BRAF or Black Rock Arts Foundation. This 40ft tall ship first landed on the Burning Man festival in nearby Nevada in 2009 and will be hanging around here until September 2011 thanks to money raised by the San Francisco Port Commission and varies private donors. Another work sponsored by BRAF which made her debut at the 2008 Burning Man Festival entitled Ecstasyis currently standing in Patricia’s Green in Hayes Valley (Hayes/Octavia)
Visitors who walk west to the Moscone Center and Yerba Buena Gardens don’t have to go in to SFMOMA and other area museums to see great pieces. The park itself is filled with beautiful landscape and performing arts space such as the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and the Sony Metreon Theater to name a couple. It is such a work of art in itself that a most visitors can find enjoyment just walking around the grounds. It’s a great place to picnic, catch up on the guidebook or check email if you must.
There are two large public art pieces that stand out among the rest. The first one is Three Dancing Figures by Keith Haring which is located on the southwest corner of 3rd and Howard. Kids but not adults are allowed to climb on the sculpture which was displayed in 1989 about a year before the artists’ early death. The sculpture was one of many brought to the city by the San Francisco Arts Commission.
If you walk east from the Three Dancing Figures you will see the fancy W hotel on the southeastern corner of 3rd and Howard. If you are standing across the street you will get a good view of the large metal wire sculpture of a woman reclining at the edge of the first few floors. This sculpture entitled Pneumatic Dreamer by Michael Stutz can be easily missed if you were just walking by. This particular work was installed in 2001 and was commissioned by the SF Redevelopment Agency.
Next, continue walking a little over a mile or grabbing the MUNI up Market to the Civic Center. This is home to San Francisco’s Symphony Hall, Main Library and Asian Art Museum. Across from the museum is a sculpture Three Heads Six Arms by artist Zhang Huan was brought to the city also by the San Francisco Arts Foundation in part of the marking of the San Francisco-Shanghai sister city 30th Anniversary. This colossal bronze sculpture will be guarding the Civic Center and Asian Art Museum through 2011. I unfortunately was visiting after the Giants had won the world series, during election season and after it had been victim of graffiti and climbed on. So it was surrounded by a tall ugly wire fence.
I couldn’t find one guide online to all free public art projects but the best thing to do is just do an online search to the city you are visiting next and you will more than likely find some. Many times you won’t even realize that something was actually commissioned like I did while researching for this article. I also came across something online called the San Francisco Art Hunt PDF that was quite interesting and provides a start to exploring SF’s public art. Looking for Public Art while visiting a new city is a great way to get the lay of the land and do something a little of the beaten path. Highly recommended.
Many artists and admirers would agree that art should be free to view by the public. Many museums, local governments, artists and their philanthropic admirers believe this as well. Thanks to their generosity, we the public are able to view pieces for free or at a low-cost to us the viewer.
Art galleries, museums and public outdoor art is a great way to get to know a destination especially when you are on a budget. Most cities around the U.S. these days have sponsored free or discounted nights, days and evenings at many major galleries and museums.
In San Francisco there are many opportunities to see art for free in museums or just on the Street. I started with a visit to SFMOMA on Tuesday where they have AT&T Free First Tuesdays. Visitors to the Bay Area are able to see its great displays of works thanks to AT&T generous $10 Million gift to the museum in late 2008. The museum is located in the SOMA or South of Market neighborhood of San Francisco and right across from Yerba Buena Gardens. This fall and early winter is a great time to visit SFMOMA since the 75th Anniversary is being celebrated by a showing 400 pieces of works that represent what SFMOMA has been throughout those years. Highlights include masterpieces by Jackson Pollock, Jeff Koons and Barry McKee. If you don’t happen to be there during a free Tuesday the museum is well worth the full ticket price and it’s a great way to spend a not so uncommon rainy day in the Bay Area.
Another wonderful opportunity to see art for free is at the Asian Art Museum‘s during their Target First Free Sunday’s. The 29,000 square foot museum was relocated in March 2003 into the former main Library Building in the gritty Tenderloin/Civic Center area of San Francisco. It’s new location is much more accessible then it’s previous location in Golden Gate Park and is not too far from the SOMA section of town. It is now a 5-10 minute walk from the MUNI or BART Civic Center Station. The area has cleaned up in the past 10 years since I lived there, but I wouldn’t suggest being there too late in the evening. The current exhibit is a show entitled Beyond Golden Clouds: Five Centuries of Japanese Screensis on view until January 16, 2011. The Target First Free Sunday’s is free to for the general museum but is $5 for special exhibits like the Golden Clouds. The next exhibit to the museum is Bali: Art, Ritual and Performancedoesn’t begin until February 25, 2011 but I’m going to try to make it to it if I can get a cheap ticket from JFK next year. Looks amazing.
Being from New York I also expected both museums to be jammed but I was wrong. There was plenty of room and it wasn’t hard to get a good view of the works without bored and restless children and obstructed views. Free days to museums and similar attractions can be found in many other cities. It’s more common then you think. If anything, it’s a good way to save money and maybe try something new if you don’t usually find interest in museums.
Takayama has the looks of what “old” Japan used to look like. Located in the mountains in the northern Gifu prefecture, Takayama has been protected from modernization. Well…to some degree. The snowy winters, fertile land for rice fields and mountain spring water make it a a perfect place for sake brewing. The snow can cut the population off from the rest of Japan but they pass the time by brewing sake from the fall harvest and while it’s brewing they can take relaxing breaks their hot springs. Life sounds pretty good here.
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5 of the best things to while visiting Takayama are:
I’m on a budget so I stayed at the J-Hoppers Hostel that’s a 10 minute walk from the JR station and just about the center of town. There are a number of great Ryokans to choose from if you want to upgrade 🙂
There are so many reasons to find a Matsuri or Japanese Festival while in Japan. Amongst those are eating your way through the street food selections, participating and watching the festivities of the Matsuri and to see the Japanese taking the time to enjoy life after a long work week. One particular place which holds a Matsuri in October is the city of Kawagoe outside of Tokyo.
The city of Kawagoe or “little Edo” in the Saitama Perfecture. The town is famous for it’s kurazukuri which are Edo Period warehouses, Bell Tower, and shops who make and sell an excellent variety of tradition Japanese confections. The city resembles Tokyo looked before the fires 1823 of the Great Kanto Earthquake.
The symbol of the city is the Bell Tower which has been keeping time for 350 years. The Bell Tower has been rebuilt twice. It not only didn’t survive the Great Kanto Earthquake but also had to be rebuilt in 1993 after the Kawagoe Great Fire. The current structure has been chiming it’s bell four times a day since.
The two other popular areas of the city to visit are the Kurazukuri Street or Kurazukuri no machinamiis and the Confectionery Row or Kashiya Yokochō. These are the areas where visitors can shop for traditional sweets, crafts and clothing which are housed in the two-story restored warehouse buildings.
The Kawagoe Festival or Matsuri is held for two days in October each year. Kawagoe makes for a great day trip even if a matsuri isn’t going on. Most of the floats seen in the parade are housed in museum buildings located near the Kashiya Yokocho.
How to get there from Tokyo:
From Shinjuku, take the Seibu Shinjuku train from west Shinjuku station to Hon Kawagoe. It takes 1 hour (for express train)
From Ikebukuro, then take JR Tobu Tojo Line to Kawagoe station. It takes about 32mins, but the main street is a bit further down and there’s a bit more of a walk.
Most Stations have lockers but don’t count on them being free during the matsuri. I ended up carrying my pack through it all.
If there is one place to visit outside of Tokyo Kamakura is it. The city itself can’t be fully seen in one day so see what you can and try to get back in the future. Here’s a great online guide to Kamakura Shrines. The city has many transportation options if needed but it is a very walkable city.
There are many places where visitors can buy a great meal or just pick up a snack. The city is famous for its Purple Potato Ice cream if you want to try something different. My favorite is the red bean or custard filled cakes that can be found in most towns throughout Japan. Here they are shaped as the Giant Buddha.
If you are looking for a cold beer or cocktail after a long day of sightseeing then check out the local bar called the Bank. The place is tiny so get there early. Don’t stay too long if it’s just a day trip. The trains going back to Tokyo go a couple of times an hour but after 11pm the trip back to Tokyo gets longer and more arduous.
Getting from Tokyo to Kamakura by Train from WikiTravel.com:
The fastest way in is by JR Yokosuka Line from Tokyo Station (one hour, ¥890) and Yokohama (25 minutes, ¥330). The JR Kamakura-Enoshima Free Kippu (¥1,110 from Yokohama, ¥1,970 from Tokyo) gets you a round trip from Tokyo to Kamakura (local trains only) plus unlimited use of Enoden and Shonan Monorail lines.
Getting to the Giant Daibutsu Statue in Kamakura:
The Great Buddha is a 5-minute walk from the Enoden Railway (a streetcar-like train) Hase Station, the third station from Kamakura main station.
Get a drink @:
The Bank, 3-1-1 Yuigahama, Kamakura-shi; tel: (0467) 60-6170; Open 5 p.m.-1 a.m. (3 p.m.-1 a.m Saturday & Sunday); closed Monday, and 3rd & 4th Tuesday of the month.
It’s 7:15am on a monday morning (weekend after spring-back daylight savings to boot) and I’m be-gowned and getting conveyed into the tomb or otherwise known as an MRI machine. I know, what does a MRI have to do with any trip to the spa to relax? I guess it was a combination of what I was dressed in a cotton robe and quite ready to fall back asleep. It’s kind of how I felt when my husband and I got to the sand spa in a town called Beppu in southern Japan this past October.
Getting into a very tight space where I can’t move and try not to think of the fact that it’s like being buried alive is one of those things that I really don’t enjoy. We all have our cope mechanisms and mine is to use my imagination. I imagine myself in a relaxing place where I was wearing a robe while being buried alive in the hot sand. This place was the sand spa found in the village of Beppu, Japan. It was where I had visited months before while traveling around Japan for a month. It was hard to relax at first. Getting over the anxiety of being covered with the hot, steamy and heavy sand was difficult at first. After a fair amount of deep breathing and meditating, I was able to get to the point of total relaxation and I ended up enjoying the treatment. My skin felt great and I would do it again…really. My goal in the MRI was not necessarily enjoy myself but to relax and get through it. I didn’t want to have a do over. So, I forced myself to go back to Beppu and imagine I was again being buried in the hot salty sand. It worked and I didn’t have to go in a second time.
The fall visit to the Sand Spa or in Japanese Suna-yu on the Beppu shore in southern Japan is Japans answer to Las Vegas. It’s famous for its hot springs of various colors and mineral types and of course the sex, gabbling, African Safari Park, Rakutenchi Kid Park, Aquarium, a day of seeing monkeys at Mount Takasaki with all of this in a town that often smells of rotten egg or sulfer. We decided to spend our days here relaxing and enjoying as many of Beppus Japanese Spas as we could visit. It wasn’t possible to visit them all in 3 short days but it’s on the list of places to go back to in the future.
Farflungistan 
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