NYC Then and Now

May 5 and 6, 2012 - events

So many possibilities, so little time. Saturday, I will be doing the Psoriasis Walk at the New York Botanical Garden. Follow the link to donate or to email me if you want to meet at the Garden when it opens to the public.  We could explore some more and then head to Arthur Avenue for lunch.

Many of you visitors will stumble into another Cause Related Fitness Event that begins right in Times Square - the EIF Revlon Walk for Women's Cancers.

For those of you who believe that you CAN walk all around Manhattan, The Great Saunter sponsored by Shorewalkers is just the thing. Although the link is to last year's post, the links in the post work correctly for this year.

I've spent the last couple of days, "commuting" to the DMV office in Harlem to renew my driver's license. Yesterday I arrived during lunch and didn't want to hassle with the lines. Today, May Day, I arrived early and the  DMV computers all over the state were temporarily down for some reason (who would have thunk it). Anyway, I did meet someone near the Subway who was promoting the Frieze Art show on Randall's Island. It looks a bit expensive but it also looks very interesting. A definite possibility for Sunday.

Another major 5 borough event is the TD 5 boro Bike Tour - aka Bike New York. Many of the entrants are part of Cause Related Fitness teams. Beware of road closings on May 6th.

Last on my list is the series of FREE walks in all five boroughs in memory of Jane Jacobs called Jane's Walk. These walks are taking place all over the country but the ones in NYC are sponsored by The Municipal Art Society.

These are my picks for the weekend. Feel free to add yours as comments! Have a great weekend whatever you do.

One more, because of Partners in Preservation, the Museum of the City of New York and the Tenement Museum and probably other places on the Partners list are offering FREE events on May 5th and 6th.

 

NYC Fundraising Events - Fitness - Food - Whatever

One way to see interesting parts of New York City is to participate in Runs, Walks,  Bike Rides or Food events that raise money for some sort of charity. For some events, fundraising is optional but being a part of a charity team will get you an entrance to the event. Training for the event will also prepare you for the fitness required to walk and climb subway stairs when touring the City. Food events require little training beyond a healthy appetite.

Several months ago, Ted Gup, an Op Ed writer of the New York Times, pointed out that the amount of time spent training for and participating in these events could be better spent solving the problems of the charity beneficiary. If any of you remember when I posted a link to this Op-Ed piece on Facebook, please send the link to me so I can repost it here. Thank you JTA, here is a link to the article.

The argument is a sound one but these events are so much a part of Charity fundraising budgets that I doubt these events will disappear. Besides, the events are fun and they bring many visitors to NYC.

When I post about these Cause Related Fitness (CRF) Events, I will use the term (my own invention) CRF so that you can search for similar posts on this blog. The season is usually March through November.

Food fundraisers take place all year round. Time Out New York in print used to be a good place to look for the food events. It is more difficult to find them on the website. Keep your eyes open for food fundraising events if you are a foodie. You will be able to taste the offerings of several restaurants in one place all in the name of charity.

 

Harry Belafonte Sing Your Song the Movie

I had the privilege of seeing Sing Your Song at the Brooklyn Library late last month. If you haven't seen it, it might be available on HBO on demand but there are also several independent screenings all over the country in the upcoming months. I am actually going to see it again at the Maysles Cinema in Harlem tomorrow night March 22nd. Albert Maysles and his brother David (now deceased) have been my heros ever since The Gates. At first I couldn't believe what Christo and Jeanne Claude would be doing to Central Park, but after seeing several Maysles brothers documentaries about their prior projects, I knew The Gates would be amazing. For more about Maysles documentaries you can start by looking here.

When I started reading about the Film Institute, I decided to become a member. For those of you who live downtown, the 2 and 3 subway and the M102 stop really near by. The Red Rooster and Sylvia's restaurants are also near by. 

If you are like me and loved Pete Seeger: The Power of Song and Phil Ochs: There But For Fortune, Harry Belafonte: Sing Your Song is even more amazing. And yes, these three men spent lots of time and energy in New York City.

Come on uptown and see this film March 22-25, 2012. I saw the film on March 22nd and was struck by the long list of credits at the end. For more on Harry Belafonte's life and work, click here.

 

Take a look at this interview with Harry Belafonte on Democracy Now which was first broadcast on my 60th birthday before Occupy Wall Street. Watch it to the end.

 

 

 

February 21st - International Tourist Guide Day - FREE Tours

This year, the Guide's Association of New York is participating in International Tourist Guide Day, a program that commemorates the founding of the World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations. I and several of my fellow licensed NYC Tourist Guides will be leading one hour (or in my case slightly longer) FREE walking tours  in different parts of NYC.

All tours will begin from the NYC & Company Information Center at 810 Seventh Avenue (between 53rd and 54th Street). Some tours will start with subway or public bus rides. Participants will pay for their own subway fares.

My tour will start from 810 Seventh Avenue at 10:45 AM. We will subway to a Park entrance near the American Museum of Natural History. On our stroll, we will see the Great Lawn, Belvedere Castle,the Shakespeare in the Park theatre, the Obelisk, several statues, bridges, arches, the Lake and Boat House. We will end on Fifth Avenue near the Model Boat Pond, the home of Pale Male, and the Frick Museum.

Participants should have at least two fares ($4.50) on their MetroCards even though we will probably finish in time for the bus ride to midtown to be considered a transfer from the subway ride. Your MetroCard is your key to NYC.

There is a limit of 10 people per tour. If you are interested in attending my tour please contact me by commenting below or sending an email to MsGuidedtours@me.com   so I can put you on my list.

For more information about NYC's International Tourist Guide Day event - click here.

For the full schedule of tours - click here.

If you decide to attend a different tour, please tell my colleagues how you found out about their tours. 

If you are not in NYC for the event, International Tourist Guide Day is taking place in over 50 countries.  Enjoy!

Feb 2012 Movies - Ziegfeld - MOMA

If you are going to see, Iron Lady, see it at the Ziegfeld. I went today and there were maybe 15 of us in this glorious movie Palace. The theatre is on 54th between 7th and 6th. It is around the corner from the largest hotel in the city - the Hilton. There are many other hotels in the Times Square area. Not everyone is going to a Broadway show every night. It would be a shame if this place disappears. Come and enjoy  my favorite movie palace.

Nearby, MOMA is showing some fabulous films in the first half of February. One multi part series is the Story of Film. The other major series is the Oscar Documentary film festival.

I'll be going on several days. If you want to join me. Let me know. See MOMA membership math.

MOMA Membership Math

I treasure my MOMA membership. It enables me to visit any time without ticket lines, go to members exhibition previews and early hours, visit exhibitions that require timed ticketing without timed tickets, get 10 and sometimes 20 percent off at the gift shop, get 10 percent off at the cafes (I love the one on the second floor. I still haven't been to the fancy restaurant and bar but someday I will go), bring up to 5 guests for 5 dollars each and see all MOMA movies for FREE. I can also visit PS 1.

If I am NOT stopping in for a particular exhibit or movie, I like to start at the TOP (6th floor) where the special exhibits are, move to floors 5 and 4 where "old friends" and favorite pieces from the permanent collection can be found and spot art I think I've never seen (the collection is vast and pieces are rotated), and move down to floors 3 and 2 for photography, design, architectural, video and other special exhibits.

Last week, on my way down, I discovered the temporary Sanja Iveković: Sweet Violence and realized I needed to spend more time here. I will be back before it closes at the end of March.

If you have a smartphone, you will find many ways to use it to enhance your visit.

In nice weather, the sculpture garden (see left and notice "water tower" art piece in the upper right) becomes an oasis if I am in midtown with some time on my hands.

Now for the MATH part. At 85 dollars for a membership and 5 dollars each for up to 5 guest fees, if 4 adults are visiting you break even on your first visit and get major discounts in the MOMA gift shops. If there are more than 4 adults, you save money.

If you are spending time or staying with a friend who lives in the New York area, a membership is a thank you gift that keeps on giving.

If you live, work or visit mid-town Manhattan frequently, this membership is a no brainer. If you are a movie buff who likes watching movies in a theatre, the membership pays for itself in 8 movies.

If you are someone who gets "museumed" out and are visiting for several days, you can stop in for short visits whenever you want. So? What's taking you so long? I hope to see you at MOMA soon.

New Year's Eve - Welcome to the next 50 Million

On December 20, 2011 Mayor Bloomberg and the City of New York announced the arrival of the 50 millionth visitor to NYC this year.

Today, Christmas Day (and the 5th Day of Hanukkah), the invitation to visit next year was unveiled in the form of the movie New Year's Eve. For those of you looking for a cheap way to experience New York at New Year's Eve, the movie is a wonderful (cinematic) alternative that was recognizeably beautifully shot in all 5 boroughs. Hopefully many more of you will venture off of the Island of Manhattan next year.

Always remember that a MetroCard is the key to New York City. Do NOT be afraid to use it for subway and bus transportation. For many of you, public transportation is not an option back home.

Mass transportation and real live people from all over the world who live and visit here make New York City special. If you believe that visitors to NYC deserve live, NYC licensed, professional tour guides on tour buses you can let your voice be heard here.

In the coming months I will be talking about ways that the many resources that already exist in this great City can be used to improve your visitor experience and create job opportunities for those of us who live here.

 Happy Holidays!

Dec 2011 happenings

Sorry this will only cover the second half of the month but....as usual there is so much going on that I will only mention a few things that might not be on your radar screen.

Christies...the Liz Taylor auctions might have ended but if you can make it to their 20th floor galleries this weekend, you will view a truly amazing collection of photographs that will return to private ownership next week after the auction on Monday. You may want to return to this link to see the sale price of each the photo.

The recently reopened NY Historical Society has a new intro film, fabulous exhibits and great family programs - especially during holiday week. The Children's Museum portion is great for Children of all ages and the gift shop is a fine place to find NYC souvenirs that will support the society. It will be less crowded than its neighbor the American Museum of Natural History.

The Museum of the City of New York, (my other favorite NYC related museum on the other side of the first planned public park space in the US - my park - Central Park), is now open 7 days a week except Christmas and New Years day. Their current exhibit about the grid structure should be seen by every visitor and tour guide. The other current exhibits are also pretty wonderful.

The Cathedral of St John the Divine has many December events including the annual Paul Winter Consort concerts. The Cathedral is just North and West of Central Park.

I recently checked off the Tuba Concert from my bucket list and my friend Charlene asked what else is on the list...I have been to the caroling at Washington Square on Christmas Eve at 5PM a few times. Once a friend joined me. It would be nice to see more familiar faces this year. Come along.

On Christmas Day, the Museum of the Jewish Heritage will be open. There will be films and family programming related to their exhibition about Emma Lazarus, the woman who gave voice to the Statue of Liberty and the view of the harbor from this museum is awesome! The Jewish Museum will be open and have children's concerts on Christmas Day.

Visitors to NYC deserve tours by live Licensed NYC Tour Guides

Over a year ago, the City Council passed a law requiring open air NYC tour buses to provide headsets for customers. Grayline - Twin America is planning to replace live tour guides with tapes since the headset law makes no mention of the need for licensed NYC Tour Guides. If the largest supplier of New York City tours does not have to employ licensed NYC Tour Guides for its tours then one wonders why the City should license tour guides at all.

There are many other reasons why live tour guides are important for overview tours of New York. Some of those reasons are discussed in a petition to the Mayor and City Council that you can link through to here.

If you liked your hop on hop off bus experience and want your friends to be able to listen to and learn from live New York City tour guides, sign the petition through the link above.

Earlier this year, a local wrote a great article about the hop on hop off experience. You can link to it through this post of mine. If you want a hop on hop off experience with a live guide on your next visit, do sign the petition.

THANK YOU!

Open House New York 2011 - Call for Volunteers

10/12/2011 - Quick update. I will be volunteering at the New York Horticultural Society on Saturday from 11-2.     Come and visit me. On my way there in the morning, I am going to stop in at the American Irish Historical Society.

If any of you are around at the end of my shift, there are several sites  that will be open and not require reservations. In no particular order St Vincent de Paul Church, The New School University Center, Grace Church, Evergreen Architectural Arts, Dattner Architects, Church of the Transfiguration, The Church of the Ascension, CFDA Fashion Incubator, and 505 W 37th. Am happy to head farther up or downtown as well. Here's the map. Have a look around.

This year, Open House New York will be on the weekend AFTER Columbus Day. The Jewish Holiday of Yom Kippur is on Columbus Day weekend this year. I have volunteered for OHNY every year since 2003, the year it began. This will be my 9th year. I have written about Open House New York several times on this blog. Here is last year's post.

If you register to volunteer or make a donation and get on the mailing list, you will get advance notification of the weekend's events.

Hope to see you at the first volunteer's meeting.