International Tourest Guide Day is This Week - February 21, 2013

International Tourist Guide Day is this week - Feb 21, 2013

International Tourist Guide Day is this week. The New York City Guides Association will be sponsoring International Tourist Guide Day on Thursday, February 21, 2013 with FREE Walking Tours with a licnesed NYC tour guide. Plug into the attached link for more information.
http://www.ganyc.org/content.asp?ContentId=3324

 

The Ghost of New York City's Theater District - A New York City Walking Tour

David Belasco owner of the Belasco Theather

There is probably no place more haunted in New York City (NYC) than the Theater District in the Times Square area.  One of the greatest darlings is Olive Thomas who is said to haunt the New Amsterdam Theater one of the Ziegfeld Girls who still can be seen walking on the glass catwalk. On opening night one might see David Belasco owner of the Belasco Theater sitting in the audience, which is a good sign to the actors. You may even meet the two Royal Airforce pilots shot down over Berlin, Germany in World War II and died, but still made it to Times  Square and ate dinner at the Harvard Club. There are more ghost in the Theater District, but that is another story.

The New York City Tenement Museum - An NYC Walking Tour

The New York City Tenement Museum 97 Orchard Street Manhattan

 

 

In the late 1800's a wave of immigration began to hit the United States and the City of  New York. The Lower East Side of New York City (NYC) was just one of the areas that immigrant families came to settle and live in what came to be known as tenement buildings. The Tenement Museum at 97 Orchard Street here in NYC features a five-story brick tenement building that was home to an estimated 7,000 people, from over 20 nations, between 1863 and 1935. When first constructed in 1863, it contained 22 apartments and a basement level saloon. Over time, four stoop-level and two basement apartments were converted into commercial retail space, leaving 16apartments in the building. Modifications over the years included the installation of indoor plumbing (cold running water , two toilets per floor), an air shaft , and gas followed by electricity. In 1935, rather than continue  to modify the building, the landlord evicted the residents, boarded the upper windows, and sealed the upper floors, leaving only the stoop-level and basement storefronts open for business. The museum's exhibits include restored apartments that depict the lives of immigrants  who lived at 97 Orchard Street between 1869 and 1935.

Guides Association of New York City GANYC - INTERNATIONAL TOURIST GUIDE DAY - FEBRUARY 21, 2013

The New York City Guides Association will be sponsoring International Tourist Guide Day on Thursday, February 21, 2013 with FREE Walking Tours with a licnesed NYC tour guide. Plug into the attached link for more information.

http://www.ganyc.org/content.asp?ContentId=3324

New York City (NYC) Walking Tour - The Cloisters

The Cloisters Museum & Gardens-Fort Tryon Park NYC 

 

Have you ever wanted to escape from New York City for the day? Then I would suggest the Cloisters museum and gardens a branch of The Metropolitan Museum of Art that is devoted to the art and architecture of medieval Europe. The building and its cloistered gardens are located in Fort Tryon Park in northern Manhattan. An area which overlooks the Palisades in New Jersey, giving Fort Tryon Park a country like feel. The collection assembled from architectural elements, both domestic and religious, that date from the twelfth through the fifteenth century and comprises approximately three thousand works of art from medieval Europe, dating from about the ninth to the sixteenth century.

NYC Walking Tour - Merchant's House Museum

Merchant's House Museum 29 East 14^th Street, Manhattan, NYC

 

              I recently lead a tour to the Merchant’s House Museum which was built in 1832. Purchased by Seabury Tredwell, a prosperous New York City hardware merchant, in 1835. The Tredwell family continued to live in the house for nearly 100 years. The period rooms on four floors are furnished with the family’s original furnishings dating from 1835-1865.

            The museum certainly is up to its reputation of being considered one of the finest surviving examples of architecture from the period, the Merchant’s House it has also been recognized for its 1832 late-Federal brick exterior but also for its Greek revival interior rooms. Of note, the House was among the first 20 buildings designated in 1965 under the City’s new landmarks law.

           Are the Tredwell's still living in their home? In particular Gertrude Tredwell is thought to be watching over her family home. Born in home in 1840, Gertrude never married and lived her entire life here until she died, at the age of 93, in 1933. Since the 1930's, tales of strange and unexplainable happenings have surrounded the Merchant’s House. Many visitors and staff  have reported seeing, hearing, and smelling things that weren’t there.

            The Museum’s collection contains of over 3,000 items comprises the possessions of the Tredwells, the wealthy merchant-class family who lived in the House from 1835 to 1933. The collection includes furniture, decorative arts, clothing, photographs and books, household items, and personal items. Highlights include a suite of 12 mahogany side chairs attributed to renowned furniture maker Duncan Phyfe, a pair of matching six-globe gas chandeliers, and 40 dresses and numerous fashion accessories that belonged to the Tredwell women.

Lombardi's Pizzeria - NYC Walking Tour

Lombardi's - 32 Spring Street NYC @ the corner of Mott Street

I recently went to Lombardi's Coal Oven Pizzeria and can honestly say that the first pizzeria not only in New York City, but the United States lives up to it's hype. Lombardi's opened in 1897 at 53 Spring St., just down the street from its present location, Lombardi's is easily one of the city's oldest eateries. Now, since taking over the space next door, the restaurant has almost doubled its former size. And while the original half--with its well-worn booths and open kitchen--easily out charms the new dining room, the famously long wait has been cut in half, and thanks to the addition of a bar, it's almost a pleasure.

The reason to come here is obvious: beautiful, smoky-crusted pizza with fresh tomatoes and mozzarella. The genius of this pizza starts with the crust, which is black and crispy on the underside (with pleasant, slightly bitter overtones), but gives way to a wonderfully soft, yeasty interior. Signature toppings like pepperoni and homemade meatballs, along with the restaurant's famous clam pie, keep locals and tourists alike coming back.