Be part of the audience in NYC

If there is one thing as synonymous with New York as hot dogs and yellow cabs, it is  live TV shows. Emblematic American programmes such as Good Morning America, The Today Show, David Letterman and many others are either taped or transmitted lived from the Big Apple, often with the city’s dramatic skyline blazing in the studio background.

Most of these shows need audiences and being part of them is a fun thing to do on your visit to New York (albeit perhaps you won’t see the they type of mayhem portrayed in 24 Rock, a comedy series about the making of a live variety show).

NYC Free shows

Tickets, which are free, are very much in demand by locals too, so you’ll need to be persistent and act quickly.

Good Morning America (ABC Network)

If you don’t mind heading to the Times Square studio at 7am, make a request for tickets well in advance via their website (www.abcnews.com). If not, arrive at the studio by 6:45am and try your luck for a standby ticket.

The View, (ABC Network)

If you are prepared to wait a year or two, you may be able to score tickets for The View, the hugely popular, all female panel discussion show led by Whoopi Goldberg. Apply now through the show’s website: http://theview.abc.go.com/

Late Show with David Letterman (CBS Network)

The holy grail of the live audience tickets, you can either register on-line or in person at the Ed Sullivan Theatre (where the show is taped) Monday through Thursday from 9:30am to noon, or on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm. You’ll be called if you get lucky but its not over there; you’ll also have to answer a question about the show in order to get the tickets.

The Daily Show with John Stewart (Comedy Central)

My personal favourite for its mix of politics and irreverence, simply email requesttickets@thedailyshow.com for tickets. They are generally booked well in advance but give them a good reason why you should attend and you just may get lucky.

The Brooklyn Botanical Gardens: NYC’s ‘other’ great park

Central Park is one of the joys of the New York; a vast green space that is a vital counterpoint to the relentless urbanism of the rest of the city. But across the Brooklyn Bridge lies another magnificent park that equals it in term of beauty.

The Brooklyn Botanical Gardens date from the late 19^th century and cover 39 acres in Park Slope, the most genteel and elegant part of Brooklyn that is famous for its wide avenues and historic brownstones.

Botanic Gardens in Brooklyn

Soon after inauguration the Japanese Garden, one of its most charming features, was installed, followed by a rock garden, a children’s garden, a glasshouse, lily pond and various other gifts that make up this incredibly diverse and magical park.

The Brooklyn Botanical Gardens are renowned for their specialist ‘gardens within the gardens’ which range from avenues replete with cherry trees to a plaza filled with magnolias, a magnificent rose garden and an English cottage garden (called ‘The Shakespeare Garden) and a fragrance garden.

But nature aside, the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens also hosts an incredibly active calendar of educational and cultural activities. For example, until early May you could come and celebrate Hanami, the Japanese tradition of cherry tree appreciation, or take a tour of the blooming plants of spring.

The Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, New York are open Tuesday–Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m, and Saturday & Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The entrance fee for adults is $8 (children under 12 enter free).

Pounding the Pavement in NYC

New York, ‘the Capital of the World’, offers something for everyone, and no matter what your taste or interest there’s bound to be some enthusiastic specialist ready to show it to you.

NYC walking tours

Most people have heard of the ‘Sex and the City’ tours, where you’ll tread in the footsteps of Carrie, Samantha and Co, visiting, amongst other things, the SoHo art gallery where Charlotte worked and the boutiques where the girls loved to go shopping. But for something a little more highbrow, you could choose to take an historical tour. Big Onion Tours specialise in off-beat walking tours, with themes including ‘The Gangs of New York’ tour, which tells the legends of the infamous Five Points neighbourhood, and a walk along The Bowery, New York’s original ‘Skid Row’.

Gotham Walking Tours is another respected company who offer a host of tours. As an introduction to New York, their ‘Big Apple Sampler’ is a great idea; Lasting over seven hours, it takes in al the major areas and sites, such as Ellis Island, the Financial District and Chinatown. They also have a handful of indoor tours (a good option in bad weather) that let you discovers landmarks such as Grand Central Station and the Rockefeller Centre.

Naturally, with New York’s dining scene being the most diverse on the planet, there are plenty of food tours to choose from too. The gourmet guides at Foods of New York show you around the specialist food shops and ethnic eateries of New York, with plenty of sampling along the way. Interested also in Brazil and Rio travel, from NYC? A quick shameless plug for our friends who have started the Rio Travel portal.

Celebrate St.Patrick’s Day in New York

Outside of Ireland, the best place to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day (March 17th) is New York. The city hosts the biggest and oldest (2010 will be its 249th edition) St. Patrick’s Day event in the world, with 200,000 participants and drawing two million spectators along Fifth Avenue. Unlike say, the Macy’s Day Parade, the Saint Patrick’s Day parade is endearingly old-fashioned; no cars or floats are allowed, and instead brass bands and members of various Irish

St.Patrick’s Cathedral in NYC

societies march up the avenue to the beat of traditional Irish music in a spectacle of green and gold.  Each borough also holds its own event, and the city’s hundreds of Irish bars and pub ring loud with the sounds of Celtic revelers well into the night. For the really deal, head to McSorely’s Old House at 15 E 7th Street—it’s the oldest Irish Pub in Manhattan.

For the liveliest local celebrations, don your best green clothing and head to Riverdale in the Bronx, an historically Irish neighbourhood. If you prefer to celebrate St. Patrick’s spiritual significance you could even attend mass at the beautiful neo-Gothic Saint Patrick’s cathedral. Or why not catch a performance of the Irish dance spectacular ‘Riverdance’? This worldwide hit returns to Radio City Music Hall for five days during Saint Patrick’s Day week in New York. Learn also about St Patrick’s day in Korea.

Two Wheels Good in New York City

With its congested streets and heavy foot traffic, New York City may not seem like the ideal place to go cycling. But even New Yorkers need to slow down their place once in a while, and over the years the city’s cycling community has been successful in reclaiming stretches of the city for two-wheeled use. Riverside Park, along the Hudson River, offers a long narrow track that goes on for miles.  The Battery Park area is also good, though be careful of the bumpy, cobble-stoned streets around Wall Street. Over the bridge in Brooklyn, there is a fabulous bike loop around Prospect Park and bikes are allowed on the Coney Island boardwalk in the afternoons and evenings.

Of course visitors to New York will need to hire a bike in order to be able to enjoy any of the above. Another option, which is perhaps better for the first time visitor, is to take a bike tour.  Bike Rental Central Park (www.bikerentalcentralpark.com) both hires out bikes to be used within the vicinity of the park and offers tours.

Cycling in NYC

Bike and Roll (www.bikeandroll.com) offers tours over the lower Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge. In NYC make sure also though to have cycling insurance because the medical fees in NYC if you do get injured are scarily high.

Whether you go with a tour or go it alone, keep these things in mind: you must wear a helmet and it is illegal to ride on footpaths and wear headphones. Oh be very careful of opening car doors! With that said, happy cycling in NYC!

Get ready for the Tribeca Film Festival

Film buffs have a date in New York City April 1 to May 31 this year for the Tribeca Film Festival. The festival was founded in 2002 by the actor Robert de Niro, along with producer Jane Rosenthal and the well-known philanthropist Craig M. Hatkoff.  The thrust behind the project was to rejuvenate the Manhattan neighbourhood of Tribeca area post the 9/11 attacks (TriBeCa means ‘Triangle Below Canal Street).

Tribeca film festival

Eight years later, it has become one of the most important film festivals in the world. Not only does it give directors and producers a chance to show their work to a savvy New York audience, but also the calibre of the festival is such that the panels, discussions, workshops and other related events are some of the most awaited of the year. One of the

unique elements of the festival is the ‘Artists Awards’ whereby established artists donate their works as prizes to budding filmmakers. The Tribeca Film Festival has also travelled abroad; this year a mini-version was held in Doha, the capital of Qatar.

Tickets are best bought on-line at www.tribecafilm.com and can be picked for as low as US$10. If you can, try and see a show in the Tribeca Cinema, which De Niro purchased in 2003 as the flagship venue of the festival.

Getting around New York City

If you are flying into New York City for a Christmas Shopping trip for the firt time, you might be a little apprehensive about the local transportation system. NYC certainly sounds and appears to be a big city and it indeed it. The thing is though that NYC is a great city for getting around.

NYC Subway – The subway system is much safer to use these days and it is cheap extensive and trains run often. If you are staying in Manhatten, as many tourists so, you can pretty much get everyhwere you want using the subway system.

NYC Transport

Local Buses – A lot of visitors use the subway because it is easier to immediately know the routes. The bus service though is very good and can sometimes be more direct. The real benefit though is that you get to see a lot more of NYC by travelling at street level rather than undergound.

Budget flights into NYC

There are several airlines who offer cheap and budget flights into NYC and these can save really save you a few dollars.

The main choices are:

• Southwest Airlines – Fly into La Guardia airport to a wide range of destinations. You can book directly online with Southwest and the earlier you book the better.
• Airtran – Fly from and into Newark and La Guardia and also offer we wide choice of locations.
• Jetblue  – fly from and into all 3 NYC airports including JFK. Destinations are to all parts of the U.S.
• NYC Budget Flights guide -A general look at cheap flights to the Big Apple.

Between the 3 airlines above you can get to most parts of the United States at if you book early enough, at a fairly decent price.

Summertime in Central Park

Central Park used to have a reputation as a rough and dangerous place years ago, but these days it is a quite amazing place to hang out in the summer time. If you stick with the lower side and keep to daylight hours then you should be able to enjoy the beautiful summer weather in the park.

I used to walk to and from work through Central Park a few years ago and expect in the summer months to see:

• Dozens of roller-bladers learning, getting fit and sometimes themselves travelling this way to work.
• Several people out in boats on the lake.
• People playing instruments and practicing to play in different corners and places.
• A number of people playing sports including a spot of baseball, throwing a footbal around or kicking a soccer ball around.
• Sunbathers using the vast space to enjoy some relaxation.
• Joggers using the very large central lake as a route for running around.
• Tourists visiting well-known parts such as Strawberry Fields.

Central Park is almost like a mini city in its own way. I cannot think of anyway better on a sunny day and it is one of the things I love about living here!!!

Central Park NYC

Experience The Beast Speed Boat

If you are a true daredevil you definitely have to go on board with ‘The Beast’. Captain Mad Dog guides his speedboat through the harbor during a half hour race. Skyscrapers and other sights passes you. By the Statue of Liberty, ‘The beast’ stops for a short while to give you the opportunity to shoot some nice close-up photo’s of the Statue.

Before you know it, you are back on track with a high speed of 90 kilometers per hour. ‘The beast’ can hold 145 passengers at a time and is the largest and fastest speedboat in New York. It has more than 90 speakers, and people are entertained with popular music. Many people from all over the world are coming to New York to experience this

Beast speedboat NYC

crazy mad boat ride only daredevils can handle. You can make a ride with Captain Mad Dog every weekly day from the 3rd of May until the 28th of September from noon to sunset.

In the month October, people can also enjoy ‘The beast’ during the weekend. The boat departs from the Hudson River in midtown Manhattan. The departure time is every hour from 12pm to 7pm and the departure time are on a first-come first-served basis. The ticket price for adults is $21.99 and the price for children is $15.99 per ride. The return is the same has the departure point.