With New York's history of being a cultural trendsetter both in the US and around the world, is it that surprising that the city has had an outsized effect on Christmas? Here are three things that New York has contributed to Christmas culture. "A Visit from Saint Nicholas" Poem ‘Twas the night before Christmas and…
Continue reading ➞ Three Christmas Things You Can Thank NYC For
Every holiday season, an estimated 150,000 people make the journey to the Brooklyn neighborhood of Dyker Heights to admire its houses decked out with lights and holiday decorations. That number may not sound like a lot compared to the 6.5 million people who visit New York City overall during the holidays, but this is quite…
Continue reading ➞ Dyker Heights Christmas Lights: What to Know Before You Go
In a city/country/world with such an unfathomable amount of need, it's not surprising that New York City is home to at least 35,000 non-profit organizations. I actually thought that number would be a lot higher. Regardless, it doesn't make it any easier to decide which organizations you should donate to on Giving Tuesday (or any…
Continue reading ➞ NYC Organizations to Donate Your Time and/or Money to This Holiday Season
Want to get into the spooky season spirit, but you don't know where to start? Then follow this guide on how to have a Halloween-themed day in NYC! The NYC Halloween activities I'll talk about don't get too scary, so this will be the perfect Halloween itinerary if you're an easily spooked scaredy-cat like me.…
Continue reading ➞ How to Spend a Spooktacular Halloween-Themed Day in NYC
Juneteenth commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Although the holiday originated in Galveston, Texas, it's important to remember that slavery wasn't only a Southern sin. The history of Northern states has also been tainted by slavery, especially New York State, which had the largest slaveholding population of all the Northern states and was among…
Not to sound like a Scrooge, but some things about Christmas in New York are overrated (Looking at you, Union Square Holiday Market). As your friendly but jaded New Yorker, it's my civic duty to give you an honest evaluation of which New York Christmas traditions are worth your time. So if you're wondering which…
Continue reading ➞ Are These New York Christmas Traditions Worth Your Time?
Don't feel like reading? No problem! Press play and I'll read this post to you! This Halloween I’m not going to talk about ghosts and ghouls (although New York has its fair share of ghost stories). Instead, I’m going to share some things that are far spookier and strike fear in the heart of every…
It’s the final countdown to Christmas and I don’t know about you, but I’m nowhere near ready for the big day. Aside from all the cooking and cleaning that still needs to be done, it seems like every year I leave the gift shopping to last minute. I’ll admit that a lot of this has…
Continue reading ➞ What to Get the New Yorkers in Your Life: Holiday Gift Guide
The Queen of Christmas, Mariah Carey, was in New York for a few days this past weekend, spreading her Christmas cheer. Sitting on the throne set up at her Chelsea pop up shop reminded me of New York's "dollar princess" trend, where the city's financial elite were obsessed with marrying off their daughters into the…
Continue reading ➞ How to Buy Your Way Into High Society: the Dollar Princesses of New York
Ah, the Holiday Nostalgia Train rides! The only time of year when people are actually excited to board an MTA train. Every Sunday in December the MTA and the New York Transit Museum put their vintage fleet of 1930s trains back in service and allow the public to take a ride down memory lane for…
Continue reading ➞ Next Stop: 1936! Tips for Taking a Ride on the Holiday Nostalgia Train
