GRISWOLDDAD
Parenting, Entertainment, and Travel Tips
Things to Do in New York
*For the top yearly events of the New York City area, click here. For the rest of New York State's events, click here.
Amityville
The story of the Amityville Horror is one of the scariest stories ever. It's so scary, it has spawned a book and numerous movies about the "true story" that occurred there in the mid 70's. 1st, a man killed his entire family in 1974 in their home, the Amityville Horror house. Then, the next family that moved into the house, in 1975, claimed they were tormented by supernatural occurrences and ghosts and left the house 28 days after moving in.
The famous occult investigators, the Warrens, investigated the house after the Lutz family left and also claimed it was haunted. Believe it or not, families still continue to live in the creepy house to this day. Of course, "creepy" is based on perception, and the family that lives in the house now says the only thing about the house that bothers them are the tourists trying to get pictures. They've gone so far as to publish the wrong address for the house on the Internet.
So, I won't put the real address here either, but a quick Google search will give you the right one. If you do go, a couple of tips - respect the family's privacy, get your picture without being invasive, and get your directions from your GPS not the townsfolk...they're tired of tourists too.
Bethel
This may be confusing to those not familiar...as it was to me...but even though there IS a Woodstock, NY, the "3 Days of Peace" concert called "Woodstock" did not happen in Woodstock. Instead, it was put on by Woodstock Productions who'd named themselves after the town of Woodstock in an effort to catch the artistic ambiance of the town that drew Bob Dylan to live there. In short, the concert was in Bethel.
Thousands of hippies descended on this concert that served as the ultimate expression of peace and happiness and thus the ultimate achievement of the flower power, hippy movement. The farm that hosted the festival has been turned into a performing arts center, but has a museum dedicated to Woodstock and the 60's.
Buffalo
The cool thing about Buffalo is that it's the origin point for Buffalo Wings! One night at Anchor Bar, the owner's son came in late with his friends, who were all hungry. They'd put away most of the food and only had the chicken wings...which used to either get thrown out or pulled apart for soups and broths...well, good ol' mom cooked them up and put the sauce on them to make them tasty, and "Buffalo Wings" were born! Naturally some of the best wings on earth are available for your consumption in Buffalo.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the US, one of the biggest cities in the world, an epicenter of culture, history, art, sports, and everything in between. A true "melting pot." There are so many places and things to see in the place, you'll be hard pressed to squeeze them all in.
There's the epitome of NYC, the Statue of Liberty, then there's the Empire State building, Central Park, museums like the MET, MOMA, Museum of Natural History (The first "Night at the Museum" movie was based here), Guggenheim, Times Square, baseball in the form of either the Yankees or the Mets, Broadway, Rockefeller Center, Grand Central Station, Ellis Island complete with historical museum, Coney Island, the inspiring yet depressing 9/11 Memorial and museum, the Bronx Zoo, Radio City Music Hall and the Rockettes, Chinatown, Little Italy (eat at Il Cortile for some true Italian food which is truly great...but THEN go to the streets to find dessert stands to get the best Italian desserts like cannolis), 5th Avenue Shopping (do not miss FAO Schwarz for the kids, it is THE incomparable toy store) or Wall Street.
See? That's an amazingly long list, and I didn't even include much on the description side of things, like that Lady Liberty and the Empire State Building are ICONS of America, or that they've been featured in COUNTLESS movies, like a certain giant ape or the fact that the Ghostbusters rode in the Statue of Liberty... and so on. Ellis Island filtered in the tired and poor and huddled masses into this country. Countless Broadway plays and musicals that are so popular they're turned into movies and movies that were so popular they're turned into Broadway plays and musicals. The 9/11 Museum, while it is depressing, is a shining reminder of how we, as a people, stand up and fight back and continue living to honor those who have died, those who still live, and the country as a whole.
New York has famous hotels, like the Plaza (home of beloved children's character Eloise) and the Waldorf Astoria, famous eateries like Gray's Papaya Hot Dogs, Carnegie Deli, Roxie Deli, and Stage Deli. Also, a New York insider friend of mine says the "best cheesecake in the world" is at Juniors in Grand Central.
Statue of Liberty
Times Square
Plaza Hotel
Carnegie Hall
Little Italy
September 11 Memorial and Museum
Empire State Building
Rockefeller Center
Central Park
Coney Island
Radio City Music Hall
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls is a natural wonder. It's amazing and beautiful, amazingly beautiful...but, while you can SEE the falls from the New York side, and go out in the Maid of the Mist to get up close and personal with the falls or walk down into the Cave of the Winds to see behind the falls...the better views of the falls from land are on the Canadian side. Plus, the Canadian side of the town has so many fun things to do, like haunted houses, miniature golf, bowling and lots more family oriented activities on Clifton Hill. So, make sure you grab a passport and see BOTH sides of Niagara Falls.
Sleepy Hollow
Located in the Hudson Valley, Sleepy Hollow is known worldwide as the setting for Washington Irving's "The Legend of the Sleepy Hollow". Luckily, a visit here won't lead to an encounter with the Headless Horseman. Instead, you'll be able to see the Old Dutch Church and its cemetery. The church, built in 1685 is featured in Irving's story, and Irving himself is buried in the 3-acre cemetery.
The church can be toured year round, but the best time to visit is during the month of October. During that month, there is so much more to see in do in the Hollow. "Irving's Legend" is being performed at the Old Dutch Church, where a master storyteller reads "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow". A block from the church is "Horseman's Hollow" which is a really cool and scary haunted trail.
Further up the street is the Great Jack o' Lantern Blaze. Everyone's familiar with seeing elaborate Christmas light displays that you drive or walk through where many of the lights come together to form Christmas related images, right? Imagine that same concept, but instead of Christmas lights, there are jack o' lanterns! Hundreds of lanterns, all lit up line a trail you walk to see the display. They're made to look like Frankenstein, or Dracula, or grouped together in elaborate pumpkin tapestries to form a spider on a spiderweb or a tunnel of pumpkins you walk through. It's fun and not TOO creepy, making it a family-friendly favorite.
Tappan
Just outside of NYC, you'll find the small town of Tappan, complete with historic, small town feel. What's special about Tappan, you ask? How about one of the oldest bars in America, one that used to serve George Washington and his ilk? Also, the bar served as a temporary prison for Benedict Arnold co-conspirator, John Andre, until his execution.
The Old 76 House was originally built in 1688 and became a bar in 1755. It makes for a very interesting restaurant to visit today as they are decked out with Revolutionary War style decoration. Plus, they have some really good food!
