Smoke On

We lucked out today with tickets and ferry passes to the Red Bull Air Race. Having only very recently even heard of this sport we were thrilled to go check it out. A neighbor rang our doorbell at 10:30 am today and said, "Get dressed and go to the race!" We followed her orders and it was great. If you aren't familiar with the Air Race check it out here. These are some of the best pilots in the world! They must also have an extreme personality to do the things they were doing.


The Air Race was an easy and quick commute via ferry. Landing in Jersey City it was Red Bull City plus. It is a top notch affair and the marketing and branding was brilliant. Three giant grandstands were set up just feet away from were the race was taking place. The majestic NY Harbor was the race site. Giant floating inflatable pylones are set up as an obstacle course for these incredible fliers. Pre-race we saw the tricked up Red Bull Helicopter. Ever seen a helicopter do back flips? It was very cool and crazy sight to see an aerobatic helicopter. Other festivities included plenty of parachuters, great music and some fun activities for the kids. Guess what the only cola available on premises was? You got it! Red Bull.

After taking our seats in the grandstands we were anxious to get the race on. The announcers were amazing at educating us on the race we were witnessing. My favorite bit of lingo from the day is most definitely "Smoke On" It was the last thing said when the airplanes dropped into race position. These little planes fly through the starting gate at more than 220 mph. It was pure adrenaline watching these planes flying at you just 10-20 feet above the water

The tickets were such a lovely surprise from a lovely neighbor. We were thrilled to check out the fun! Our favorite racer...Kirby Chambliss.

Smoke On!

Applause

I have to admit the past year I have been partaking in some fun free entertainment....as a studio audience member. Fortune has given me the chance to see Martha Stewart (3 times!), Dr. Oz (never had heard of him and quickly discovered he has a cult-like following), The Marriage Ref, Carson Daly's New Year's Eve Special (blogged about in December), The Late Show with David Letterman and today I found myself at a taping for CBS Morning Show with a Christina Aguilera concert. All and all, not bad for my rookie year of a "studio audience member."

photo compliments of Mrs J. Brown

I have learned a few things, enjoyed watching the logistics of the shows and even scored some fun giveaways along the way. Martha Stewart is by far the easiest experience. She has her own compound. The line moves quickly, there are seats while waiting and they typically move you into the studio without much wait. And Martha has some great audience giveaways. Martha is definitely an awesome business woman and it shows. She is also humorous and very becoming in person.




The hardest audience experience are shows that tape at 30 Rock. I would chalk most of it up to the fact that there are a billion things going on in that complex so logistics are a little more difficult. Audience members are lined up and held for pretty long and typically moved to another area with some hurry up and wait. That being said I thoroughly enjoyed the Marriage Ref. Not so much for the show itself but the fact Jerry Seinfeld spent some time chatting with the audience. Pretty cool.

Letterman was awesome because he is Letterman! That experience was easy and fun as well since he has his own studio. Making the experience even better was we had "group tickets" so it was fun to be with ten of my favorite people.

Get studio audience tickets if you have a chance. Wear comfortable shoes, relax during the waiting part and sit back and enjoy the show! It's free...does it get any better?

So close...

Summer time is nearing. Manhattan is spectacular in the spring but I am ready for the sun! This month Brooklyn called our name three times and Staten Island and Queens earned our attention once. The "other" boroughs seem far away but in reality they are our next door neighbors. As prior post show I do have some love for Brooklyn, particularly the beaches. With family visiting we took an express bus and landed in Coney Island mid-May. It was a pleasure to show off the wild world of Coney Island. After a enjoying the views on the boardwalk we stopped in and said hello to Lola Star. Lola is a fixture in Coney Island and breaths her fabulous soul and spirit in her boardwalk store. Make sure you stop in someday and check out Lola, Shimmer and the pink feather walls. After the smaller visitors took in a ride at Deno's Wonder Wheel we all gathered and enjoyed the fare at the famous Nathan's.

Memorial Day weekend led some of us to Staten Island for a baby shower. Having only driven across Staten Island this was technically a first visit. The celebration was truly one of a kind. If you have never been to an Albanian baby shower you might put it on your list of "totally incredible things I have never been a part of!" The shower started at noon and went non-stop until 5 pm. The only reason the party ended was because the dj had another gig. Yes, I said dj. Not only did this baby shower offer a dancefloor, it offered two singing djs. Does it get any better? Amazing Albanian disco and pop blared and the circle dances were continuous. Needless to say it was a pleasure to be one of three non-Albanians invited to this incredible affair. The best piece of knowledge I gained was that Albanians like to mix red wine with Coca Cola. You read that right. Awesome. They even have a pop hit about that very subject. I have been to a lot of baby showers in my life but nothing even remotely close to this one. It was incredibly fun and an honor to be a part of these party people.

Brilliant sunshine begged us to go out and soak in the rays on Memorial Day. Once again we hopped on an express bus and ended up in Brighton Beach. Having just discovered this little beautiful neighborhood in the spring it was a pleasure to be back. The sand was clean and the people bright. Colorful swimsuits were sported by people of all ages in this most agreeable weather. Russian is what we heard from at least 90% of the beach dwellers. While partaking of vitamin D my mind wandered to the older folks on the seaside and wondered if their minds wandered to their days on the shores of the Black Sea? And how fun that the public restrooms (yuck, but necessary for days on the beach) were dolled up in artificial flowers and pictures of American presidents. Cannot vouch if the mens room was the glitzed up as well.

Last but not least May led us to the discovery of Jamaica Bay. To be honest it was a classroom field trip and bus ride courtesy of the NYC Dept of Ed that led us there but wow what a place! For those not in the know NYC is a huge spot for birding particularly during spring migration. Birding could be a post all its own. Jamaica Bay is the most important birding spot in NYC. More than 300 birds have been spotted at this bird sanctuary. The osprey nest was a huge hit among the shorter crowd. Glossy Ibis, yellow warblers, tree swallows and the ever popular cedar waxwing were oohhed and awed over. I have to admit that birding can become addicting. It is quite the exercise in patience yet being on top of your game. Jamaica Bay is the most important urban wildlife refuge in the country. I am looking forward to visiting it again in the near future. What a beautiful natural treasure within the world of New York City.

Summer is so close we can taste it.

Bring on the Summer.

no passport needed

The beautiful weather led us to journey outside of Manhattan. And as luck would have it the Q train deposited us right in the middle of Brighton Beach otherwise known as Little Odessa. Every nook and cranny is Russian. Every sign is in Russian. Every conversation we attempted to eavesdrop on was in Russian. Every restaurant was well, Russian. It is incredible and certainly deserves a complete day of its own tour.

If we had not already promised our smallest traveler a trip to the infamous Nathan's down the boardwalk in Coney Island we definitely would have dined at the this place! It is right on the boardwalk and looks to be not only delicious but filled with great characters as well. It has been bumped up to the top of "Must do in Near Future" list.

After a cold, snowy, wet, did I mention cold, snowy, cold winter we were soaking in every ounce of sunshine available. We walked to Brighton Beach's most eclectic neighbor...the one and only Coney Island. As previous posts mention, I heart Coney Island. The color, the sounds, the people, the smells make it truly one of a kind. Even on this random warmth of a mid-March day the boardwalk was alive and filled. Nathan's had many people in line to enjoy the birthplace of the famous hot dog. It was as if a huge winter cloud had been lifted...and it had!


While the sand in Coney Island is not the greatest we took direction from the sun and enjoyed a view hours of the beach.

Kites were flying, children were playing and the waves sounded like true music to our ears.

This week's forecast doesn't look so grand. After discovering a new place to check out (Brighton Beach) and soaking up some delicious rays of goodness from the sun I think we just might be able to make it through. Spring has to be on her way right?

District of Columbia

Last weekend we headed to Penn Station and hopped on Amtrak to Washington, DC. Three hours later we were smack in the middle of our Nation's Capital. It has been eight years since last enjoying DC. It is a lovely place. The entire area was still wrapped in a thick blanket of snow. The white made some of the sights even more spectacular. Thomas Jefferson was thick with the white. The Korean War Memorial was even more realistic with the soldiers trudging through the heavy white. As a daughter of a veteran it made it even more touching. When reading about the Korean War there is always mention of the terrible winter conditions. Seeing the statues in that exact climate makes one reflect even deeper on what these men did for our country.

On our trip to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum we had the honor of the seeing the ground breaking Tuskegee Airman. It was quite a lasting lesson and they looked spry in their red coats. The notorious Abe Lincoln had a breathtaking view of a frozen solid Reflecting Pool. We spent many a fun moment taking the opportunity to walk and play on the frozen water in the shadows of our Nation's treasures.

Sunday morning we started the day in the Sculpture Garden of the National Art Gallery. The whimsical and thought provoking pieces were amazing. And who knew our second grader could give us a lesson and insight on the works of Claus Oldenburg?

Georgetown, Embassy Row, the National Cathedral were all taken in with oohhing and ahhing by us. The trip was made even better by a tasty Italian meal and chin-wag evening with a dear friend.

It had been too long since we enjoyed DC. It will now be a more regular journey.

tempesta di neve

Ahh, the first blizzard of 2010 greeted NYC today. The forecast was right and the snow had continued to pile up all day. No complaints here. City living is very lovely in the snow. We can be lazy and play inside while someone else shovels and plows. Living vertically does have its benefits. Yes, we know the next several days will be filled with the not so pretty yellow and gray snow. Hopefully it will disappear quickly.

To continue our tradition of going out in blizzards we headed to the Beacon Theater on the Upper West Side. Cirque du Soleil was offering an open rehearsal of their latest show Banana Shpeel. We got there in time but the crowd was lined up around two blocks. It was great to see people come out in the worst of weather to catch a glimpse of artists truly honing their craft before show opening. We spent the afternoon in awe taking in the talent in the rawest form. We feel fortunate to catch a behind the scenes view of what it takes to make a spectacular end product.

All and all our first heavy snow of the new year has been nice. Bloomberg and Klein surprised us all by canceling school...that never ever happens. So far tomorrow looks to be back on schedule. We hope the weather does clear. We plan to head to our very own nation's capitol of Washington, DC. They are filled to the brim with snow, so we shall see.

Stay warm.

2010

Happy New Year! The countdown is a little less than two hours away. We have done what is becoming tradition of "pre-celebration." A dozen NYC families gathered at a little eatery this evening to celebrate how great 2009 was and how wonderful 2010 looks to be. While the year has offered many changes for several families we all feel blessed with happiness, health and typically good times. The kids enjoyed games and imagination while the adults held lovely conversation. Something about the warmth of friends makes life extra good.

We are tucked in for the night and will look out our windows when the clock strikes midnight. The view of fireworks over Miss Liberty are always a sight to see. It is a mix of rain, snow and sleet tonight but he colors will be bright and lovely. We were fortunate to go to the pretaping of Rihanna and Jay-Z last week so it will be fun to check it out on tv.

Enjoy 2010. Take care of people.