I had passed Geordane’s Neighborhood Market many times on my trips to Irvington, NY when I was visiting Sunnyside, Washington Irving’s Home right up the street or for Halloween or Christmas events in Tarrytown, NY. During the holidays the market is so nicely decorated and their diverse menu is very reasonable for both breakfast and lunch.
The front of Geordane’s Neighborhood Market during the holiday season
Their many sandwiches are reasonably priced and I can tell you from eating there are over-sized. The market has wonderful quality and looking over their hot line, everything is made inhouse.
The sandwich menu has a lot of choices
The hot food line at the deli has a lot of delicious choices
It was a cool Spring afternoon and since I was eating outside and I was starved, I decided to go with something hearty and ordered a Meatball hero (please note there is a difference in price between the sandwich and the hero). The homemade meatballs were large and meaty with a hint of garlic and parsley. The tomato sauce was spicy and rich and the perfect accompaniment to the meatballs. I really enjoyed my sandwich.
The Meatball hero with a specialty soda
The Meatball sandwich was over-sized and is enough for two hungry people to share
The sandwich was delicious
Some of the desserts are made inhouse such as these delicious Apple Cider Doughnuts that begged me to try them but for another time. Everything looked like it would satisfy any sweet tooth.
Their cases have homemade desserts that include in house made Apple Cider Doughnuts
The History of Geordane’s Neighborhood Market:
(From the store’s website)
Dani Diaz has built this landmark on a simple promise: “Quality you can taste, with a heart for the hometown.” Dani prides herself on a hands-on commitment to excellence, ensuring that Geordane’s delivers the best of a classic NY Deli with the high standards of a fine grocer.
For three decades, we have been more than just a neighborhood market; we have been the village’s gathering place and kitchen. We are the place where neighbors meet for coffee, high-schoolers get lunch, and where the community comes for quality they can count on.
hat dedication is evident on every shelf. From our fresh, organic ingredients and locally sourced meats to our famous grilled chicken, we believe in honest cooking. Whether you need a quick panini, a fresh chopped salad, or full-service catering to cover an event “from soup to nuts,” we are here to make it great.
After lunch was over, I walked around Downtown Irvington, NY, which is one of the nicest downtowns along the Hudson River. This downtown is lined with historic storefronts and buildings, unique independent businesses and an excellent view of the Hudson River. Being a rail town, there is a close proximity to New York City.
I then worked it off by walking around Downtown Irvington, NY
I had visited the store during the holiday season in 2025 after lunch at another restaurant up the road and loved their menu and wanted to try it on my next trip to the area. During the Holiday season it was beautifully decorated for Christmas and it was a very festive environment.
The inside of the store during the holiday season
The counters were full of holiday treats
The store was stocked with all sorts of foods and gifts for entertaining and for gifts to bring to people’s homes for the holidays. I loved the way things were packaged.
The front of the store decorated for Christmas
Downtown Irvington is like a storybook town at the holidays. Something out of Currier & Ives when you walk around both during the day and when the downtown is lit at night.
Downtown Irving during the holiday season
Downtown Irvington during the holidays
The decorations around the downtown were really cute
The signs for the holidays were very creative
Geordane’s Neighborhood Market is the perfect place for breakfast and lunch and the perfect place to pick up things for a picnic by the Hudson River. The food is wonderful and the prices are very fair. The service is very friendly and you know you are a local when they call you by name.
School has started, the leaves have started to change colors and it is getting dark at a depressing 7:00pm. Fall has started. With that, the farms go from peaches and tomatoes to pumpkins and apples. By Labor Day, the Halloween merchandise starts to hit the shelves and even more depressing, Christmas trees and ornaments with Santa’s singing have entered the stores. I am still hitting the beach and I have to look at reindeer?
As I was passing Rosie’s Farm on my way into Mullica Hill as I was driving to Wildwood for the Firemen’s Convention, I came across this festive sign for Halloween. We were worried about Halloween in the middle of September? Still it intrigued me and I thought this would be fun. I booked a room at the Salem River Inn for two weeks later and off I went yet again to South Jersey exploring all the back roads.
When I got off at Exit Two off the Jersey Turnpike, I was greeted with all these signs with this festive little ghost all over them. I would understand later that this was a big fundraiser for the Harrison Township Historical Society, a very nice little museum on the edge of Downtown Mullica Hill, NJ that I had blogged about in the past. So with the room and tour all booked, off I went exploring the area again until I could check into my hotel.
Since I had just toured the area two weeks earlier, I got most of my stock pictures in and had a list of places I wanted to visit again before they closed for the season. On that list was Hudock’s Ice Cream to see if I could get that heavenly peach ice cream again before they closed for the season, then visit a small museum in Bridgeton (which ended up being closed), the Cohanzick Zoo in the Bridgeton public parks and the Bridgeton Presbyterian Church cemetery for more pictures of sections of the historic cemetery that I missed. So I took all the local back roads through farm country to get to Bridgeton. The adventures took through farm country and all the great farms and farm stands that come with it. It is so much fun when I get lost.
The Mullica Hill Ghost Walk in Mullica Hill, NJ started the Halloween season
I was coming back from the Firemen’s Convention and was staying in Salem River when visiting museums for my blog and I saw the sign for the Mullica Hill Ghost Walk and back to South Jersey I went. I had to take my mind off the first month of school, so I took the weekend to get away.
As I made my way down to Bridgeton to start a series of visits to historical sites on my bucket list for my blog I took a local detour down local roads and came across Moods Farm with a very festive looking pumpkin looking at me and smiling. I had plenty of time for a detour and visit the farm. What a treat!
The farm was really active that morning with people going on hay rises through the fields, walking through the corn maze and enjoying apple cider and cider doughnuts. That last one I was planning on doing.
The very festive female pumpkin greets you at the gate
Moods Farm Market at was very busy that morning and was even busier when I left
The entrance to the market at 901 Bridgeton Pike, where they were selling tickets to hay rides and the maze
The farm created such a relaxing and enjoyable environment when welcoming you. I felt like I was taking a step back to the 1970’s when there was time to stop and take a breather and enjoy a sunny afternoon. I really like the farm stand with the multiple fruits and vegetables and homemade jams.
The fruits and vegetables from the farm
There were lots of things to choose from at the stand
I was in search of a good cider doughnut. I was bummed that they were selling them by the pack. That was until I stopped and talked with the girl at the counter and she said I could buy them individually. They were just coming out of the fryer and they were warm. There is nothing like a fresh cider doughnut with fresh apple cider.
The doughnuts were just out of the fryer and were so delicious
The Apple Cider was made from Honey Crisp apples
I took my cider doughnut and my apple cider and sat at the picnic tables over looking the farm. With all the rushing around in my life, it was to just stop and enjoy a sunny morning.
I was watching the rides through the fields
While I was at the picnic tables, I read the trivia questions in the large pumpkin while watching the tractors drive by.
The Pumpkin Trivia board
The questions and answers were really cute. I thought it was an interesting game.
The questions
The answer
It was just nice to watch people on the rides and having a good time. It is nice to see all this on a sunny early afternoon.
Looking over the farm in the early afternoon
Watching people have fun on the hay rides
The wooden pens of animals for kids to play with at all ages
After this relaxing detour at the farm, I continued my trip down the back roads to Bridgeton, passing other farms and fields of corn.
Then I passed Elmer, a small farming town just south of Mullica Hill. I had not heard from their historical society and when I saw the sign and time I took a chance to see if they were open and pulled down the country lane. I am glad I did.
The country road leading to Elmer, NJ
In Southern New Jersey you are reminded that we are still a rural state
When I visited Elmer, NJ, they were having their ‘Harvest Fest’ that afternoon when I finally got to see their historical society, which was open as they were sponsoring the event. Normally they are only open the second Sunday of the month and that is it.
The Tractor display at the Harvest Fest
The crowds at the Harvest Fest
The amazing crafts at the festival
The amazing crafters at the festival
While I walked around Downtown Elmer, I found that their historical society was open too. I finally got to tour that elusive museum too.
After I left Elmer, I made my way down to Bridgeton to the downtown to visit some of the historical sites in this former Colonial city. For such a depressed City, Bridgeton has a lot to offer and see. I am so surprised that the artists have not taken over this city as well. I am starting to see traces of it as there are now two art galleries in the downtown amongst the Mexican businesses and a few of the Victorian homes outside the downtown have been really fixed up.
The first museum that was located in the main library, the Woodruff Museum of Indian Artifacts was closed and no one could take me downstairs no matter how much I asked. I could not understand how a main library could run on just two people.
So I left there and decided to take pictures at the Presbyterian Church cemetery. There were a lot of pictures that I did not get the last time I visited and there were certain parts of the cemetery I wanted to revisit. Before I did that, I noticed a woman and her daughter had set up a taco stand just in front of the church across the street from the library.
The smells were amazing and I wanted to see what they were serving. She was cooking homemade soft tacos. tamales and quesadillas. I was starved and they looked so good. So I ended up getting two of them and she served them with a homemade hot sauce. They were out of the world.
What was nice is that they set up a table just outside their stall and I was able to enjoy lunch outside in the beautiful weather
The fresh Tacos being cooked across the street from the Bridgeton Library. The woman and her daughter were such good cooks
After lunch, I headed back up into downtown Bridgeton and visited the Century Bakery at 525 North Pearl Street. I had read an article online that this was one of the best bakeries in the State of New Jersey. It did live up to its reputation. The doughnuts were excellent.
I could not believe the selection of different flavors of doughnuts and cakes and it was hard to choose between them.
The selection of doughnuts to chose from
I wanted something different so I got a Vanilla Cream filled glazed doughnut. Talk about excellent. It was light and sweet and topped with a thick layer of glazed.
The Glazed Vanilla Cream Filled doughnut
Yum!
After lunch, I spent the rest of the afternoon before I checked into my hotel at the Bridgeton Presbyterian Church in the cemetery taking pictures of the historic graveyard. It really is something out of a Hollywood horror film. The cemetery at Bridgeton Presbyterian Church contains some of the founding families of the region and many veterans of both the revolutionary and Civil Wars.
I headed to the church and toured the cemetery. On a sunny Fall afternoon with the leaves changes colors, the graveyard had a certain glow to it like the spirits knew I was there. I still think this graveyard has positive spirits at rest because I never feel creeped out by it. It seems like the spirits always appreciate visiting them and respecting their place here.
The graveyard has a creepy look about it even during the day
I toured the graveyard and looked over some of the more unusual tombstones. I liked the part of the graveyard that was older and closer to the church. The names of many of the original families of the area and a lot of Revolutionary War members were buried here so it’s not only historical but part of the fabric of the City of Bridgeton.
After I toured the graveyard I headed to another part of Bridgeton and headed to the Cohanzick Zoo in the Bridgeton Park.
The entrance to the Cohanzick Zoo in the early afternoon
I got to the zoo in the early afternoon and was able to walk around the zoo and tour the whole thing in an hour. This regional zoo had a lot of smaller animals that had been rescued or abused. The sad part was that the cages and pens were not that big so some of the animals looked bored.
The entrance of the Zoo
The sign that explains the zoo
The Raccoon House was my first stop
I searched for the raccoon and found him sleeping at the top of his house
The little guy looked so pooped
The zoo is one of the smaller more localized ones that I have visited so you can see the whole zoo in about an hour. Then you can walk leisurely around the paths and revisit the exhibitions again. Some of the animals like the peacock family, just wonder around the park and do their thing.
This gorilla sculpture that greets you in the back part of the zoo
Following the walkway to the back pens where a lot of the small animal and bird displays were located
The next exhibition that I visited was the Sand Hill Crane and I read that the poor little guy had been injured. He seemed a bit more optimistic when I passed the cage. I think that the animals just want some attention.
The Sand Hill Crane display
The Crane was watching all of us as we passed his cage
The next small animal that I visited was the Fennec fox and the two that I saw were fast asleep on this warm afternoon. They must have had a busy morning.
The Fennec fox cage
The foxes that I saw that day were fast asleep
While I was walking around the back part of the zoo, there was a peacock family walking around the cages. The father peacock had two small birds with him and they just meandered amongst the cages.
The male Peacock walking around the zoo with his children. They were allowed to walk around on their own without being locked up. They looked like they were having an adventure as a family.
The Ring Tailed Lemur display
I visited the Ring- Tailed Lemur pens and these little monkeys looked like they were plotting an escape. They stayed in a bunch the whole time I watched them and they just stared.
The lemurs just stared back at me as I watched them
The back part of the museum was beautiful in the early fall
The tiger sculpture along the path at first freaked me out that he had gotten out and just looked at us. He looked real.
The Totem Pole Garden
The river running through the gardens in the Fall 2024
The leopard looked bored in his cage. He justly walked aimless around their cages. They are not being given enough space to move around.
The serval cage
The Serval also looked bored. It just walked in circles around the cage. I was not sure if he was bored or just confused.
The zoo was such a nice place to relax and just collect my thoughts. The beginning of the semester had been rough for me and we were going into Midterms in a couple of weeks. Just walking through the zoo relaxed me. Between the gardens and the sounds of the animals it was nice to clear my head for an hour.
I headed over to the Salem River Inn in Salem, NJ and dropped my things off in my room before the tour. I just relaxed for a bit before I made the trip back to Mullica Hill to start the tour. The town was packed with people already starting their tours.
Downtown Mullica Hill the night of the walk
The downtown was dotted with scarecrows
The foliage was just starting to change but like Octobers in the past five years it has been warmer and greener further into the month.
The tee shirts of the event being sold at the start of the tour
Our tour guide at the start of the tour
The scarecrows on the tour
We walked many stops in the downtown that was steeped in history even before the Revolutionary War.
The Hanging Barn where a worker hung himself
The history of the 12th Infantry some buried in the town
The Haunted St. Stephen’s Church downtown
The inside of the church where angels were seen
The graveyard talk in the back of the church
The Haunted House where multiple ghosts have been seen
Another haunted house
The Mullica family home is haunted
Another haunted house in town
After the tour was over, I toured the Mullica Hill Historical Society after the tour to see the new ‘Taverns and Temperance’ exhibition on the local watering holes of the 18th and 19th centuries of which only two exist.
The Last Call exhibition at the Harrison Township Historical Society Museum at 62 Main Street
The ‘Last Call’ exhibition was a look on how taverns were such an important part of socialization at a time when there were no movies, internet, phones and newspapers were limited. Still there was a strong resistance to people drinking which still reflects to our Puritan past.
There was nothing wrong with having a drink but there was a sense of taking it too far. Still this attitude is reflected today. It is still interesting though how one or two of these taverns have carried over into the Twenty First century. They are still welcoming guests today and that proves the socialization of these establishments and how important they are in our lives.
After the tour was over and I had a nice visit with the museum, it was almost 9:00pm and I wanted to eat something. Two small tacos and two doughnuts are hardly a proper lunch for someone. By 9:00pm though, the whole town had rolled up its sleeves. Even the restaurant where the tour started was closing at 9:00pm. I was shocked as there were people inside still ordering. The host said the kitchen was closing and if I knew what I wanted I could sit down.
That was not much of an offer especially at their prices and I made my way down to Naples, the pizzeria and Italian restaurant where I had parked. They were open until a normal 11:00pm on a Friday night (I still do not understand restaurants that close at 9:00pm on a Friday or Saturday night. This part of the COVID scare is over and things are pretty much back to normal).
I went to the host stand and they seated me quickly. Tours were still going on and as I ate my dinner, the place really filled up when I finished because there was no place left to eat in town. (Not a good business decision). I really enjoyed Naples. Not only was it a lively environment with the games going on and a very active bar scene but the food was really good as well and very reasonable.
Naples Pizzeria 1 South Main Street in Mullica Hill
After the walk was over, I went back to the hotel and sunk into bed. I was exhausted from all the driving. The Salem River Inn is so quiet and relaxing the I slept so soundly that night.
My favorite room in the hotel, The Meadow Room with views of the old golf course and the lawns in the front of the hotel.
I had a bit of a rough night’s sleep, I figure to all the traveling and running around due to work. When I got up, I got to watch the sun rise over the field. That is worth getting up for in the morning.
The start of the sunrise
Continues
Continues
Continues
Continues as the Sun peeks out
Continues
Continues
The sunrise finished. This is why you have to book this room
I had a kind day ahead of me with a lot of running around visiting museums for my blog and exploring the areas of South Jersey that I had not yet covered. That meant running from Salem to Millville to Penns Grove to Pennsville to visit all three historical societies before everything closed at 4:00pm. It does not seem like much but it was a lot of ground to cover.
I started off with a good breakfast on the deck overlooking Delaware Bay that Yvonne prepared for me. It was an egg omelet with tomatoes with fruit, breads and hot tea. The perfect breakfast to start the day. The weather was spectacular and perfect for eating outside.
The views from the deck at breakfast the first week of October
The perfect breakfast outside on the terrace
The perfect omelet
Matched with the perfect view
I had to check out early as the Inn was preparing for a big wedding and I had a lot of ground to cover before I headed home. Don’t ask me how I did it but I got the job done.
I said my goodbyes to the owners but not before taking some more spectacular pictures of the grounds and the beach area. It was so beautiful in the morning.
The beach just outside the hotel
Looking the other direction down the shore line facing the Delaware Bay
After I packed up, I said my goodbyes to the owners and headed to my first stop, the Millville Historical Society in Millville, NJ the first of my three stop journey.
It took just under an hour to arrive in Millville which was past Bridgeton where I had been the other day. I was lucky there was no traffic on the road and I got to the museum fifteen minutes before it opened. It gave me time to take all my exterior pictures of the museum. It is a nice little museum with a great bunch of volunteers.
The Millville Historical Society at 200 East Main Street
The Baracha-Dunn House right next door to the Historical Society is open for touring.
History of the museum:
(from the museum’s website)
The Millville Historical Society has been preserving Millville, New Jersey’s past for over nine decades. Incorporated in 1927, the organization’s headquarters and archives depositary is located in the historic 1857 Millville Bank at 200 E. Main St., Millville.
The main gallery of the Millville Historical Society
The Society has been entrusted with the care of three of Millville’s most historic structures: the 1857 Bank building at 200 E. Main Street, the 1798 Baracha Dunn House, and the 1814 Mansion House. Admission to all buildings is free. Donations are gratefully accepted.
The main gallery of the Millville Historical Society from the front door
I recently visited the Millville Historical Society and got to tour the museum and the historical home next door. The main part of the museum is built inside a historic bank that the Society took over in the 1970’s. All the displays are showcased around the museum.
The original picture of the Millville National Bank during the turn of the last century
One of the first displays you will see is the original drawing of the bank. This beautiful historic building sits on the very edge of the downtown as you enter Millville. On the top of the display was a model of a sand separator that was in the creation of glass which the area was known for in the previous century.
The historic map of Downtown Millville, NJ
Another display has a model one of the major ferries that once ran in Millville.
The model of the Millville
After I toured the displays along the perimeter of the museum, I had a tour of the Baracha-Dunn House next door which was part of the historical society’s complex. These historic buildings were built in the late 1700’s and the addition in the early 1800’s. The tour takes you through both the main house and the later addition both upstairs and downstairs.
The Barack’s-Dunn house was open for a tour
The entrance the house from the street
The main room of the original house with the hearth in the main room for cooking and for heat in the house
The hearth is the center of the house
The Living Room of the main home
The Living Room of the home
The Living Room
The other side of the house which was the later addition to the home offered more rooms.
The Living Room from the main door
I left Millville after about an hour and a half and had to race across the southern part of the State of New Jersey down both Routes 45 and 47 to get to Penns Grove to visit the Penns Grove Historical Society which was on the other side of the Garden State Parkway. They closed at 3:00pm and that offered its challenges. Thank God I had already visited the Presbyterian Church cemetery and the Cohanzick Zoo the day before. Since I also updated the exhibition at the Historical Society at Mullica Hill and the town pictures of Millville, Salem, Mullica Hill and Penns Grove, pretty much my blogs were completed to the seasons. That took a lot of driving and a lot of racing around. Still I was extremely impressed the the Historical Society of Penns Grove, Carney’s Point and Oldmans.
While the Society is in a very depressed downtown area which pretty much does not exist anymore (all the stores surrounding the building are all boarded up), inside the museum was presented the exhibition “What We Wore Then”, an impressive look at the town’s former Downtown area up until the 1970’s when the Delaware Memorial Bridge, the Malls and highways changed the way the town shopped. All the strip malls along the highway drew people away from the stores downtown.
The Penns Grove Historical Society at 48 West Main Street
This was when the museum was decorated for Christmas in 2023
The Penns Grove Historical Society sign that welcomes you to the museum
The mission of the Society is to collect, study and conserve such historical materials as they relate to the towns and their inhabitants, especially of the early settlement. It shall preserve relics and property of the past, both real and personal as may be given, bequeathed, purchased, loaned or otherwise acquired by the Society. It shall be the Society’s responsibility to use the collection for the education, enjoyment and benefit of the general public.
After almost two years of trying to visit this small historical society, the trips aligned and J was able to visit the Penns Grove Historical Society and delightful and very engaging exhibitions. What was sad was that people missed this wonderful well thought out museum when visiting the area. The museum has so much charm and such interesting exhibitions to walk through.
Entering the museum and the sign for the main exhibition ‘The Clothes we Wore’
There were three exhibitions showing when I came to visit. One was “On the Waterfront” on the Penns Grove waterfront. This describes the shipping and fishing industry that the town had before the building of the factories and the Delaware Memorial Bridge. Each display case has different aspects of the industries.
The seafarer and shipping artifacts
This exhibit shows how much the Delaware Bay has changed over the last 100 years.
The pictures and description of the native coastline around the Delaware River
Pictures of the Fishing Industry that was once part of the fabric of the town
The next was the exhibition, “The Clothes We Wore” was an extensive look at the retail community of Downtown Penns Grove, NJ before the coming of the malls and changes of traffic patterns into town. It is also a look at the changes in the way we dress not just to go out but how we dress every day.
When you walk the exhibition you can see the array of stores from shoe stores to hats that people used to don until the mid 1960’s and the coming of ‘Flower Power’. Each store had its specialty and catered to a specific client. It is interesting how each stores had it own display of wares and its use in our wardrobes. It also shows a very vibrant downtown that is now part of its past.
Each store had its own display along with the advertising in a time when shopping was leisurely and we took time out to try things on. Pride in appearance was a big part of who we are as people.
Dresses and suits were once part of our everyday wardrobe
The Millinery shop where hats and gloves were part of the wardrobe
Shoes shined for work every day were part of the uniform
Accessories built the character of our wardrobe
More hats that showed the personality of the wearer
The different advertising for the various merchants that made up the downtown
A glimpse of the downtown in its heyday
The infant and children’s clothing was a bit more formal even at public school
We pampered babies even back then. Their wardrobes were always special
Poland’s Department Store downtown was the place to shops before malls took over
The last exhibition was entitled “It’s Elementary” on the town’s school system. The displays in the back of the museum discuss the modes of transportation before cars and highways became part of the fabric. The progression of the schools in Penns Grove were on display as well with class pictures, school trips, awards and pictures of the schools themselves before regionalization and building of new schools.
The history of the Penns Grove School system in the exhibition “It’s Elementary”
The history of early schools in Penns Grove
The corner stone of the Penns Grove School
A classic trip to Washington DC and Mount Vernon were part of the school traditions even in the 1920’s
After I finished touring the Penns Grove Historical Society, I made a mad dash across the highway followed by the Pennsville Historical Society President, who just happened to be visiting that afternoon, to tour the house before they started to put the Christmas decorations up. This was pretty much the last weekend before all the houses closed to start the holiday season. Most of the houses needed to be decorated before Thanksgiving and it took time.
I got to the Church Landing Farm in plenty of to tour the house and the grounds. What an interesting museum that is full of surprises. When they unlock the auxiliary buildings to show you the displays, they are a real wonder of fascinating artifacts each with its own theme.
The sign welcoming you to the Church Landing Farm-Pennsville Historical Society
The house was built by Daniel Garrison between 1840-1845 and was the home for five generations of the Garrison family up to 1973 when the last living relative, Anna Locuson died and did not leave an heir. In 1991, Atlantic City Electric worked with the Pennsville Township Historical Society to open this as a museum.
I started with a quick tour of the outer buildings which I had seen three years prior but did not have a camera to take the proper pictures. Since there is not much online, I was on major picture taking mission and started with the amusement shed of the old Riverview Amusement Park display.
The display of the original park
The Amusement Park display
The Amusement Park display
The Amusement Park display
Then I moved onto the Military and Farming buildings
The town history building
Then I moved onto the High School and Military displays and then I took a quick tour of the house before they closed at 4:00pm. Talk about visiting under the wire.
The Town and High School History building
The High School display
After the tour of the outer buildings, the president of the historical society took me on a quick tour inside so I could take pictures in the house before it was decorated for Christmas. It really is a beautiful old home with the most amazing views of Delaware Bay. No wonder it was in the family for so many years. We first toured the downstairs starting with the Living Room.
The Living Room during the late Fall
The Parlor during the rest of the year
Then we took a quick tour of the bedrooms before they were decorated again for Christmas.
Bedroom One
The Bedroom during the regular months
Bedroom Two
The Bedroom during the regular months
The new dollhouse that was donated
The bathroom during the year
I just had enough time to visit the rest of the house and then head off to lunch before my trip home. The house is so nicely decorated both in the regular months and for the Christmas holidays that it is fun to visit all times of the year. I just finished the tour when the museum closed for the day (Visit my blog site VisitingaMuseum.com for details on all of these historical museums and sites).
I stopped for a late lunch/early dinner at my favorite Chinese restaurant in the Pennsville area, Orient Restaurant at 414 South Broadway, a small restaurant in a tiny strip mall that you would never notice. It may have a very non-descriptive front but the reviews online do not do the restaurant justice as the two times I have eaten here the food and service are excellent. I never quite understood why the restaurant is not busier.
Orient Chinese Restaurant at 414 South Broadway in Pennsville, NJ
Orient Chinese Restaurant is one of those old fashioned Cantonese places that still offers the fried noodles and sauces in the beginning and still serves hot tea, ice water and Fortune Cookies at the end of the meal. Don’t be fooled though, this is no Chow Mein palace. Everything I have tried here is delicious, the prices are fair and the portion sizes are just right for a full meal.
The Wonton Soup is excellent
I kept it traditional by ordering a combination platter with Wonton Soup and Sweet and Sour Pork with Pork Fried Rice.
The Sweet and Sour Pork with Pork Fried Rice and an Egg Roll
The egg rolls here are delicious!
I have always been impressed by the meals at the restaurant and it was a nice way to end a very productive weekend. I got to visit, update and revisit so many cultural sites for my blogs plus I got to see Mullica Hill’s Haunted past. It was also such nice weather and I love waking up and looking at the views of the Delaware Bay at the Salem River Inn. Dinner was the cap off to a very busy Halloween season.
With four class though, I told myself that I am toning the whole Halloween season back a notch to limit the amount of events on the weekends. It got to be too much last year with work at the college and classes at NYU that I nearly lost my mind. So I promised myself that I would try not to revisit events of the past and pace myself each weekend of October. This year we did luck out and every weekend in October was beautiful with surprisingly warm weather. It would be 80 degrees on Halloween Night for the parade but for now, I enjoyed the long weekends and relished my time off when I had it. Until the next weekend.
The second weekend of October was my birthday and this time around I was planning things I had wanted to do and visit on my blogs and eat at some of the restaurants on my bucket list. Two of my major projects were done so on Friday I got all dressed up and started my birthday morning volunteering at Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen.
I got in a little late but was able to catch up with everyone filling take away bags for the guests to go with their meals, then preparing 100 sandwiches for the weekend to take to sites where the homeless were sleeping so that they had a meal over the weekend and then we had to prepare for Sunday Supper that Sunday so all the place settings had to be prepared and bagged up for the dinner, which I had been to a couple of times over the Summer when I had more time. I always like to give back on my birthday and this was the perfect way to start my birthday day.
It was such a beautiful afternoon to walk around the City. This area of Chelsea has changed a lot in the last twenty years
I decided to take it easy this birthday and not do too much running around. I still had to get a haircut and get some other errands done. One of the meals that I planned today was having Afternoon Tea at the Lowell Hotel up on East 61st Street. I had passed the hotel years ago and when I was doing research on the hotel, they had mentioned the excellent Tea Service they had in the afternoon. Since I have been to the Plaza, Pierre and Waldorf (which is still closed for renovation) many times in the past, I had put it on my bucket list to try. At $150.00 for tea, and tiny cakes and sandwiches it was always hard to justify the price for ‘just going’, Since it was my birthday, I decided to splurge today and spend some of my hard earned money on something special. It was well worth it. What a nice afternoon.
The first thing to check out is the Lowell Hotel at 28 East 63rd Street at Madison Avenue. This elegant little hotel is one of the ‘Leading Hotel’s of the World’ and whose architecture is elegant and inviting. The potted plants and well appointed doorman really give it that European looking touch.
On my birthday in 2024, I finally broke down and went for Afternoon Tea in Majorelle, one of their signature restaurants. I went to try the new “Lilly of the Valley” Tea designed by Dior. It was pricey but this was a once in lifetime experience (unless someone takes me here again). The whole experience was amazing from the time I walked in to the time I left. It was first class all the way.
The floral arrangements along were magnificent. I could not believe the attention to detail the whole hotel paid to every corner of the hotel. Even in the bathrooms nothing was out of place.
The floral arrangements in the lobby were polished and elegant
Majorelle is a quiet corner of the hotel’s restaurants with an elegant and polished look to it. The restaurant was not busy that afternoon with only three other tables having diners. People were well dressed and subdued and the room was polished elegance.
Majorelle set for Afternoon Tea patrons
Nothing was out of place in Majorelle
The table set for one and ready to celebrate my birthday
Ordering from a menu fit for a King! I did not look at any prices this afternoon (it was my present to myself)
The start of the Afternoon Tea service
The Sweets and Sandwiches of the Lilly of the Valley Tea
The Curried Chicken, Lobster Salad and Cucumber Sandwiches
The pastries were so beautiful that I did not want to eat them. They looked as good as tasted!
I toasted my father on the Anniversary of his passing and to my birthday for a happy and safe year. This French Rose Champagne was excellent and a generous pour. Happy Birthday to me!
I had to justify spending the extra $35.00 on a glass of Champagne, I admitted to the waiter that it was my birthday and I should spend it in a special way. They came out later with two freshly made Madeline’s with a candle on the plate for my birthday. I will not tell you how much they sell Madeline’s for here but this was a generous gift that the waiters gave me. I told them I did not say it for something free (this is hardly an Olive Garden) but they could see it was a special gift to myself.
The Madeline’s presented to me with a candle on my birthday
Then came out the freshly baked scones which were still warm from the oven. Everything was made from scratch and made for me for this Tea. Even the Madeline’s were still warm from the oven.
These scones just came out of the oven for me and they were served with freshly made jelly
The additional sweets: freshly made iced cookies, Madeline’s, the Pink Dior Cake and a Chocolate Puffed Cake were presented to me after Tea was served
The Pink Dior Cake that served as a Birthday cake
The Pink Dior Cake was the perfect Birthday cake
Me on my birthday at the Lowell Hotel tea. This was the perfect birthday present to myself. I did make a wish that afternoon but I will not tell it
After I filled myself with sweets and good things to eat, I needed to walk this all off. Even then the sugar was starting to affect me and I needed a stretch or I would have spend out in the hotel’s lobby. I walked outside in the warm weather and walked down East 63rd Street and enjoyed the sunny day. That was some birthday!
After Tea was over, I took a trip to the Central Park Zoo to walk off some of the desserts and then I started to get phone calls from friends and family on my birthday, which was really nice of everyone. It was so beautiful and warm that I sat in the gardens near the Seal Tanks and talked with everyone for over an hour before my haircut appointment.
By the time the Zoo had closed, I had finished most of the my phone calls with my family and friends ( I was on the phone for over two hours), I went to get my haircut at York Barber at 981 Lexington Avenue. My barber of thirty years finally retired at 92 and I had to find a new barbershop. I had passed this place many times on my walks on the Upper East Side and finally decided to try it. I have had my last four haircuts here and I have been very happy.
York Barbershop at 981 Lexington Avenue has been around since 1926 and the interior looks like it
The barbers here are really nice and the haircuts are only $42.00 which I think is very fair for the quality of the cut and the fact that I look so nice when leave. They have also all been around for a long time so their clientele is pretty much established. This is also where a lot of celebrities get their haircuts but I never see anyone I know.
The inside of York Barbershop with the all well known people who get their haircuts here
After my haircut, it was off to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a quick tour of the new exhibitions and just to walk around. I love just getting lost in the Met when I want to just get lost in myself. This was the perfect place to spend my birthday.
I love walking around this area looking at the luxury stores and walking around the Pierre and Plaza hotels, especially around the holidays. Unfortunately because of recent occurrences, the security at the hotels becomes a point of harassment where you can’t even walk around to look at the displays in public areas anymore.
Pierre Hotel at 2 East 61st Street of Fifth Avenue
For my Birthday dinner in October 2024, I enjoyed my birthday dinner at the hotel’s signature restaurant, Perrine. The food and service were wonderful. The only problem was that the restaurant was so quiet during the Jewish holidays I felt alone sitting in the back of the restaurant (I had asked for a large table so that I could grade papers).
Perrine Restaurant inside the Pierre Hotel at 2 East 61st Street
The dinner was the perfect way to end my day walking around the Upper East Side. I had been eyeing that Perrine Burger for so long and on a cool night it was the perfect comfort foods.
The inside of Perrine on my birthday
My table at Perrine
I did not even need a menu I had memorized it and I was having the Perrine Burger. It was one of the best burgers I have eaten in a long time. It was made of Prime Beef and Short ribs and you could taste the difference in the meat. It was gamey and rich
My birthday dinner
Nothing like a juicy burger and fries on your birthday
The Perrine Burger is indeed special
Yum!
For dessert instead of any cakes or traditional sweets (I had all of that at Tea in the afternoon), I order the Apple Galette topped with sweet apples and cinnamon. Another perfect comfort food on a cool October night.
My birthday dessert, the Apple Galette
Don’t miss the Apple Galette at Perrine is amazing!
I just relaxed on this birthday evening, spending my day visiting the things I had missed before and just relaxed and enjoyed them.
Me on the night of my birthday at Perrine (with my hair cut). It really was a special evening and a special day. It really cheered me up especially that wonderful dessert!
After my birthday dinner, I walked around Midtown and just enjoyed the views. It is so beautiful in this section of the City. Still before I left I had to take a quick tour of the Pierre Hotel. I forgot how elegant this hotel is to visit. I had worked at the hotel during Spring Break in 1984 and remembered it being one the best hotel’s in the world at that time. I still have that love of this hotel.
Exploring the Rotunda at the Pierre
Even the bathrooms are amazing
After I left the hotel, I just walked around Fifth Avenue and enjoyed the views. Fifth Avenue and East 59th Street is what people think the State of New York is when you say the words “New York” to anyone outside the City.
Midtown Manhattan by the Plaza Hotel at night
The amazing views of Fifth Avenue at night
I really enjoyed the day with wonderful food, excellent activities and giving back on my big day. I know the meals will set me back a bit but both hotels are well worth it. The quality of the food and service you just don’t see a lot of anymore. Happy Birthday to me!
I got back to work over the weekend and graded papers and worked on new projects for my students. With four classes the semester, these students keep me awfully busy. So I spent Saturday and Sunday in front of the computer.
On Sunday morning, we had the October meeting for the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association. We are starting to get ready for the annual breakfast and the holiday party so there was a lot to discuss.
The NJ Jersey Firemen’s Home decorated for the Fall holidays
The home did a nice job making the grounds cheerful for both the residents and their families
The stage was set for a wonderful afternoon of entertainment
My blog on the event at the NJ State Firemen’s Home:
Singer Kelly Carpenter entertained the guests that afternoon
It was a productive meeting and we got a lot accomplished. We started the plans for the annual Christmas Party at the home and the breakfast meeting at the Wyckoff Fire Department. After the meeting was over, I drove around Downtown Boonton taking pictures of the foliage. It was going to be a long week at work and every weekend had something going on due to Halloween.
The next week after an extremely tiring week of classes and testing, I was finally able to sneak back up to Narrowsburg, NY (the upstate Brooklyn) for the weekend. I have been trying to do this for five years and I was finally heading back to the town.
Two days later, I was off again to try another restaurant, The Heron, in Narrowsburg, NY. I must be dedicated because only me could travel to two out of the ways spots just to try a restaurant. I had missed eating here in 2017 when I was passing through on my way to Bovina Center, NY (See Day Seventy-Seven on ‘MywalkinManhattan.com’):
To see the whole trip to Narrowsburg, I followed the same trip I made five years ago. This was a picture taking trip and it was just as enjoyable as it was the first time. Here is the link to the full trip both times:
I had gotten to Narrowsburg at 5:00pm that night and had to be in Bovina Center by 8:00pm so I just had about a half an hour to walk through the downtown and pass the restaurant. I vowed I would be back and it took three years to do it. Funny how life gets in the way when you are living it?
The goal is Downtown Narrowsburg, NY
My trip to Narrowsburg, NY was also a last minute trip that had been on my bucket list for the summer break from school. After such a wonderful day in Cape May, I wanted to take another drive to revisit the area in more detail plus there were a few museums that I wanted to visit that were also on the bucket list. So after work, I traveled up Route 23 into Sussex County and traveled up the highway to my first stop, The Franklin Mineral Museum (which I had passed years ago). It was a nice little museum on the site of the old Franklin Mine.
Before I got to the museum, I had to stop at the McDonald’s in Franklin, NJ, which has been my go to place for lunch before the long trip up to Narrowsburg. It is right around the corner from the Franklin Mineral Museum at 260 Route 23 in Franklin, NJ.
The limited edition Chicken Big Mac which is on the menu as a special
I had to try the new Chicken Big Mac that they were featuring as a special on the menu. It was two tempura chicken patties with the same sandwich set up as the beef counterpart with another type of secret sauce. I have to admit with a small Coke, it was more than enough to tide me over before dinner at 7:00pm. I did not need to order anything else. After lunch, I headed over to the Franklin Mineral Museum.
The entrance to the Franklin Museum 32 Evans Street in Franklin, NJ
The Franklin Museum 32 Evans Street in Franklin, NJ (See my reviews on TripAdvisor and VisitingaMuseum.com) is dedicated to preserving the history of the mining industry, the types of minerals that were found on the property plus interesting displays on fossils from New Jersey and Native American artifacts.
The Franklin Mineral Museum on a sunny afternoon
Before you start to tour the museum, they give you an option to tour the quarry on your own and look for specimens of rocks. I looked over the quarry to find smaller pieces to take home and they had a black light to look over what you found. I found several pieces of calcite that glows orange under the light.
The Mineral Room before the lights go out
When touring the museum, leave yourself plenty of time to tour each of the galleries with two standing out, the Illuminated Rock Room and the simulated mine shafts, which take you into a copy of what a mine shaft and working in the mine would be like.
The Illumination Room is interesting once they shut the lights and close the door
The gallery illuminated
The other rooms are dedicated to minerals and rocks that are found all over the world. The only problem with the museum is that it is a little dated. Most of the signs are typed and the displays could have had more videos to explain what things were and how they were mined. Still the museum is an interesting stop along the highway.
The Franklin Museum Mineral Room
The Native American and Pre-Columbian Gallery
The Fossil Room
After my trip to the Franklin Museum, I continued the drive up Route 23 to downtown Sussex, the County seat. I have never been to such a depressed downtown before since visiting Asbury Park in 2002 (this shore town looks nothing like that today). In 2024, this is the same with Downtown Sussex with a very big theater and arts district. Now the sidewalks are being ripped up and bricked up. The buildings are getting a new life with new stores, restaurants and I can see galleries.
The changes going on now will change Downtown Sussex in 2024
Driving through it looks very nice from a distance but when I parked the car and walked around, almost all the storefronts were empty. All these beautiful historical buildings were just sitting around rotting. The historic hotel on the edge of downtown that looked over the rest of the city was falling apart. There was a theater that had been turned into an arts center but the rest of the downtown had not caught up yet. The artists have not found this place yet. Even the Chase branch closed recently so it is telling you about business. I got in my car and continued driving.
When I stopped in Downtown Sussex in 2024 for the first time in almost five years and all the predictions I thought that would happen to this downtown are coming true. The artists and the creative types have discovered the area. The beautiful Victorian homes that surround the downtown are being renovated, the sidewalks are being bricked up and the ‘new windows’ on old buildings are showing repurpose. It , like Asbury Park, are finding a new beginning.
The views as you start the drive into the mountains on Route 97
The views of the Delaware River in 2024
The trip up Route 23 continues into the mountains and to the highest point of New Jersey, High Point Mountain in High Point Park. Here you will see a lush forest and a great park to go hiking in. Maybe for the next time. I exited through the town of Port Jervis, NY before making the turn onto Route 19 which lead me into the mountains.
The Route 97 plaque
Route 19 past Port Jervis, NY hugs the Delaware River
Route 19 right now is one of the most beautiful drives into the mountains. The foliage was still green on my way up but in a few months the leaves will start to change colors and the views will be even more spectacular. Just driving slowly up the road the Delaware River Valley shows off its true beauty. My advice when you travel up to Narrowsburg, NY is to take your time and if there is a driver that wants to pass you, stop at one of the stops along the way and take the time to admire the view.
Route 19 views of the Delaware River
The view on its way to Narrowsburg, NY
I have to admit though that the drive can be a little scary being so close to the cliffs. I had not been this nervous about driving to close to an edge since my trip to Hana in Maui, Hawaii so please take your time, drive alert and drive during the day. During the late summer, just seeing the river glisten beside me and driving through the small towns on the way up the highway was picturesque and romantic.
The views from the top of Route 97
I got up to Narrowsburg in the late afternoon and the everything in the town was closing down for the night. I arrived at the Narrowsburg Inn by 3:00pm and needed to take time to relax. I met the owners who were preparing for a wedding that Saturday so I did not want to take up much of their time. What surprised me was when they told me that this was their last weekend in business and that Sunday would be their last day running the Inn. Also I was to be their only guest that evening and that they were leaving by 6:00pm for the evening.
All I could think about was the Overlook Hotel in the movie “The Shining” and the rumors that I read online that the Narrowsburg Inn was haunted. The owners assured me that there were no ghosts at the hotel, and I would be fine. They showed me to my room toward the back of the hotel with a view of the park and the river in the distance.
For $100, I thought it was very nice (See my review on TripAdvisor). It had a nice large bedroom with a small sitting area and bathroom with another small sitting area. The whole Inn had been renovated and made to look rustic to match the environment of the town.
The views of the Delaware River from the bridge in Narrowsburg
I had time to unpack and then explore the town while my hosts returned to their work. Downtown Narrowsburg is right around the corner from the Inn and is a nice walk down the road (The Narrowsburg Inn has since been renovated since I stayed there in 2019 and I have no pictures of it).
In 2024, the Narrowsburg Inn was full and I stayed at the new Darby Hotel just across the bridge in Pennsylvania.
The Darby Hotel is a new hotel to the area and is a five minute walk across the bridge from Downtown Narrowsburg. This little hotel which was once a nursing home has been transformed to a hipster hotel with game rooms, wonderful jazz music in the lobby and at breakfast and the most comfortable beds. They had a fire pit at night and a wonderful continental breakfast in the morning. I slept soundly that evening and enjoyed walking the grounds in the morning.
The Common area of the Darby Hotel
The firepit on the grounds at night
My bedroom and the dreamy bed
The Continental Breakfast in the morning which is part of the package
The grounds of the hotel
Narrowsburg had once been a sleepy little logging and fishing town that had become depressed with the economy of Upstate New York until the artists and restaurateurs discovered the town again and made it the ‘Brooklyn’ of the Catskills. The downtown is filled with innovative ‘farm to table’ restaurants, some very expensive galleries and shops (these do not cater to the locals) and some excellent views of the Delaware River.
I think Narrowsburg is going through its second transition as some of the more expensive stores have closed up and some newer ones look like they have been planned.
Downtown Narrowsburg, NY in the Fall of 2024
The small four block downtown is filled with clothing and food stores, small gift shops and galleries and some interesting restaurants. Most of the stores were closed by 5:00pm and would not be opening until 11:00am the next day so there was not much to do but window shop. I walked the whole downtown and passed the grain factory at the end of the block and wondered how long it would be operating with this wave of change. It was nice to see the old and new next to one another and how the town is remaking itself.
Downtown Narrowsburg, NY post office
Downtown Narrowsburg with the Heron Restaurant in the background
I had time to walk ahttps://welcometonarrowsburg.com/exploreround the river and the bridge that lead to Pennsylvania and don’t miss out on this breathtaking view. It is really something to look down the river and see woods and rock formations as well as see the view of the “Big Eddy”, the bend in the Delaware River in the middle of the downtown. The river bends to create a type of lake that naturally flows. At one time, this is where the logging industry used to move the logs downstream but now its used for fishing, boating and photography.
The Bridge over the Delaware River
The views of Delaware River in the Fall 2024
After the walk downtown and saw how busy The Heron Restaurant was that evening, I decided to walk a little further to work up my appetite and walked around the other blocks and look at the old homes and small farms that surrounded the downtown. Right down the road there was even a small historic cemetery and Fort Delaware were right down the road from the Inn.
The views of the ‘Big Eddy’ of the Delaware River from the Downtown Narrowsburg
Dinner at The Heron Restaurant was beyond my expectations (See review on TripAdvisor). The whole experience was excellent. From the warm greeting that I got at the host desk, to the view from my deck table (if the weather is nice it is highly recommended that you get a table on deck facing the river) which is amazing, to the friendly and welcoming service. It was one of the best meals I had eaten in a long time. What was nice was the restaurant was decorated for the Halloween holidays and it was pretty spectacular.
The artsy entrance to The Heron Restaurant at 40 Main Street
The inside of the restaurant during October of 2024 with Halloween decor
Choosing to sit on the outdoor terrace at sunset
The outdoor dining that overlooks the Delaware River
Enjoying a Bellini before dinner and toasting my father on the Tenth Anniversary of his passing
My toast to my father with much love!
What is nice about The Heron is that the prices are very fair for the portions you receive and everything I had was consistently delicious. I started off with a side salad of fresh greens with a homemade vinaigrette dressing, which was a small side dish that could have passed for an appetizer. It was more than enough. It was a combination of mixed greens, red onions, carrots and radish which was crunchy and delicious.
The Mixed Green Salad to start the meal
The salad was crisp and tossed with a light dressing
For my entree, I ordered the Fried Chicken with mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy with a side of mac & cheese that was made with three cheese, caramelized onions and baked bread crumbs . Trust me when I say that the sides of salad and mac & cheese are more than enough. The appetizer portions were much larger and would be too much with a full entree.
My Fried Chicken and Mashed Potato dinner (there were no sides of Mac & Cheese on the menu on this visit)
The Fried Chicken was excellent. When you have a free range organic chicken you can tell the difference in flavor with that and a frozen chicken from KFC. The chicken was moist, succulent and flavorful. The outside had been coated with a crunchy breading that was perfectly fried and crisp. The mashed potatoes were loaded with butter and the mushroom gravy had a rich flavor to it. The mac & cheese must have contained three cheeses and was sharp, gooey delight. The entree was delicious.
I highly recommend the Fried Chicken the Heron Restaurant
For dessert in 2019, I skipped the rich, heavier desserts (even though I really wanted one) and opted for the homemade grapefruit sorbet which was light and tart and the perfect ending to spectacular meal. In 2024, that dessert was no longer available and I wanted some comfort food to end the meal. I had the Lemon Ricotta Cake with a pot of Tea for my dessert. Talk about heavenly. The dense cake was served with a side of fresh whipped cream.
My dessert, the Lemon Ricotta Cake with Hot Tea on a cool October night
The dessert was perfect on a cool October night
The view was the deck was just as breathtaking! As I waited for dinner to arrive, the view changed from a sunny evening that gave way to a beautiful sunset over the “Big Eddy” and the mountains to a starry night where you could almost touch the constellations. I could see the ‘Big Dipper’ perfectly from my table. It was the perfect compliment to the wonderful food and excellent service.
The people dining on the patio The Heron Restaurant looking over the “Big Eddy”
I was the last one left on the terrace which had such beautiful views of the stars
After dinner was over, I walked around the quiet downtown and walked over to the small deck that is next to the stores down the road and looked at the stars. Up in the mountains you don’t have all the light pollution of the City and you can really see all the stars and admire the constellations. The walk was the end of a perfect evening.
The Skeleton inside the restaurant greeting you and watching you leave
The Mummy Lady outside the restaurant
When I got back to the Inn, it was quiet. There was one light on at the other side of the building over the kitchen. I guess one of the cooks stays there. Outside that, when I walked in I saw the empty kitchen and dining room. I walked up the creaky stairs to see the other empty rooms and arrived back in my own warmly lite room and got ready for bed.
Downtown Narrowsburg at night with a full moon by the bridge
If there is a ghost in this Inn, I did hear them. I sunk immediately into the soft, firm, comfortable bed and went fast asleep. When I mean its quiet up here it is silent. I did not hear a peep and slept soundly the whole night. Since the owners were not coming back until noon the next day, I could sleep in and had one of the best night’s sleep since the trip to Cape May. All that driving wore me out.
The owners had recommended Gerard’s Cafe at 119 Kirks Road the next morning for breakfast (See review on TripAdvisor). It had been an old gas station that had been turned into a restaurant (I think they still pumped gas there). It was a pleasant little cafe where all the local farmers ate and caught up on their gossip.
Gerard’s Cafe is now called “Proper to Go” and is a gourmet grocery store
I had a sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich with a side of hashbrowns ($10.95) and a blueberry Danish that had been brought in from a local bakery ($2.00) and everything was simple and delicious. The hashbrowns could have been warmer but overall it was a nice meal. It was fun watching the staff interact with the local guys and some of them went in the back to kid with the staff and give the cooks a hard time. It is a very nice place to eat if you want to go where the locals eat.
The Sausage Egg and Cheese sandwich was excellent (the restaurant is no longer open)
Since none of the downtown stores open until 11:00am, I stopped at Fort Delaware down the road. Fort Delaware is a local historical site (See review on TripAdvisor and VisitingaMuseum.com) that is a recreation of an old fort that used to be on the Pennsylvania side of river.
The Historic sign
The fort was created in the 1950’s as a local tourist attraction by an area resident historian who later sold it the area Parks system. The fort was open for touring on my first visit and I got to see the grounds. In 2024, it was closed as they were preparing for a Haunted Halloween event.
The site has three homes that recreate life in the fort as well as a working blacksmith shop and areas for spinning cloth and cooking. There are actors walking around demonstrating their crafts and talking to the visitors. It is a nice place to take the family if they are interested in history. If you visit the fort, remember to take time to walk all around the upper decks of the fort to look inside.
The next day after a relaxing breakfast and a quick run through Downtown Narrowsburg, I headed home. I had to drive down the shore to visit both Point Pleasant and Seaside Heights to check out their Boardwalks to see how the towns were celebrating Halloween. So there was a lot of driving I had to do this entire weekend before I resumed classes on Monday. I dragged my class work with me on the trip and managed to grade all my papers over dinners both in Narrowsburg and Seaside Heights.
The Aquarium was packed with people going to the special programming. The lines were so long that I did not bother. I had been there over the summer and had a lot of fun inside. The aquarium is very interactive and I loved the feedings that I saw in the summer.
The seal feedings were a lot of fun. The seals they have at this aquarium were both disabled and needed to be in a controlled environment. One had a flipper amputated and had a tough time swimming and the other was blind. They both seemed so grateful that people were helping them and were both very aware of human contact.
The harbor seal was a little charmer
She was always looking around, watching everything we were doing
The little harbor seal could not have been friendlier to the crowd and more engaging. She just showed the crowd what she could do and proceeded to swim around, eat and enjoy herself. She was so used to being around humans she acted like one herself.
The blind seal was just as friendly
The larger seal seemed so at home and comfortable around humans she seemed so relaxed during the feeding. You can tell she was well taken care of by the handlers.
She was also very playful
After the feeding was over and most people left, I stayed to say goodbye to the little harbor seal and she gave me such an innocent look. I just wiggled my mustache at her as she stared back at me.
How can you resist that look?
I walked through the upstairs open pools before I headed downstairs and watched the turtles watching us. Both the Spotted Turtles and the Diamondback turtles just popped in and out and stared at us.
The Northern Diamondback Terrapin
The Northern Diamondback turtle was funny. He just bobbed his head around and looked at all of us looking at him. It is so interesting to watch wildlife observe us and form an opinion. It would be an eye opener if they could talk and form an observation on us watching them.
The Diamondback turtles staring at us
The Spotted Turtle
The Spotted Turtle kept looking at us as well
Both turtles must be so used to humans looking at them, I swear that they are forming their own observation of us. If they were born and raised in captivity, they must be used to us as well.
The one thing I can say about the aquarium from what I observed is that the mammals and aquatic like are very well taken care of and the tanks are very clean. The employees here really take good care of the marine life and of the aquarium itself. I found the staff engaging and knowledgeable on their assigned displays. They interacted with the public very engaged and that’s what made this trip here so enjoyable.
When I came back in October for the Halloween holidays, the aquarium was mobbed with people trying to get in for the Halloween special events inside. I did not even bother getting in line but just walked the Boardwalk to see the decorations. “Boo at the Boardwalk” was a big deal and people came out in droves.
Halloween in 2024 in Point Pleasant with “Boo at the Boardwalk”
Trust me, Halloween is a big deal at the Jenkinson Boardwalk. There were all sorts of activities. Considering that it was almost 72 degrees that day, the Boardwalk was mobbed with people that Sunday afternoon. Everyone was sweating on the Boardwalk and a lot of people were wearing shorts. So much for the Fall!
Classes got even tougher for me as we going into Midterms and all my students were getting their Team projects so there was a lot going on between Mondays and Thursdays. Then on the long weekends I kept running from one section of New Jersey to the Hudson River Valley and then trips down the shore. I really stretched myself trying to cram as much as I could get done before the day was over.
I could not wait for weekends in October. Classes were rough and having over a hundred and thirty students can be taxing but I still managed to get the job done. As I was getting my second round of research papers graded, on the third weekend of October I traveled back up to the Hudson River Valley for a Holiday Tea at the Mills Mansion Staatsburgh. It was the first Halloween Tea since the one I attended in 2019 and the program was very similar to the one we had then.
I have been a Friend of the Mills Mansion now for about four years finding that I was going to a lot of their events it just made it easier to join and get priority on their special events which are enjoyable. The ‘Halloween Tea’ was one of them the opened the holiday season.
The slide show as we were about to begin the lecture at the Staatsburg Mansion
The guests arriving for the Halloween Afternoon Tea
The friendly witches getting ready to greet guests
This event was a tea and lecture of how the Victorians recreated Halloween from a dark more countryside evening wrapped in mystery to an engaging urban event with costumes, specialty foods and traditional events like apple bobbing that guests then made their own. Local Historian Carol Kohan discussed how the event went from a dark rural event to fun and engaging holiday.
The celebration was spooky and fun
From the old traditions to new ones
The Victorian’s made everything elaborate and overdone and the Halloween celebrations were ‘taken up a notch’ with elaborate costumes, parties, bonfires and desserts and candies that were to be served. There were special invitations and cards that were to sent and rules of etiquette.
The Ghosts and Ghouls of the holidays
Following the Civil War and at a time when disease was not understood the way it is now, there was an interest in spiritualism and seances were in vague as people want to reach out to their loved ones. So having a medium at a party was part of the activity. The Victorians knew how to transform a holiday.
The Menu for the afternoon
Our tables numbers on the table
During the discussion, we enjoyed an afternoon tea of the specialty Staatsburg Tea blend, a variety of finger sandwiches, pumpkin and cranberry scones and many types of pastries including mini pumpkin cheesecakes, tiny devil’s food cupcakes and assorted sweet cookies. The caterer always does a nice job with the food and service here.
The food at these function are excellent and plentiful. These were the current and raison scones
The Assorted delicious Tea Sandwiches
Sweets and cakes Afternoon tea here is wonderful
The estate in the Fall of 2024
The estate during the Fall of 2024
After the tea was over, I took a tour of the mansion. After my afternoon at Staatsburgh, I went mansion hopping and took pictures of the foliage at Wilderstein by Rhinebeck and then at the Vanderbilt Mansion in Hyde Park. I worked my way back down Route Nine to my last event of the evening, the ‘Ghost Tour’ at the Knox Headquarters site. It was a very unique event.
My first stop was Wilderstein just as the house was closing for the afternoon. The last of the guests were relaxing on the patio overlooking the Hudson River as the docents started to close up the house. The views of the Hudson River from the house are spectacular.
The Wilderstein Estate 330 Morton Road in Rhinebeck, NY in the height of the foliage
The most amazing views of the Hudson River in the Fall of 2024
The colorful fall foliage of the Hudson River at Wilderstein
The beauty of the Wilderstein estate
After I visited Wilderstein, I went to the Vanderbilt Estate in Hyde Park, where the last of the tours for the day were completely sold out and the parking lot was really busy. People were touring the grounds and looking over the Hudson River. These old estates had some of the most prime space along the river.
The Vanderbilt mansion facing the Hudson River around the time of the setting of the sun
The views of the Hudson River from the Vanderbilt Mansion
The last home of Fredrick Vanderbilt
I could tell why Fredrick Vanderbilt loved this house so much
After I toured the grounds of both of these wonderful mansions, it was the trip down both Route 9’s past all the other historical sites that were closing for the afternoon. The whole Hudson Valley was busy that afternoon.
I attended the Halloween events at the Knox Headquarters when in the spirit of the 18th Century Gothic Literature, an author took us on a tour of treason and tides turning during New Windsor Cantonment and inside the Knox Headquarters. The ghosts of the past tried to find a traitor in the midst of the war.
Meeting the ghosts of the author and her characters on the site of the Knox family estate
The Knox House at 289 Old Forge Road is lit for the Halloween holidays had a eerie look to it that night
The Ghosts of the past trying to find a traitor during the war
Leaving the Continental Army camp after the performance was over that evening
We walked the estate and followed the storyline with the actors. There were people on both sides of the war who thought they were right. It was an interesting Halloween event. Then it was the quick trip home to relax.
The week before Halloween, the Hasbrouck Heights Men’s Association head it’s Forth Annual Halloween House & Merchant Decorating Contest, which was a huge success. The contest took place as I was giving my students their midterms and as I prepared for the Halloween Parade. It was the week from Hell as it was a series of late nights and taking my computer and all my paperwork with me. I never worked so hard. Last year, throw in Grad School and three massive projects and three research papers and you know why last year my Halloween blog was filled of nights of exhaustion. At here I did not have the three classes at NYU but this time I had the additional class with another thirty students so it was just hard.
It was a banner year in ‘Haunted Hasbrouck Heights’ as a record number of Hasbrouck Heights residents decorated their homes for what has now become the start of the Holiday season. ‘In our town of Halloween’ we searched for the best ghosts and ghouls and things that go bump in the night to find the best house and merchant that best represents the spirit of the Halloween holidays. This is my forth year as the Chairman of the Hasbrouck Heights Halloween House Decorating Contest and I have never seen so much creativity in our town.
The Hasbrouck Heights Men’s Association Halloween House & Merchant Decorating Contest:
We found that our winners were two members of the community that had been winners in previous contests, who really stepped up their game and created displays that dazzled the judges unanimously, Heights Floral Shoppe for a third straight year and the Fiduccia family of 85 Woodside Avenue for a second year since winning two years ago. The judges were blown away by their creativity and ingenuity in creating such fantastic displays.
Our Merchant Division is starting to grow with more of our Downtown merchants decorating their windows for the Halloween season. We wish more would get involved but the clear winner is now a three time winner with not just the most amazing windows but interior as well.
The Heights Flower Shoppe dazzles during day and night
‘I love Halloween,” owner Ray Vorisek said. “We like to use our creativity in the windows. I am always adding on and looking for new things for the display. We have been so busy lately that we were not able to finish adding some of the newer pieces for the store.”
The witches, goblins and ghosts in the display at Heights Flower Shoppe
The windows were decorated with flying witches and beasts smiling on their journeys while a howling wicked witch of the west stood guard in the front of the store. The interior was a wonderland of Halloween decorations and candies perfect for any Halloween event and party.
The inside is decorated for a Halloween get together
The candy selection for you little goblins
The store both inside and out was decorated to the hilt with items for sale and the displays.
Three time winner Ray Vorisek with HHMA Halloween Chairman Justin Watrel
Winner and owner of Heights Flower Shoppe Ray Vorisek in front of his store.
Our runner up the year was Healing 4 the Soul, the gift shop and café that is one of the newer additions to our business district. The business is owned by residents Renee and Dawn Pikowski. The windows were simple and creative and elegant.
The enchanting windows of witches and pumpkins
The spiritual windows up close
“We love to decorate our windows,” said co-owner Nicole Pikowski “ we strive to be creative. You will always see different displays at each holiday.” The store was decorated with beautiful witches wishing everyone a Happy Halloween.
The inside of the Cafe for Healing 4 the Soul
The enchanting gifts at Healing 4 the Soul
There are a lot of lotions and potions and sweet treats to eat inside that are all handmade in house. The Halloween fragrances abound the store. More of our merchants got very creative this year and we are hoping to see more next year.
Chairman Justin Watrel presenting the Runner Up Merchant award to Co-Owner Renee Pikowski
In the House Decorating Division it was a difficult decision for judges who drove around many days both day and night to see the houses. Of all the wonderful houses we visited all over Hasbrouck Heights, one home was on the top of every list of each judge and that was 85 Woodside Avenue.
The Fiduccia family had been our winners in the Second Annual contest and stepped up their game by adding all sorts of new elements to the yard to be the winners again in 2024. The vote was unanimous amongst all five judges.
85 Woodside Avenue at night
These are some videos on the winning home’s video display that won the contest. These were amazing and so spooky:
Ghosts and ghouls lined the yard performing all sorts of interesting acts
Skeletons lined the yard awaiting the crowds of Trick or Treaters visiting on Halloween Night
The Fiduccia family in their family ‘skeleton’ costumes
The Fiduccia family with their second year win!
The display during the day was just as impressive as it is at night
Matt Fiduccia said that he really wanted to add new things to the display. “We found a lot of new items that became available and added them to the display. I created the arch for the ‘Ghostbuster-like video’. We added the projectors to the windows on the second level of the house as well. There are a lot of new decorations on the market now for Halloween.”
The house not only had sculptures and mannequins of all types but creatures, skeletons and ghouls that lines the yard. In the archway in the front yard was a running video of apparitions from movies like ‘Ghostbusters’ and ‘Poltergeist’. In the upstairs windows of the home were running videos of desperate souls and violent blows. Each part of the house had its own storyline. It was a well-deserved win.
The Fiduccia family together with their second win for the Halloween House Decorating Contest
The Judges Marc Mancuso, Chairman Justin Watrel and Vinnie DeCicco from the Hasbrouck Heights Men’s Association with winner Matt Fiduccia
With so many wonderful houses to choose from, the judges narrowed it down to three homes as the runners up. There were so many that we liked but each judge was asked to narrow it down to three and it was pretty much unanimous amongst the five of us. Just like the winner, the judges had a short list of the runners up and three homes captured our imagination.
The first two were previous runners up who upped their game and had extraordinary displays of creativity. One was at 36 Hamilton Avenue, the home of Alex, Laura and Scarlet Pena. The other was at 115 Ottawa Avenue the home of Dennis Hall. The displays were both intriguing and imaginative both during the day and night. Like the winners, everyone stepped up the decorations with lights and sound effects and added that special touch to their homes that made it stand out.
Our third was a house on the Hasbrouck Heights border in Lodi that captured the imagination of each judge at 236 Paterson Avenue. The house had a bevy of creatures displayed both in and out of the house. All the judges kept passing it at night so impressed by it we did not realize that it was on the border of Hasbrouck Heights in Lodi, NJ.
“My grandfather used to decorate his house and people used to travel to visit it, so I wanted to keep that tradition going,” said Runner up Jay Logan. “We keep dreaming up new ideas for the display and we keep adding to it.”
Jay and Ann Logan of Lodi were one of the three Runners up for the contest
“We didn’t even know that there was a contest going on,” said Anne Logan. “We live right on the border of Hasbrouck Heights and Lodi, so we feel like we are part of both communities.” The Logan’s turned their display on and lit up and roared. The Logan’s are active members of both communities and were surprised and very excited about their win.
236 Paterson Avenue at night
The ghost and ghouls in front of 236 Paterson Avenue
236 Paterson Avenue during the day
Chairman Justin Watrel awarding the Logan’s their award.
At 26 Hamilton Avenue, Alex and Lauren Pena and their daughter, Scarlett added at lot to their and their display had more horrors in each section of the yard and house. “We have a lot of fun decorating on Halloween and everyone is impressed by the front yard display,” Lauren explained.
26 Hamilton Avenue was Runner Up last year as well
36 Hamilton winners Lauren and Scarlet Pena in front of their home with Chairman Justin Watrel
The Skeleton surgery in front of 26 Hamilton Avenue
36 Hamilton during the day
The mother and daughter Runner Up winners Lauren and Scarlet Pena
The last house on the Runner Up list was 115 Ottawa Avenue which had an honorable mention last year in the contest and has been noted on the list since the first year of the contest. Owner Dennis Hall accepted the Runner Up award with much excitement. “I love decorating the house for Halloween. The kids really seem to love it when they come here Trick or Treating. We are a very popular house. I added the sound effects and have several new pieces that I did not have time to put out for next year. You will have to come back next Halloween.”
115 Ottawa Avenue
115 Ottawa Avenue by the doorway
Runner Up and previous Honorable mention winner Dennis Hall Second next to his ghoulish display that was lit for the night of the presentation
115 Ottawa Avenue drinking the day
We want to thank all the members of the Hasbrouck Heights community for their wonderful displays and with a little extra decoration here and sound effect there can make a big difference in the judging.
Before I headed into the city for an overnight stay the night of the parade, I went to the Halloween events at the Harlem Meer in the northern section of Central Park. For years I had wanted to see the Pumpkin Flotilla. This is when hundreds of lit carved pumpkins are paddled around the Harlem Meer at sunset. I have never seen this section of the park so crowded. Being 77 degrees that night, families crowded the park creating crafts and children in costume were having a ball playing with each other and enjoying the activities. It was when it turned dark, the eerie and exciting events of the water activities started.
The Harlem Meer in late October 2024 before sunset
Every year the park has all sorts of activities for families like pumpkin painting, costumes contests and refreshments. The conclusion of the sent they have the pumpkin parade.
The Harlem Meer and the Dana Center right before sunset and the activities begin
I had never seen the Harlem Meer so crowded before especially with lots of little kids. Families were enjoying the Halloween activities of pumpkin carving and painting, games and little treats that the kids got (I never saw anything as it was gone quickly). The festivities were just ending as I raced from class to get into the City before the Pumpkin Flotilla started at dusk. It was still light outside so I got to enjoy the exhibition inside the Dana Discovery Center, “The Gates”, on the history of the various gates people use to enter Central Park.
The Gates Exhibition at the Dana Exploratory Center
Then the fun began when the sun went down and the Halloween music started to play on the load speaker. Then two people canoeing started to paddle around the Harlem Meer Pond with lit Jack O’Lanterns following them. They started at dusk but when the sun finally went down, the real magic began.
For the next hour, one gentleman started paddling around the Meer then followed by another and they circled the pond for about an hour. Everyone was jockeying for space as we all tried to take the perfect pictures.
I stayed in the park taking pictures as the guys finished paddling around. The park had a almost spooky and mysterious look to it at sunset. I just wanted to get out of Central Park when it got dark. Too many bad memories of things happening. I headed over to the East Side
I stopped at the Bamboo House for a quick dinner before I left for home. The one nice aspect of this small take out place is that is has a nice place to sit down and eat. It isn’t the fanciest place but is a nice place to sit down and have a relaxing meal.
The inside of the dining area of Bamboo House is very nice for a takeout establishment.
I stopped by the restaurant for a late night dinner and had the General Tso’s Chicken with Pork Fried Rice and a pint of Hot and Sour Soup. It was perfect on a cool October night.
My dinner that night
The Hot & Sour Soup was perfect. The spiciness of the soup really opened me up. It had such a rich flavor to it. The General Tso’s Chicken had a nice tangy and spicy flavor to it to complimented by the Pork Fried Rice.
The Spicy Hot& Sour Soup
The General Tso’s Chicken was delicious
This small gem by the Lexington Houses is very good and I look forward to dining here in the future. They have a very nice selection of meals for a reasonable price. It was a wonderful dinner and a great way to end the evening. To work off dinner, I walked from East 98th Street back to Port Authority down Park and Madison Avenues, stopping on the side streets to look at the Halloween decorations. I took so many pictures of displays because I knew the second the Halloween Parade was over, everyone would take down their decorations by Saturday and the Christmas decorations would start to go up.
For some reason East 95th Street off Fifth Avenue especially between Park and Lexington Avenue, were decorated to hilt. The East 90’s were heavily decorated for Halloween as if there was a competition between the neighbors of these areas. Then when I got into the more commercial 80’s, it seemed to stop. More and more this year I saw more people decorate for the holidays.
Here are some of my favorites from my walk down through the Upper East Side:
There scary tales of the Upper East side
East 95th Street looked like it was in competition for the best decorations
Halloween at 1165 East 98th Street
East 95th Street decorations
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 95th Street
East 92nd Street
East 92nd Street
East 92nd Street
East 92nd Street
East 91st Street
East 79th Street
East 79th Street
This was pretty twisted on East 79th Street
East 79th Street
East 78th Street
East 78th Street
East 78th Street
People on the Upper East Side really decided to decorated and they did. People were really creative and had a lot of fun this year. I saw this in my own community that people are embracing the fun part of Halloween. I think people really wanted to outdo each other.
The next day, I had class in the morning at the college and I could tell that the students were getting antsy that they wanted to get out and enjoy Halloween. I can tell a lot of my students had plans that day and wanted class to end. As soon as class was over, I was on the bus to the City. I found out earlier in the week that Mark, who I had been working with for years at the Performance Gate as a Marshall, was not going to be there and now I was in charge with another Marshall J.J. to run the gate. I had to admit I was nervous.
I really had nothing to worry about as I was well trained and there was a lot of help plus J.J. was a great guy and we got along really well. Our entire Team worked together and the evening went by without a hitch. I had never seen four and a half zoom by so fast.
The Cat Puppets practicing at the parade
The Cat puppets rehearsing at the beginning of the Halloween Parade
The Dragon Float at the end of the Halloween Parade
Last float in the Halloween Parade
Me Protecting the Gate at the Halloween Parade with my friend the Dragon
J.J. and I working together at the Halloween Parade
By 8:30pm, the last of the stragglers had come into the parade route. Anyone who arrived late were out of luck anyway as the the floats were long gone. Most of the parade goers were downtown anyway. When we closed the gate, J.J. and the other volunteers left and I stayed to watch what was left of the floats heading up town. By the time I got to the staging area, only two floats were left and the rest were people in costume marching up Sixth Avenue. The parade was winding down by 9:00pm and I walked up Sixth Avenue and followed the parade uptown. Even the Village was heavily decorated for Halloween.
Decorations on East 11th Street
Halloween on East 11th Street
Decorations on East 13th Street in the Village
The crowds were huge and still going strong when I left Da Umberto’s later that evening. One of the police officers said they were on duty until 11:00pm and I thought he was kidding. That really was when the crowds thinned out.
After the parade a group of us went to Da Umberto’s at 107 West 17th Street for dinner as we had in the past
I stayed and had dinner with some of the other volunteers at the parade at Da Umberto’s, an Italian restaurant at the end of the parade route. As I watched the remainder of the parade goers finish their march uptown and the volunteers packing up the puppets and floats, I stopped in for dinner and just relaxed. It was nice to talk to the other people who helped in the parade and exchange notes.
Dinner Buffet at Da Umberto’s
Dinner Buffet at Da Umberto’s of Roasted Potatoes and Brussel Spouts, Penne Vodka and Veal Risotto. The food is as good as it looks!
The food and the service at Da Umberto’s is excellent and we all had a nice time after the parade was over to relax and catch up with each other. The parade was the main topic and its success. It was such a beautiful night and the temperature was still a balmy 65 degrees when I left the restaurant. I had never seen such a warm Halloween but the economic impact of people eating outside, bars jammed with party goers and every restaurant below 23rd Street including the pizzerias and fast food restaurants jammed packed were helping the local economy. Owners may have been tired but looked extremely happy. It ended up being a very nice Halloween for everyone.
As I resumed classes and handed back Midterm exams, (I spent the night at the Residence Inn Downtown and locked myself in the room until 4:00pm the next day grading) there was once last event I attended before it closed for the season. It was the The Pumpkin Blaze up in Croton on the Hudson at the Van Courtland Manor.
I was able to get tickets the Friday night of the last weekend. It was a cool night when I drove up and since it was after Halloween as one of the volunteers at the site said to me, “We see a significant drop in people after Halloween”, the place was empty. There may have been about fifty people when I walked through which was perfect for picture taking. No one was in my way this time and I had plenty of time to walk through and admire the displays.
By the last weekend though, the amount of pumpkins was less and I could see they carved just enough to fill it in for the last weekend. Still I loved the creativity of everyone who contributed to the Blaze.
Arriving to the Pumpkin Blaze on the last weekend of the event. It was quiet on Friday night but was the best for picture taking and viewing all the wonderful displays
Van Cortlandt Manor Pumpkin Blaze in Croton on the Hudson:
I have been to the Blaze over the last ten years and each year displays do change but it is nice to see new things be created. These are some of my favorite displays of the Blaze. I hope you enjoy them.
The Entrance display
The entrance to the Pumpkin Blaze
The entrance path to the Blaze displays and all the Halloween Delights!
The entrance to the Pumpkin Parade
The Carved Pumpkins at the entrance
The Carved Pumpkins at the entrance
The Carved Pumpkins at the entrance of the Blaze
The Carved Pumpkins at the entrance of the Blaze
One of my favorite carved pumpkins
I loved this pumpkin
The main display has not changed much but it is still spectacular. It is an amazing site.
The Tappan Boo Bridge travelling to the ghostly display
The Van Cortlandt Family home decorated for Halloween
The decorations during the musical performance
The field of pumpkins along the way
The end of the Blaze
The Gift Shop on the last week of the Blaze. The Blaze would close that Sunday.
It really was a wonderful Halloween season. I may have cut back because of work but the things I had volunteered to do and events I participated in made it all worth it. It really was a great start to the holiday season.
Boo!
Places to Visit:
Old Town Hall Museum/Harrison Township Historical Society Inc.
Open: Sunday 1:00pm-4:00pm/ Monday-Saturday Closed/Museum is open from April-December/The Auxiliary buildings are closed when the museum is closed. The community is welcome on Sundays when the museum is open and for community events. Please check the museum website on this.
Fee: Combination Museum & Rock Collecting: Adults $15.00/Children 3-16 $10.00/Seniors (65+) & Veterans $12.00 Other packages for just the museum and rock collecting are available. Please check the website.
Hours: Open Thursday-Sunday: 11:00am-5:00pm (the last tour is at 4:00pm)/Open Monday Holidays from April 19th to October 28th. The mansion then closes to prepare for the holiday season. Closed on Thanksgiving and Easter. There are special programs from January to April so please see the website.
Admission: $8.00 for adults/$6.00 for groups and Seniors/Children under 12 are free. Special events have separate fees and can run from $8.00 to $10.00 and above.
Fee: $10.00 donation at the Holidays/$16.00 Adults/$10.00 Seniors & Students/Children Under 12 free
Visit Wilderstein-With its exquisite Queen Anne mansion and Calvert Vaux designed landscape, this historic estate is widely regarded as the Hudson Valley’s most important example of Victorian architecture.
With the holidays now in full swing, I decided to usher out the Halloween holidays with its haunted houses and cemetery walks and usher in the Christmas holiday season with cheerful music and almost too much holiday decorating and shopping which gets more rushed earlier and earlier after midnight on Halloween. It gets to be over-whelming!
After a holiday of house decorating contests, visiting local farms to take pictures for my retail blog and the Halloween Parade in the City, the Midnight hour hit on Halloween night and I swear there was Christmas. I was even at one merchant’s store on Halloween morning and he was changing his Halloween window display to Christmas on the morning of the downtown merchants ‘Trick or Treating’ event. When I asked him why, he said, “This is the nature of the business right now.”
My weekend morning meant setting up for the Hasbrouck Heights Men’s Association Christmas Tree sale on Jefferson and Terrace in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ. This annual rite is our biggest fundraising of the year and has become part of a tradition in many families as the whole family will come to the site even with baby carriages and dogs to buy a tree so that everyone gets a choice. It is nice to see the same faces every year and now I even hear from people that I sold them a tree when they were kids and now, they are buying one for their apartment in the City (thanks for making me feel ‘old’ everyone).
Hasbrouck Heights Men’s Association Christmas tree set up
Day One Hundred & Twenty-Six: Christmas Tree Sales:
We got there at 8:00am in the morning, cleaning the site of leaves and branches and setting up the Christmas shed and all the tree stands. We worked until noon and then finished with a pizza lunch as a group. Christmas trees will be arriving next Friday and then it’s off to the races in selling 400 trees, a new record for us.
I went home and then it was off to the City to watch the end of the Michigan State versus Ohio State football game. What a bloodbath! They walked all over us. By the time I made it up to Blondies, the bar on the Upper West Side that the Alumni meet at everyone was gone but a small handful of people who are the hangers on to the end. The final score was 56-7 and it was a disaster with many of our players hurt. So much for the playoffs.
Since I got to the bar with only two minutes left in the game and getting there just in time to see Ohio State score again, I left after the game ended. There were not that many people left in the bar at that point and only two Ohio State alumni were in the bar singing their fight song. I was off to Brooklyn to go to the “Lightscape” show at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and the “Andy Warhol” show at the Brooklyn Museum. Getting to Brooklyn was a labor in love as all the subways were rerouted for maintenance.
“Lightscape” is a new event at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
I had to change subways twice before I finally got the Number 2 into Brooklyn. Then it was a quick run to the Brooklyn Museum. Once I got to the museum, it was no problem getting in once I passed the COVID protocols.
I went to see the “Andy Warhol: Revelation” which was combination of his later works, his movies and his personal life both in Pittsburgh and in New York.
I never realized first how religious he was in his personal life and how it affected his art later on. Also, I knew that he had a close relationship with his mother and she lived with him but never knew she had assisted him with his art and how talented she was as an artist.
Andy Warhol and his mother in portrait in the “Andy Warhol: Revelation” exhibition
The exhibition featured some of his paintings from his “Last Supper” collection which he painted before he passed away. These interesting large pastel paintings again showed his religious side and portrayed Di Vinci’s “Last Supper” in a more exaggerated form. He kept the context but added color.
Warhol’s “Last Supper”
I finished my tour of the exhibition by watching part of “Chelsea Girls” one of his most famous films (I still have to admit I do not understand the movie and I watch it at the Museum of Modern Art for a couple of hours) and still did not get the point of the film. I have sat through a retrospect of his films and I have to admit, you really need to think about what he is saying because it can be challenging.
A clip from “Chelsea Girls”
After I left the Warhol exhibition, I walked around the American Galleries and then went down to see the rest of the museum. Several floors either were not open or you had to pay for the ‘Dior’ exhibition. I never remember the Brooklyn Museum charging people to see special exhibitions but I suspect COVID has changed it. Still, it was nice to see the Warhol exhibition before it opened to the public.
I got to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden right on time at 7:00pm to start the “Lightscape” tour of the garden. It was amazing!
Highlights from the “Lightscape”:
Lightscape 2021
This video gives just a short glimpse into what “Lightscape” showcased in the Gardens
It was an hour long walk in the gardens following a path around the perimeter of the Gardens starting at the new Washington Street entrance. What an amazing way to walk the Gardens at night. The lightshow really showcased the beauty of the gardens and its layout.
The colored lights by the Japanese Gardens
Visitors were guided on a path around the gardens that was cordoned off and then lit with colorful lights and music. Here and there props were added to open spots in the gardens for an experience of lights and sounds.
“Shunkashuto” in the Japanese Gardens
When you entered the Gardens, you were greeted by light jazz museum to colorful yellow and purple lights adorning the trees. As a group of us rounded the corner into the Japanese Gardens, we were greeted by a lightshow of multiple lights and spotlights enhancing both the garden’s trees and pond. It really lit up the water.
“Shunkashuto” in the Japanese Gardens
As you exited the Japanese Gardens, more lights lit the pathway to the Greenhouses and pools where interesting water sculptures that looked like floating Locusts lined the pools and kept lighting up to appear to be a flower opening.
The restaurants and cafes in this section of the Gardens were open that night but the lines were tremendous and the menu limited plus it was so cool out that I did not want to eat a meal outside but many people did not have a problem with this. The tables at the Yellow Magnolia Restaurant were packed with people eating.
The Magnolia Tree garden lit for the Lightscape event
I proceeded through the Gardens past light features of what looked like surrealist flowers lit in all sorts of colors with the sounds of Christmas jazz in the background. The flowers changed colors as the music played and I took my time to watch the flowers change from vibrant color to another.
These floral sculptures sway to light Christmas Jazz music (2021)
As I walked through of the Gardens, I walked past more trees that had been lit in green, purple and yellow showcasing trees that just a few months ago had been surrounded by crocuses, daffodils and tulips in all their beauty as Spring moved into Summer. In 2023, the ‘Hanabi’ sculpture, just off Daffodil Hill, was playing Christmas song as the lights and movements swayed around.
‘Hanabi’ sculpture in January 2023
‘Hanabi’ sculpture in January 2023
‘Hanabi’ sculpture in January 2023
‘Hanabi’ sculpture in January 2023
I felt like “Alice in Wonderland” walking under these stars
Just past the ‘Hanabi’ sculpture with the music still playing in the background, the brightly lit “Windseeds” were glowing in the distance. They looked like seeds that you would blow off a dandelion after it has dried out. These brightly lit stars lit the way to the Lilly Ponds.
Artist Norman Mooney created “Windseeds”
The “Windseeds”
The ‘Windseeds’
When I got to the Lily Ponds, the “Night Lilly” sculptures were out and did not light up even though the music was playing. The restaurant was pretty busy with people ordering hot drinks and sandwiches and pretzels. It was a cool night so I was a little thrown when people were eating outside.
When I left the restaurant and the Lily Ponds, I passed ‘A Magic of the Season’, a musically review sculpture that twisted and turned with the lights. It played the most wonderful seasonal music and its complexity changed with the colors.
‘A Magical Season’ in full color
From “A Magical Season” still playing in the distance, I could see and hear the song that made the “Light like Water” play and with each verse in the song, the pyramid changed colors and designs. I was so fascinated by it and by the song that sounded so post-COVID about recovery that I stayed three times to hear it all the way through and watch the colors. It was mesmerizing.
‘Light Like Water’ by artist Masha Tsimring
The glass pyramid “Light Like Water” at one of its various points of light and color in the song
The pyramid kept changing colors
They pyramid halfway through the song
Further down the path at the southernmost part of the park were the “Nightbirds” who soared across the trees in that part of the part near where the Herb and Rock Gardens were located.
‘Nightbirds’ were colorful as they soared above the gardens
Heading back towards the Main Lawn was the sculpture “What if?” as if it was questioning why we were in the gardens and what was our purpose.
“What if?” lights the way by the Rock Garden
On the way back and passing the Main Lawn where the water features are located was the interesting large flowers of the sculptures of “Bloom”. These colorful flowers were set to the background of trees that kept changing colors and were a blaze of brillant colors.
The beauty of “Bloom”
‘Bloom’ changing colors
The surrounding trees kept changing colors around “Bloom” adding to its complexity.
Next to ‘Bloom’, the ‘Neon Tree’ dazzling everyone with a variety of lights that showed the context of the tree it decorated. I wish the artist had done more than one tree as it would have made an interesting forest.
The ‘Neon Tree’
‘Neon Tree’ up close
Passing the ‘Neon Tree’, there was a shot of lights and music that created a outdoor ‘Disco’ dance floor in the middle of the path. “Dancing Lights” would have been fun if the weather had been warmer and people could have boogied on down. It got colder by eight o’clock and the lights were in full swing. At least we could enjoy them by walking through them.
“Paloma” was a series of birds that were placed all over the trees and looked like a pigeon attack from the distance. These well-light birds covered the branches of the trees on my way to the ‘Winter Cathedral’, which was the signature work of art of the this walking exhibition.
‘Paloma’ from the ‘Neon Tree’ path and its approach
‘Paloma’ from up close
The ‘Winter Cathedral’ from a distance
Entering the “Winter Cathedral”
Walking through the “Winter Cathedral” is amazing
The top of the lights of the “Winter Cathedral”
The “Ghosts” once you leave the “Winter Cathedral”
“The Ghosts” of birds on the sidewalks
The path led to the Cherry Tree lawn where the best part of the light show took place. A light show awash with colors and sounds as the entire section of the lawn was lit and twinkled of lights and Christmas music and light jazz as all the trees and lawns created a spectacular display that entertained everyone who stopped. I was so taken by the display that I stayed for three entire shows of lights and sounds.
The “Fire Garden” in the Rose Garden Fountain
The “Neon Waves” in the Cherry Blossom lawn
We exited up the hill that overlooked the Cherry Blossom Lawn so that you could see the lightshow again from another perspective. It was even more interesting as you walked up the sidewalks that line the hill and could sit in the benches watching the show from above the lawn. Amazing!
The “Neon Waves” in the Cherry Blossom lawn
The “Neon Waves” in the Cherry Blossom lawn
The “Neon Waves” in the Cherry Blossom lawn
The “World of Color” is between the Cherry Trees
The “Aurora” at the end of the walk through the Brooklyn Botanical Garden
The “Aurora” was the end of the show and the lights overlooked the Cherry Blossom lawn and with all the Cherry Trees lit to capacity, the whole show had two different perspectives from both sides of the lawn and as you walked down the promenade.
This video of the Gardens by Caty Exterior really captures the show (I credit the blogger on this amazing video):
The video on the walk through the gardens
I exited the Gardens from the original entrance on Eastern Parkway and like everyone else who was leaving that evening, totally mesmerized by the light show we had just experienced. I was glad that I had seen the show early as the reporters and bloggers who I had probably been touring with had seen the show as well and everyone reported on it the next week. Online reviews were extremely enthusiastic.
After the show was over in 2021, I walked down Washington Avenue to find a place to have a snack. I came across Gino’s Cucina Brick Oven Pizzeria at 723 Washington Avenue. for a slice of pizza. The pizza was excellent with such a crisp crust and bottom and the sauce really tasted of fresh tomatoes. The only problem with the restaurant was that there was no place to eat inside and I ended up eating at one of the small tables outside and it had gotten cold as the evening progressed. It was nice to eat outside but my pizza got cold fast.
Gino’s Cucina Brick Oven Pizzeria at 723 Washington Place
After my snack, I took another walk around the neighborhood to see the lights of the Brooklyn Museum and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in the distance. It really had been a wonderful evening and I was glad that I experienced the light show and the art opening before they reached the general public and tickets then became hard to get. Not even a week after I visited both shows, they had been heavily reviewed in all the New York City papers so try to get tickets now.
In 2022, it was really getting cold out and I needed some chicken soup and I remembered North Dumpling and King Dumpling in Chinatown and wanted to stop in Chinatown for a quick snack. Thank God I chose North Dumpling first because as I walked back through Chinatown, King Dumpling had closed for the evening.
China North Dumpling at 27A Essex Street in Chinatown
I had to walk down many dark streets to the get to the restaurant which is on the other side of Chinatown. I ended up ordering the Steamed Wonton Noodle Soup ($6.95) and an order of Spring Rolls ($3.00). With a Coke the whole thing came to $11.00. That was my type of meal and talk about the soup warming you up.
The Spring Rolls at China North Dumping
The Steamed Wonton Noodle Soup I highly recommend at China North Dumpling in Chinatown
It was a nice end to a wonderful evening and even though it got cold, it was fun walking around Chinatown again. What really scared me is how rapidly the neighborhood is changing. It is getting very ‘hipster’. I am not sure if people are noticing.
The next evening, I drove up to Croton-on-the-Hudson for the last night of the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze at the Van Cortlandt Manor. I have been to the show for many years and I even renewed my membership again to see the show one more time. This was the last night of the show before it closed for the season. Seeing a Christmas light show the night before made this visit rather strange as Halloween was over three weeks earlier. Still, it was an amazing walk through the grounds and the best part was there were no crowds!
I started the evening with dinner with my favorite restaurant right near the Van Cortlandt Manor, Dong Happy Gardens at 440 South Riverside Avenue. This wonderful Chinese restaurant is tucked into the Shoprite Mall next to the supermarket. The three times I have eaten here the food has been excellent (See review on TripAdvisor.com) and the service very friendly. The rules have been relaxed at the restaurant so you can eat in the booths now.
I had the Chicken and String beans with a side of Pork Fried Rice and an Egg Roll and everything was excellent. They served me a large portion of Chicken with freshly cooked string beans in a soy and Hunan sauce with had a nice hot and tangy flavor to it. The egg roll was filled with lots of chopped roast pork and cabbage and was perfectly fried. The combination plate was a nice sized dinner portion and warmed me up on a cool night.
The Chicken and Broccoli is excellent here
With the Christmas holidays in full swing, the festivities of Halloween are long behind us and since I chose the last night of the show at the last entry time of 8:00pm I pretty much had the walk all to myself. There must have been about fifty other people walking through the same time as myself and I could take extra time to look at the displays and enjoy the music.
The Van Cortlandt Manor is memorizing with the site of hundreds of lit pumpkins
Being so close to Thanksgiving, the newest pumpkins that had been carved were in the shape of turkeys and horns of plenty.
Welcome to the Blaze in 2022
Pumpkins with their own ideas in 2022
You were still greeted by the mysterious faces of Halloween but the last week of the event was themed to the upcoming holiday.
The “Tappan Scream Bridge” leads you into the displays
The show had not changed much since I had visited in late November last year. I entered through the Tappan Scream Bridge and saw all the carved pumpkins of fish swimming. I then passed the Ferris wheel of mysteries animals as they made their way around a circle.
The Headless Horseman Bridge was another bridge of wonder at the entrance of the grounds
Walking through the tunnel of lights is a fantastic sight
I made my way through the display passing the Headless Horseman Bridge and the Museum of Modern Art display which I thought was one of the most original parts of the show three years ago.
The Art Show:
Their version of Van Gogh’s “The Scream”
Their version of Di Vinci’s “The Mona Lisa”
Their version of Andy Warhol’s “Soup Cans”
Keith Haring in a pumpkin
Alexander Calder in 2022
I continued my walk through the display looking that the Ghost Circus Train that lead the way through the next part of the display showcasing all the circus animals that followed.
The Ghost Circus Train ablaze with animals
Once past the Ghost Circus Train I walked past the Ferris Wheel of Animals going round and round as it played an eerie tiny music. The animals grinned as they went through the cycle over and over again.
The path led past the Ferry House that once greeted guests on the Old Albany Post Road.
The Pumpkin Blacksmith in 2022
Then led to a series of Zodiac signs. I search for Libra and found it right in the middle of the display showing the balance that our sign represents.
The Pumpkin sign of Libra
The paths lead past creatures from the deep and the past as our crowd of visitors was greeted by the Lock Ness Monster and a series of dinosaurs that guarded the path on the way to the Van Cortlandt Manor House.
The Loch Ness Monster guards the paths to the deep
The dinosaurs roared and nodded as you walked past them showing their strength of character and lore.
The dinosaurs led the path to the next part of the display
As I got closer to the main house, there was a big display of the skyline of Manhattan with a display of the New York City skyline starting with the statue of Liberty and the Lower Manhattan skyline. I thought that was very creative.
The Statue of Liberty was very impressive as well was the skyline
I finally reached the Van Corlandt Manor lit to the hilt with colorful lights and a dazzling light show that was continuous. Before you entered the front of the manor, you are greeted by a mysterious clock that chimed and churned as it greeted you.
This grandfather clock chimes it way through the tour of the Van Cortlandt Manor
The manor house, which closes in September for the set up of the Blaze, was lit with a entertaining Light Show and music that greeted guests with a sinister undertone and greeting welcoming in the Halloween season. You have to wait to see the show twice not to miss anything.
Van Cortlandt Manor in all its dazzling glory for the Halloween holiday
Before leaving the last part of the Blaze, there is a well lit path of ghosts and ghouls and things that go bump in the night as you pass the Van Cortlandt cemetery and things from the past that guard them. There are all sorts of creatively carved pumpkins all over the lawn in front of the manor.
The Van Cortlandt Cemetery is on display as you exit the family home
Ghosts and Ghouls and things that go bump in the night
Paying respects to the Van Cortlandt Family patriot Steven Van Cortlandt
Pay respects to Catherine Van Wyck and Pierre Van Cortlandt
Exiting the Blaze, you will see all sorts of carved pumpkins and the rest of the Blaze in the distance. It will be another year to until the Blaze comes again but what a way to see it on its last glorious night. This is something you should not miss when coming to the Hudson River Valley during the Halloween season.
Me on the night of the Blaze. It was rather warm for this time of the year.
I have visited the Philipsburg Manor House and Estate many times over the years. During the “Headless Horseman” Halloween activities, the house is open for tours. You are able to tour the rooms and see the home in a spooky environment. The house was lit by candles and the tour guides lead you through the house.
During a special event at the holidays, the house had seasonal decorations, lit by a combination candles and open hearth fires in the fireplace and tour guides explained a Colonial holiday season.
The Manor House as it was explained to me was a place where the Philipse family stayed when they were away from the…
I can’t believe that Halloween is over again! It comes and goes so quickly and I can already see the traces of Christmas on its way. There are times that I can’t believe that July and August go by so fast and then there are the holidays.
Halloween, as you can see by the last few years of this blog, have become more than just handing out Halloween treats to kids at my house. In fact, even when I have been home I rarely see trick or treaters, the most being 14 kids about ten years ago. Kids today at least in my part of the neighborhood have little interest in doing this anymore.
Halloween started for me on the first weekend of October with the ‘Pumpkin Blaze’ at the Van Cortlandt Manor (See my reviews on TripAdvisor and VisitingaMuseum.com). Last year I saw the Blaze on the last weekend it was open on the first weekend of November and the temperature had dropped to 32 degrees and I said never again. I wanted to see it when it was warm out and I could take my time to really see the displays.
So I asked my Aunt Deloris to attend with me as a delayed birthday present to her and on October 7th we headed up to Croton-on-the-Hudson to see the Annual Pumpkin Blaze. It was unusually warm that night at 62 degrees but there was the threat of rain later that evening. Still for the entire time we were at the Van Cortlandt Manor, it was mild and pleasant. Since we attended on a Monday night long before Halloween, the crowds were not as large.
Entering the Blaze event
It was a spectacular display this year with many new displays to ohh and ahh at while walking the paths around the manor. To let you all know, the Pumpkin Blaze is a volunteer event and major fundraiser for the Hudson Valley Historical Society. Thousands of hand-carved pumpkins are illuminated all over the grounds of the estate and the light makes it quite intriguing.
The pumpkin carving starts in late August and early September
As you enter the path into the estate, they are lined completely with lit pumpkins. That lead to the Circus train display and the Tappan Scream Bridge, both made from a combination of real and plastic pumpkins, The train had gotten longer and more detailed over the years with detailed ghostly animals arriving at their destination.
The spooky Circus train
Another display that was amazing was the Museum of Modern Art display that had with copies of famous works in pumpkins. It was in honor of the renovation and extension of the museum.
The Andy Warhol Soup Can
The Headless Horseman Scream
As we exited the ghostly museum, you pass the musical carousel and the Albany Post Road that was lined pumpkins. There were pumpkin jack in the boxes, pumpkin dinosaurs and pumpkin mummies. The displays were bigger, more detailed and more elaborate then years past.
Pumpkin Dinosaurs
The pumpkin carousel
The paths leading to the Van Cortlandt Manor were lined with a pumpkin cemetery and then the dinosaur displays. This lead to the light show at the Van Cortlandt Manor that was lined with pumpkins and a light show that illuminated the house. The house was surrounded by pumpkins of all faces and expressions along the path around the house. This lead to another cemetery that had the Van Cortlandt family names as you exited the property.
Van Cortland Manor at Croton-on-the-Hudson
As we exited the property it lead to a series of tents that carried all sorts of gifts and Halloween items, two different food concessions with hot dogs, cider, homemade doughnuts and popcorn. It was very active after everyone had walked the show.
Then my aunt and I came across this giant pumpkin that was craved out of wood that everyone was taking pictures at and we pose for our own Halloween portrait. That was a lot of fun dodging the other families to take the shot.
My Aunt Deloris and I at the end of the Annual Pumpkin Blaze
Just as we were leaving the site and heading to the car, the heavens opened up and it started to rain. We just made it to the car as it started to pour. As we headed back to New Jersey and crossed over the Tappan Zee Bridge, the rain started to let up to a light drizzle. When we reached Paramus, it was just a light mist.
We stopped for dinner at the Suburban Diner at 172 Route 17 North in Paramus, NJ ( see review on TripAdvisor) for a snack. The snack ended up being a large Turkey Club Sandwich with a side of fries, Cole slaw and a pickle. This thing was huge! My aunt ordered a BLT that was just as large and for two people who just wanted a ‘snack’ we devoured everything. I guess it was all that walking.
I love Turkey Club sandwiches
What a sandwich!
I continued my Halloween activities to where it all took place, Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown, NY, where the months of September, October and early November are very busy. Historic Hudson Valley has lots of events this time of the year, one of them being the Pumpkin Blaze.
Another event I attended was the “Home of the ‘Legend'”, a tour of Washington Irving’s home, ‘Sunnyside’, which is located at 3 West Sunnyside Lane in Irvington, NY (See review on TripAdvisor and VisitingaMuseum.com). I had visited the house years ago but they now had a Halloween tour of the house.
‘Sunnyside’ was the home of Washington Irving from 1835 until his death in the house in 1859. The house was originally a small two room stone house had been built around 1690 for a tenant farmer and had once been part of the Philipse Manor estate grounds. When Washington Irving bought the house in 1835, eyeing the home when visiting his son Oscar who lived in the area.
Washington Irving’s Sunnyside at 3 West Sunnyside Lane
With his friend, George Harvey, a painter, they created the home in the Romantic style with almost a fairy tale appearance. The ‘storybook’ home is covered in wisteria and has the most beautiful views of the widest area of the Hudson River. The author wrote some of his most famous stories from this house. He lived here with his brother, Ebenezer and his five daughters after his business failed so the house was a busy one.
Washington Irving’s study
The house was sold to John D. Rockefeller for the State by Washington Irving’s great grandson, Louis Irving in 1945 preservation. The house tour is really interesting as the old Victorian wing was torn down to preserve it to the time of Washington Irving so it has the original kitchen, ice house and barn. These ten acres were a working estate.
I got to see Washington Irving’s study and bedroom with the original furnishings which I thought was interesting. It does have a small kitchen for all those people and the bedrooms the rest of the family had were almost the size of today’s contemporary homes. So it must have been tight for the family.
When you exit the kitchen from the back to end the house tour, you head to the back lawn where the ice house is located, the gardens and the barn. There are ten acres to roam around with ponds and streams and again that amazing view of the Hudson River. This tour should not be missed when it opens back up in the Spring.
The last event I went to in Tarrytown was ‘The Unsilent Picture, which took place at the Tarrytown auditorium. The program was a movie based on a story line mystery that takes place one evening and the local actors play out the characters to scare a family member. I was so tired from the cold and it was so boring that I think I fell asleep for five minutes and missed a section of it. I just didn’t get the interest in the whole thing. I would bypass this in the future.
The Unsilent Movie
Here is the trailer for the movie:
One Halloween event you should look into is the Victorian Halloween Tea lecture at the Staatsburg Historical Site/Mills Mansion in Staatsburg, NY. These lecture teas are very interesting and the food is wonderful.
The Staatsburg Historical Site/Mills Mansion at 75 Mills Mansion Drive
The Mills Mansion estate during the Fall
The back of the estate during the Fall event
I have been a Friend of the Mills Mansion now for about four years finding that I was going to a lot of their events it just made it easier to join and get priority on their special events which are enjoyable. The Halloween Tea was one of them the opened the holiday season.
The slide show as we were about to begin the lecture
The table set for the Halloween Tea
The guests arriving for the Halloween Afternoon Tea
The friendly witches getting ready to greet guests
This event was a tea and lecture of how the Victorians recreated Halloween from a dark more countryside evening wrapped in mystery to an engaging urban event with costumes, specialty foods and traditional events like apple bobbing that guests then made their own. Local Historian Carol Kohan discussed how the event went from a dark rural event to fun and engaging holiday.
The celebration was spooky and fun
From the old traditions to new ones
The Victorian’s made everything elaborate and overdone and the Halloween celebrations were ‘taken up a notch’ with elaborate costumes, parties, bonfires and desserts and candies that were to be served. There were special invitations and cards that were to sent and rules of etiquette.
The Ghosts and Ghouls of the holidays
Following the Civil War and at a time when disease was not understood the way it is now, there was an interest in spiritualism and seances were in vague as people want to reach out to their loved ones. So having a medium at a party was part of the activity. The Victorians knew how to transform a holiday.
The Menu for the afternoon
Our tables numbers on the table
During the discussion, we enjoyed an afternoon tea of the specialty Staatsburg Tea blend, a variety of finger sandwiches, pumpkin and cranberry scones and many types of pastries including mini pumpkin cheesecakes, tiny devil’s food cupcakes and assorted sweet cookies. The caterer always does a nice job with the food and service here.
The food at these function are excellent and plentiful. These were the current and raison scones
The Assorted delicious Tea Sandwiches
Sweets and cakes
Pumpkin Cheesecake bites and Apple Tarts with Marshmallow Cupcakes represent the holiday
The start of the lecture after tea was finished
After the tea and lecture, we took a detailed tour of the Mill’s Mansion which I had taken many times but this was with another tour guide and he gave us another perspective to the house. He mentioned stories of the Mills family that I had not heard before and we also got to see how the renovations of the house were going. It looks like the dining room and entrance hall will be finished in time for the holiday party.
The foyer of the Mills Mansion as they prepare for the holidays
All of these activities lead to the big event in my Halloween every year, the NY Greenwich Village Halloween Parade which I have been marshaling now for five years. Participating in the event this year, I got an invitation to go to Rokeby, the estate of the Aldrich/Livingston family to see the puppet rehearsals. This year’s theme to the parade was “Wild Things” and the puppets and costumes were to reflect this.
Because I had the above Afternoon tea at the Mill’s Mansion the next day, I stayed at an Airbnb for the night and that was interesting. I had a feeling that the host really did not want to meet me as she scrambled out the door that night. The room was in a small private home near downtown Kingston and the nice part was that I could enjoy all the restaurants, museums and historical sites (See VisitingaMuseum.com for the sites I visited) and go back to the room to sleep.
After I checked into the Airbnb, it was off to The Rokeby Estate which is a 400 acre property in Red Hook, NY. Most of the artists for the Halloween Parade and the Sinterklass Parade in December (see my blogs on this as well) live on the Rokeby Estate in the homes that surround the old mansion.
The Rokeby Estate in Red Hook, NY
By the time I got up there, it was just starting to get dark and trust me, the roads are not paved going up to the house and it gets dark up there. I parked by the barn where all the magic happens and they create and assemble all the puppets. This was interesting because I got to see all the designs and all the construction areas of the barn.
The rehearsal went by well and they even created music for the puppets to dance to when performing. Then the participants holding the puppets lead everyone to the Rokeby Mansion and we all assembled on the porch which was lit with Christmas lights and watched the performance from there.
The Wild Things at the Puppet Rehearsals at Rokeby
The Max’s of the Wild Things
Watching from the porch of Rokeby was a lot of fun and what a place to view everything. Before it got dark, I got to talk to Tracey and Wilt Aldrich and introduce myself (we are like 12th cousins by marriage) and we got to chat before the performance. I got to see the sun set over the Hudson River from there and it was spectacular. The colors over the mountains was amazing and you can understand why people moved up here.
After rehearsals, it was off to Rhinebeck for dinner at Pete’s Famous, a diner concept downtown that I highly recommend. I had a much needed Hot Turkey sandwich with mashed potatoes ($10.95) and a Coke (see review on TripAdvisor). The main meal was loaded with that thick turkey gravy that diners are known for when serving this dish. The meal started with a Chicken and Rice soup that really warmed me up. It was nice to warm up in the restaurant and chat with the waitstaff.
Pete’s Famous at 34 East Main Street in Rhinebeck, NY has wonderful food
After dinner, I just walked around downtown Rhinebeck, NY knowing that Sinterklaas was only four and a half weeks later. I could see that the Christmas lights were being put on the trees already. Then it was off to bed and back to the Mills Mansion for the tea. The parade would be four days later.
The Chicken Rice Soup is amazing
The ultimate comfort food a Hot Turkey Platter with Mashed Potatoes
Halloween Night was really unusual again this year. The weather was threatening rain all day and it was weirdly warm being 71 degrees and humid that night. Somehow we never saw the rain that night and as it got dark didn’t even notice the clouds.
Getting ready for the parade
I got the parade early this year arriving at 3:00pm to meet with the Head Marshal at the gate (and my distant cousin by marriage), Marc Schuyler. I had lucked out and had been invited to the Marshaling meeting the week before which made me better prepared for the parade. By the time I got there, most of the marshals had arrived and I got to work with the locations of people and where everyone was supposed to go.
My ‘cousin’ Marc Schuyler and myself at the parade entrance
With the exception with one pain who lived near by and snuck into the parade route, we did not have one problem this year and getting people into the parade was easy. We had no hassles this year and because it was not raining as expected, the parade route got really busy. People came out for the parade in droves and the costumes were more creative than in previous years.
We got all the bands in, all the ‘Thriller” dancers checked in and all the float people into the park on time and kept the tourists out. By the time we closed the gate at 8:00pm, there was no one left and the parade was in progress. By the time I got to Sixth Avenue and Spring Street, most of the parade was uptown.
The parade during set up
I got to see about four floats go up Sixth Avenue and one band before the rest of the parade was people in costume. There was everything from Superhero’s to cheerleaders in that parade. People dressed as horses, birds and trees. Lots of Jason’s and Freddie Kruger’s and spirits of death. People were dressed like little kids and cartoon characters the list goes on.
Preparing for the parade
There was a small get together after the parade but that was not until 10:00pm so it gave me about an hour to walk around the Village and watch people in action. I swear I walked all over the Village and Soho and every street and restaurant was mobbed! Because it was so warm outside all the outdoor cafes were open. All the outside tables were taken and it seemed that every restaurant was packed with people with more waiting. Even the McDonald’s and littlest pizzerias were busy. With no rain and warm weather, people were in the mood to be outside one last time.
The Floats in the parade
A group of us had light dinner that night at Da Umberto on 107 West 17th Street in the Village and the food and service were wonderful. They had a nice buffet set up for us and we had a choice of a Risotto Bolognese, Penne with a Pesto Cream sauce, Rigatoni with Vodka sauce, or Eggplant Parmesan as the main dish, a wonderful salad with house dressing and a Tiramisu for dessert. The food and the service was excellent and we had a nice evening just sitting around and talking about the parade.
Da Umberto is an excellent restaurant! Make sure to try the pastas
The food at Da Umberto’s is excellent
When I left the party around 11:30pm, it was still going strong as was the street party after the parade. People were still eating outside, house parties could be seen from the windows and people were still parading around in their costumes.
When I got home just past Midnight, I felt the first drops of the storm and when I got inside around 12:15am, the heaven’s opened up and did it rain! It pounded the roof. God had really spared us all of that. It was the last night that I slept with the air conditioner on and the heat off because when I woke up it must have dropped 25 degrees and the heat went right back on.
Another Halloween over and here come the Winter and Christmas!
mywalkinmanhattan 