I have to admit I am a huge fan of the original film “Friday the 13th” and have been since I saw the film in the theaters in 1980 when I was in high school. Those were the days when all a parent had to do is just tell the person at the ticket counter that they were allowing us to go see an “R” rated film and we got in. That seemed to change when I was a senior in high school but that is another story.
The Opening scene of the film:
Annie comes in town
I had to plan this trip like D-Day with three major projects in graduate school, three quizzes and two major projects in my own college and house and yard work to do. On the Thursday before Friday the 13th, I did three loads of laundry, changed the sheets, did the ironing, cut and weeded the lawn, aired out all the linens and then vacuumed and dusted the house on top of working on my college projects that night. All that and I had to teach that night. All to go to a small town in the middle of no where in New Jersey to where the original opening scenes of the film were shot.
Welcome to Blairstown, NJ during Friday the 13th on October 13th, 2023.
Sounds crazy huh? Not to all of the other fans of the film who were running around both Blairstown and Hope NJ that afternoon. They were doing the same things I was doing, taking pictures around the town where the movie was shot and going on tours. It was busy that afternoon. It would get very busy in both towns that day.
Downtown Blairstown, NJ and the former Blairstown Museum in the background. This is where the opening scenes took place forty-three years ago.
The character of Annie (Actress Robbi Morgan) walked down the street in the opening scene of the film. I got to Blairstown early so I was able to get a good parking spot and take pictures downtown. It was only near the Water Building that I had problems. Myself and two other people were trying to get the same shot under the arch. We had to all negotiate time to take pictures with each other.
The opening scenes in Blairstown, NJ and Hope, NJ
The movie moves from Camp NoBeBoSoCa (North Bergen Boy Scout Camp) to downtown Blairstown, NJ and then cuts to Downtown Hope, NJ. You have to look at the camera angles to see how they show the opening scenes of the film. It utilizes both towns that make it seem like one town.
The opening scenes where Annie walks in town.
Actress Robbi Morgan, who played the role of Annie, walked a strange path in Downtown Blairstown, NJ. She walked from the east side of the downtown, then down the west side next to the theater and then down the hill past the now real estate office. The camera took on different angles as one vlogger said. It was to make it look like she was visiting several towns. Those scenes were shot at this location in Downtown Blairstown and then when she entered the restaurant, she was in Downtown Hope NJ.
Where Annie was walking down the hill (where the prep school is located)
Downtown Boonton where Annie walks down the hill.
The town has not changed much since the film was shot over forty years ago. It has improved a lot since COVID as new people have moved in and are renovating the homes and many of the stores downtown. I have noticed more gift shops and galleries open over the last two years.
The famous downtown with the former Blairstown Museum to the right.
Roy’s Hall where Friday the 13th shows during the evenings.
Roy’s Hall was showing two time slots for the film that was sold out in record time and had waiting lists to get into see. I think that they could have had four showings starting in the morning and they would have sold out.
The walkway down the sidewalk where Annie walked past.
The sad part was that both the Blairstown Museum and the Friday the 13th Museum both permanently closed for business. One of the merchants told me the couple who was running the museum’s were separating and the collections were being split up. That was really disappointing since they were great museums. I was wondering why the museums were not open on Friday January 13th of 2023. People had been banging on the doors of both museums that month.
Me in front of the Friday the 13th Museum on January 13th, 2023. The Friday the 13th Museum is now closed.
The Blairstown Museum is also now closed.
With the museums being closed, I like everyone else was snapping pictures around the town where all the scenes took place. I was amazed that these people knew the movie better than I did and knew every angle that the director shot from. People were discussing this in front of me and I thought I knew the movie really well. Some of the locals said to me there are diehard fans who knew every second of the film.
The scenes where they were leaving Hope, NJ.
I was a beautiful warm, sunny afternoon and I was able to walk the entire downtown several times, looking at the old buildings and admiring how many of the old houses in town had been renovated and looked just beautiful. With the number of rainbow flags in town in front of the homes, I can see that the gay community has really embraced both Blairstown and Hope. With the exclusive Blair Academy eight behind the downtown, I can see where a lot of people are working. It has brought the town back to life in a very positive way.
The houses on both sides of town were being renovated.
The community is starting to fill with artists and creative types as are most of these small towns in New Jersey, New York State and Connecticut.
Before I left for Hope which is about six miles up the highway, I walked around the town to see what was going on.
Don’t miss the burgers at the Blairstown Diner. They are delicious (if you can into the restaurant that day)
The Blairstown Diner, where I ate the last time I was in town (see my review on TripAdvisor), was about twenty deep with people trying to eat both breakfast and lunch. I did not want to wait in line, I looked around for another place to eat. Right across the street from the diner is Dale’s Market, which is a local grocery with a wonderful hot food and prepared food section.
The selection of sandwiches and hot foods are extensive
The Prepared foods for a picnic.
Their Fried Chicken is well known in the area especially chicken fingers with ranch dressing.
I ordered “The Deputy” breakfast sandwich, which was three scrambled eggs, bacon, hashbrowns, cheese on a chewy bun. They also had a nice hot food prepared section with nice looking fried chicken with different flavors.
“The Deputy” breakfast sandwich
I highly recommend the sandwich and get it with the hot sauce!
I took my sandwich and sat in the park to enjoy breakfast. Their is a limited amount of places to eat in Blairstown, so it was nice to just take the sandwich and sit in the park on a beautiful day to eat. Footbridge Park is just off the downtown area and it has a wonderful river, picnic tables and most importantly bathrooms.
The entrance to Footbridge Park at the Paulinskill Trail in Blairstown, NJ is the perfect place for a picnic if the restaurants get too busy.
The history of Blairstown, NJ with the influence of the Blair family.
Since it was a school day and early in the morning, I had the entire park to myself. The park was really beautiful as the leaves had not changed color for the fall and the river running through the park is picturesque. It was very relaxing after a busy two days of school and housework. It was nice to relax and just eat. After eating I took one last tour of the town and then drove over to Hope, NJ.
The scenes shot outside Hope, NJ
Before I left Blairstown for my appointment to see the Hope Historical Society at 1:30pm, I walked around the town one more time to see all the displays and props that merchants and artists had set up for the day. People in the town are finally embracing the film for the fans and decorated the town for the occasion. There were some really creative displays honoring the movie. I had to admit it was a little silly but it was all in fun and in the spirit of the film.
This painting was in one of the gift shops.
In honor of the bed Brenda slept in that night.
Representing the vans used by victims in later films
The artists created this interesting version of a haunted house.
The inside of the haunted house.
The town embracing Halloween early.
Having fun at a new store opening.
Halloween comes early in Blairstown, NJ.
The town was preparing for their fall festival the next day (it rained like crazy).
One of the homeowners even recreated one of the scenes of the film when Ned got killed.
Leaving the guarded downtown with all its decorations for Friday the 13th and Halloween.
The ride from Blairstown to Hope is only about ten minutes and there was no traffic on the roads being so early in the morning. Most people were just getting into Blairstown as I left so I knew my parking spot in the beginning of the downtown would be prime. I did not figure coming back to Blairstown as the afternoon went on because people would be coming in town to see the movie and then take pictures of the town before it got dark. Hope, Nj was pretty quiet when I got there but it busier as the afternoon wore on.
I stopped by the Moravian Cemetery and church first where people were stopping their cars to take pictures. It was really funny because the guy who was running the cemetery was outside to help people take pictures of people in front of the Moravian Cemetery sign which is so famous in the film where Annie was dropped off.
St. John’s United Methodist Church (The Moravian Church) at 354 High Street in Downtown Hope, NJ.
The Moravian Cemetery sign at the church where Annie gets dropped off.
He was taking donations for the church as well as selling cemetery dirt for $10.00 a jar. I thought this was great and what a clever idea. I told him that they should think about cemetery walks in the evening and the church sponsoring a Spaghetti dinner at night to raise money for the church. His wife, who is the pastor of the church, he was going to pass the ideas onto. While I toured the cemetery, people kept coming and going around the cemetery, taking pictures and getting insights on the film. I made a donation to the church as well.
Selling cemetery dirt was a clever idea and people were buying it! (I am sure that you can order through the church).
While I was in the cemetery, I came across the Blair family plot and the grave of John Blair, the founder of Blairstown. It was in the older part of the cemetery toward the back close to the church. The older section of the cemetery had a lot of character.
John Blair’s gravesite at the Moravian Church
After visiting the cemetery, I visited Downtown Hope, which is about a block long. The Toy Box, a well known toy store in the downtown is owned by a guy from Little Ferry up by me. They had all sorts of memorabilia from the film for sale, including some items from the movie “Halloween”. The owner was even wearing a ‘Friday the 13th” tee shirt, which again was a good idea. It was nice to see the merchants embracing the film and the fans that were visiting the town.
Downtown Hope, NJ
The Toy Chest Toy store at 335 High Street in Downtown Hope, NJ
The store has an amazing collection of toys and movie memorabilia. The owner is from my area of New Jersey and has brought a wonderful selection of toys and games to the area.
The inside of the store.
The core of the downtown is where the other scenes of the film were shot. The diner in the film is now the Hope Junction Antiques at 331 High Street , which features an assortment of Friday the 13th merchandise all year around. I was talking with the owner who I have gotten to know over the years because of museum trips to the area and the Moravian Candlelight Tour during Christmas that the Historical Society sponsors.
The Friday the 13th display that the store had inside. This is where Annie met the townspeople in the film.
The former diner is now a very nice antique and art store with a large selection of interesting pieces. They have just about everything you need to decorate your home.
She was selling painted Friday the 13th rocks and between her and the guy that worked with her they had sold eight of them at between $50.00 to $75.00 a piece. She had a artist that liked to paint them and they were selling briskly to people from out of town. It amazes me what people will buy.
After my visit to the store, I stopped off at the Hope Historical Society to take interior pictures for my blog. I had not been inside the museum for almost two years because it is never open.
The museum had been open for a special private tour that I was not part of but at least I got to stop in for about twenty minutes and do some interior shots of the collection and post them onto my blog, VisitingaMuseum.com. The collection is small but very interesting of life in the former Moravian town and of rural New Jersey.
The front part of the Hope Historical Society
The localized history of the area is shown in the front part of the museum.
The back part of the museum shows life in rural New Jersey at the turn of the last century.
The museum would benefit of having a small Friday the 13th collection and the town’s role in the movie. I think that would bring tourists into the museum more. That and arranging a tour with the church on where these sites from the film are in the town.
Still their interesting collection should not be missed and I took some time to see the collection before the tour took over the museum. The concentration is on local history of the area and life in rural New Jersey. There is emphasis on the Moravian culture in the town. It may be a small museum but there is a lot to see. The museum is only open on Sundays from 1:00pm to 4:00pm and it does not give you much time to visit.
After I left the museum, I stopped up at the places I had visited on the Candlelight Tour two Christmas’s ago and when I passed the real estate agency around the corner, I wondered why there was a bicycle outside the store. I realized it was Ned’s bike! Some people really thing out of the box. The people who worked in the office were having a good time engaging with tourists who knew the spot that Ennis took Annie to the crossroads (which is technically down the road). It may seemed like they left town for a long trip but they just changed the direction down the road.
The building where Annie was picked up by Ennis, the truck driver.
Crazy Ralph’s bike outside the office.
The woman who managed the real estate office was outside helping people take pictures in front of the store. This was around the corner from the museum.
After taking pictures around Hope and Blairstown, I needed something to sweet and I remembered that Humpty Jr. and Hot Dog Johnny’s were right down the road on Route 46 West.
My review on Littleshoponmdinstreet@Wordpress.com:
I love Humpty Juniors. I had wanted to eat lunch here but the breakfast sandwich I had for my late breakfast filled me up and I had no appetite. I had really wanted to try the cheesesteak with the wiz which so good the last time I was there. I decided to have a sundae and chose the Banana Cream Pie ice cream. I had it topped with butterscotch syrup, whipped cream and a cherry. It really hit the spot after a long day of touring.
Banana Cream Pie ice cream with butterscotch syrup with whipped cream and a cherry.
The people at the church had said that tours of Camp NoBeBoSoCa were completely sold out at $350.00 a pop! You could also spend the night at the camp. On Thursday, October 12th the price was $750.00 per person and on Friday, October 13th it was $950.00 per person. I thought this was crazy but it completely sold out too! I thought the camp was really smart on this.
Returning on December 13th, 2024:
It is a lot different to come to Blairstown in December when it is cold. When I returned to Blairstown in December (I missed the event September because of the Firemen’s Convention), it was 38 degrees at 1:00pm when I got into town and there was no one there. The Main Street was very quiet and I saw one person taking pictures by the waterfall by Blair Academy.
I just don’t think Friday the 13th and Christmas really mix especially with Downtown Blairstown decorated for the holidays. Still the town looked really festive getting ready for the holidays and it was nice to walk around even though it was so cold. It did keep the crowds away.
Downtown Blairstown, NJ decorated for Christmas
The gazebo where music was playing was now decorated for the holidays
Even the old outhouses were decorated. They are now used for storage
It was a rather gloomy, cold day to walk around but the merchants I talked to thought it would be a busier day. Even the theater in town was not showing the original film that evening which it normally does. The only people I saw in Downtown Blairstown were the locals going to the post office.
Downtown Blairstown was quiet on December 13th
I took some pictures of the town from the perspective of the opening scene of the film from when Annie walks around the Main Street. When I was here last October, we all had to take turns taking pictures by the Waterworks Building and the bridge by the waterfall.
The historic downtown sign
The Water Works Building that Annie walked under
The Water Works covered walkway
The waterfall on the Blair Academy property where Annie passed by
There were still some businesses that had the Friday the 13th spirit as they were selling the merchandise from the original film
This was competing with Christmas decorations unfortunately
The stream through the town on the other side of the waterfall
Downtown Blairstown was very quiet that afternoon and got colder as time went on so I went to the Blairstown Diner around the corner for lunch. Unlike last October, the restaurant was not that busy so I was seated pretty quickly. I have to tell you that they really decorate the place for Friday the 13th. On a warm day, forget getting in as the lines are really long.
The Blairstown Diner decorated for Friday the 13th
The counter area decorated for Friday the 13th
The restaurant was decked out for the day
The special menu for Friday the 13th themed around the day
The Summer Camp Chicken Sandwich platter was really good
The menu they have on Friday the 13th is limited and the prices were really high for this area. I could not believe that a simple Fried Chicken sandwich was $22.00 but I knew it was because of the day. No different from the restaurants in Rhinebeck during Sinterklaas. So I ordered the Summer Camp Chicken Sandwich with a side of Jason Slicers, which were fresh potato chips with cheese, bacon and sour cream on top of them. The food was really good and it was a nice sized portion for the price.
The Summer Camp Chicken Sandwich with Jason Slicers for my lunch that afternoon
The summer camp chicken sandwich
The chicken sandwich was really good and rather large
The Jason Slicers, potato chips with bacon and cheese on top were really good
The staff was even decked out for the event
After lunch was over, I took a drive to Hope where the rest of the first scene of the film took place. The town was getting ready for the Moravian Christmas event that I would be attending the next (yes, I had to double back to Hope the next night). The town was decked out for Christmas.
Downtown Hope where Annie gets picked up for her truck drive
The house in front of where the truck took Annie on her ride
The Hope Historical Society next to the real estate office decorated for the holidays
The old diner in Hope, NJ where Annie stops for directions
The downtown decorations in Hope, NJ
The Moravian Church gate at the Holidays less spooky during the day
The town was beautifully decorated for the Christmas holidays instead of Friday the 13th
The luminaries would shine the next night
Lots of Christmas trees too at the Festival of Trees at the Community Center
More Christmas trees
So it was less frightening and more festive in both Blairstown and Hope but everyone there is bracing for the next Friday the 13th next year in the warmer weather where it will get even bigger. You all have to take the Moravian Candlelight Tour the second week in December to really appreciate the beauty of Hope, NJ.
Have a good holiday season!
Returning to Blairstown, NJ for Friday, the 13th June 13th, 2025:
On a rather overcast but sunny and warm day in June, I joined the hundreds of fans of the film ‘Friday the 13th’ to walk around both Blairstown and Hope to take pictures and watch people dressed like Jason walk around town. It can be hokey but still fun.
Blairstown, NJ where original movie was shot was busy but not as busy as I though it would be given the time of year and the weather. There were many diehard fans walking around Downtown Blairstown, NJ that morning but I thought downtown would have been busier.
Entering Blairstown, NJ
I found a parking spot pretty quickly in the downtown and started to walk around. It looked like both museums in town were never going to reopen. They closed permanently back in 2023 but people kept asking questions about the and I got several hits on my blog.
I walked around the downtown like everyone else, talking to merchants and taking pictures. Several galleries have opened in the downtown and a few gift shops. The whole downtown has improved since COVID and all the homes and businesses have been renovated. It has improved a lot since my first visit back in 2019.
The famous downtown from the opening scene of the movie has not changed in forty-five years.
Part of the iconic downtown from the opening scene of the film
Two of the Victorian homes still under renovation at the end of the downtown area.
I like everyone else in Blairstown that say took Annie’s iconic walk downtown from the first part of the film.
Walking past the famous waterfall on the Blair Academy campus
Video of the famous falls from the film
Then walked back the other direction through the Blairstown Waterworks Building archway just like Annie did the day.
The Blairstown Waterworks Building archway
My tour through the building
There is a small park right where the old ‘Friday the 13th’ Museum used to be and a group of guys had sentry up a booth were they were doing a podcast from the park and talking to people. There was also a vendor who decorated the area for the day. He has been there in 2023 as well and did some clever displays.
The Jason display with coffin
The decorated coffin next to Jason
The table display
You have to admit the guy was clever
Some of the other displays in the park
Another display
The advertisement for ‘The Halloween House’ in Peckville,PA
Another of his displays
Across the street from the park was Roy’s Theater which always shows the film that night. The movie was sold out.
The showing of the film that night is always sold out.
I just weaved through the other tourists and people dressed up in costume and took a few more pictures in the downtown area.
One of the buildings that you see entering town. It looked like one of the buildings in the camp.
It was getting late in the afternoon and I was getting hungry. The lines for the Blairstown Diner were about ten to fifteen deep and I did not feel like another $22.00 sandwich.
The lines at the Blairstown Diner at 53 NJ 94
Not only do the lines never go down for most of the day, you also have Jason’s walking around taking pictures.
The weather was nice but overcast that day and I decided to go to Dale’s Market across the street and get some things from their hot foods area and have a picnic in Footbridge Park which is across the street. It is more fun than waiting in line for over-priced food that day.
Dale’s Market at 66 NJ 94
The market has a really nice hot foods area section and is known for their fried chicken. The last time I was here, I had a breakfast sandwich but this time I wanted lunch.
The To Go selection of foods at Dale’s Market
The fried chicken wings and boneless tenders
I ordered the Boneless Parmesan Ranch tenders with a side of Mac & Cheese and two Tasteecake pies with a Watermelon soda (okay not the most nutritious lunch) and took my lunch to the park. I relaxed by the river and this was better than any restaurant.
The entrance to Footbridge Park
Footbridge Park in June 2025
Footbridge Park is the perfect place for a picnic
The park was in full bloom
Enjoying a picnic lunch by the river
My lunch from Dale’s Market that afternoon
The Parmesan Ranch tenders were really good
The Mac & Cheese is really good here
Lunch was so relaxing. It was so nice to just listen to the river pass by and enjoy the warm weather. The lunch really hit the spot. I highly recommend on a nice day just picking up some goodies and having a picnic in the park.
The history of Blairstown, NJ
After lunch was over, I explored the park and saw the history of Blairstown display.
The namesake of the town, Mr. John Insley Blair, whose businesses influenced the town.
I explored the park for a bit and saw that they were having an arts as and crafts show by the diner and walked down to it.
Passing over the bridge in the park
Passing over the river is so relaxing
The town had a Friday the 13th art show and it seemed that all the vendors had crafts themed from the movie.
Some of the booths from the art show
A lot of fans from the film looking up events
I walked around the downtown one more time before I headed over to Hope, NJ down the highway to see what was going on there.
The stream running through Blairstown gives it it’s beauty
I left as downtown Blairstown was really starting to fill up. After I left my parking spot was taken immediately and all the other spots in the downtown were filled.
Entering Hope, NJ
Hope was relatively quiet that afternoon. There was a share of tourists but not like in October of 2023. There were tourists taking pictures by the real estate office where Annie started her ride to the camp.
The front of the building in the movie
Where the scene was shot where Annie was given a warning to leave her job at Camp Crystal Lake.
The Presbyterian Church where she was dropped off
The cemetery where she was dropped off
Those iconic gates
While I was at the graveyard, I walked around the older section of the place and came across the Blair family plot. It seems the whole family was buried there.
The Blair family plot
The extended Blair family members buried in this section of the graveyard
More of the Blair family plot at the church
There was not much going on in Hope and there was not even anyone from the church selling graveyard dirt. So I walked down to the Hope Junction Antique Shop down the road to talk to Lisa Iulo, the owner. The shop was once a diner that had been used in the opening of the film where Annie asked directions.
She told me she was putting the business up for sale as well as the building.It was too bad as it did sell some nice pieces. She then told me she was going to have an art show that afternoon at 4:00pm.
I thought that sounded fun so I took an hour and a half out and drove up to the town of Newton, NJ and decided to explore their downtown. It was right up Route 94 from Hope, NJ.
Downtown Newton is going through a transition and many of the buildings and old Victorian homes that surround the downtown are being renovated. While there were still many Mexican grocery stores and markets, many new hipster like stores and restaurants were opening in the area around the Newton Theater. There looked like a lot of changes were happening here.
I made note of a few things I wanted to revisit in the future including a few restaurants and small museums. Then I headed back to Hope for the Art show.
Lisa Iulo specializes in ‘found objects’ art and recycles objects into the theme of the work. It was an interesting art exhibition.
The exhibition was really nice and at the reception I got to talk to many of the residents who came that night. They seemed amused by all the Friday the 13th traffic around the two towns. I had something to eat and relaxed under a shade tree. It was a nice way to conclude the afternoon of touring.
Until the next Friday the 13th in 2026!
More information on visiting Blairstown and Hope, NJ:
Check out my blog when the Lodi Memorial Library celebrated the 35th Anniversary of the movie “Friday the 13th” with former Scoutmaster Don Stein, who assisted the Blairstown Fire Department with varies scenes of the film. The introduction to the event and interview is here as well:
The Lyndhurst Historical Society at 400 Riverside Avenue
The Lyndhurst Historical Society is an interesting look into the early history of both the town of Lyndhurst, NJ and Bergen County. The museum shows how we moved from the agricultural era to the modern era in just one generation. The growth of the county really accelerated after the Civil War into the 1920’s.
Lyndhurst Schoolhouse grounds
The Lyndhurst Schoolhouse historic marker
A child’s statue in the gardens on the grounds of the museum.
The building itself is built on the original 1804 school house that was torn down for the newer one built in 1893. The unique part of the museum’s history is that the building was used as a…
The Carlstadt Historical Firehouse Museum at Division & Sixth Street
The Carlstadt Historical Firehouse Museum is run by the Carlstadt Historical Society houses a remarkable collection that includes archival photographs, written documents, new articles, clothing and other items that bring the borough’s colorful history to life. You can find everything from 1930’s era school pennants to early 20th Century fife and drum corps uniforms to a vintage breathalyzer used by the police department. The collection is housed on two floors of the town’s old firehouse from 1907.
The museum’s Pipe & Drum Corps display on the Second Floor Gallery
The first floor of the museum is dedicated to the War effort with memorabilia from residents who fought in WWI and WWII, articles…
I have always loved Easter. It is my favorite holiday even over Christmas. It is a more relaxing time of year and there is not the rushing around that the Christmas holidays bring. Both work and graduate classes were taking up so much of my time that it was nice to just relax on Easter and have dinner with my family. It didn’t really turn out that way but I got a lot accomplished and it ended up being a productive weekend.
Classes at NYU have been tough as there have been so many projects to do and the semester ends the second week of May. I have never seen time fly by like this. I would have thought the semester would have ended closer to Memorial Day Weekend but it ends much earlier and everyone is scrambling to get their work done. I was able to sneak down to Washington DC last Sunday to see the Cherry Blossoms in bloom and this time around I got to see them.
My blog on “Visiting the Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC Day Two Hundred and Thirty-Two”:
The Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC the week before
They bloom so much earlier than the festival (almost two weeks) and last year the basin was loaded with people looking at bare trees. Everyone was taking pictures under the dozen or so trees that were the last species to bloom (the same ones in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden) and you could barely take a picture without a dozen people pushing you out of the way. At least this year the storms did not disrupt all the petals.
The Cherry Blossom at the basin and the crowds following them
Even though it was for one day, the trip to Washington DC is always a treat. I was looking forward though to seeing the other great Cherry Blossom displays in both Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ and the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens in Brooklyn, NY. Those always follow this display and are just as spectacular.
It was Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ that was in full peak bloom this week. I was able to get to the park later in the afternoon around 4:00pm when the crowds started to thin out. I did not realize that the Visitors Center and parking lot were closed for renovation. That really backed up traffic in the park and there were wall to wall people by that section of the park. I parked toward the entrance (always a good move) and was able to walk all sections of the park with no problems. What surprised me but didn’t shock me was the behavior of people towards the Cherry Trees.
Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ at Park Avenue & Lake Street
Just like in DC the week before, people were climbing all over the trees, tugging on the branches, pulling off the blossoms and sticking in their hair and pockets or just taking the branches home. Even with all the signs, people just don’t listen. I never really thought about it until I started taking classes at NYU and was learning about the concept of over-tourism. People really have no consideration for the world around them and abuse the very things that they are there to see. I was constantly walking into someone’s picture from every angle.
The brilliance of Mother Nature in full bloom
Still the park was beautiful and the trees and shrubs were at the peak of bloom and that made it special to me. I still remember coming here with my dad every year and then we would go to Rutt’s Hut in Clifton, NJ for a hot dog after our visit. I never remember it being as busy as it is today but this was before 2010 and the IPhone was not as prevalent as it is now. It is amazing how social media has really changed this park.
The crowds in the late afternoon in Branch Brook Park
I just walked along the paths by myself enjoying the Spring day and admiring the trees and flowers of the park. I had never seen it at its peak and it was truly brilliant. I had never see the blossoms so vibrant and the colors so strong. It was Mother Nature at its peak and it only lasts for about a week.
With all the rain we have had lately it knocks the petals off the trees quickly. Branch Brook Park is one of the most unrated parks in the New York area and Newark does get knocked a lot but still the city offers its treasures to us if we seek them out.
How beautiful the river was running through the park
I spent about two hours exploring all parts of the park, watching baseball games, watching parents jump around with their kids and watching couples just holding hands and admiring the trees. There were so many Sweet Sixteen and Wedding pictures being snapped that again you had to maneuver correctly.
It’s always best to park by the entrance so that you can get out of the park easier when it is busy
After about two hours of walking around the park and enjoying the sunshine and the beautiful views, I had to get something to eat. Not in the mood for a hot dog as tradition states I stopped at Pizzatown Pizzeria in Newark for a slice of pizza. I had been there a few times over the years finding the pizzeria in pre-COVID days when all the food trucks were mobbed and not much options on the Bellville side of the park.
Pizzatown is one of those old Newark, NJ businesses that existed when this side of the city all around Branch Brook Park was all Italian up until about the early 1980’s when the last of the elderly Italian families either moved out or had passed away. It is the only business left from that time. Still the pizza is fantastic and I look forward to coming here every year when I am looking at the blossoms. I had a slice of Sicilian pizza that was delicious and it was just nice to relax and eat. I had taken so many pictures of the restaurant before I walked in that the owner asked if I was a relator. In that neighborhood? I thought he was kidding. I guess not too many 6:3 white guys go walking around this place.
Pizzatown Pizzeria & Restaurant at 883 Mt. Prospect Avenue in Newark, NJ
The inside of Pizzatown harks back to the 1960’s when this was an Italian neighborhood
The Sicilian pizza here is so good!
After lunch was over, I took on last look around the park and admired all the trees that were newer that were planted in the park towards the entrance. It is interesting how they just keep planting more trees around the park. I heard that this is the largest collection of Cherry Trees in the world.
The Cherry Trees right by my car on the edge of the park
It was a nice afternoon of walking around and enjoying nature. I had never seen the Cherry Trees this brilliant and so vibrant in colors before. This is what it means to see the trees at their peak!
In between classes before the Easter weekend started, I walked around the City after my classes were over on Friday and walked into Macy’s for the Annual Flower Show at the Herald Square store. I could not believe it has been thirty five years since my interview that started my job at Macy’s in 1988. I had gone in for my interview on a Saturday morning and was mesmerized by the store and Flower Show which lead to my second and third interviews and my seven year career with the company. It dawned on me how long ago that morning had been.
Macy’s Flower Show 2023:
The entrance to Macy’s Flower Show in the Herald Square main store
The Flower Show on the first floor of the Macy’s store is always a treat. There were a lot of interesting displays this year but not so many flowers on the tops of the display cases. At least not the ones that I had seen in the past. It seemed more scaled down from the flowers on the upper displays and more the hanging displays that lined the main aisle.
The entrance to the Flower Show from the Broadway side of the store
Most the displays were hanging from the main aisle of the first floor so it was a much different display from those of the past but still it was very creative and people stopped every three feet to take more pictures. I was just as annoying but the store looked so nice.
The first floor by the escalators that did not exist when I worked there
The Floral Display by the Cosmetic Department
Not quite the hanging gardens of the past but still nice
The hanging floral arrangements by the escalators on the first floor
It was not the show that I remember as there were many more floral arrangements that were much more detailed and elaborate as there was more space on the old tops of the display cases. This was a more modern view of the Flower Show. I thought it was fun and they did a nice job. New Management and a new way of looking at the show.
Macy’s Display windows-My favorite
Macy’s Display windows
The display windows outside were a lot of fun and the display people did a great job on the them. It was really funny though. I was not in the City for class on Good Friday so I did not see the full extent of the show until Monday morning when the store reopened (the store is closed on Easter).
Macy’s Display windows
When I returned on Tuesday for my next class, the windows were already closed and we being dismantled and the whole show must have been taken down Monday night after the store closed. Everything was gone by Tuesday afternoon. Another Flower Show had passed.
Macy’s Display windows
The Macy’s Windows in 2023.
I went back to Macy’s in 2024 and the displays were done in multiple colors through the store. The flowers displays were more contemporary and pared down from the displays from I remember years ago when all the tops of the displays looked like the “Hanging Gardens of Babylon”. Still the show was beautiful.
The new windows welcomed customers to the Herald Square store.
The flower assortment that greeted us when we entered the Broadway entrance.
The first floor of Macy’s Herald in New York City.
The strawberry floral displays at the entrance of Macy’s.
The crowds at Macy’s Flower Show in 2024.
The flower displays along the Cosmetic Department.
The Accessory Department decorated for the Flower Show.
The decorations around the escalators on the Main Floor at Macy’s Herald Square.
The store was packed with people walking around and blocking all the isles. I could see that the salespeople were getting frustrated. Still people were loving the displays in main store.
The entrance to Macy’s Herald in 2024 to the Flower Show from the Broadway entrance.
Easter morning was really nice as I got to spend it with my cousins and my aunt at a wonderful restaurant in Red Bank, NJ. It was a bright and sunny Easter but a bit chilly. It was the first time in years that I had not been to church on Easter morning but I would go another day. We had an 11:00am reservation for brunch and I got picked up at 9:45am.
The weather was really windy when we got the Oyster Point Hotel where we were having brunch. I could not believe the winds off the water but by the time we were finished, it ended up being a nice warm afternoon. I guess it rough in the morning.
The bay right next to the hotel parking lot
The bay area of Red Bank is so beautiful and everything was just coming into bloom. We were able to walk around the docks for a bit before brunch. People were just getting their boats serviced and ready for the season. It was a spectacular morning looking over the water.
We were one of the first tables to arrive that morning so I got some great shots of the buffet and all the delicious and creative displays at all the stations of the restaurant. It was a very nice presentation and there was so much to choose from.
Oyster Point Hotel Pearl Room Banquet space where the brunch took place
The Dining Room
The food and the service were just amazing. I could not believe the view of the bay and the dazzling blue water in front of us. Thank God though our table was not by the window because the buffet line stretched in that direction when we were eating.
The Seafood on Ice Station
I could not believe the choices at brunch. There was a complete salad section to make your own salad, a seafood display on ice, an omelet and waffle bar with potatoes, bacon and sausage on the side if you wanted to start with breakfast. The baked good section for breakfast was extensive with fresh doughnuts, pastries, muffins, bagels and cookies. There were also slices of white and coffee cake if you wanted those as well.
The Breakfast Pastry display
There was a pasta station with ravioli and penne with chicken and broccoli, a carving station with turkey, beef and salmon, a complete lunch bakery section and fruit display. The Candy station was really unique with a display of chocolate lobsters and peeps in a tree.
The display of candy was very clever
The Candy display was really unique and very creative
The Pastry Chef really has a a sense of humor
The best was that they had a complete crab cake station with all sorts of sides such as mac & cheese, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes. They were all served in champagne glasses. The portions were small but you could go back as many times as you wanted.
The Lunch Bakery table
The Fruit Dessert display
There were also chafing dishes of wild rice, mixed vegetables, chicken piccata, roasted potatoes and a beef dish. The quality of the food in the chafing dishes matched all the stations and nothing was soggy or tepid. Everything was perfectly cooked and spiced. There was so much to choose from that I must have made twenty trips to the buffet line to the amusement of my family.
Being in the culinary arts and working in a soup kitchen for almost twenty years, I know not to waste food, Watching people pile their plates high is so silly when you can go back as many times as you want. I walk around a buffet, survey what is offered and then go back for many small tastes of everything. I think it is a sin to waste food and throw it out when there is no reason for it.
A little taste of the pasta section, the carving section, the chafing dishes and those marvelous crab cakes. The food was excellent!
After brunch was over, were were there for almost three hours eating and talking and watching the people on the bay in their boats, we made an early afternoon of it. I had wanted to go to the cemeteries and had some yard work to do (I can’t believe I had that much to do as I was in the yard for two hours) and then had some writing to finish. My life never sits still. We took some pictures around the hotel and walked around the dock for a bit. We said our goodbyes to my cousin and his wife and then toured the town of Red Bank, NJ. What a pretty downtown. It really has some nice stores and restaurants.
My cousins, my aunt and I at Easter 2023
I always enjoy spending time with my family. I hope every had a wonderful Easter and Passover!
If you want to see some of the most beautiful sites in New York City during the Spring months when Mother Nature truly works her magic then I would suggest going to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden to see Daffodil Hill and Magnolia Plaza.
The sign when entering Daffodil Hill in the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens
This is when everything is in full bloom during the early Spring. There is nothing like it and it is so breathtaking with a quiet elegance. On this clear and sunny Thursday afternoon, the gardens were quiet so I had plenty of time to take pictures and enjoy the beautiful views.
I finally got the gardens in the early Spring to see the crocuses, the Snowdrops and the Ironweed flowers that come in the early Spring just as the Daffodils were just coming out. These sensitive flowers are only in bloom a short time and I wanted to see them. They are just beautiful when you see them up close.
The Garden was ablaze with the colors of almost a thousand purple crocuses that lined the hills on the Prospect Park side of the lawns in 2024. Beautiful purple and while colors were in full bloom and Mother Nature shined in the COVID era with all of us socially distanced but still enjoying the park.
Crocus Hills ablaze in purple in 2024
The purple crocuses in full bloom in 2024.
The beautiful purple crocuses in full bloom.
While I was taking pictures of the crocuses, I walked around the gardens and came across the Snowdrops and the Ironweed flowers were also in bloom. These sensitive flowers are only in bloom for just about two weeks. To see them in the gardens in the late Winter is a real treat. They sometimes are in bloom in early and you have to see them quickly before they disappear in the ground.
The Snowdrops in full bloom in the gardens in 2024.
The Snowdrops up close.
The Ironweed just as beautiful. To see these graceful flowers in bloom are a real treat.
The Ironweed flowers in bloom right by the stream.
The Ironweed flowers in full bloom.
An Azalea that was early blooming in the garden in 2024.
When touring the gardens ten days after visiting to see the crocuses, other flowering plants came out in full bloom to show us that Spring has arrived even though it was 49 degrees when we toured the gardens.
The Japanese Pieris Tree in the gardens was in full bloom on this early Spring day
The Japanese Pieris tree was in full bloom in March 2024.
The Paper Bark Cherry Tree was in full bloom too and smelled of Butter and Lemon. It had the most amazing fragrance.
The Paper Bark Cherry Tree has the most amazing smell.
I passed this little bird chopping away at the berries left on this tree.
The Holly-Leaved Hellebore in full bloom by Daffodil Hill.
The Holly-Leaved Hellebore was in full bloom at this time.
The Spring brings so many surprises at different times. I in the Gardens during the Solar Eclipse in April of 2024 and there were all sorts of flowers that were in their full bloom. The Virginia Bluebells were in full bloom for their one a year . The display was beautiful.
The Virginia Bluebells in full display.
The Virginia Bluebells in all their glory.
I came across these vibrant little yellow flowers that lined the lawns and hills right near the entrance to the Children’s Garden.
The tiny yellow flowers on the hill near the Children’s Garden.
This beautiful yellow blanket lined the sides of the hill and was such a nice contrast to Daffodils Hill.
The vibrant tiny yellow flowers.
These tiny yellow flowers lined the hills just past the Magnolia Garden.
Daffodil Hill was still what I came to see in the late Winter/early Spring day. It was in full bloom by the last week in March and nothing is more beautiful then this part of the gardens.
Daffodil Hill at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Hundreds of Trumpet Daffodils are in bloom on a hill just off the Japanese Gardens flanked by hundred-year-old trees and it just plays into the backdrop of the greens and browns of the trees and lawns. I can’t tell you on a beautiful sunny day how breathtaking it is just to sit and admire these elegant flowers. It really is a site to see.
Daffodil Hill in full bloom
I love the way these hundreds of flowers make such a beautiful statement and there is such a burst of colors between the yellows and oranges of the daffodil flowers. This only lasts for about two weeks and then the flowers hibernate again.
The side view of Daffodil Hill from the walkway
Daffodil Hill just off the Japanese Gardens
Daffodil Hill is right next to the Magnolia Plaza that was also in peak bloom when I was at the gardens. The trees of the Magnolia Plaza bloom the last week of March and these delicate trees petals do not last more than a week. When I got close enough to them to take pictures, I noticed that some of them were starting to curl already.
The area between Magnolia Plaza and Daffodil Hill
The Daffodil Hill plaque
Not all the trees were in bloom yet but these delicate trees are very sensitive to the weather and I have noticed that the petals don’t last as long. Most of the trees were in full bloom but there was not much a smell to the trees. Still everyone was taking pictures in every direction between the Magnolia trees and Daffodil flowers.
The Magnolia Plaza in full bloom
The sign in the Magnolia Plaza
The edge of the Magnolia Plaza
The pathways in the afternoon
The Magnolia trees make such a bold and colorful statement
The array of colors in the Magnolia Plaza
The Magnolia Plaza facing Daffodil Hill in the distance
The Sundial in the middle of the Magnolia Plaza
After taking dozens of pictures of the Magnolia Plaza and Daffodil Hill, I walked over to the Rock Garden. There were not many flowers in bloom there yet as they come out later in the month. There was still an array of daffodils and a few crocuses still in bloom. The Rock Garden was quiet and perfect to walk around in as I had this part of the garden to myself.
The Rock Garden in the early Spring
The Rock Garden in the early afternoon
I headed to the northern part of the garden and visited the Japanese Gardens, where the cherry blooms started to bloom. These graciously landscaped gardens were created in the traditional Japanese form with a combination of trees and shrubs to balance the garden.
Entering the Japanese gardens from the path
The Japanese Gardens pool with traditional buildings
The Japanese Gardens in the early Spring
I came back about two weeks later to the Gardens and Daffodil Hill was starting to fade. The daffodils only have about two weeks until their season is done. The Magnolia blossoms were long gone as their season faded away too. There was only one tree blossoming when I came back.
Still other parts of the garden were coming into bloom and it was quite spectacular. The Cherry Blossoms were just coming into their peak period but not fully opened yet. The crowds started to get bigger in the gardens to see these.
The Cherry Blossoms were coming out in mid April
I walked along the pathways in the Cherry Blossom lawn area admiring all the buds that it shares with the Japanese Gardens. The trees bend gracefully and at this in this park I don’t see all the visitors climbing on the trees and pulling on the branches the way they did in Branch Brook Park in Newark or in Washington DC.
These beautiful pink trees were so colorful
People were taking wedding pictures along the paths and the trees made a glorious backdrop. I was so tired from all the running around from the previous week, I just stopped and sat under the trees myself and what a sight that was! It was so nice to just look up at all the flowering trees and see all the pink fluffy blossoms.
Along the Cherry Blossom tree path
People were snapping pictures left and right
The Cherry Blossoms were even more amazing when they were in full bloom in April of 2024. The fluffy blossoms had everyone running around the gardens snapping pictures.
The Cherry Blossom lawn in 2024.
The large crowds enjoying the afternoon under the blossoms.
The beauty of the canopy of blossoms.
The blossoms in peak form in April 2024.
What was also nice was the Bluebells were out in the gardens behind the Cherry trees. Their beautiful blue and violet hues were in full bloom as well and the gardens were awash with color.
The Bluebells were amazing this year
People were so busy looking at the Cherry Blossoms that they forgot to look at beautiful flowers. Their being planted by the Tulip tree made a nice backdrop.
The last thing I looked at before I left this part of the garden were the tulips that were in full bloom this time of year. This area of the park was really colorful with all the different hues of tulips.
The colors and the vibrance of the tulips were amazing
The colors and vibrance of the Tulip Tea at the gardens
The front of the Cranford Rose Garden in Spring 2024
When I arrived back in New York City in June after classes abroad, I had wanted to see the Cranford Rose Garden in full bloom with the thousands of roses that bloom and add some vibrance to the gardens.
The Cranford Rose Garden
The roses were in full bloom much early this year and were blooming at the end of May before my trip. I was finally able to sneak down to the gardens at the end of June and found that many of the roses were still in bloom and all the beautiful flowers that line the pathways were as well.
The Cranford Rose Garden’s roses at the end of the season
The Cranford Rose Garden Terrace
The back part of the Cranford Rose Garden with the Sundial Garden
The sundial statue in the Cranford Rose Gardens
I walked all the paths of the gardens, admiring the beautiful blooms of the roses and wildflowers that line all the gardens. Everything is time so nicely and there are all sorts of species of roses blooming during the season.
The roses still in bloom
The paths of wildflowers, roses and trellis shrubbery
The colorful flowers that line the paths
Certain species of roses still bloom in the gardens.
The Cranford Foutain Rose Garden
The fountain is so relaxing in the afternoon.
It was so nice walking around the terrace
The Cranford Family plaque dedicating the Rose Garden to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
The trellis on the back of the garden
The entrance to the gardens from the Cherry Blossom lawn
If you can get to the gardens in early June, I would suggest a special trip to see the roses. This special time of the year only lasts about three weeks and then like the rest of the flower displays in the gardens are gone until the next year. The gardens are now maturing for the summer months with lots of greenery and are still a nice place to relax and walk around or just sit and enjoy the views.
The Cherry Blossom Lawn after the cherry blooms are gone.
The flowers of the garden’s Marsh area.
I came to the gardens in late July to see the Lotuses in the Lotus Pools when they were in bloom and when they are at their peak, they are so colorful and elegant. I now know why the Egyptians worshipped them.
The Lion Fountain greets you as you enter the pools
I started coming for Summer Jazz Nights during the summer of 2025 with not much success. One was on a night where it was too hot and the other it started to rain the moment it was too start, they cancel it and then it stopped raining. No luck!
Arriving in the Cherry Blossom Lawn before the concert.
The sun was out right before concert
The pathways were so lush
Just as the concert was about to start
When it stopped raining by the Rose Garden
The Japanese Garden when the sun came out
The Japanese Gardens in the Summer
The Shakespeare Gardens in full bloom
The Shakespeare Garden in the Summer of 2025
Vines on the bushes
The Shakespeare Gardens in bloom in the Summer of 2025
The gardens near the Lily Pond
The gardens by the Lily Pond
The Bonsai Garden
My favorite fountain
The fountain in the Summer of 2025
Before I left the gardens for the afternoon, I stopped in the gift shop and looked around. They have some wonderful things to buy including a section of Brooklyn made products. There is also an array of plants, books and decorative products to buy.
The Gift Shop at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens
The Brooklyn made products and book selection at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens
After my visit to the gardens, I stopped at Bahn Mi Place at 824 Washington Avenue for lunch. I had one of their classic Bahn Mi sandwiches with ham and pate on a chewy hard roll. The food here is consistently good and their sandwiches are excellent.
You have to order the sandwich with a Medium spicy sauce. It adds to the complexity
The sandwiches are excellent. The flavors of the fresh vegetables and meats with the spicy sauce makes complex flavor. The bread is fresh and chewy and don’t be fooled by the size of the sandwich. It is larger than I thought and very filling. See my review on both TripAdvisor and DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com.
I took my lunch and ate on the steps near the Brooklyn Museum and just enjoyed the afternoon. I people watched and enjoyed the cool, sunny weather. It was nice to escape from classes for a couple of hours and just relax and not think about school or work. It has again become a bit stressful between the two but I will handle everything.
On my next trip, I went to Gino’s Pizzeria at 831 Flatbush Avenue for lunch. For a small pizzeria, their pizza, sandwiches and pasta dishes are all reasonable and delicious. They make their own red sauce from fresh tomatoes, garlic and olive oil and that base gives all their dishes excellent taste and quality.
I was starved and had the Lasagna lunch. It was wonderful. Layers of Lasagna noodles with ground beef and cheese and handfuls of mozzarella cheese with lots of their sauce and a side of their fresh garlic knots. It was a great lunch.
I look forward to this time in the gardens and is one of the reasons why I keep my membership. I love to look at the hundreds of daffodils in bloom and watching as they sway in the wind and just want to look beautiful. It is the most amazing site every Spring.
I do not know where time went. One day I am cutting the lawn in 70-degree weather and the next day it is 32 degrees, and everyone is freezing. The weather has been going up and down like a yoyo and everyone is getting sick right before the holidays. Every other day the weather was changing, and this is the way the temperature would be every day for the month of December. One day it is Spring or Fall and the next everyone is bundling up.
Don’t be fooled by all the pictures and activities. There were a lot of late nights, a lot of driving and a lot of arranging to pull the holidays off this year. Teaching three classes and taking four classes in Grad school on top of volunteer work that I was committed to and getting ready for the holidays and all its expectations I had a lot of nights where I did not go to bed until two in the morning. I would study on busses and in hotel rooms and I never worked like this before in my life. Still it was a Merry Christmas and I consider myself a lucky person to see all these wonderful things.
All I did was run in and out of New York City every week for classes and work. There were so many historical sites that I wanted to visit over the holidays to update previously blogs that every moment of my day was taken up with touring. Still, I enjoyed taking my time to walk to school through Greenwich Village. The residents and merchants here know how to celebrate the holidays.
Christmas in Greenwich Village. I saw this home after class and I knew Santa was on his way
Walking past the train station on the way back to Port Authority was even festive.
With Grad School taking up so much of my time and I just finished all my presentations at Bergen Community College where I work (please see all three Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. projects), it’s now the final project for Grad School and getting ready for the holidays that are taking up my time. It is only two more weeks.
Thanksgiving with my cousins and aunt at the Lambertville Inn
Christmas started for me right after Thanksgiving with my family when the next day we had Christmas Tree delivery for the Hasbrouck Heights Men’s Association. We had 390 Christmas Trees delivery and we emptied the truck in one hour. By 10:30am, we sold our first Christmas tree and by the end of the first weekend, we sold 134 trees and 8 stands. We just missed last year’s numbers. It had rained most of Sunday so we missed that afternoon and evening of that day.
Christmas Tree drop off is right after Thanksgiving at 8:00am the next morning
The guys on the Men’s Association after we finished tagging and unloading the trees
Friday was a busy day selling. It often amazes me how many trees sell that first weekend. Last year we sold out in 11 days and people were disappointed that they had to wait. Many said that this year, they arrived early to get the tree they wanted. Even with the rain on Sunday, we did very well and were anticipating another get year (we sold out by December 9th on the morning shift).
My blog on Christmas tree drop off for the Men’s Association:
I knew it was Christmas when my neighbors set out all their decorations
The next evening after Thanksgiving was the Annual Parade and Tree Lighting ceremony in Downtown Hasbrouck Heights. Since we were opening the tree stand and I was on leave from the fire department this year, I did not go. Instead I stayed at the tree stand that evening and sold trees on my first split shift. We sold 44 trees on the first day of sales.
The Christmas Tree at the Circle in Downtown Hasbrouck Heights, NJ
The Gazebo at the Firemen’s Circle Memorial in Downtown Hasbrouck Heights, NJ
I have to admit, Thanksgiving weekend and the subsequent week were all about grad school. We would be wrapping up classes in two weeks (classes ended on December 14th) and I had three major papers due, one for each class. With the exception of my Data Analytics class, I had one partner on each paper I really did not know if I could count on so there would be a lot of extra work to do.
Heights Bar & Grill at 163 Boulevard became a place to relax and unwind with a pizza and a drink
Heights Bar & Grill was very festive during the holidays
My post birthday dinner became my pre Christmas/post class dinner
The next weekend was Sinterklaas weekend, and I knew I had to be in Rhinebeck and then Boonton, NJ for the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association Christmas Party that I committed to last month. When you’re on all the Executive Boards of these organizations, you have to be there.
Still on the way back and forth to classes starting from mid-November until classes ended, I enjoyed my walks from the Port Authority to the NYU campus in the Village to admire all the decorations, display windows and Christmas tree setups all over the Village. Even before Christmas started, this section of the City is very traditional ‘Old New York’ and when it is all ready for the holidays it puts you in the Christmas spirit.
Christmas in Greenwich Village really kept my spirits up between classes
Selling Christmas trees in New York City was not difference from us but in prices.
The window displays in the Greenwich Village stores and boutiques were really creative. I loved walking all the side streets to discover what shop owner did that was so different from the others and these are some of my favorites. They really cheered me up as the pressure of the assignments built up.
Window display in the Village after they changed from Halloween to Christmas
Window display in the Village
Window display in the Village
Christmas display inside and outside at Greenwich Village store
More Christmas trees for sale on lower Seventh Avenue
The Washington Square Park Christmas tree was so beautiful both during the day and night. It was so nice to pass every evening I was coming back from class. It really put me in the holiday spirit especially when I was stressed out on my last three research papers of the semester. I took the time to just walk around the park and enjoy the cool air.
The Washington Square Park Christmas tree by day
The Washington Square Park Christmas tree at night
In between classes and work, I had to decorate and get my own house ready for the holidays. I have never worked so hard trying to pull off the holidays with so much going on in my life. Still I thought the house looked very nice. I decorated both the living room and dining room and it looked really festive. It was too bad there was no time for entertaining. That and the fact that everyone else was so busy, it made it impossible to do anything.
I keep it simple but elegant in my house
For years, I used to have a Christmas dinner but with everyone’s schedules and COVID still around, I am finding more and more people don’t want to get together. Again my schedule was no better this December. Still I worked my own “Santa” magic with other things I did for friends, neighbors and family.
From December 1st to the 31st, my feet never touched the ground. From unloading trees for the Men’s Association to watching the ball drop to completing three major projects for my job at Bergen Community College to the three major papers at school, my laptop followed me everywhere and was prominent in each of my hotel rooms as a worked on every business trip for my work with this blog. Who says that life is boring? The fun began as it does every year with Sinterklaas weekend in Rhinebeck.
My blog on Sinterklaas/ The Snowflake Festival weekend in Rhinebeck Day Two Hundred and Fifty-Six:
I had to plan Sinterklaas weekend like D-Day. I had a major presentation on the Metaverse when I returned back on the next Monday night so I had to finish the framework for the paper the Friday night before the parade. I was visiting the Culinary Institute of American to interview one of my old chefs at the college but I was not able to get in touch with him.
Still I was able to leave a message for an appointment and then tour the campus. I forgot how beautiful the campus is and I never saw it during Christmas time. I had been on my Externship my first year at the CIA so I never experienced the holidays at the CIA.
Roth Hall decorated for Christmas
The Christmas tree in the outside courtyard
I did not have any plans that Friday evening and I looked at the papers and saw that there was a Snowflake Festival in Downtown Kingston, NY. So that evening after a nice nap at the hotel, I headed there for the evening. It was just what the doctor ordered. It was a cool but not cold evening full of activities and lots of Christmas decorations and a festive environment.
Downtown Kingston, NY the night of the Snowflake Festival
It was a nice evening of Christmas activities, horse drawn carriage rides, visiting the firehouse, beautifully decorated windows of the local merchants and people just having a good time amidst COVID problems and a bad economy. People ‘needed a little Christmas now’ (Please read the blog below on the Snowflake Festival and the Sinterklaas Parade).
The line to see Santa was impossibly long. I think everyone needed him this year.
The Christmas tree in Downtown Kingston, NY
My homebase for the weekend was the Quality Inn Hotel in Hyde Park, which is becoming a tradition with me. I love the location and the comfortable beds. If you get a room facing the field to the right, you can see the stonewall that lines the property. Plus, they have the best fresh waffle station every morning.
The Quality Inn Hyde Park at 4142 Albany Post Road
Sinterklaas morning was a really gloomy day. Even if the weather outside that morning was gloomy, the spirit of Sinterklaas was in full swing inside the Beekman Arms Hotel for the Opening Ceremony.
The Opening Ceremony at Sinterklaas with Founder Jeanne Fleming and the Pocket Lady
The animal being celebrated this year was the porcupine and this was his home in the courtyard in Downtown Rhinebeck. This wise woman told us his tale.
The “Into the Light” show at the local church
The parade is the highlight of the evening and we lucked out that night as the weather broke by the afternoon. The sun started to come out and it was a much nicer evening with a cool but not cold feel and you could see the stars out on this clear evening. The parade is always exciting especially as we walk down the hill into Downtown Rhinebeck.
The parade begins at the Starr Library
The serpents are always a big hit at the parade
The stars always lead the parade down the hill
I marched at the end of the parade so all I saw was everyone’s backs. The crowds were not the same because of the weather that morning but they were still pretty large once we got into the core of downtown. Because of the weather earlier in the day, I could tell we had a more local crowd which was nice because Downtown Rhinebeck can only handle so many people.
All the characters come together at the closing ceremony
I swear that this parade like selling Christmas trees goes by faster and faster every year. I come to Rhinebeck in the Spring and the Summer and it just seems like I am counting the weeks until it starts all over again. After the parade was over, I stopped at Village Pizza for a few slices with the last of the parade stragglers. There were maybe three families eating a late dinner. By the time I warmed up and finished my pizza I walked around the downtown one more time. It was so quiet and peaceful with the exception of the saxaphone player who plays downtown at night. You would have never known there was a parade that night.
My review on TripAdvisor on Village Pizza in Rhinebeck, NY:
After a very sound sleep, I ate breakfast and enjoyed the waffle bar. Then I headed down to Boonton, NJ for the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association Christmas Party that we were hosting at the home. Again, the year seems to go by fast.
The Executive Board the day of the party (I’m third to the right)
Because of COVID, the party is more subdued and families are still not allowed back with any great crowds. Still we had a DJ and Jerry Naylis’s daughter and granddaughters entertained the residents of the home. We really had a nice afternoon.
The Naylis family entertaining the residents
After the party was over, a few of us went the Columbia Inn for dinner. There was only a small group of us this year because again many of the guys were worried about COVID and large crowds. Still we toasted in the holiday season and after dinner, it was right back home to do my homework for school and classwork for my students. It would be never ending for the next three weeks.
The week between Sinterklaas and the next weekend of the Mills Mansion Party and exploring the decorated mansions to update my blogs for work, classes in both schools took a frenzy of activity on. I had to finish papers on the Metaverse and complete my White Paper on the Travel Industry and we started our paper on Mapping the Rockaways. I don’t think I ever went to bed before 2:00am every night for the next three weeks.
The “Dining on the Metaverse” paper required me to run around and interview chefs on the what their thoughts were on the Metaverse. I first went to the Ivy Inn in Hasbrouck Heights and talked with the Chef/Owner Jack. His thoughts on the Metaverse in dining were pretty strong and I needed a second interview so back to the Culinary Institute of America I went to talk to my former Chef at the college. He just happened to reach out to me that week so I stopped in to see him late on Friday.
The Ivy Inn at 268 Terrace Avenue in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ decorated for the holidays
I had an offer to revisit the Brinckerhoff Homestead the next afternoon before they ran a Afternoon Tea fundraiser to take pictures of the home decorated for Christmas for work and was able to get a last minute invitation acceptance for the Mills Mansion fundraiser, I decided to spend the night again at the Marriott in Fishkill, NY. It would be another long weekend of running around. So I booked a room at the Marriott Courtyard Fishkill, where I had stayed twice before and it would be close to all the sites and headed Upstate.
The Marriott Courtyard Fishkill at 17 Westage Drive & Route 9
I got up to the CIA before 4:30pm and walked around campus and enjoyed the Christmas lights again. The campus was starting to wind down for the holidays as the students would be leaving for break in a week and a half but the restaurants were busy with weekend reservations and by 4:30pm, I stated my interview on “Dining on the Metaverse” with the last chef I had before I graduated in 1998. I had not seen the guy in almost 25 years. Still he was just as nice as he was when I had him as an instructor and we had a good interview for almost two hours.
The campus was at twilight and it showed its true beauty next to the Hudson River.
The Culinary Institute of America at sunset
The Christmas tree lit at the Culinary Institute of America
We had our interview and it was nice talking with a Instructor that I had a lot of respect for years ago. It was nice of him to meet me after almost 25 years.
My TripAdvisor review on my lunch at the Apple Pie Bakery Cafe:
We bullshitted for the first hour and knowing that I had to be at the Mills Mansion by 6:30pm (the party was only going to 8:30pm), we had to get down to business. We spent the next hour talking about the effects of dining on the Metaverse and what it could do to the business in the future. His thoughts were pretty much the same as the Ivy Inn but it was an engaging conversation and I was able to take notes and write that section of the paper before I left for the weekend. Then it was off to the Mills Mansion for the Masquerade Cocktail Party fundraiser. That got my mind off a lot.
I had not been to a fundraiser here for the holidays since 2018 (COVID and work stopped me from going in the past) and it was a last minute thing I was able to attend. The President of the Friends of the Mills Mansion graciously let me come since it was sold out. I did not get there until almost 7:15pm by the time I left the CIA and got to Staatsburg and then had to park all the way down the hill.
The entrance to Staatsburgh, The Mills Mansion at 75 Mills Mansion Drive the night of the party
I was not too keen on wearing a mask since I had to wear glasses but I still had a nice time. The band was excellent and the singer wore an outfit that looked like it was from the early 1920’s. The food was wonderful and they had nice passed appetizers and wine and champagne to drink. The mansion’s Dining Room was decked out with masks and everyone was dressed to the nines. I had not seen people so dressed up in years. It was so impressive to see how elegant the evening was like something out of the mid-1980’s. No one had dressed up this much in years and it made the whole event feel so festive and special.
The band with the singer with the 1920’s outfit
I was able to catch up to people I had not seen in two years (since the last Afternoon Tea lecture in February of 2020 right before the shutdown) and we had a nice time talking about what had been happening over the last two years. It was a nice evening to get my mind off school and work. I slept so soundly that night when I got back to the hotel.
It was a very elegant party that night
The Mill’s would have been proud of this party
The day after the interview and the party, off I went early in the morning to visit the decorated mansions and take the tours. The Brinckerhoff House was my first stop and I would not be there long because they had a fundraiser at 1:00pm and I promised to be there, take the pictures and leave because they would be busy for the rest of the afternoon. The house looked just as pleasant as it did when I visited it over the summer but the nice part was the fireplaces were going giving that house that winter smell of firewood and pine.
The Brinckerhoff House at 68 North Kensington Drive at Christmas
The house was set up and decorated for an Afternoon Tea fundraiser
The Christmas tree at the Brinckerhoff house
I only stayed for about an half hour as volunteers were showing up to assist with the event and then I was off to my next house which was the Vanderbilt Mansion. This was a big weekend for the decorated homes and I figured I should visit them since I would not have time in the future.
The Vanderbilt tour was booked solid as people had the same idea that I had. I got on the 1:00pm tour and off we went to tour the mansion. I had been there many times before but never to see the Christmas decorations. When I had visited back in 2019, they were taking the decorations down when I got there. By the time we left, most everything on one side of the house was gone. Today though, the mansion was in its full glory.
The Vanderbilt Mansion at 4097 Albany Post Road in Hyde Park
The house was tastefully but not over-decorated as Fredrick Vanderbilt and his wife never used the home for Christmas. They were in Manhattan for the Christmas and the beginning of the social season that would last from Christmas to about Easter when everyone would head to their Spring homes in the country or in Florida.
The entrance hall to the Vanderbilt Mansion
The Dining Room set for a formal Christmas dinner
The Living Room with the family Christmas tree
The full tour of the mansion was very interesting and you got to hear the stories of Fredrick and the last years of his life. He simplified matters, sold all his other homes and moved here until he passed away. He wife had died and he stopped the social swirl and concentrated on his job with the railroad.
After the tour was over, the tour guide told me that FDR Estate was having a big Open House that day and that I should head over before they closed at 5:00pm. Myself and pretty much everyone on my tour headed over to Springwood, the home of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Springwood Mansion at 4097 Albany Post Road in Hyde Park, NY
The first floor was decorated as it would have been for FDR and his family’s last Christmas when he was alive. The decorations were taken from old pictures of the house the year that he passed.
The entrance hall of Springwood decorated for Christmas
The library decorated for FDR’s last Christmas
The Dining Room was set for Christmas supper
The mansion again like the Vanderbilt Mansion was tastefully decorated but not overdone. The library had a tree with decorations and the many presents that the large extended family would have opened that day. The Dining Room was set for the family dinner with a children’s table in the back. It would have been a nice family affair.
We got to tour the rest of the house and head back to the Visitors Center for Hot Chocolate and cookies that they set up in the snack shop. That evening around 6:00pm, the Bard College music department was putting on a recital but I had to leave right after the tour as I had a tone of assignments and homework that I had to do for both colleges. At least I was finally able to see both mansions in their full glory at Christmas.
As I left the Vanderbilt and Roosevelt mansions, I passed Downtown Hyde Park, NY which has a small downtown with about two blocks of historical buildings and admired the lights and how the businesses decorated the lights and buildings. I stopped to take a picture of their Christmas tree which was ablaze with lights on this snowy night. It really did look like Christmas.
Downtown Hyde Park, NY
The Hyde Park, NY Christmas tree a block from downtown
I got home early that night to finish my papers on the Metaverse and my White Page on the visitors we had to our Travel Trends class. It was an uphill battle that night and on Monday for both presentations. We got a “B+” on the Metaverse paper and an “A” on the White Page and in both classes I got an “A”. The Mapping project would go on until December 22nd. It would take five revisions and a lot of late nights. We were able to pull out a “B+” on the Mapping paper of the Rockaways right as my own classes were ending.
That last week of school Monday classes ended and after the Tuesday class my classmates wanted to go for an evening of Karaoke. I had papers to grade when I got home so I declined and took a walk up to see the tree and clear my head before heading home.
Christmas in New York City is always a pleasure and with the City opened back up to tourism, it made it exciting again. The anticipation of Christmas in Manhattan is something to experience if you have never done it before. It all started for me when I declined a karaoke night with my classmates and went to see the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. I just needed a walk after my Data Analytics class. It had been a rough semester. Just seeing the tree put me in the Christmas spirit.
The Tree as we call it in Rockefeller Center December 2022
I walked around Midtown along Fifth Avenue, looking at Saks Fifth Avenue’s windows, admiring the lights and looking at the skyline. I forgot how beautiful this area of the City is at night. It was a mild Tuesday night when I was walking around and there were not too many people around. the tourists had not arrived in full swing yet. Being a Tuesday night, it was relaxing being able to walk around the Rockefeller Center area without the crowds.
The side streets were particularly elegant
West 58th Street in its glory
The Plaza Hotel in all its glory that night
I saw this playful sculpture along with others on Fifth Avenue but it was near my old haunt FAO Schwarz
This was the best display window at Bergdorf-Goodman on Fifth Avenue
Still what stood out to me on that glorious evening was the beauty of Midtown Manhattan at night. Even though it was still early in the evening, it might have well been 11:00pm because the streets were so quiet that evening. This is why I love Manhattan.
The beauty of Midtown Manhattan at night
The Plaza Hotel and Bergdorf-Goodman shined that evening
This little trip to Midtown after class really cheered me up. It had been a long semester and I needed this little Christmas break from school. It really put me into the holiday spirit. On my way back to Port Authority to head home, I passed the New York Public Library on my way through Bryant Park to see the Christmas Village
Outside the New York Public Library where the lions were decorated for the holidays.
As the school year ended at Bergen Community College and classes were wrapping up, I was getting tired of giving the traditional quizzes so for Quiz Four I gave all three classes from Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. The students were asked by Corporate to arrange the company Christmas Party. They were asked to create the Invitation, the menu with an appetizer, main dish, dessert and a signature drink.
Then were asked to create a Christmas Corporate message and two classes were asked to create an original Christmas song. It is amazing what a group of students can accomplish in an hour. Everyone in all three classes got an “A” and I did not have to drag home quizzes to grade. I will remember this quiz in the future.
The Paramus Business 101 Team’s idea for the Corporate Christmas Event
The Marketing 201 Team’s Ideas for the Corporate Christmas Event
The original Christmas song from the Marketing 201 Team for the Corporate Christmas Party
The ideas that the students came up with in ONE HOUR were just fantastic. This is why I love being a College Professor when you can get this type of creativity out of your students.
This Christmas message won the competition from my Business 101 Lyndhurst Team
As we put the revisions to the Mapping paper for my Data Analytics class and I prepared the final exams for my students and graded my other classes work, I planned another trip to the Hudson River Valley to visit the rest of the decorated mansions on my list and update all my blogs for work. This was a long and very productive weekend. It would be capped off with a last minute Historical Christmas concert at the Bergen County Historical Society. I had not been to one of these in three years.
The Marriott Courtyard Fishkill is where the adventure began. I revisited Staatsburgh (The Mills Mansion) and Wilderstein and then on Saturday I went to the Meiser Homestead in Wappinger Falls for their Holiday Open House. I had to time everything perfectly because I had to be in Manhattan for a Christmas concert at Carnegie Hall at 8:00pm. I timed everything perfectly.
The Marriott Courtyard Fishkill was decorated nicely for Christmas
The Marriott did a nice job decorating the hotel for the holidays
I started my trip on a snowy Friday afternoon (it was funny that the weather was just cloudy down by us) and I made it for my 11:00am appointment to see Staatsburgh. I had been to the Mills Mansion fundraiser the week before but the whole house was not open that evening and I had only been there for an hour. Now I was able to tour the house at my leisure. I was even interviewed for the local papers by a woman who was doing an article on the decorated mansions of the area.
I returned to Staatsburgh on snowy cold afternoon so the mansion was pretty quiet for touring. There were only two people on the walking tour of the mansion that afternoon. The roads up to Hyde Park were not the best.
Staatsburgh-The Mills Mansion at 75 Mills Mansion Drive on that snowy afternoon
It was nice to tour the house in peace and quiet. The party the week before had been a lot of fun but you could not see the rest of the house. All the rooms were so beautifully decorated, and the Dining Room was decorated to the hilt with masks, the theme of the party the week before. Since there was only two of us touring around, I got interviewed by the local paper by a reporter doing the same thing I was doing, visiting these beautiful homes. Visit my blog, VisitingaMuseum.com to see all my stories on my visits to these beautiful mansions.
My last stop that evening was to Woodstock, NY. I had planned to come this year for the parade but with my brother coming in for Christmas that changed my plans. I figured this was the last time I was going to be able to come up before the holidays. So I braved the slush and snow and drove the long roads up to Woodstock. It never disappoints me.
The Village Square at Woodstock, NY during the holidays
The Woodstock, NY Christmas tree is always interesting
After dinner, I slept so soundly at the hotel again. The Marriott Courtyard in Fishkill, NY is in the perfect location with Route 84 and the mountains right behind it. Easy to get to the highway home but still the best views when you wake up.
The amazing view from my hotel room at the back of the hotel facing the mountains
I had to rush to go on the 10:30am tour of Locust Grove, the former home of Samuel Morse, that I wanted to photograph before I left for the Meiser Homestead. There was not time to eat this morning. Thank God I had some baked goods in the hotel room.
The Christmas tree in the formal Living Room in the Tower section of the home
The Dining Room at Locust Grove at Christmas
The Billiards Room at Locust Grove at Christmas
I toured the whole house in our private tour at 10:30am. There were so many people on the tour, they called a special docent in to run the tour and we had the house to ourselves. Ehtel lead the tour and we took time to enjoy each room. Then it was off the Meiser Homestead for their Open House.
The Mesier Homestead at 2 Spring Street in Wappingers Falls, NY
The Foyer at the Meiser Homestead decked out for the holidays
The Living Room with the Christmas tree
The Dining Room set for Christmas lunch
Downtown Wappingers Falls during Christmas
The Wappingers Falls Christmas tree in the downtown
After I returned home from the Meiser Homestead Open House, it was change clothes again and into the City I went. I did not have much time to do anything in the evenings when classes were going on at NYU so after the semester was over and my third class was finished for the semester at Bergen Community College, I got a last minute ticket to see NY Pops at Carnegie Hall with singer Ingrid Michaelson. What a concert!
I had not been to Carnegie Hall since 2019 in pre-COVID and this always is a tough concert to buy tickets for but I snagged a Saturday night ticket in Row H on the aisle (I have long legs) and it was fate.
The entrance to Carnegie Hall at 57th and Seventh Avenue on the night of the concert. Our concert is to the left.
The inside of Carnegie Hall decorated for the holidays. The crowds were getting settled into the theater.
The stage at Carnegie Hall decorated for Christmas
The excitement built when I entered the hall and it was all decked out for Christmas. It was a site to see. The surprising part was how casual everyone was dressed for the evening. I was really thrown by this especially at the holidays. My seatmate was also dressed to the nines and she made the same comment. She introduced herself and I thought it was funny that a recently married woman would come to the show by herself but there we were acting like two single people.
The beauty of the stage that night just as the NY Pops members started to come on to the stage
Ingrid Michaelson and her fellow singers on stage
The whole concert was amazing and Ingrid Michaelson was fantastic that evening. What I thought was funny was the end of these concerts end with a sing along with Santa on stage and that did not happen this time. She ended the show with one of her signature songs. Maybe her Friday night concert had that. Even though, the concert was excellent and I shared the two songs below that were my favorite from the show.
This was my favorite song from the concert “Christmas Valentine” a new classic. This was written by both Ingrid Michaelson and Jason Mraz who performed it that night on stage.
The other great song from the concert was “Christmas Time is Here”:
“Christmas Time is Here” by Ingrid Michaelson
Even though it was a almost a two hour concert, it just seemed to end very quickly. After the concert was over, I just exploring the area around Lincoln Center. What a beautiful evening it was right before Christmas. People were talking in the local parks, admiring the Christmas lights in trees all over the neighborhood. Christmas tree stands were running in full force as people were decorating their homes on top of the their busy schedules.
Christmas tree sales by Carnegie Hall
For both lunch and dinner I returned to Amore Pizza cafe at 370 West 59th Street, which is down the road from Carnegie Hall. I swear that their food is the best.
I stopped in for a slice of Meat Lovers Pizza which was more than enough before the show and after the show I was still hungry. I went back and had a Chicken Parmesan Hero, which was good but it had been made from chopped fried chicken breasts instead of a freshly fried breast. It was good but not as good as the pizza was that night. After dinner, I just walked around Midtown and down Fifth Avenue admiring the windows.
The Meat Lovers Pizza at Amore Pizza Cafe is excellent
The weekend was not finished yet as I had an early morning walking tour of the Philipsburg Manor in Sleepy Hollow and then I had a Christmas concert at the Bergen County Historical Society in River Edge. Since I had to extend my leave with the fire department, I missed the first “Santa Around Town” in eighteen years. This on top of the fact that I was supposed to run it. With my work and college schedule, I had to ‘cry uncle’ and give it up which really disappointed me. I had some really good plans for it. In the end only thirteen guys showed up out of fifty and they had a fire call before the event ended. Thank God it was just a block chimney.
I left for the last day walking tour of the Philipsburg Manor before the house closed for the season. I was on the last walking tour of the house. Since the house was not insulated and the weather gets bad for the winter, the house will not open again until April. So I was hoping to get some picture taking in and see the decorations. The house was not decorated for the holidays but still the tour was interesting.
The Philipsburg Manor house 381 North Broadway in Sleepy Hollow, NY
The tour was about an hour and we had indoor and outdoor activities that we got involved with cooking hardtack, touring the house and grounds and helping in the barn beating out the wheat seed. When the actors who worked at the site (who must have been freezing their butts off because it was cold that morning) told us and demonstrated the work that had been done on the estate, this was hard work! This was a working farm and business transport spot, not where a family lived and entertained. When Mr. Philips was on property, he was here for business and nothing else. The staff ran this farm.
Us making Hardtack at the outdoor oven
Our visit to the barn where were loosening the wheat seeds. This poor woman was out there all morning in the cold!
The tour was about an hour and I thought that the house would have had some Dutch Christmas decorations but again the tour guides and historians said that the house for business and visiting not for the day in day out lives of the family. Still it was interesting. After our tour finished, I toured the gift shop and then headed home to get ready for the concert.
The Bergen County Historical Society at New Bridge Landing brought back their indoor concerts for Christmas including opening the Blackhorse Pub (The Campbell-Christie House) for dinner before and after the concerts. It was so nice to come to this again. The crowds were a little light at the second concert at 7:45pm on a Sunday night but it made it more fun that we could still socially distance from each other and there was plenty of space to spread out.
I started the evening early at the pub eating my dinner before the concert. The pub had a limited but very nice menu based on what foods that may have been served at the time period (with a modern twist of course). There was Shepard’s Pie, a Ploughman’s Plate, Onion Pie, Trifle and Dutch Cookies and desserts on the menu..
The Campbell-Christie House at 1209 Main Street in River Edge, NJ at the Bergen County Historical Society
The Campbell-Christie House was used as the “Blackhorse Tavern” for the evening where pub food could be ordered for dinner. It was really beautiful that night with all the tables a glow from the candles and the room decorated with holly, garland and wreaths for the holidays.
The Blackhorse Tavern for dinner
After dinner was over, I had plenty of time to explore the gift shop and wonder around the property to see the other decorations. The other buildings on the property were closed that evening but still decorated so I followed the lantern filled pathway and looked at the decorations.
Before the second concert that evening that I would be attending at 7:45pm I wondered around the museum part of the Steuben House where the concerts were taking place. The exhibits were set up with a holiday/Christmas theme in mind. One display was on a candy maker who once had a store in Downtown Hackensack.
Bogert’s Candy Shop in Downtown Hackensack closed in 1934
Decorating the house both during the Revolutionary War and during the Victorian Age was a very extensive affair of preparing the house for entertainment. Garland, holly and pine would have been important to decorate with but it was the Christmas ornaments of the Victorian age and trimming trees with ornaments that would have made the tree very festive.
There were also displays on entertaining during that time period and soldiers lives while the war was going on and what would be needed. It could be lonely at the holidays.
We started to settle in as the second concert was about to start. The room was decorated for the holidays with a combination of Victorian and Revolutionary decorations.
The ballroom at the Steuben House
We were then treated to a concert by the great Linda Russell whose interpretations of Revolutionary Christmas songs is well known. We had a hour long concert of favorite songs, talks about the times and a history of the music itself. She shared with us her insights towards the holidays of New Jersey versus New England and their Puritan ways. Thank God we knew how to party then too.
Linda Russell (to the far left) and her group entertained us for the evening with songs, talks, a few jokes and a wonderful night of excellent music.
“I saw Three Ships Sail In” my favorite song from Linda Russell
We were entertained for about an hour and got time during the intermission to talk with the musicians who shared their experiences with us and about the musical equipment that they were using that evening. It was an interesting talk and a wonderful concert. I highly recommend visiting the Bergen County Historical Society during this time of the year. They do a nice job with this concert and the site is so beautifully decorated for the Christmas holiday season.
Before my the last day of classes at Bergen Community College on December 22nd, I made one last trip into the City before I left for my mother’s. The house had to get cleaned and the laundry had to get done and I got all my errands done before I left. I just wanted to walk around and get my mind off both colleges. It had been a long semester and I was burnt out. The City could not have been more beautiful.
Christmas on Park Avenue
Park Avenue was lined with Christmas trees lighting up before it got dark
Homes on the Upper East Side were beautifully decorated for the holidays
Homes on the Upper East Side were decorated so nicely and some blocks there seemed to be a competition for whose house was nicer.
I went to Rockefeller Center one more time to see the tree and it was like a madhouse so I just looked at it from across the street and continued walking around the Upper East Side down to the Cornell Club where I relaxed for a bit before I went home. People would start taking their decorations down after the holidays and I wanted to take one more glimpse of the neighborhoods before that happened.
The Empire State Building from the Flatiron District
Christmas Eve morning, I visit the cemeteries and pay my respects to my family before I leave for my mother’s. I think it’s important to pay your respects. After fighting the crowds at Mills Bakery on Christmas Eve morning to get a Seven Layer Cake and breakfast cakes and doughnuts for the next day, I left for Rehoboth Beach. I swear the roads were really quiet and it was the first time that I got down to my mom’s in three and a half hours.
Mills Bakery at 275 Valley Boulevard in Wood Ridge, NJ had the most festive cakes, pies and cookies for the holidays
I had just seen my mother in September after the Firemen’s Convention but this was the first time since 2019 that we had spent Christmas together. COVID has really wreaked havoc on the holidays.
Christmas Eve and Day were spent at my mom’s which we have not done since the pandemic. It kept us away and it was strange not having a family get together for three years. It was nice to get together as a family again. On Christmas Eve, we went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner and the place was a madhouse.
Confucius Chinese Restaurant in Rehoboth Beach, DE
My review on TripAdvisor of Confucius Chinese Restaurant:
Even with all the crowds, it was nice to just sit back and enjoy the meal and not have to do anything. I slept so soundly that night knowing that I did not have to be anywhere for a month.
My mother really decorated the house beautifully.
The House at Christmas.
Jane set the table so elegantly.
Cooking this year like in 2019 is now a family affair. My Mom relinquish some control of the kitchen over the last couple of years as dinner was getting to be too much for her to do alone so we all help now. My brother and I coordinate the schedules and plan the menu with my mom and we each did part of the meal and cooked it. This is what the Team work produced:
The Appetizers and Desserts being prepped for dinner:
Mom should be hired by Nancy Meyers to do visuals for her films.
The Potato Croquettes that I prepared for dinner, the Broccoli Casserole and the homemade Apple Pie my mother prepared for dinner (my mom makes the best pies).
We were all getting ready to cook our portion of Christmas Dinner.
My mother preparing the Sauteed String Beans
Me preparing the Potato Croquettes (which by the way were a big hit I think I look like a French Chef).
My brother getting the Roast carved before the start of dinner.
My Mother with the final Christmas dinner that was the Team effort
Christmas Dinner 2022 and everyone loved it! The dinner was Roast Fresh Park, Potato Croquettes, Apple Sauce, Broccoli Souffle and Sauteed String Beans.
The Desserts were Homemade Apple Pie and a Seven Layer Cake that I brought from Mills Bakery. My brother also made all the Christmas cookies.
My family on Christmas Day after dinner (minus my younger brother and his kids).
We had such a nice time with my mother and her friends at dinner and it was a nice quiet and mellow Christmas. It was what I needed after a long school year.
The day after Christmas while my brother headed to New York City, I took the ferry from Lewes to Cape May to spend the night and admire all the decorations all over town. I only spent one night in Cape May but with how relaxing, beautiful and quiet it was that evening I felt like I had been there for a week. I always say in my blogs that the only town to rival Rhinebeck, NY at Christmas is Cape May, NJ.
I took the ferry the next day from Lewes, DE to Cape May, NJ and thank God the weather was nice. We had really light waves and the trip went by really quick. We got into Cape May in a little over an hour and a half. Since I did not have to check into my hotel and it was getting late, I decided to head over to Sunset Beach and watch the sun set. That really relaxed me. In any weather, I swear the beach is always full of people doing the same thing. It was relatively warm that day and when I got to the park, people were playing miniature golf at the little range they have there. I thought that was amusing.
The sunset was fantastic! The weather had really cleared that evening and the colors were so entrancing.
The sun preparing to set that night
The hues at Sunset Beach make this place very special
I just stayed until it got a bit dark and then I headed to the hotel. I stay at the Chalfonte in the winter time in their Souther Quarters (the regular hotel is not insulted and closed until May) and I always enjoy the rooms with their cheery shabbiness and the way the place is always decorated for the holidays. You have to like these old hotels.
The Southern Quarters at the Chalfonte Hotel at 301 Howard Street
I have been coming to the hotel for Christmas for the last several years and last year when COVID again shut things down for Christmas, I stayed here while visiting my younger brother in Rehoboth Beach when he came for a visit. I love Cape May at Christmastime.
The hotel has that festive home away from home feeling with poinsettias around the hotel, Christmas candies and chocolates at the front door and Christmas lights around the building.
I like the shabby chic of the place
My room was really nice and the bed was so comfortable
The room has just been renovated but still had a water spot on the ceiling. That is the charm of the Chalfonte. It reminds you that it is an old hotel. I ventured out to the downtown and the Washington Mall that evening to see the true magic of what makes Cape May a Christmas town. All the lights, trees and decorations make sure that Santa does not miss this town.
The town square with it’s Christmas tree in the bandstand and white lights all over the little part are whimsical and magically as you walk through them. It always reminds me of “Whoville” in the “Grinch that stole Christmas”.
Cape May Town Square at Christmas
The bandstand and Christmas tree are amazing at night
The Cape May Christmas tree
I spent a good part of the my evening admiring the lights of downtown and of Washington Mall which is the downtown section of Cape May. The whole neighborhood was ablaze with lights, decorations and beautiful Christmas displays in the windows. Cape May knows how to decorate for the holidays.
The Washington Mall at night
The Washington Mall in Cape May decorated for the holidays
Our Lady of the Star Sea Church at 525 Washington Street in Downtown Cape May
After a long walk picture taking everything in the downtown from every angle (I have pictures that I ended up using for other sites), I went back to the room to relax. I just sunk into the pillows and went out like a light. I woke up two hours later and got to bed. I slept so soundly again.
The next morning was rested and ready to go. I had my usual post-Christmas game plan. I started with breakfast at the Mad Batter, a local well known restaurant in Cape May and the food is always excellent. I have eaten here several times and I highly recommend it.
The food and the service are always very good. That morning there seemed to be only one waitress on the floor and I swear that this woman handled the dining room like a pro. The service was flawless and she never panicked.
The Bacon and Cheese Omelet with home fries was outstanding
After breakfast was over, I gathered my things at the hotel and dropped off my keys and then spent the afternoon visiting historical sites. Most everything I was surprised were closed so I took exterior shots to update my blogs.
While walking downtown, I saw that Our Lady of the Star Sea, the Catholic Church in the Washington Mall was having service at 11:00am. Since I did not go to church services on Christmas Eve or Day, I went in for the post-Christmas services. I was surprised how crowded they were that morning. I found out that a young new priest has just come from the seminary and started that day. I found him very inspirational and very enthusiastic.
The church was so beautifully decorated for the holidays
Our Lady Star of the Sea for the Christmas holiday season
After church services were over, I toured around Cape May. I had a noon time appointment at the Physick Mansion to see their Christmas decorations so I stopped at a few of the museum around the downtown area but again all closed.
The Physick Mansion tour at the holidays I have taken many times and it is one of the nicest homes decorated for the holidays. Many people would not have decorated every nook and cranny of the house the way this is but like Locust Grove, it gives you an idea of how the Victorians celebrated the holidays.
The decorations were amazing and the house was decked to the hilt for the Christmas holidays. We got to tour the entire house and every room has such festive garland and Christmas trees. The family seemed to know how to celebrate the holidays.
The Living Room at the Physick Estate
The Dining Room
The Parlor with the ‘Tabletop’ Tree in the corner
We went room by room with the tour guide explaining how the family would prepare for Christmas and the preparations that would have to be done by the staff for guests and for the family dinner. There would be many trips to Philadelphia department stores for gifts for the family. You felt on the tour that the family had just left for the day.
After the tour, I headed over to West Cape May to see the Cape May Lighthouse and was surprised that it was open that day. With everything else being closed, it was a treat to be able to climb it again. The drive in was nice as people decorated their homes nicely and being a warm day around 50 degrees (Christmas just seems to be getting warmer), I drove around for a bit to admire them.
The entrance to the Borough of Cape May Point decked for the holidays
The outdoor Christmas display in West Cape May
The Cape May Lighthouse and grounds were really busy with visitors and being such a warm day many were walking on the beach or admiring the park. Several passed me as I climbed the lighthouse which I had not done in a few years. The view on this clear sunny day was great.
The views from the top were so clear and beautiful and being so clear you could see the entire surrounding community.
The view from the top of the Cape May Lighthouse
After climbing up and back down, I passed more people who I could not believe were complaining on how hard it was to walk it. I got up in about ten minutes with a couple of stops and then was back down again once reaching the top. It is not that hard and is well worth the trip up.
Watching the time, I wanted to visit the farms in the area but Rea Farm was closed for the season so I headed to Beach Plum Farm, which has become quite the tourist stop since my first trip to Cape May. It is such a picturesque farm but it looks very planned. When I first started coming here is was a more local farm. Now it looks like a gourmet shop and it has gotten more expensive.
The entrance to Beach Plum Farm at 140 Stevens Street
I toured around the gift shop and admired the beautiful displays of gourmet foods. The place was almost empty as I could see that they must have had a very good Christmas. There was some serious restocking that needed to be done.
The wonderful gourmet items at Beach Plum Farm
I ended my afternoon feeding the chickens before I left the farm. God they were so excited to see me. I just had a little feed and they ran all around me like groupies. I guess this is how the farm feeds them. It was the best quarter I spent on the trip.
The chickens were a very excited bunch that afternoon
Before I left Cape May that day for home, I visited Sunset Beach one more time to enjoy the weather. The beach was pretty crowded again as everyone waited to see the sun set again on Cape May. Like I said before, you can see this a hundred times but it is never boring.
Sunset Beach on a warmish sunny day attracts a lot of visitors
From Sunset Beach, I headed home. I stopped for a quick slice of pizza on the way and then I had to leave Cape May (until the next time). There was a lot to do and I had places that I wanted to visit before the holidays were over. I could not believe how much work I got done on this two day trip to Cape May. I got to see a lot.
In the week between Christmas and New Year’s, I made another trip around the City. Since I did not have to return to classes until the end of January, I was able to take my time and explore around campus and the Village. Christmas was still in full swing.
Christmas in Greenwich Village
Decorations in one of the pocket parks on Greenwich Street
Homes decked out for the holidays
Townhouses decked out for the holidays
I also made a special trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see the Christmas tree and decorations before the museum took them down after the Epiphany. I love seeing them every year. It still is a big attraction at the museum and you have to visit it before that first weekend in January is over.
The Metropolitan Museum of at at 1000 Fifth Avenue:
My last holiday event before school started again was Epiphany services at the Reformed Church of Paramus and visiting my father for his birthday. It can be sobering but I try to still celebrate his life and going to this church puts me into the Christmas spirit.
The Paramus Reformed Church in Ridgewood, NJ
Christmas services at the Paramus Reformed Church
The Paramus Reformed Church’s decorations by Route 17 are always tasteful
After services were over, I stayed and joined the other parishioners for Tea and snacks after the service and talked with other parishioners. It was nice to sit back after a long holiday season and just relax. After services were over, I went to pay respects to my father for his birthday (which is the reason why I come here for church as its on the way home). The cemetery was filled to the brim with wreaths and grave blankets so even though it was a cemetery, there was still a festive feel to the fact that so many people paid their respects to their families.
My aunt took me out on the last day of the Epiphany weekend for my combination birthday/Christmas present dinner to the Ivy Inn. What a nice evening we had and it was the perfect way to end the holiday season. The Chef/ Owner was not there that day but we were able to discuss with the staff the paper I wrote on the Metaverse. They seemed amused by it all (see my review on dinner on my TripAdvisor review above by the Metaverse paper story).
The Ivy Inn decorated for Christmas
The beauty of the dining room decorated for the holidays
The delicious salad I started with
The delicious Penne with Sundried Tomatoes and Sweet Sausage that I had that evening
My aunt and I shared this wonderful Zeppoles with Chocolate and Raspberry sauces
It was a magical evening with good food and company in a festive environment. I really needed this with all the running around with school, work, blogging and research that I had done from Thanksgiving to the Epiphany. It was a lot for one person to pull off and somehow I managed it all. I am lucky that I have supportive friends and family.
I had the entire month of January to relax before the whole thing began again for Spring Semester and that is all I wanted to do. It didn’t quite happen that way but I finally got time to myself which I needed.
My work for my blogs took me all over New York and New Jersey, visiting small towns, admiring Christmas decorations and supporting many community events. Please visit my other blogs DiningonaShoeStringin NYC@Wordpress.com, LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com and VisitingaMuseum.com to see all the updates, more detailed stories on the mansions and events and all my updated pictures.
I got my final grades by the end of the semester and it was straight “A”‘s. This was the first time in my life I ever did that! Don’t even ask me how I pulled this all off!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
The Empire State Building from the NoMAD section of Manhattan just off Broadway