Tag: Things to do in NYC

The Art Gallery Crawl: A Secret Alternative To Art Museums In New York City


I’m hungry – take me to the food pairing!

We’ve made no bones about the fact that this blog keeps us pretty busy. But every once in a while someone cancels or plans fall through and we find ourselves with an opening in our otherwise overpacked schedule. So, what do we do when we have some time to kill? Well, we turn to a tried-and-true solution, one that requires no tricky reservations or extensive planning. And one that happens to be the best kept pseudo-secret in town: an art gallery crawl. Oh, and the cherry on top? It won’t cost you a dime.
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Strangers in the Night: An Evening at Tokyo Record Bar in New York City


When considering the fact that New York City is a bustling metropolis of millions, it’s ironic how often you hear it’s inhabitants express feelings of loneliness. Or alienation. Or a sense of hopeless disconnection from their fellow denizens. These are trite sentiments, certainly, but that doesn’t make them untrue. Even Mark Twain, when chronicling his time in the The City That Never Sleeps, wrote:

“A man walks his tedious miles through the same interminable street every day, elbowing his way through a buzzing multitude of men, yet never seeing a familiar face, and never seeing a strange one the second time.”

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Hitting All The Right Notes: The Tradition of Unsilent Night in New York City


I’m hungry – take me to the food pairing!

If there’s one thing to know about this blog and the people behind it, it’s that Justin and I love all facets of New York City. That means loving Jean Georges and Halal Guys in equal measure. Fifth Avenue and the Lower East Side. The Met and Mmuseumm. And when it comes to the holidays, we love over-the-top displays as well as understated celebrations. One of the more quirky and lesser known holiday traditions we enjoy in New York City is that of Unsilent Night.

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The Tradition of the Non-Traditional: Christmas Day Dim Sum in New York City



In case our posts about Christmas Lights and Holiday Windows didn’t give it away, we’re pretty big fans of the holiday season. And another thing we’re pretty big fans of? Food. Christmas is fast approaching and the majority of businesses will be shuttered to observe the day’s celebration, food establishments included. But one of the many things we love about New York City is that it’s incredibly diverse. A solid quarter of it’s estimated 8.6 million population is made up of non-Christians–they include Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, Atheists, and many, many others. So, on Christmas Day, where do these other New Yorkers congregate for a meal? Turns out, there’s a tradition for that!

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Let’s Get Lit: Christmas Lights Tour with A Slice of Brooklyn Bus Tours



Our love of the holidays is no secret. From Halloween through New Year’s Eve, we’re down with anything this incredible city can throw at us. And New York City? Well, FUHGETTABOUDIT! It’ll throw a little bit of everything at you, from the conventional to the kitchen sink. So when our friends over at A Slice of Brooklyn Bus Tours recently invited us to check out their Christmas Lights Tour, we jumped at the chance. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is a holiday staple in our household, we had to do it for the Griswolds.

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How Sweet It Is: The Best Candy Shops in New York City



There are three candy holidays, or I should say Holy Days,  in the United States: Easter, Halloween, and Christmas. I remember as a child, when of one of these observed Holy Days approached, my father would open a portal into another world. No matter where we lived at the time, he would take me to some secretive little shop, inconspicuously tucked away off the beaten path. These shops were like walking into a time capsule, what with their loads of obscure candies, chocolates, and myriad other snacks, stacked floor to ceiling. Whether in open barrels or giant bags and boxes, I found myself surrounded by untold delights.

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To Infinity and Beyond: Yayoi Kusama’s Festival of Life at David Zwirner Gallery in New York City



Why on earth would a nocturnal creature such as myself wake up at an uncivilized hour on a frigidly cold Saturday morning in November just to stand on line for nearly two hours–and not just any line but a discouragingly gargantuan queue that appeared to stretch into infinity? A fair question. And the answer is quite simple: when you have the opportunity to see recent works from an artist of Yayoi Kusama’s caliber, whose contributions have been essential to some of the most important artistic movements of the 20th Century, you dig deep. You pull on your big boy pants and wrap yourself in a puffer jacket. You fill a thermos with strong coffee. And you get moving.

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Breaking Down Walls: Good Fences Make Good Neighbors by Ai Weiwei


I’m hungry – take me to the food pairing!

I grew up in Malaysia then moved to the United States as a young adult. Justin trailed along while his father’s highly transient career took him all over the country in his youth. So when it came time to make our own home, we fell into the normal trappings–we bought a house in a nice neighborhood in a state where it was sunny 299 days per year. But we found ourselves making regular trips to New York City that grew longer and more frequent, and soon we realized maybe it was more of a home to us than our house was. For us, home has never been about geography. It’s always been a feeling. A longing when you leave, and a pull to return.

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Every Dog Has Its Day: Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade


I’m hungry – take me to the food pairing!

You could spend every weekend doing something completely different in New York City and never run out of things to do. But there are certain events that hit can’t-miss status for us. Activities that are permanently etched into our calendars. Occasions that take precedence over anything else going on in the city that day. The Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade is one of those special cases.

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Looks and Books: Why You Should Visit the Jefferson Market Library


I’m hungry – take me to the food pairing!

With change constantly occurring around us, Justin and I often find ourselves in a perpetual state of FOMO. There’s always something shiny and new to check out in New York City, from towering new structures to pop-up exhibits. But that also means that we sometimes take the stuff that’s been around for a while for granted. Case in point: the Jefferson Market Library.

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