31
Days of Holiday Treats
There is no shortage of ways
to welcome the holidays in New York City.
Our editors have put their heads together
and listed their 31 holiday favorites for
the 31 days of December.
December
1st
The tree at
Rockefeller Center is
the icon of Christmas in New York City,
so be sure to make it your first stop of
the holiday season. Be prepared for
crowds, be prepared for the cold, and
above all, be prepared to ooh and ahh
with the rest of the onlookers. While
you're in the area, don't miss the
skaters at the famous rink below the
tree, and a walk through the
angel-decorated Channel Gardens to the
east of the tree. The tree will be in
place through January 6, 2008. (After
that, it will be recycled -- in the past,
the tree provided almost 3 tons of mulch
which the Boy Scouts of America used at
their camps; this year the tree's lumber
will be used by Habitat for Humanity.)
December
2nd
Celebrate the season tonight at 6:30 at
the Park Avenue Tree
Lighting and Carol Sing
when at the touch of a button, tree
lights come ablaze on Park Avenue from 91st
St. to the MetLife building in mid-town.
December
3rd
Celebrate the
season with tickets to the New York City
Ballet's presentation of George
Balanchine's The Nutcracker. For
more information about the ballet,
including the schedule, history, story,
pre- and post-show activities, and to
purchase tickets, visit the New York City
Ballet's web site.
December
4th
Join the crowds at
5:30 pm for a special lighting ceremony
of the world's largest Hanukkah Menorah
(32 feet high), located at 59th Street
and Fifth Avenue;
the celebration continues at the same
time each night of the holiday.
December
5th
Celebrate New York
City's Dutch heritage by
following the tradition of having
children leave their shoes outside their
bedroom doors tonight, which is the eve
of Saint Nicholas's
Day. If the tots have
been good, will fills their shoes with
chocolates and other candy.
December
6th
Make a child's day
by taking him/her to one of the great NYC
toy emporiums: FAO Schwarz
(Fifth Ave. at 58th St.) or Toys R Us
(in Times Square at 1514 Broadway). Older
kids will enjoy the NBA Store
(Fifth Ave. at 52nd St.) and the World of Nintendo
(10 Rockefeller Plaza). Know a little
girl who loves dolls? Then don't miss the
insanely popular American Girl Place
(Fifth Ave. at 49th St.).
December
7th
Don't miss the
chance to see the Rockettes take the
stage for yet another rendition of the Radio
City Christmas Spectacular.
Oh sure, the show is a bit on the
schmaltzy side, but even the venerable New
York Times
expresses admiration for the shows
longevity (it celebrates 75th anniversary
this year) and ongoing appeal. So go
ahead, give in to your softer, more
nostalgic side and enjoy the Spectacular
in all its glitzy extravagance.
December
8th
At 7:30 tonight,
join the Cathedral Choristers and choir,
Stewart Brass Works, and special guest
artists Three Mo’ Tenors as they
usher in the Christmas season with
festive carols and seasonal music. It's
all part of the Cathedral Christmas
Concert at the Cathedral of St.
John the Divine.
December
9th
The tradition of
assembling hundreds of tubas for a
concert of Christmas music began in 1974
at Rockefeller Center
and continues at 3:30 this afternoon.
Harvey Phillips, who founded TubaChristmas in
the first place, will conduct. If you
haven't experienced this phenomenon yet,
this is the year to try it!
December
10th
Learn about the
toys New York children have enjoyed in
the past by visiting the New York Toy
Stories exhibit at the Museum of the City
of New York.
Stop by today, and you can also enjoy the
museum’s Children's Holiday
Party, which features a
celebrity reading of the children’s
classic 'Twas the Night Before
Christmas, arts and crafts,
magicians, clowns, a delicious buffet
supper, and of course, a visit with Santa
Claus.
December
11th
Get into the
holiday spirit by checking out all the
decorations along Fifth Avenue, including
the giant ribbon around the Cartier store
and the UNICEF Snowflake
that hangs above the intersection of
Fifth Avenue and 57th Street
December
12th
We love the
holiday-themed Kaleidoscope Light
Show at Grand Central
Terminal. See the fanciful
play of lights on the walls of the main
concourse. These free shows run every
half hour on the half hour from 11
am - 9 pm, daily.
December
13th
The American Museum of
Natural History
joins the holiday spirit with two
19-foot, pine-bough and light-festooned Holiday Barosaurs,
which greet visitors to the museum on the
front steps. Inside the museum, look for Origami Holiday
Tree, which features
mythic creatures such as dragons,
mermaids, unicorns, as well as real
animals like narwhals and peacocks, all
delightfully made out of paper.
December
14th
Enjoy the sounds of
the season by listening to the Big Apple Chorus at
the South Street Seaport: 45-minute
performances are held at 6 pm and 7 pm on
Fridays and at 3 pm and 4 pm Saturdays
and Sundays, with special performances
scheduled for 3 pm and 4 pm on Christmas
Eve.
December
15th
Each weekend
throughout the month of December, the Central Park Zoo
hosts a Wild Holiday Party! See
the animals feast on holiday fare: the
polar bears will tear open peanut-buttery
gifts; snow monkeys will un-decorate
edible trees; and Children’s Zoo
residents will receive veggies and hay!
December
16th
Sunday afternoons
throughout the holiday season) are a
great time to check out the annual Christmas Tree and
Neapolitan Baroque Crèche
exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum
of Art. A vivid
18th-century Nativity
scene—embellished with a profuse
array of diminutive, lifelike attendant
figures and hovering, silk-robed
angels—adorns the candlelit 20
foot-high blue spruce tree, while
recorded music adds to the enjoyment of
the holiday display. Dramatic tree
lighting ceremonies take place on Sundays
at 4:30, 5:30 and 6:30 pm.
December
17th
The atrium at the
Citigroup Center has been transformed
into a gigantic model railroad.
Watch the trains go up and down
mountains, over waterfalls and around
famous NYC landmarks. The makers of this
fabulous multi-scale display celebrate 20
years of bringing holiday joy to New York
City this year.
December
18th
Sing along at New
York City's most popular holiday season
music event: the 40th annual Handel's Messiah
Sing-In at 8 pm at Avery
Fisher Hall. Sing under the direction of
17 outstanding New York choral
conductors, enjoy 4 of the National
Chorale's favorite soloists, and perform
as part of an exciting audience-chorus of
3,000 singers!
December
19th
There is always
lots of hoopla surrounding the holiday
window displays at NYC department stores
like Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomindale's, Saks Fifth Avenue,
and Macy's.
But we find the windows of some specialty
stores, like antique dealer Linda Horn on
the Upper East Side,
just as delightfully whimsical. An added
bonus? There are no crowds or long lines
to impede your viewing pleasure.
December
20th
As the winter
solstice approaches, it's fun to look up
at the sky and think about the myths that
our ancestors told about the winter
constellations. Join the Central Park
Conservancy and the Amateur Astronomers
Association of New York as they do just
that in tonight's Stargazing and
Storytelling.
Storytelling begins inside at Belvedere
Castle (mid-park at 79th Street) at 7 pm.
As the sky darkens, head outside for star
observation through special high-powered
telescopes.
December
21st
Starting tonight
and running through January 6th, the Empire State
Building celebrates the
holiday season with special red and green
tower lighting.
December
22nd
Give yourself a
treat and enjoy a cup of tea and
something sinfully sweet at one of the Sarabeth's
restaurants (conveniently located on the
East and West sides, in Chelsea, and on
Central Park South) after a day of
shopping.
December
23rd
Make your Christmas
season extra special by attending a
service at Riverside Church
and listening to the wonderful carillon music.
December
24th
Through January
6th, visitors to the Bronx Zoo
will be dazzled by illuminated displays
of tigers, elephants and other lighted
animal sculptures that appear along the
zoo's pathways each evening. There are
also ice sculptures, storytelling,
costumed characters, and lots more. We
highly recommend this unforgettable Holiday Lights
experience.
December
25th
Wondering where to
feast and celebrate Christmas in New York
City? Thankfully, we've already found a list of recommended
brunch spots
for you!
December
26th
What better place
to celebrate Boxing Day, a
traditionally British holiday, than at
that NYC-based bastion of all things
Britannia-related, the restaurant and
shop Tea and Sympathy!
December
27th
If you've been
bustling about outside in the chilly New
York air, we recommend that you warm up
with an Irish coffee -- the Kinsale
makes the best in town.
December
28th
Haven't yet
finalized your New Year's Eve plans? See
our Insider tips
for suggestions of where to go and what
to see.
December
29th
Learn about the
seven principles of Kwanzaa from noon to
5 pm today at the American Museum of
Natural History.
The Kwanzaa Celebration
includes performances of African dance,
spoken word, music and traditional
crafts. The event also features vendors,
visual artists and craftspeople, as well
as representatives from the City's major
cultural institutions.
December
30th
Ice-skating at Rockefeller Center is
world-famous, but we like NYC's other
skating spots, too, including Bryant Park, Wollman Rink
and Lasker Rink.
December
31st
When you think of New Year's Eve in
New York City, certainly you think of all
the festivities at
Times Square.
So go ahead, join the millions around the
world who will watch the famous Time
Square ball drop during the countdown to
midnight.
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