Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
NewYorkknowshowtothrowaparty.Throughouttheyear,youcanindmassivecelebrationsofancienttribalafiliations,sexualorienta-
tions, and pagan holidays. Most of these celebrations come free.
Inadditiontothenumberslistedbelow,NYCVisit,thecity'sconventionandvisitor'sbureau,hasthelowdownonmostevents( 212/
484- 1222; www.nycvisit.com ) .
January
Midnight Run in Central Park For a saner New Year's night than the Times Square hell, one option is to hook up
with the New York Road Runners Club. Their annual 4-mile Midnight Run takes costumed racers from 72nd Street to 102nd, and back
around. The registration fee starts at $35 for Early Bird members, but if you don't feel the need to get winded in the small hours, you
can enjoy the pre-run dancing, costume show, and fireworks for free. Dancing begins around 10pm and the parade starts an hour later.
Gather near the Central Park Bandshell, south of the 72nd Street Transverse. 212/860-4455. www.nyrr.org . Subway: B/C to 72nd
St.; 6 to 68th St. Midnight December 31 (Jan 1).
Brooklyn New Year's Prospect Park There's no borough envy in Brooklyn as rival pyrotechnics welcome the new
year above Prospect Park. Enjoy the fresh air as the embers cascade above the Grand Army Plaza at the stroke of midnight. Prime
viewing areas include West Drive and along Prospect Park West, between Grand Army Plaza and 9th Street. As in Manhattan, there's
a fun run, this one sponsored by NYCRUNS ( www.nycruns.com ) and carrying a registration fee of about $25. 718/965-8999.
www.prospectpark.org . Subway: 2/3 to Grand Army Plaza; B/Q to Seventh Ave. December 31 (Jan 1).
February
Chinese New Year Come February, Chinatown will be partying like it's 4711, in honor of the lunar new year. The annual
parade sees a firecracker celebration and dragon and lion dancers winding through Mott, East Broadway, and the Bowery. 917/
660-2402. www.betterchinatown.com . Subway: J/N/Q/R/Z/6 to Canal St. Late January or early February.
March
Saint Patrick's Day Parade The green wave gathers momentum through Midtown and converges on Fifth Avenue,
where 150,000 marchers (and at least that many spectators) celebrate Ireland's patron saint. Much of the crowd arrives well before
the 11am start time. The entertainment continues with live music and drunken shenanigans at New York's thousand-plus Irish pubs.
Wear green or risk pinchery. The parade runs from 44th up to 86th Street, right past Patrick's own cathedral. 718/231-4400. ht-
tp://nycstpatricksparade.org . Subway: E/M to Fifth Ave./53rd St. March 17 (Sat, Mar 16, in 2013).
April
Easter Parade People join and leave this Easter Sunday tradition as they please. Expect amazing hats and plenty of pas-
tels. The stroll runs from 10am until 3 or 4pm, along Fifth Avenue between 49th and 57th streets. 212/484-1222. Subway: E/M to
Fifth Ave./53rd St.; B/D/F/M to 47th-50th sts./Rockefeller Center. Easter Sunday.
NFL Draft The National Football League inaugurates its latest crop of millionaires at this 3-day fest. I enjoy the sight of fans
converging on Radio City Music Hall, wearing the rainbow array of 32 different uniforms. Bracelets are distributed the night before, with
the line opening at 10pm for midnight pick up (day 2 is less contested, and by the later rounds of day 3 you can skip the bracelet and
head right for the “Carriage Door Entrance”). 1260 Sixth Ave., at 50th St. 212/247-4777. www.radiocity.com . Subway: B/D/F/M to
47th-50th sts.-Rockefeller Center. Thursday to Saturday, late April.
May
Ninth Avenue International Food Festival If some human in an obscure corner of the globe can call it lunch,
odds are you can find it at this festival. Come mid-May, street-fair staples like Italian sausages and mozzarepa (cheese stuffed corn
cakes) mingle with barbecued pigs, empanadas, and soy cupcakes from Ninth Avenue's indigenous roster. Don't miss hot-from-the-
oven Greek pastries from Poseidon Bakery, between 44th and 45th streets. It runs on Ninth Avenue, from 42nd to 57th streets. 212/
581-7029. www.ninthavenuefoodfestival.com . Subway: A/C/E/7 to 42nd St./Port Authority. From noon to 5pm, Saturday and Sunday in
mid-May.
New York Dance Parade From the cross-pollination of African and Irish tap dances in the Five Points slum to an impress-
ive 20th-century run of ballet, ballrooms, and breakdancing, New York's dance legacy runs deep. In mid-May all of it goes on parade
at once, a 6-hour affair with 10,000 dancers, many sporting elaborate getups. The parade boogies from 21st Street and Broadway
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