Thanksgiving in New York

After Bennett's dance rehearsal (see last post) we drove to Castleton to spend Thanksgiving with family.  We have enjoyed several Thanksgivings with cousins Ed, Leora, Liat and Edan.  

Bennett faced off against Bubbie finding her a better opponent then he thought.  He would say he won more games but we know that isn’t possible (ha, ha).  

 

 Dinner was scrumptious and the togetherness warm and loving.  

After filling ourselves with a combination of traditional Thanksgiving foods and Chanukah latkes, we indulged in a half dozen homemade delectables.  

Yes, we know it wasn’t Chanukah yet, but we had an early start to the holiday because we were together.

Our penance for overeating was a 6:30 am flight home.

 

Nutcracker in a Nutshell

Bennett has joined EMERGE 125 dance company as the assistant to the toy maker in Nutcracker in a Nutshell. 

The company consists of some NYC professionals and young novices.  Tiffany, the company head, invited Bennett to join and he is enjoying himself.  

We were unable to stay for the actual performance but had a chance to watch a rehearsal.  Of course, we mentally gave him a standing ovation.

 

A Walk in the Woods

 Our “demanding” daughter made us join her for a walk to Moose Pond.   It was about a three mile round trip.  While we saw no moose we did find lovely and entertaining things along the way.  Cheryl had Li playing fetch which both really enjoyed.  

  

 There was already some snow on the ground.

 We passed some interesting characters along the route.

Everyone enjoyed the walk.

 Bennett and Dave did not join us as Bennett had “Nutcracker” rehearsal (more about that later).

NYC

It has been thirteen years since we last visited New York City.  We wanted to revisit theater and see the  sights so we decided to come here before heading to ADK.  The idea started several months ago when we saw Jeff Daniels on the Colbert Show.  He was promoting his role in To Kill a Mockingbird.  We were able to get tickets and invited Cheryl to join us.

The City has changed a lot with amazing new buildings and so many animations along Times Square.  

The weather was perfect for a stroll in Central Park.  

Truly great to be back.

Our theater experience was one of the best we have had.  We got last minute tickets to Come from Away about the flights that landed in Gander, Newfoundland at 9/11.  We were in the town on an RV caravan a few years after 2001 and had listened to locals sharing their stories.  This play tears at your heart strings as it shows the fear of the passengers and the support of the townspeople.

In the evening we saw the amazing production of Mockingbird that seemed too timely.

On the gustatorial side, we enjoyed breakfast cafes, deli lunch and unique dining pleasures that only NYC can offer.

We took the train to Albany and then Cheryl drove us up to Saranac Lake.   While sitting and writing in Cheryl’s home  the snow is falling in small drops and big flakes. 

Storm King

Cheryl got a reservation at Storm King in the Hudson Valley in New York.  Storm King started as an art museum in the 60s then evolved to a 500 acre park.  This is the most amazing sculpture GARDEN we have ever seen.  They claim to have the largest collection of outdoor sculpture in the world.  We won’t argue with that.  Artists include Calder, DiSuvero, Lichtenstein, and Henry Moore.  

We took the tram around.  You could also rent a bike (that is history for us) or walk, walk, walk.

Fifth Season by Sarah Sze is a special exhibit in one of the halls.   To view this art is to be immersed in color, in perceived motion and in deep emotion.  This art is proof that photographs do not always capture what is seen.

 

We learned that this garden must be visited many times to get the feel of all the beauty. 

Hiking

Cheryl has a great ability for finding lovely trails for her to hike and us to stroll.  We did two in one day.  The first was Pond Loop.

These purple mushrooms dotted the landscape.

 

While we did not do the whole loop, we did feel immersed in the peaceful beauty.

The second trail, Becket Quarry, ended at an abandoned quarry.  It seems the workers just up and left their vehicles.  Nature is slowly claiming them.

Around the corner, the water falls into a pool and foolish, brave, young adults were jumping from the ledges deep down into the cool water.  These crazy kids were primarily from the nearby college.  Hopefully, Bennett didn’t get any ideas to try it.

Dave joined us in the evening.  The next day Hurricane Ida edged the area keeping us homebound to play games and read. 

Hancock Shaker Village

While the Shakers started in England, they flourished in the United States under the leadership of Ann Lee in the 1780s.  Their beliefs had an appeal to those who believed in labor for all, celibacy and rights for both men and women.  They felt that their commune would be paradise on earth and would reflect life in the next world.  

Today in the Village twenty historic buildings are open for visitors.  We had toured a similar village in Kentucky and found this one also of unique interest

 

1826 Round Stone Barn where some of the timbers date back to the 1700s.

The Shakers did not have a religious leader.  If, during a service, someone was motivated to speak, sing or dance, they simply got up and did what they felt.  A docent taught us a Shaker melody that is simple in words but highly spiritual.  

The dormitory, where men dwell on one side and women on the other, dates to 1830. 

 

 The general membership dined in silence in the main dining hall.  

The Elders had their own private dining room.  Some people are more equal than others.  

    

The Meetinghouse was moved here from Shirley, MA.

A local woodcrafter demonstrates turning  techniques on a 19th century water powered lathe.

The last remaining Shakers are two elderly women and one young man still living in another Shaker village in Maine.

Beauty, Natural and Man-made

First, Happy Anniversary to Cheryl and Dave

Last Sunday we enjoyed the beauty of this tree filled area.  Driving the twisty roads through this lush area is so different from the dry (and sadly smoky and burning) area where we live.  We started our day with a lovely walk through Parsons Marsh.

 

After our picnic lunch, we went to Turn Park.  Originally a quarry, it is now a fabulous sculpture garden.  We had wonderful time wandering and interacting with this area of great imagination.

 

 

 Bennett enjoyed one of the installed artwork.