Things to Do in NYC this Weekend (New York City) - August 24 - 25, 2013

New York City is known predominantly for food, nightlife, and shopping, but literary events? Not so much in this hyper fast paced digital age!  Storytelling these days as a craft has lost much of it's place in everyday social activity and has been relegated to the confines of Hollywood and the literary elite.  But for all you rare bibliophiles, there is the 9th Annual Fort Greene Park Summer Literary Festival happening this Saturday, August 24 2013. Can you imagine anything more meditative than sitting on a chair with a nice cup of iced coffee listening to live storytelling on a mild breezy summer day?

Other events happening this weekend include the Hudson River Park's Blues BBQ and Authur Ashe Kids Day, where you can take your little ones to the U.S Open Tennis Stadium to enjoy free tennis camp, face painting, and take pictures with Nickelodeon characters (Sponge Bob, Dora, etc).

1. The 9th Annual Fort Greene Park Summer Literary Festival.  Young writers from the New York Writer's Coalition Summer Workshop and members of the Writers Foundry will doing live readings and storytelling in the park, and best of all, free admissions! Published authors presenting their work include Chris Adrian, Angel Nafis, Timothy Small and Jackson Taylor. Sponsors of this event include Amazon.com and the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs.  Follow their Facebook page for upcoming literary events around town.

Date: Saturday, August 24 2013.  Place: The Monument section of Fort Greene Park

photo credit: Melvin Reeves

2.  The Hudson River Park's Blues Bar-B-Que - Free live jazz and blues performances are scheduled throughout the afteroon at the Hudson River Park.  Even if you're not a fan of blues you should check out the park as it's undergone some beautiful renovation over the years.  Several of NYC's renowned Bar-b-que joints, like Brother Jimmy's BBQ, Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, and Delaney Barbeque will also be there serving tasty outdoor summer cuisine.  

Date: Saturday, August 24 2013 from 2:30 - 7:30 pm Place: Hudson River Park.

The Hudson River Park is a 5 mile stretch with lots of outdoor activities to be found!

3. Authur Ashe Kids' Day - Have your little one try out a few rounds of tennis and enjoy concerts by pre-teen stars from the Disney Channel.  Although the 1pm Stadium Show with a guest appearance by Michelle Obama (she leads the Let's Move initiative to combat childhood obesity) is sold out, there are many events happening from 9:30 to 12:30 that is open to the public.  The schedule can be found here.

Date: Saturday, August 24 2013 from 9:30 - 12:30 pm Place: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center

Kids can practice/try tennis at the same courts as the pros!

Things to Do in NYC this Weekend (New York City) - August 17 - 18, 2013

The weekend is coming up and we've rounded up our second list of things to do around New York City this weekend.  For live theater performances off the beaten path, The New York International Fringe Festival (FringeNYC) is back in NYC this year!  It's a festival where you can check out performances from playwrights and actors from all over the country and the world - many of them only come to perform in NYC once a year at the Fringe Festival.  Performances are held in various performance theaters in Manhattan and tickets are only $15.  You can also get passes for multiple shows and there's even a Fringe Festival Happy Hour held Fridays and Saturdays at 11pm @ Celebration of Whimsy on 21-A Clinton Street NYC - with variety shows performed by FringeNYC performers of course!

The Jazz Age Lawn Party is back at Governor's Island this weekend, and if you have a car, you can venture out to Jones beach for the Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox 20 concert.

All events listed below are for this Saturday and Sunday : August 17 - 18, 2013.

1. The New York International Fringe Festival (FringeNYC) - With performances of all genres from actors and actresses from all around the country, and the world (Japan, Sweden, and more!), there's something for everyone at Fringe NYC.  The easiest way to find out which shows to attend is to download their show guide online here, then go to their website to purchase the tickets. You can also go to their headquarters at FringeCentral to pick up a show guide and buy tickets in person,  Location: Depends on the Show, check their website for theater location  Time: Festival runs from August 9 to 25, 2013.

200 shows, 20 venues, 16 days, 5000 artists, 2000 volunteers and 2 full time employees help make this event happen.

2. Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox 20 concert at Jones Beach Theater: Yes, they are back in New York this year, relive tunes from the early 2000's and songs from their newer albums.  Time: Saturday August 17, doors open at 6pm.  Tickets can be purchased here, act fast as they're selling out.

3. Jazz Festival at Governor's Island - Dress up in your flapper dresses and suits and head out to Governor's Island for live Jazz, dancing, and drinks.  Time: Saturday and Sunday, August 17 - 18, 2013.  General Admissions is $30 and can be purchased here.  You can get food their, or bring your own picnic.  It's a fun festive party, but due to it's popularity, it is a venue that is quite crowded. We recommend hopping on the ferry line to get out of Governor's Island way before the event ends each night as the line can get quite long.  Vegetarian food options are a bit lacking there too, so we recommend bringing your own if you're a picky eater.

 Photo by Flip Wolak

Things to Do in NYC this Weekend (New York City) - August 10 - 11, 2013

We've rounded up a list of happenings around New York City if you're looking to explore the city this weekend.  We'll be hosting a baby shower this weekend, but if wasn't for all the cooking and baking and prep work we're doing for our party of 50, we would be hitting up the Vegan Shop Up and Rooftop Films in Brooklyn on Saturday and the Paul Van Dyk concert on Governor's Island on Sunday.

All events listed below are for this Saturday and Sunday : August 10 - 11, 2013. Whether you're a local or a visiting tourist or hosting a visitor this weekend, there's something for everyone.

This blog post is going to be the first of many compilations of our list of things to do in NYC on weekends, so stay tuned for more!

1. The Vegan Shop Up - an all vegan shopping event is being held this Saturday, August 10 at the Pine Box Rock Shop in Bushwick Brooklyn.  There will be many yummy vegan desserts, seitan, chai tea, vegan donuts, everything a vegan foodie can ask for! Address: 12 Grattan Street, Brooklyn.  Time: Saturday, 12 to 6pm.

2. Opening reception for photographs by Julia Forrest at the Chashama Gallery.  This exhibit is called Illusions.  Get your dose of culture while enjoying fine wine and cheese with good company. Time: Saturday, August 10 - from 6 to 9pm.  Address: 461 West 126th Street

3. The Rooftop Film series is on this summer.  Enjoy music, movies, and drinks at the rooftop of the Old American Can Factory at the Gowanus in Brooklyn.  This Saturday, the event starts at 8:30 with music, followed by a movie at 9pm. Movie for this week is Elena, a movie by Brazilian director Petra Costa about a woman who moves to NYC to pursue an acting career.  And once you're done with the movie, stay for drinks - courtesy of Red Stripes and Tito's Vodka.  Purchase tickets online here. 

Doors open at 8pm, Saturday August 10.  Location: 232 Third Street at 3rd Ave, Brooklyn.

4. Marlow Summer Fair - Renowned Brooklyn restaurant Marlow and Sons is hosting the Marlow Summer Fair this Sunday, August 11 to raise money to help Cayuga Pure Organics (a small farm near Ithaca, New York) recover from a fire that burned down their barn, along with their packaging equipments.  The Summer Fair is down in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, right across the street from Marlow and Son.  Festivities start at 6pm and admissions is $10 - tickets are available here.

5. German Trance musician Paul Van Dyk returns to New York City with a concert this weekend at Governor's Island.  And yes, tickets are still available here.  Time: August 11, doors open at 4pm Place: Governor's Island - ferry ride is accessible from the east river.

Paper Magazine's Super(Duper) Market, New York City, August 2 - 4, 2013

Have you ever fancied walking into a supermarket with just gourmet artisanal foods and dry goods - if so, Paper Magazine is hosting an event to bring this to life at 268 Mulberry Street, NYC for 3 days only on August 2 through August 4, 2013.  Open from 11am - 4pm on Friday/Sunday and 11am to 6pm on Saturday.

This event brings together a grand roster of independent artisanal food makers from all across the country. Vendors at this year's Super(Duper) Market include some of our favorites- June Taylor Jams from San Francisco, amazing ice cream by Humphrey Slocombe, vintage kitchenware from Screaming Mimi's, Health Ade Kombucha drinks from Los Angeles, The Jam Stand from Brooklyn (makers of bourbon blueberry jam!), gourmet sno-balls by Imperial Woodpecker, and more!  

Now for some pictures we snapped at the event - it was like a hip craft fair with food, with every vendor booth all decorated with a handmade touch!

Bubbly pink rose and champagne were served on opening night.  Notable guests who attended the event included NY Times Photographer Bill Cunningham and Designer Anna Sui.  

Health Ade Kombucha hailing all the way from Los Angeles California.  Their Kombuchas are light and refreshing, we'll be on the lookout for these on our next trip to the west coast!

Imperial Woodpecker sno-balls served in cute cups and candy cane straws - we had the watermelon basil and raspberry jalapeno, super tasty and all natural too!  Sno-balls the way they should be made.

These reminded us of the Flinstone frozen push-pops of our childhood.  Monsieur Singh has a line of frozen lassi pushpops, so delicious, we hope to see these in stores soon!

We can relate to the message on this sign, from Screaming Mimi's booth.