The Big Adventure NYC Top Twelve: #11- New York Transit Museum

The Big Adventure NYC Top Twelve:

#11- New York Transit Museum (The Subway Museum)

Visited on The Letter C Big Adventure

The Met? MoMa? The Guggenheim? They’ve got nothing on The Subway Museum.

Housed in a 1936 decommissioned, but still operational, subway station in downtown Brooklyn, the New York Transit Museum is perfect for visitors of all ages. Upon shelling out the nominal entrance fee of $6, you can enjoy the permanent collection and temporary exhibits all dedicated to the buses, roads, bridges and, of course, the 106-year-old Subway System. We personally love the collection of turnstiles through the years (man, those things used to be easy to jump) and old subway tokens. 

By far the best part is the Subway cars from the last century that live on two working subway tracks on the lower level. You can meander through every car; each reflects a different era and each is in immaculate condition. To complete the experience, the cars even have print ads and subway maps relevant to the years the car ran. For as much time as most New Yorkers spend on our respective subway lines, this place is a must visit.

Located at the corner of Boerum Place and Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn Heights (below ground)

http://www.mta.info/mta/museum/

 

The Big Adventure NYC Top Twelve: #12- Criff Dog

The Big Adventure NYC Top Twelve:

#12- Criff Dog (Visited on The Letter C Big Adventure)

In a city that’s already well known for its ubiquity of Hot Dogs, it’s a tough thing to open a restaurant that makes a quality, custom dog. That’s why Criff Dog easily makes our list. Located in a basement level space on St. Marks, this tiny but always busy Hot Dog joint is a must for any out-of-town visitor.

Criff Dog is a delicious late night option (open till 4:00 AM), but great just about anytime. They've created a menu with unique and tasty custom Hot Dogs – we recommend the one that is bacon wrapped with avocado and sour cream. Criff is incredibly affordable and has an uber-friendly staff that always seems to love being there.

Bonus: getting to watch people get turned away from the Super Secret bar next door (P.D.T) where you have to enter via phone booth.

St. Mark’s Between 1^st Ave and Avenue A

www.crifdogs.com/

Presenting: the Big Adventure NYC Top Twelve

Presenting: the Big Adventure NYC Top Twelve

Starting Tomorrow and continuing over the next two weeks, the Big Adventure is going to unveil our Top Twelve favorite bars, restaurants, museums and other destinations and hot spots that we’ve visited as part of our NYC exploits over the last dozen adventures and four years. Why twelve? Well, limiting it our list to ten just wasn’t working. We’ve seen way too many amazing locales.

Like the best elements of any solid Big Adventure itself, the members of this elite list are all one-of-a-kind, unique to NYC, accessible and affordable to all and have demonstrated the ability to be incredible fun places. Because, really, in the end, that’s what it is all about.

Thanks to all who offered input on this indispensable ranking. We’ve created our list based on a weighed scale of various criteria, polling of complete strangers and our own whimsy (we love the whimsy). What do YOU think our Number One Pick will be?

NYC October "Must Do" Event #3: Fordham Law 2010 Film Festival

The Big Adventure Presents: NYC October "Must Do" Event #3: The Fordham Law 2010 Film Festival.

So, we’re the first to admit that any event that lead’s with “Fordham Law School Presents” doesn’t exactly get our pulse racing. After all, while a great place for a law degree, this is one New York City’s lower profile education centers. Heck, perhaps the most famous alum of Fordham Law might be G. Gordon Liddy. That being said, this film series looks positively exceptional.

A six day event starting on Friday, October 14^th, the school is hosting free screenings of both some classic and new films that are centered around legal themes. The Annual Festival bills itself as “an exciting mix of current blockbusters, classic favorites…(that) illuminate the legal system with all of its triumphs, failures, moral dilemmas, and dramatic moments”. This year’s flicks include 12 Angry Men, Amistad,…And Justice for all, the HBO film You Don’t Know Jack and more.

But this is where the cool factor kicks in –each film followed by a post-screening discussion with notable public figures including Jack Kevorkian, Debbie Allen, Jeffrey Tambor and newly anointed Supreme Court Justice and New York native Sonia Sotomayor speaking on 12 Angry Men! That’s like the equivalent of having Sandra Day O'Connor giving a lecture on the film Legally Blonde..but much cooler!

 Tickets to the Fordham Law Film Fesitval are free. While we are told that many shows have sold out for General Admission there are Rush tickets and overflow seating available. Just make sure that you’re not making too much noise with your Reese’s Pieces when Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor is lecturing. James B.M. McNally Amphitheatre at 62^nd and Columbus. More information and tickets here: http://www.fordhamlawandculture.org/film-festival/2010

Annoyingly enough, suffering through Subway Fare Hikes in NYC seems to be beccoming an Annual Event

So, as we all know the MTA has delivered another small kick in the crotch with the third fare hike in four years. Just for perspective we wanted to point out that the Unlimited Monthly Metrocard was only $70 in 2005. That's 1/3 of the $104 price that goes into effect December 30th.  But hiding between the headlines of another round of higher prices, was this mostly missed bad news regarding the new fare structure:

"The MTA will no longer sell One-Day Fun passes or 14-day MetroCards, Bonuses on pay-per-ride MetroCards will plummet from 15% to 7% - and will start after riders spend $10, up from $8."

Getting rid of the One-Day Fun Pass? Bad form, MTA, bad form. The One-Day Fun Passes that sell for around $8 is a fantastic option for out-of-town visitors. It allows them to pay one fare early in the day and not sweat riding the rails all the way till 3:00 AM on the same card. For the adventurous and capable, it is the equivalent an unlimited cheap taxi fare throughout the city. An awesome option for groups too. The MTA says that the tourist-friendly MetroCards have become too friendly for subway scammers who buy in bulk and then sell at $2 a swipe at the stations. Which is...well...a lame excuse.

While not the worst news of the fare hike, it just sucks. We get the tough times and we still think the NYC Subway is one of the top transportation options in the country. However, it is looking like suffering through Subway Fare Hikes in NYC and all the perks we’re loosing is starting to become an annual event. (We care less about the 14-day MetroCards disappearing. Apparently less than 2% of riders buy them. Besides, have you ever met anyone who used one?)

Read More: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/10/07/2010-10-07_mta_set_to_approve_subway_bus_and_commuter_train_fare_hikes.html

 

A Space Shuttle In New York City?

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Both the Astronomy geek and the NASA nerd in The Big Adventure think that this news is nothing short of frickin' awesome: The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space museum is lobbying/bidding to add one of three soon-to-be-retired NASA Space Shuttle to its permanent collection of exhibits. The always savvy US Government decided that after Discovery, Endeavour and Atlantis fly their last missions next year, each would be sold to spend their twilight years in museums across the country.

According to recent updates, there is a solid chance that the Intrepid Museum in NYC could land one of the shuttles. You know, no big deal, just going display the pinnacle in technology and space exploration from the last thirty years. Keeping their eye on the prize, the museum even has a couple of sketches showcasing how they anticipate the exhibit will look. The Big Adventure would prefer the shuttle be standing in launching position on the Hudson shoreline visible from miles around rather than in it's landing position, but we'll take what we can get.

Currently the Intrepid Museum is housed largely on the giant retired aircraft carrier of the same name which floats in the Hudson River on the West Side of Manhattan right at 6th Street. (Worth a visit from March to October, but go early in the day to avoid the influx of tourists - it gets way too crowded). One cool connection that is apparently helping to keep the city's bidding hopes alive is that years ago, The Intrepid was used to pluck NASA astronauts out of the sea after splashing down in the ocean. The history, folks, The History!

if the Intrepid Space-Air Museum does end up with a Space Shuttle, you can bet your bottom dollar that a visit will be included as part of a Big Adventure. We just hope that robot Jinx doesn't accidentally send us, Lea Thompson, Kelly Preston and the rest of the Space Camp crew into space -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDQxc9yLH3A. 

Some more info for ya can be found on the Intrepid's site. http://www.intrepidmuseum.org/shuttle/
And get the whole story here From this NY Daily News Article from 10/1

Top Ten...well...Everything!

Because the time has come, The Big Adventure is putting together a quality list of the Top Ten NYC Bars/Food Stop/Hot Spots from alllll of the various Big Adventures we've hosted thus far. We plan to release the detailed list of the ten later this month. But first we'll go through the required amount of quality internal debating, negotiating and slapping. In the meantime, we want to know what are some of YOUR favorite stops that the Big Adventure has made over the last four years?

NYC October "Must Do" Event #2: Halloween at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine

The Big Adventure Presents: NYC October "Must Do" Event #2: Halloween at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.

Okay, so we know this is may be a few weeks early, but you certainly don't have to wait till All Hallows eve to visit the world's second largest Cathedral.

If you've never been, let it first be said that this place is Amazing with a capital A and three Zs. Located a bit uptown and a touch off the beaten path at 112th and Amsterdam on the Upper West Side, this building complete with intricate details and ginormous halls is impressive no matter your faith. Construction began in 1882 (and, officially, is still not complete) and currently houses 121,000 sq ft of working church and captivating historical religious icons and ephemera.

But t he reason you should make your first visit in October is because they are hosting a series of activities including ongoing, inexpensive tours by knowledgeable guide, A Procession of the Ghouls (??), Following a screening of the file  The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1921),  The "Crypt Crawls" and a chance for all-ages to learn more about the stunning gargoyles. All in all, this sounds to us like just one big bowl of fiber enriched Awesome-Os. Halloween 2010 at St. John The Divine

The Big Adventure isn't big on promises (we're better at the whole letting people down thing), but we promise the photos from the amazing Coney Island and Carnival Big Adventure will be online by Tuesday, 10/5. In the meantime, we ask...nay! we implore...you to upload and share any wonderful digital photos you may have from the Coney Island or any other Big Adventure. Think of it as community service to free your photos for public and mass consumption...

NYC October "Must Do" Event #1: 29th Annual Korean Parade

The Big Adventure Presents: NYC October "Must Do" Event #1: 29th Annual Korean Parade, Saturday October 2nd.  Pop quiz, hot shot: What is the number one Asian culture in NYC in terms of number of people and events? If you said Korean, give yourself a gold star and move to the head of the class:

Korean art, culture, sports and bad ass civic pride will be on spectacular display as the Korean Parade marches down Sixth Avenue right next to (shocking) Korea town this coming Saturday, October 2nd.

The event, organized by the Korean-American Association of Greater New York, includes the Parade as well as Korean Music and Food Festivals. Bring on the bibimbap! More than 200 organizations and a whopping 5,000 people are expected to march including some well known Korean musicians and artists. As this event looks pretty awesome, this is sadly he best link we could find to the event. Korea Parade