Morning Eye Candy: The Softer Side of Fall
Posted in Photography on December 6 2013, by Ann Rafalko
The screaming oranges and lurid yellows get all the glory, but the softer hues of fall are beautiful, too.
Magnolia Way (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Ann Rafalko
The Train Show in Real Life, This Sunday in Queens
Posted in Holiday Train Show on December 5 2013, by Ann Rafalko
This weekend you have a great opportunity to visit some of the buildings of the Holiday Train Show in real life, as the Queens Historical Society hosts the 26th annual Queens Holiday Historic House Tour on Sunday, December 8.
The participating houses are: The Kingsland Homestead, Voelker Orth House, Lewis H. Latimer House Museum, Friends Meeting House, Flushing Town Hall, the Bowne House, and new this year, the Louis Armstrong House Museum.
Start your tour at any house, and then hop on a trolley and head to the next destination! Each location will offer special activities, delicious refreshments, and a glimpse at what life was like during the holidays decades, or even centuries ago.
Morning Eye Candy: Ducks In a Row
Posted in Photography on December 5 2013, by Ann Rafalko
There may be something to the adage after all.
Bronx River (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)
Who Am I? A Holiday Train Show Building Quiz
Posted in Holiday Train Show on December 4 2013, by Ann Rafalko
I am a beloved New York City museum, famed for my collection of old masters and important furniture. I am currently riding a wave of popularity based on a coincidental association with one of the year’s most popular novels. I am located on the Upper East Side, was once owned by a prominent American industrialist, and I am home to one of the world’s premier art research facilities and libraries. Who am I? 
Morning Eye Candy: Look Up
Posted in Photography on December 4 2013, by Ann Rafalko
New Yorkers tend to look down a lot, and for good reason. It’s a busy town. So it’s important to be reminded sometimes that looking up can lead to remarkable sights!
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Morning Eye Candy: Peachy Keen
Posted in Photography on December 3 2013, by Ann Rafalko
Last vestiges of autumnal color in the Perennial Garden.
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Morning Eye Candy: Curl
Posted in Photography on December 2 2013, by Ann Rafalko
In the Native Plant Garden.
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Morning Eye Candy: Even Littler, Still Red
Posted in Photography on December 1 2013, by Ann Rafalko
The famous Little Red Lighthouse–in miniature form–is one of the many New York-area landmarks populating the Holiday Train Show. Can you find it in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory?
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Morning Eye Candy: Nature’s Decorations
Posted in Photography on November 30 2013, by Ann Rafalko
Thanksgiving generally marks the time when it becomes socially acceptable to start decking out your home for the holidays. Someone forgot to tell our trees. A few of them have been preparing for quite some time now!
Crataegus viridis ‘Winter King’
Morning Eye Candy: Walk It Off
Posted in Photography on November 29 2013, by Ann Rafalko
The trails of the Thain Family Forest are waiting for you! Come assuage your holiday guilt with a nice walk in the woods!
Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen