One step into the magical world of the Holiday Train Show should convince you of its heartwarming magic. It is a delight for children of all ages! But, should you have an interest in enjoying the Train Show‘s many splendors alongside children above a certain age, we have you covered there, too. Bar Car Nights are an adults-only way to see the Holiday Train Show at night, when the lights are twinkling and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory‘s domes are aglow, cocktail in hand.
And this year, due to the overwhelming popularity of these delightful evenings, we are offering more Bar Car Nights than ever! Bar Car Nights are the perfect date night, or, come as a group and celebrate the season as a unique alternative to a more formal holiday party! Bring your friends, your adult children, or just come as a couple and enjoy a festive evening out. Bar Car Nights are the perfect way to indulge in the spirit of the holidays as an adult!
This weekend is also the final weekend of Kiku: The Art of the Japanese Garden, and we’re celebrating with a weekend focused on two Japanese artforms: bonsai and poetry. Incredible examples of bonsai will be on display in the Conservatory Courtyards, and demonstrations aimed at helping you understand these miniature trees will be held at 12 and 2 p.m. On Sunday join acclaimed poet Jane Hirshfield for an afternoon of poetry celebrating the beauty of fall flowers and foliage and their significance in Japanese culture
And if you’re just looking for a reason to get outside, our 250 acres have you covered! Cooler weather is helping to bring out the fall color in the Thain Family Forest in a real way. If you’re interested in the fine art of photographing trees, a Saturday morning conversation with Larry Lederman, where he will share his technical, creative, and philosophical insights into the art of nature photography, is a must. The Forest’s 50-acres of old growth trees isn’t the only place for leaf peeping within our borders, the entire Garden puts on a show at this time of year. So lace up your sneakers or hiking boots, hop the train, and join us for a weekend full of trees, spooks, and blooms!
Altitude and cold weather continue to plague Rusby, who decides to travel ahead to warmer climes, but must pass through even higher and colder mountains to do so. He is helped along the way by the Guggenheim mining company, providing him with many comforts in the inhospitable mountains. But the survival of the expedition is in jeopardy, as the supplies have not yet arrived.
OFFICIAL DIARY of the MULFORD BIOLOGICAL EXPLORATION OF THE AMAZON BASIN
H. H. RUSBY, DIRECTOR
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29, 1921
This has been a very important day for us. I rose after a night of much discomfort from my cold and remained in the house all day. I wrote a long letter home and partially straightened out my accounts and brought my journal up to date. We have today made our final arrangements about our journey from here to the Boopi, and it appears that there are some unpleasant complications which will render this transaction less favorable than we had anticipated. Mr. MacCreagh had virtually committed himself to send our cargo by a contractor over a different route than the favorable one provided by the Guggenheim Company. It now transpires that we must carry out this arrangement, sending most of our freight directly by mule to Canamina, at a cost of about $3.50 American money per hundred pounds, and going ourselves with a small outfit by way of Eucalyptus and Pongo.
The freight did not arrive in time for any work at repacking today.
Do you know what plant is in your aspirin? In your mouthwash? How about your lotion? Plants are all around us, even in the concrete jungle. They’re in your medicine cabinet, vitamins and supplements, makeup bag, and at your local hospital. And beginning May 18—with a special introductory lecture featuring world-renowned expert Andrew Weil, M.D.—Wild Medicine: Healing Plants Around the World, Featuring The Italian Renaissance Garden will introduce a world of medicinal plants on display throughout the 11 galleries of the one-acre Enid A. Haupt Conservatory.
On Saturday, May 18, hear Andrew Weil, M.D., a world-renowned leader in the field of integrative medicine, share fascinating experiences and offer unique perspectives on the power of plants to maximize well-being and quality of life. The recipient of the Garden’s first H.H. Rusby Award, Dr. Weil, a Harvard-trained physician, botanist, and Founder and Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine, is being recognized for his distinguished contributions to the fields of ethnobotany and integrative medicine, and for advancing our understanding of the importance of plants in clinical care. After his remarks, meet Dr. Weil, who will sign copies of his recent books, True Food: Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple, Pure and Spontaneous Happiness: A New Path to Emotional Well-Being.
It’s the first long weekend of the new year, and we’re not about to kick off 2013 on a lazy note. Just look at our schedule! Over the next three days, we’ll not only be packing in the holiday fun with the help of Thomas and Friends™, but welcoming an early summer in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory through Tropical Paradise, our homage to all things chill (in the kick-back-and-breathe sense, naturally). If you’ve got a camera handy, this is not something you’ll want to miss. So join us as we keep the season’s festivities afloat while shrugging off the winter cold!
Through January 27, Thomas and his buddies continue to spark young imaginations in the Ross Hall with an interactive, problem-solving singalong that will not only put smiles on your kids’ faces, but have them playing right along with the cast as they guide Thomas to his destination. The fun only continues after the show, with our Thomas-themed “Playstation” activities running throughout the weekend in the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden. There, you’ll find toys, tracks, and trains to keep the little ones occupied while you catch your breath. Just remember that tickets are extremely limited, so it’s best to register as early as possible.
Our Holiday Train Show may be packed away for another year, but thanks to the thoughtful cast of All Aboard with Thomas and Friends™, kids who haven’t had the opportunity to chug along with Thomas and his companion, Driver Sam, will now have almost the entire month of January to take part. That’s from now until January 27, at varying times in the NYBG‘s Ross Hall. And to make these family memories last, know that this is no simple puppet show–the cast will need your kids’ help in guiding the wayward Thomas all the way to Brendam Docks, with crowd interaction, singalongs, and more.
Just keep in mind that our shows are incredibly popular this time of year, so you’ll definitely want to take a moment and register for your tickets sooner, rather than later. Even with several shows per day (up to five on Saturdays and Sundays), we’re still filling seats at a record pace!
So, most of the kids are trudging back to school on Wednesday, January 2. It’s great for the frazzled parent, but it doesn’t mean the family has to call it quits on group adventures. For those with younger ones in tow, the Holiday Train Show is keeping its engine running through January 13, giving everyone a chance to pop in and see our timeless miniatures now that much of the seasonal madness has died down. But the trains found in our Conservatory aren’t the only locomotives keeping up that head of steam.
Thanks to the thoughtful cast of All Aboard with Thomas and Friends™, kids who haven’t had the opportunity to chug along with Thomas and his companion, Driver Sam, will now have almost the entire month of January to take part. That’s from now until January 27, at varying times in the NYBG‘s Ross Gallery. And to make these holiday memories last, know that this is no simple puppet show–the cast will need your kids’ help in guiding the wayward Thomas all the way to Brendam Docks, with crowd interaction, singalongs, and more.
My New Year’s resolution for 2013 is to finish up my holiday shopping before the holidays come and go, rather than after; it’s one I can never seem to stick to. For the rest of you, here’s hoping that this weekend will be a relaxing one. If you’re not working on Monday, I might also suggest you preface your fireworks and champagne with a stop at the NYBG, where the Holiday Train Show continues to run through mid-January alongside many of our other December activities. At the very least, I can promise you the open spaces and fresh air of the Garden will offer a little calm before you squeeze your way into Times Square.
However, if you’re still in retail mode, you’ll want to make a pit stop at our Shop in the Garden. We’re offering plenty of great gifts for the gardeners on your list that you may have overlooked, and much of what remains of our holiday stock is now 50% off! So if you’re the type of person who likes to plan well ahead when it comes to Christmas ornaments a wintry decor, now is your chance to load up.
For the Saturday crowd, the weather report promises a belatedly white Christmas in the Garden, something best experienced while wandering among the Benenson Ornamental Conifers. There’s something about snow-laden evergreens that flips all the right nostalgia switches, at least in my experience. And I probably don’t have to say it, but winter weather makes enjoying our toy trains and miniatures that much more iconic when snowflakes are brushing over the Conservatory glass.
This morning’s raincoat weather hasn’t had us whistling “White Christmas.” Not yet, anyway. But just in time for the winter solstice, it looks like the clouds should be clearing up ahead of a dipping thermometer through the weekend! While we’re not going to see any snowflakes floating on the breeze just yet, it’s safe to say you should be breaking out the knit hats and scarves for any and all pre-holiday adventures in the NYBG this weekend. It’s time to say goodbye to fall, and transition into something a little frostier by comparison.
Bar Car Nights have once again proven a massive success, and it’s just about time to say goodbye for another year. Saturday, December 22, marks the final party under the lights of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory–at least for the 2012 holiday season. And if you’re quick about it, you’ll still have the opportunity to snag a ticket or two for our last few hours of casual cocktails. Seeing as our guest list has filled to capacity for each of the past evening events, this is your cue to be hasty with registration–don’t dawdle! We expect to have a full house once again, especially with this being the last chance for an adults-only Holiday Train Show viewing before Christmas.
This week, we’re back with Kevin Character to recap a few of the holiday events taking place at the NYBG through this weekend and beyond, including the very last of this year’s Bar Car Nights. The turnout this year has been massive, and while that makes for a top notch party, it also means that tickets to these special evening engagements are becoming scarce. If procrastination has been your status quo for the first two Bar Car Nights, now is the time to get jump on the opportunity! Register your tickets online to be sure you get a spot for December 22’s night of cocktails, elegance, and the glow of the Holiday Train Show–one of New York’s most beloved seasonal traditions.
In other major news, the Garden’s ongoing events are drawing such impressive crowds that we have decided to free up our schedule, opening the gates on Mondays through the end of the year to accommodate all of our visitors. That means you can join us a full seven days a week, at least up until the Holiday Train Show packs it in for the season.
Of course, Kevin’s rounds don’t limit him to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, much as our Plant Talk fans love to catch him there. Over in the Shop in the Garden, he joins Maria Colletti for an introduction to our terrarium selection, something home horticulturists and gift givers alike are welcome to take advantage of. If you’re interested in piecing together your own plant world under glass, but can’t make it to the Shop to consult our experts, Conservatory Manager Christian Primeau is more than glad to get you caught up in this video.
One step into the magical world of the Holiday Train Show should convince you of its heartwarming magic. It is a delight for children of all ages! But, should you have an interest in enjoying the Train Show‘s many splendors alongside children above a certain age, we have you covered there, too. Bar Car Nights are an adults-only way to see the Holiday Train Show at night, when the lights are twinkling and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory‘s domes are aglow, cocktail in hand.
