Undiscovered New York: Rocking the boat

by Jeremy Kressmann on

It doesn’t really make sense. Why does music sound better when you’re riding on a boat? Do melodies travel better by sea breeze? Can the current of a river improve a guitar solo? They’re not questions we ponder very often, but maybe it’s time that we did. Because believe it or not, New York City happens to be a great place to hear live music on boats.

You’re probably thinking – why in the world are people playing music while floating on water? As much as we try to fill in the gaps here at Undiscovered New York, to help you try to understand the lesser known parts of this great city, we aren’t really sure that we have an answer. Maybe boat-goers enjoy the city’s awesome harbor views when accompanied by a good tune. Maybe leaving shore lets us leave our inhibitions behind. Or maybe there’s no need to rationalize – as with so many other unexpected activities in New York, sometimes you just show up and go with the flow.

Whatever, the reason, New York has some seriously good options when it comes to riding the waters to hear some top-quality tunes. Whether you want to enjoy a symphony orchestra along the East River, boogie down at an abandoned boat dance party or check out the latest in floating indie rock, there’s a boat concert to suit your needs. So leave those “lame” concerts for the land-lubbers. This week, Undiscovered New York is “rocking the boat.” Click below to see where you can hear some great music while riding the city’s waves.
The Frying Pan
From 1930 until 1965, the lightship Frying Pan played an important role for the U.S. Coast Guard, serving as a floating lighthouse to keep ships from running aground in rough seas. These days though, the ancient Frying Pan is more likely to guide partygoers to a good time. After spending three years at the bottom of Chesapeake Bay, the boat was salvaged and brought to New York, where it now floats at Pier 66 along Manhattan’s West Side. On weekends and evenings, partiers come to hang out along the water and dance inside the ship’s rusty barnacle covered hull. It’s a one-of-a-kind night out that definitely beats an evening on dry land.

Bargemusic
New York visitors are often surprised to learn that the city’s grimy East River is home base for symphony-quality performances of Chopin, Beethoven and Rachmaninoff. These decidedly highbrow affairs happen at Bargemusic, a series of weekly classical music concerts hosted on a former New York City coffee barge. The event’s nautical setting makes for a surprisingly good concert – attendees claim the boat’s cavernous acoustics and intimate seating, close-up to the musicians, makes for a truly memorable experience.

Rocks Off Concerts
Remember that time you saw your favorite band live? Man, what a show. But good as it was, have you ever seen your favorite band live and on a boat? That’s exactly the thinking behind Rocks Off concert cruises. Now in its ninth year of musically-themed boat cruises, the events combine a New York City harbor cruise at dusk with a variety of up-and-coming musical acts like Electric Six and Amon Tobin.

Galley Gossip: Flight attendant Pam Ann now on tour!

by Heather Poole on
Dear Heather,

I discovered, quite by accident, that the comic Caroline Reid is bringing her “Hostess to the Stars” Pam Ann to the US in October. I searched through the site, used the search function, and couldn’t find anything on your site about this. I just got my tickets for her Los Angeles show. I’m sharing this with you – not trying to sell tickets. I just thought many of my fellow flight attendants and your readers would want to know of the tour. (maybe I’ll catch you at the LA show) I’ve included some tour information and a link.

Jack

“http://www.pamann-live.com”;

US dates: Oct. 10 – Boston, Oct.11 – Chicago, Oct.13 – Denver, Oct.15 – Los Angeles, Oct.17/18 – San Francisco, Oct.20 – Dallas, Oct.21 – Houston, Oct.23/24 – Miami, Oct.25 – Atlanta, Oct.26 – Washington DC, and Oct.28 – New York (In November, she will touring the UK. Dates, locations, and tickets through the website above.)

Dear Jack,

I have to tell you, I read the first line of your email and immediately stopped reading and started clicking my way over to Pam Ann’s web site. Sorry, it had to be done, and time was crucial. I wanted good seats! Three minutes and $130 later, I was the proud owner of two tickets to the show, a show I’ve been dying to see forever now. I haven’t been this excited about a comedian in years!
Of course then I went back to yahoo and finished reading your email. All I can say is thank you, thank you, thank you, Jack, for reminding me about Pam Ann’s tour! I can not believe I’d forgotten all about it because I was just looking up her show dates a few months ago!
For those of you who have no idea who we’re talking about (shame on you!), Pam Ann is an air hostess who mixes drag, camp, and glamour on stage while emphasizing quirks of various airlines around the world in hilarious skits. Performances cater to airline employees and frequent travelers whom she often times includes directly in her shows. Though I love her show, I really don’t want to actually be apart of the show, because that kind of stresses me out – unless of course she needs someone to work the other side of the cart during Cabin Service, my all time favorite skit. Check it out…

Oh you better believe I’ll be touching trolley, touching galley, hopping, and looking oh so busy busy busy, without serving anyone at all, as I reenact the scene above on my next flight. I can’t help it. In fact, I’ve been doing the same routine around the house all day long – touching kitchen counter, touching dining room table, and making meaningless hand signals – ever since I got your email, Jack! The husband, of course, just keeps shaking his head as he watches me not getting anything done at all. He just doesn’t get it. So glad there’s people like you!

See ya at the show!

Heather Poole

Pam Ann photo courtesy of Mike Flokis/Getty Images

Nine great photographic adventures

by Kraig Becker on

Yesterday we told you about the highest photography and videography workshop in the world, which is scheduled to take place in April of 2010 on the North and East side of Everest. Today we have nine more great photography adventures courtesy of Outside Magazine, who asked their favorite photographers to name the best locations for getting amazing photos.

Topping the list is Antarctica, which gets high marks for its stark beauty and acres of penguins. They recommend a cruise from Geographic Expeditions that is 23 days in length and includes guest lectures by Peter Hillary (son of Sir Edmund Hillary) and photography workshops from a guy named Art Wolfe.

If heading to the South Pole seems a bit on the cold side to you, perhaps you’d prefer to go to Nepal instead. Outside claims that it’s practically impossible to take a bad picture in the Himalaya, and I’m inclined to agree with them. They recommend staying on the Nepali side of the mountain and making the trek up to base camp with Berg Adventures on a 24-day adventure in the Khumbu Valley.

Most of the other trips on the list are equally high on adventure, but lack the distances involved in traveling to Nepal or the Antarctic. They recommend similar photographic adventures in Colorado, New Mexico, and California, amongst others. Each of the locations will give you plenty of interesting landscapes to shoot or to serve as spectacular backdrops at the very least.

I recently had great advice from a photographer friend of mine who told me that the trick to shooting great photos is to shoot great subjects. Who would have thought that it was that simple?

Galley Gossip: Seattle – it’s all about kids, trains and food!

by Heather Poole on

THE TRIP:

  • DAY 1: New York – Seattle
  • DAY 2: /
  • DAY 3: Seattle – New York

    • As soon as I saw that long Seattle layover on the bid sheet, I knew I had to have it. I can’t even remember the last time I had a whole day anywhere, let alone a layover with enough time to eat, sleep AND shower! This layover, I knew, would be like the good old days when flying was fun, which is why, I’m sure, several of my colleagues laughed when I told them I had bid for it.

    “You’re going to need at least twenty years seniority to hold that!” three different flight attendants informed me.

    Undeterred, and with only fourteen years at the airline, I bid for it anyway. Not only did I hold it, I held the princess position – coach aisle! As soon as bids were finalized I sent out a tweet to announce the big news. Two seconds later someone tweeted back, “Want to meet for breakfast?”

    The invitation came from mommy blogger extraordinaire, Debbie, of Deliciousbaby.com. If you have kids and love to travel, but would rather skip the Disney vacation, do yourself a favor and check out her blog. She makes traveling with kids enjoyable and easy.

    And that’s how the layover began. I met Debbie, as well as two of her three adorable kids, for breakfast at Belle Epicurean, a charming spot known for their freshly baked pastries and buns. As I sat outside waiting for Debbie to arrive, I couldn’t help but notice all the people popping in and out before heading off to work. Not that I was surprised, considering I’d done a little research early that morning and knew the place was going to be great. I also knew exactly what to order – a potato rosemary brioche bun ($3.89). It did not disappoint. Of course the coffee was fantastic, as well. The company, even better!

    Everest, a bright four year-old, has a passion for trains, so he could not hide his excitement when I asked about his favorite thing to do in Seattle. If not for him, I wouldn’t have known about the ride on the rail to Sea-Tac airport starting in December. After Everest told me all about the underground train system, he offered to take me on a little tour…

    After the train tour, we made a quick stop at Daiso, a Japanese dollar store, where I could have spent the entire day just staring at everything inside the store. There was so much to look at! Thank goodness Everest was there to help pick out a few items for my three year-old son, because I was quite overwhelmed. And I had no idea that mini soy sauce bottles could make a good toy. But Everest assured me they would. Guess what, he was right! My son not only loved the tiny squirt bottles, he spent half an hour playing with them – along with everything else that somehow, I don’t know how, ended up in my basket….

  • Bento box (for school lunches)
  • Glow in the dark bracelets
  • Animal / number stickers (for our long flight to Hawaii next week)
  • Kids apron (to protect clothing while cooking and painting)
  • Fire truck spoon and police car fork
  • plastic cups (to make Play-Doh cupcakes)
  • Star cutter (to make pancakes and eggs a little more exciting)

    • Because Everest had to get going to space camp later on in the afternoon, we said our goodbyes and I walked down to Pikes Place Market. You can not visit Seattle without visiting the market and grabbing a cup of clam chowder, which is exactly what I did after wandering around and taking in the hustle and bustle on the waterfront. If you’re looking for something else to do, try jumping on the ferry to Bainbridge Island. I highly recommend the 35 minute scenic ferry ride. Just don’t forget your camera. You’ll want to photograph all that beauty surrounding you.

    In case you can’t tell, travel, for me, is all about finding great places to eat. When I mentioned on Facebook I’d be laying over in Seattle, Flo, a flight attendant on my crew, reminded me that Bob, the singing pilot, had recommended the restaurant Black Bottle a few months ago. We decided to check it out.

    Now Bob isn’t like most pilots, he’s got style. I’m not just talking about his layover outfit. Which is why I knew I wouldn’t end up at a sports bar, like so many pilots do. That said, I was a bit shocked to find that not only does Bob have great taste in food (at affordable prices) he appreciates a cool modern vibe. The food is served family style. Flo and I shared bacon lemon scallops and frizzled kale ($12), roasted vegetables verjus ($9), and fresh arugula, tomato, and pesto flatbread ($8). After that amazing meal, it is I, not just Bob, who highly recommends the Black Bottle next time you’re in Seattle.

    Like all good things, the layover came to an end, and before I knew it we were flying back to New York. I can’t wait to bid for the trip again! Maybe, just maybe, I’ll actually hold it – 20 years seniority or not.

    Black Bottle photo courtesy of Bacon Sandwich

    Gadlinks for Monday 9.7.09

    by Brenda Yun on


    Welcome to a special Labor Day edition of Gadlinks! For me, this holiday is all about celebrating the end of summer with family and friends — and eating a lot of good food. Check out these travel reads to find out what other cool Labor Day haps are going on around the world.

    ´Til tomorrow, have a great Labor Day evening!

    More Gadlinks here.