Suzy in the City
Holiday Train Show at the Botanical Gardens!
Thursday, December 15, 2011
At The New York Botanical Garden, no annual event is awaited with as much anticipation as the Holiday Train Show. From November 19 to January 16, this magical exhibition offers New Yorkers (and visitors too!) a chance to see their city in a completely new way. Garden-gauge trains zip along a half-mile of tracks past 140 beloved New York landmarks, including the original Yankee Stadium, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and new this year, the Eero Saarinen-designed Trans World Airline Terminal at JFK Airport. Each iconic structure is masterfully crafted to scale from dried plant parts and arranged to create a dazzling miniature world inside the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory—a stunning Victorian-style glasshouse and a landmark itself.
But the Train Show is just the beginning of the holiday fun here at the Botanical Garden.
If buildings of a more edible nature are what you're after, be sure to check out Gingerbread Adventures in the Everett Children's Adventure Garden. There, kids (and adults) will have the opportunity to learn about the plants that give gingerbread, that quintessential holiday treat, its distinctive flavor. Beautiful gingerbread houses will be on display—decorated by some of New York’s most inventive pastry chefs, including Mark Tasker from Balthazar Bakery, Kate Sullivan of Cake Alchemy, and Kate Sullivan of Cake Power—to provide inspiration for your own creation. Get a little practice decorating gingersnaps...and eating them too!
New this year: visitors will get an insider’s look at how the replicas are constructed. Models in different stages of completion will show how a structure destined for the Holiday Train Show is framed and begins taking shape through the addition of plant material. Photos, interpretive panels, tools, and supplies help tell the story of how the magic comes together.
And don't miss the Tree Lighting Holiday Tree Lighting on Saturday, November 19, 4–5:15 p.m. View the lighting of a stunning conifer display by special guests, and join in an old-fashioned sing-along with the Westchester Chordsmen, featuring carols from many traditions.
All this fun can be hungry work, so be sure to pause for a bite at one of the Garden’s two beautiful cafes. There’s hot chocolate for the kids—and more potent potables for the adults—along with delicious sandwiches, salads, warming soups, and special, seasonal entrees at both lunch and dinner.
For him, for her, for the kids, and for you, find the perfect gift for everyone on your list at Shop in the Garden. Need inspiration? Check out a few of our ''Favorite Things'' to find the perfect gift for the gardener, writer, artist, and reader. Still stumped? Membership to the Garden is a gift that can be enjoyed year round. It also offers significant benefits during the Holiday Train Show.
But the Train Show is just the beginning of the holiday fun here at the Botanical Garden.
If buildings of a more edible nature are what you're after, be sure to check out Gingerbread Adventures in the Everett Children's Adventure Garden. There, kids (and adults) will have the opportunity to learn about the plants that give gingerbread, that quintessential holiday treat, its distinctive flavor. Beautiful gingerbread houses will be on display—decorated by some of New York’s most inventive pastry chefs, including Mark Tasker from Balthazar Bakery, Kate Sullivan of Cake Alchemy, and Kate Sullivan of Cake Power—to provide inspiration for your own creation. Get a little practice decorating gingersnaps...and eating them too!
New this year: visitors will get an insider’s look at how the replicas are constructed. Models in different stages of completion will show how a structure destined for the Holiday Train Show is framed and begins taking shape through the addition of plant material. Photos, interpretive panels, tools, and supplies help tell the story of how the magic comes together.
And don't miss the Tree Lighting Holiday Tree Lighting on Saturday, November 19, 4–5:15 p.m. View the lighting of a stunning conifer display by special guests, and join in an old-fashioned sing-along with the Westchester Chordsmen, featuring carols from many traditions.
All this fun can be hungry work, so be sure to pause for a bite at one of the Garden’s two beautiful cafes. There’s hot chocolate for the kids—and more potent potables for the adults—along with delicious sandwiches, salads, warming soups, and special, seasonal entrees at both lunch and dinner.
For him, for her, for the kids, and for you, find the perfect gift for everyone on your list at Shop in the Garden. Need inspiration? Check out a few of our ''Favorite Things'' to find the perfect gift for the gardener, writer, artist, and reader. Still stumped? Membership to the Garden is a gift that can be enjoyed year round. It also offers significant benefits during the Holiday Train Show.
