"How to Handle NYC Post-Holiday Blahs" - Uptown Arts & Culture - New York Natives

As I give life to these musings, we are just a few days away from the end of the year, the end of the holiday season and the end of the parties.  Hedonism, debauchery, joy and celebration will wave to us in the rear view mirror, and most people across these great states (well, the Northern ones at least) will settle into the bleak and grey sobriety of puritanical Winter.  NOT SO, I say to you New Yorkers!  Take heart as the city of endless entertainment defeats the doldrums. As most of my friends and family can attest, I am a sucker for a theme, holiday or cultural event.  Over the years, I have carefully curated this time period to satisfy my addiction, but this metropolis deserves the credit for offering up such a smorgasbord while other geographies hibernate until Easter.

MLK Day.  Perhaps an occasion to take a long weekend out of the city to ski in Vermont, I think there is a lot to be said for staying in town and taking advantage of the opportunities to learn more about the eponymous eloquent, charismatic leader and reflect on the state of civil rights then and now.  I recommend the Big Onion Walking Tour’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Historic Harlem (Jan. 16).  Stay in the neighborhood to have dinner at one of the famous Harlem restaurants, like Sylvia’s, or check out newcomer, Red Rooster.  Fittingly, The Mountaintop is running on Broadway (until January 22), a play about the night before Dr. King’s assassination in his room at the Lorraine Motel, and the New York Historical Society is exhibiting Freedom Now: Photographs by Platon, where the photographer documents the civil rights struggle.

Chinese New Year.  2012 is the year of the Dragon (specifically, I believe the Water Dragon), an extremely auspicious animal on the Chinese zodiac. Having lived in Hong Kong, I enjoy seeking out lunar new year celebrations and suggest heading to Chinatown on January 23.  There you can chow down on dim sum (I like the Golden Unicorn), take in the lion dances at the parade as they bring luck to businesses amidst the pops and confetti showers of firecrackers, bestow lai see on friends and family (red envelopes stuffed with money to ward off evil spirits) and adorn your apartment with a small potted orange tree for good fortune.  There are some interesting cultural offerings surrounding this time of year, so check out what’s on at the Asia Society or get tickets to Shen Yun, a classical Chinese dance performance, at Lincoln Center (Jan 11-15).  Kung Hei Fat Choy!

Groundhog Day.  This February 2nd, don’t look to Punxsutawney when we have Staten Island Chuck right in our own backyard.  I say Chuck has his finger on the pulse of what’s in store for NYC, regardless of what Phil predicts for the rest of the USA.  I bet that many of you reading this call yourselves hardcore New Yorkers and yet you’ve never visited the borough of Staten Island.  Well, remedy that with a visit to the Staten Island Zoo to join in their Groundhog Day Celebration, where you can actually breakfast with Chuck himself! Gates are open at 6:30 AM, so having to get to work is no excuse.  Okay, so if the morning is tough, at least take the ferry over there for dinner and check out one of the Sri Lankan restaurants that are SI’s best kept (or not so kept) secret (New Asha, Lakruwana, etc.).

Mardi Gras.  This year Fat Tuesday falls on February 21.  Order a King Cake to take to the office (whoever gets the plastic baby is charged with providing next year’s!) and proffer it sporting festive beads in gold, purple and green (be coy as to how you came by them!).  Indulge in too many hurricanes while padding the gullet with Cajun dishes at a place like the Delta Grill.  Download some zydeco music and what do you need N’awlins for?  Laissez les bon temps rouler en NYC!

Phew!  I think I got you to St. Patricks’ Day and I’m pretty sure you can take it from there!

SARAH

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