Summer 2019 is not over yet, especially on Governors Island.
Looking for something elegant and entertaining this weekend? Just a quick boat-ride away and you will be transported to an exciting spectacular world-class sport and entertainment event, which spans three continents across 19 international events Paris, Monaco, Madrid, Miami Beach, Shanghai, Rome, St. Tropez, and Doha, Qatar.
“Swiss watchmaker is the Official Timekeeper, Title Partner, and Official Watch of the Longines Global Champions Tour, coming to Governors Island this Friday and Saturday, September 27-28.
The Official Watch of the Event is the Longines HydroConquest Ceramic, available at the Longines Boutique at the Westfield World Trade Center in downtown Manhattan. gcglobalchampions.com”
Be sure to get your tickets, come on out to meet the Downtown Team, as we support Official Watch of the Longines Global Champions Tour!
At 7:35 am on September 28th, teams of rowers will set out along the East River. No, this isn’t a mass exodus, nor is it an attempt to avoid morning traffic. It’s part of Rocking Manhattan, a 9-hour journey to circumnavigate Manhattan island in rowboats.
Rocking Manhattan is a 30-mile rowing event, providing participants with a rare perspective of New York City and a shared experience with a committed group of fellow New Yorkers (with a few Californians and Rhode Islanders mixed in). Formed into teams of between 4 and 12 people, they circle Manhattan Island along its three rivers—north up the East, west across the Harlem, and south down the Hudson.
Each team is charged with raising at least $25,000 to support Rocking the Boat’s programs for youth in the South Bronx. Most raise significantly more towards the goal of $400,000, or 13% of Rocking the Boat’s annual budget.
Event participants include rowers, coxswains, and powerboat drivers. Event beneficiaries are the roughly 4,000 members of the Hunts Point community who take part in Rocking the Boat’s youth development and public programs.
Groups of relatives, friends, and co-workers form the always creatively named teams rowing around Manhattan Island in Rocking Manhattan, including Flotsam and Jetsam, Dismasted, Knots Unlimited, Shore Thing, Going Full Circle, Rabble Rowsers, Either Oar, Sirens and Argonauts, Ebb and Flow, Rock Lobster. Some have been involved since the first circumnavigation in 2009, others are rowing for the very first time. Some started as members of other teams and have now taken the plunge to captain their own team. Rocking the Boat Board members are leading six of this year’s nine teams. Rocking the Boat’s Founder an Executive Director, Adam Green, always rows one or two of the three legs.
Graduates of Rocking the Boat’s after school youth development program serve as coxswains, steering the boats and keeping their rowers synchronized and motivated. They are members of Rocking the Boat’s Alumni Rowing Team, which trains all summer for the event.
A dear friend of Downtown’s Alies Van Den Berg, will be rowing two legs. We felt that this was something everyone can get out to support.
Members of the tight-knit sailing community in Barnegat Bay, NJ fill a vital role driving safety boats that accompany the rowing gigs throughout the day, providing support as needed from filling empty water bottles to giving weary rowers a short tow.
Starting and ending at One°15 Brooklyn Marina in Brooklyn Bridge Park, the route includes a breakfast stop at Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City and a lunch stop at Muscota Marsh in Inwood and brings rowers under bridges, past landmarks, and adjacent to ferries, cruise ships, and coast guard vessels.
A celebration dinner and award presentation (for generating the most dollars, not rowing the fastest) takes place in Brooklyn once everyone returns to the dock.
Outside of a few smallish corporate sponsorships, this is a peer-to-peer fundraiser. Everyone involved has an individual fundraising page complete with progress thermometer. They post photos, write brief stories about their connection to the organization, and then proceed to hit up their networks for donations!
Rocking the Boat posts updates on social media and engages sponsors like Hydroflask for water bottles and Hornblower (the operator of NYC Ferry and Hornblower Cruises) for dry bags.
Rocking the Boat brings tremendous positive impact to the high-need youth of Hunts Point by sustaining a hub of crucial resources and opportunities that help students overcome the circumstantial disadvantages that threaten to stifle their full potential. Activities centered on small boats and local waters are the unique vehicles Rocking the Boat uses to affect profound changes in the lives of young people and the vitality of their community. Wooden boatbuilding, sailing, and environmental research and restoration captivate and challenge young people, expose them to new experiences, and show them they are capable of doing things they never imagined, or only dreamed of. In doing so they develop the technical, social and emotional skills to replicate the successes they have in the shop and on the water in their personal, academic, and professional lives.
The event is a circumnavigation of Manhattan Island over the course of nine hours. The boats, the rowers, the hydration and snacks, and the accumulated enthusiasm of over 100 volunteers are all in place…the only element we cannot plan for (other than the weather!) is a cheering section. Downtown has assembled the following list of locations and estimated times (+/- 10 minutes) for anyone who wants to have a one-of-a-kind New York experience coming out and cheering on the rowers.
Schedule – Enjoy a one-of-a-kind New York experience come on out to cheer on the rowers at any of these viewing areas along the New York Waterway.
Leg 1: East River
Empire Ferry Fulton Ferry Park (base of Brooklyn Bridge): 7:35 a.m.
Main Street Park (base of the Manhattan Bridge): 7:40 a.m.
Gantry Plaza State Park (Hunters Point): 8:10 a.m.
Queensboro Bridge: 8:20 a.m.
Queens Bridge Park (Long Island City): 8:20 a.m.
Roosevelt Island Bridge: 8:40 a.m.
Leg 2: Hell Gate and Harlem River
Carl Schurz Park: 10 a.m.
Thomas Jefferson Park: 10:15 a.m.
The High Bridge: 11:15 a.m.
Sherman Creek Park: 11:40 a.m.
Leg 3: Hudson River
George Washington Bridge / The Little Red Lighthouse: 2:15 p.m.
Riverside Park promenade at 116th Street: 3:15 p.m.
Riverside Park Boat Basin at 79th Street: 3:45 p.m.
YAD CHERI is a newly launched online boutique dedicated to the Hand. Why the hand you may say? Simply because hands are an obsession for the founders of this new online concept store.
Coming from a multi-cultural background, having traveled extensively and benefitting from 18 years of experience in the world of retail, these ladies have joined forces to produce their new concept
YADCHERI.COM, Le Concept Store de la Main.
Together they have curated a high-end selection of handmade, handcrafted products showcasing the craftsmanship of international designers, creators, and makers.
From beautiful leather gloves to hand-shaped ceramic dishes and luxury leather clutches or stunning photography, the entire selection revolves around the hand. The selection covers beauty, jewelry, lifestyle, art and you are sure to find the unique gift when you browse through the site to your heart’s content.
The founders explain: « our love for the hand is an opportunity to embrace the energy & the know-how of the makers, the creators & the designers we have selected »
YAD CHERI not only collaborates with existing established brands but regularly introduces new emerging talents eager to be discovered. Every month a new feature regarding a recent collaboration is posted on their site which allows the customers to learn more about the products and the designers behind the brands.
The blog entitled Talk to the Hand offers a series of short tidbits around the theme of hand. Various contributors share on this page their thoughts, their knowledge or their inspiration regarding the hand – the most frequently symbolized part of the human body.
YAD CHERI which loosely means « the beloved hand » regularly organizes pop-ups which take place in different locations in the City.
The next YAD CHERI Spring Pop Up will take place on Saturday, April 8th from 11.00 am to 5.00 pm in the amazing showroom of luxury leather brand District Leathers. It will be a unique opportunity to discover YAD CHERI’s beautiful selection with your own eyes. The theme of the Pop Up is « Craftsmanship » and there will be a presentation by District Leather’s founder Mr. Alex Bass as well as partner Atelier Paulin’s craftsman on site who will show how he creates their beautiful gold wire bracelets.
Don’t miss this date and YADCHERI.COM’s eclectic selection of eclectic tastes.
Beating the winter blues is always tough, especially on the weekends when you don’t have a good enough reason to leave your bed. Luckily, having a wonderful city like Manhattan at your fingertips puts a positive spin on the outlook of a cold and snowy winter. Rather than falling into seasonal depression, embrace what you can do during your winter weekends in Manhattan! If you are feeling cooped up in your heated home, and are looking to be active outside, take advantage of the many ice rinks in the area! The South Street Seaport has a beautiful rink and a great location right near the water. The festive lights and decorations, reasonable fares, skating lessons, the opportunity to purchase a membership pass, or ability to make group reservations, creates a pleasing atmosphere for skaters of all ages and abilities.
If you are trying to avoid the cold, what better way then to stay indoor and informed? Spend the day at on of Manhattans many museums trickled throughout the city! It is easy to dedicated a few hours or even a whole day to admiring the exhibits in museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the American Museum of Natural History. If you are the type to be overwhelmed with the size of museums, shoot for a smaller scale one, such as the Lower East Side Tenement Museum or the Frick Collection. Although smaller in comparison to other NYC museums, they always offer fascinating collections that can keep you busy and out of the cold for hours.
Photo: Courtesy of NYC Insider Guide
Although a boat tour seems seasonally inappropriate, being inside a warm boat is a much better way to experience the greater Manhattan area. You’ll get the feel of being outside without experiencing the intensity of the windchill. Take this time to relax and enjoy the beauty that surrounds you during winters in Manhattan.
A cold winter in New York City is one of the best times for shopping, especially considering all the post-holiday sales that offer great savings. Although the Madison Avenue shops are always a good decision, they also make for a cold shopping trip. If you want to stay indoors and cover as much shopping ground as possible dedicate your spree to hours in the fabulous NYC department stores and the Shops at Columbus Circle.
Beat the winter blues with a Broadway play or musical! There’s no better way to shed your layers of warm clothing and winter accessories off to sit down and relax for a few hours. Whether it is a nighttime show or a matinee, you are guaranteed to have a great and warm time. If you don’t feel like spending the money on tickets to Broadway, but like the idea of warming up in a theatre, catch a movie! Warm Up at the Village East Cinema for a relaxing time and affordable ticket fares! Between winter activities, admiring what the city has to offer, appreciating the arts in Manhattan, and retail therapy, snowy Saturdays are sure to become one of the best and most productive parts of the week!
