By Gwen Wunderlich-Smith
The air is crisp and the leaves are changing but your weekend activities calendar is just heating up. This guide of shopping, adventure, and autumn happenings is what you need for the ultimate fall season. Grab your pumpkin spice latte and follow our editor Gwen Wunderlich-Smith for ghoulish adventures, hot air ballooning, and literary bliss. Enjoy, and we’ll see you there!
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EXPLORE
Spooky things are happening in the gourd-geous New York Botanical Gardens’ Haunted Pumpkin Garden. This year’s event returns to its roots with the impressive display of black widow and giant scorpion pumpkin statues, along with grinning gourds perched on fence posts and the Discovery Center’s roof. The waterfall even has a bunch of pumpkins bobbing around. At night, grab a flashlight so you can explore the Haunted Pumpkin Garden. Listen for critters of the night, sit in on a spooky ghost story, and pose for pictures with skeletons and costumed characters. The Haunted Pumpkin Garden will run from September 20 through October 31.
NYBG.org
FLOAT
Come witness the wonder as hot air balloons of all colors, shapes, and sizes set launch all at once over the Adirondack countryside at several events throughout the weekend of September 17- 20. An awe-inspiring event for children and adults alike, the Adirondack Balloon Festival is the oldest and largest balloon gathering on the East Coast and is free to attend. The three days include multiple balloon launches, musical performances, car shows, and craft fairs. Balloons take-offs are weather permitting so make sure to plan ahead, but prepare for the most breathtaking show you’ll see this fall.
AdirondackBalloonfest.org
POSE
If you’re longing to flow through your warrior poses in a candlelit, rap-pumping refuge, a new boutique yoga studio, Y7, is ready to lead the way. Join the tribe of sweat of about 30 students for either “We Flow Hard” vinyasa, which is one breath to one movement or slowburn, or a more traditional (but equally challenging) class where you hold poses for a longer period of time, allowing your body to sink into the positions. After class check out the “I Woke Up Like This Bar” to refresh with blow dryers and dry shampoo, looking as if you didn’t just burn 1,200 calories.
Y7-Studio.com
DONATE
Come dressed to the nines for The Blood Ball benefiting Delete Blood Cancer. This exclusive Halloween-inspired affair will take place at The Box on the Lower East Side, and will raise funds for potential bone marrow donors who will provide blood cancer patients with a second chance at life. Elite attendees will enjoy a night of cocktails, dancing, and special performances from burlesque, circus acts, and many more spooky surprises! Tables and tickets are limited and will sell out quickly, so mark your calendar and make your commitment early. Don’t be a skeleton in the back of your closet or a monster under the bed; meet us on Thursday, October 29 @ 8:00 p.m!
DeleteBloodCancer.org
READ
Mingle with the literary elite at the famed Rizzoli bookstore, which now occupies a 5,000-square-foot space in the St. James building. Rizzoli is known for it selections of both new and rare books, with particular attention to titles in art, architecture, photography, and design. Reminiscent of the 57th Street location, 18-foot ceilings encompass the antique style that’s complimented with modern-day novelties fitting the needs of today’s Rizzoli customer. Grab a new book to love, or reread a classic at the new Rizzoli’s, which is here to stay!!
RizzoliUSA.com/
