offManhattan

New Yorkers are always finding new creative ways to stay in shape when indoor workouts and morning routine jogs around Central Park become mundane. If you catch yourself getting a little distraught at someone for taking “your” treadmill out of the sea of machines available at the gym, it may be time to try a new approach to staying active. Instead of searching for the latest yoga and Tae Bo classes as an alternative, why not challenge yourself, breathe in some fresh mountain air and live life on the edge.

If you’re looking for a taste of Brooklyn’s thriving culinary culture, Olea Mediterranean Taverna is worth the unpredictable G train ride. This Mediterranean tapas and raw bar is located on a tree-lined street in the thriving brownstone community of Fort Greene. The space is homey and simplistic on the outside, and lush and welcoming within.

Olea’s tapas menu offers several kinds of croquettes, including Serrano ham, goat cheese, and salt cod with potato. There is also an array of dips served with warm pita, as well as unusual options like sausage-stuffed olives, baby octopus, and Turkish “cigars.” All hovering around five dollars per plate, it is easy to make a sensible meal out of a few of these plates and a pitcher of the house sangria.

The words “flea market” usually call to mind visions of cheap socks, broken electronics, and yellowed pages of obscure fiction. This time, New York’s newest (and biggest) open-air market, Brooklyn Flea, is filled with much more than boxes of old souvenirs brought down from the attic.

PRINCETON, NJ—Faced with a spring weekend and an urge to get out of town, Princeton may not immediately come to mind as a possible destination. What could a university town in New Jersey offer someone (possibly even a student looking to escape books and teachers) in the way of good food, relaxation, fresh air and culture? More than you might expect.

Roughly an hour’s trip from Penn Station, the Princeton train depot is conveniently located in the heart of its university campus. Princeton University, founded in 1746 as the College for New Jersey, boasts a bevy of charming architecture styles and a great deal of pleasure can be taken in simply strolling the grounds. One notable stop on campus is McCormick Hall, part of the Princeton University Art Museum. This venue houses an impressive permanent collection (68,000 works exhibited on a rotating basis) including ancient antiquities, and Renaissance, Impressionist, and modern works by the likes of Warhol, Picasso, Monet and Toulouse-Lautrec. You’d expect to pay a reasonable sum for a ticket, but admission is free. Should you be looking for evening entertainment, the McCarter Theatre regularly hosts concerts, ballet, orchestra, and ground-breaking theatrical productions including a recent run of Mary Zimmerman’s “Argonautika.”

On the northeast shore of Long Island, there is a 170-year-old maritime village that loves to be explored. Rustic pleasures, boutiques, and acres of award-winning local vineyards abound. And for the relic-seekers, a 40-foot carousel built in the 1920s. Walt Whitman and George Washington used to summer here in what remains a scenic and romantic respite from metropolitan life.

It has been a long, few months of hibernation. Finally, you can shed your layers and meander outdoors towards nature trails, fresh seafood, and the Bronx.

Remove those quizzical looks, and throw out any stereotypical misconceptions you may have about this borough. With a spring in your step, lace up your Nikes and get out of town.

Arriving at Pelham Bay station at the end of the 6 train, you will marvel at how residential and almost suburban the neighborhood feels. You may wonder what a one bedroom will fetch for and why you never heard about Pelham Bay Park, the largest park in the city—three times the size of Central Park—a place with a public beach, horse stables, and a golf course.

What: Earth Day Volunteering

Where: Socrates Sculpture Park

When: Friday, April 18, 9:00 am–2:00 pm

Why: Socrates said, “Let him that would move the world first move himself.” We’ve all tried to make a difference in the environment, either by recycling, bringing our own canvas bag to the grocery store, or by turning off unnecessary lights around our apartment. Just a tiptoe’s distance away from Manhattan, there’s a chance to make an impact on a local level. This wonderful community event kicks off volunteer season at Socrates Sculpture Park, adjacent to the recently featured Isamu Noguchi Museum. Is there a more perfect way to celebrate Earth Day than by giving back to your community? The park provides a day of training for future community program volunteers who will participate in a day of learning specialized skills in gardening and landscaping, such as weeding, planting and pruning. A community vegetable garden will also be planted and the park’s first compost unit will be built. Find an hour or two to lend a hand for the environment.

I stepped out of the Brighton Beach subway stop to meet a clear blue sky and endless horizon, a scene untouched by skyscrapers and cars; there was a strong unfamiliar smell of pastries and kebabs, and the screech of seagulls. This was my escape from Manhattan. “Dos Vedanya!” one woman yelled as she waved to someone still underground. Russian? Then I noticed the Cyrillic signage, the guttural sound of the language swirling through the air along with the salty sea breeze. This will be more than I bargained for.

A walk down Fifth Ave often conjures up the standard New York icons: Saks, the Plaza, sidewalks teeming with camera-toting tourists. But Brooklyn’s parry to the Manhattan madness lies in the home-grown staples of Park Slope. You’ll find La Villa Pizzeria amongst the organic coffee shops, kids’ clothiers and quiet cafes that the area is known for. With its warm wood decor and inviting atmosphere, La Villa (rightfully) gives off the aura of a true neighborhood eatery, with all the class and none of the pretension of its brother-borough counterparts.

It’s one of the most accessible cities from the island. Take a break from the Manhattan music scene, pop onto the PATH train for 15 minutes across the river, and listen to live bands in some of the hippest bars in Hoboken. Here’s a roundup of some of the best.

SCOTLAND YARD
72 Hudson St. | 201.222.9273 | scotlandyardbar.com

How can you resist a place—with a Hoboken address—that proclaims to be the best blues bar in New York? You can’t. Scotland Yard has the appeal of a popular neighborhood hangout, where some of its patrons are just a generation shy of being wooed by Frank Sinatra.

Every Saturday afternoon from 4-7 p.m., locals gather to listen to blues guitarist Joe Taino play with guest musicians. The arrangement is simple: Joe starts off the jam with his own set, then other groups of musicians alternate on stage. On any given weekend, you may find Joe keeping his cool, sipping from an orange drink while alternating through two different sets as a vocalist, guitarist and drummer.

In spite of the strong individual performances by many musicians, the real protagonists of the afternoon are usually the patrons. Their enthusiasm for blues, exhibited by spontaneous dancing or clapping, fills the space with an energy that won’t burst at the beams. At one point the place got so crowded that they ran out of clean glasses and had to serve beer in plastic cups.

While the Blues Jam is free of charge, tips are collected for the musicians. Another Blues Jam is hosted on Mondays from 9:30 pm-12:30 am by Big Ed Sullivan.