
running for more than 20 years, midsummer night swing is just a really super fun new york outing. when j and i used to have a little bit more leisure time, we would often head over to lincoln center for an evening of polka or our favorite, swing. and even though we couldn’t exactly make it through an entire sequence, despite our many many classes at the sandra cameron dance center, we did have a great time trying out those moves. fortunately, no one was really watching us fake it so we could still enjoy being out under the stars (if we could only see them).

midsummer night swing runs for five nights a week for three weeks, offering a wide range of music including swing, tango and soul among many others. the night starts out with a one hour lesson, and then it’s hours of entertainment. best of all, tickets are reasonably priced at $15 a person, so if you’re looking for a cheap date this is way better than starbucks.

tonight’s concert/dance party features the occidental brothers, an african dance band from chicago as well as samba mapangala & virunga, a band from east africa. for ideas as to where to eat, and shop nearby if you have some time before the dancing begins, see my mini guide below. midsummer night swing, damrosch park, southwest corner of the lincoln center plaza at 62nd street between columbus and amsterdam avenues, tuesdays through saturday evenings, beginning at 6:30 p.m. for dance lessons, and 7:30 p.m. for live music, running through july 25, 2009.
with two small and darling kids and one lovely husband who all occasionally need some amount of tending to as well as a full-time job, this blog is an excuse for me to explore the streets of new york, with a focus on brooklyn -- my home -- and manhattan, for those great little finds that seem to appear randomly on all sorts of blocks around new york but are sometimes hidden from plain view. i gravitate toward small, beautiful, independent places with interesting things, fantastic and friendly service and mostly affordable stuff (or at least an excellent value) and food that is extremely tasty, reasonable and in a great space -- though taste will trump design every time. to help put all these ideas in one place, i also will provide a series of new york mini-guides. in each of these, i will highlight something fun to do and then give some food, shop and doing suggestions nearby. these mini-guides, soon to be accompanied by mini-maps, will help to fill an afternoon -- where to pick up a snack, what shops to check out nearby and is there a really sweet little park along the way for a much needed rest. and i am always looking for ideas -- so if you have any suggestions for where to eat and shop or what to do please let me know. . you can also follow me on twitter at cherrypatter.
and for those of you more interested in the photos, i have absolutely no photography training and while i have been picking up a few tidbits here and there, mostly i think the credit for the photos goes to my lovely camera. it is a canon rebel xti, and the lens i use most of the time is the 50 mm 1:1:8. i also have a 75-300mm 1:4-5.6 for longer views.
Excited that modern Chinese takeout spot (whatever that really means) might have a soft opening tomorrow in Gowanus next to fav 4&20 bbirds
