Weekend Wandering (or places to wear your fabulous outfits):
What’s the point of having cute weekendy outfits if you’re not going to take them fabulous places right? Today I was hoping to post a lot of pics of pretty pink petals from the Cherry Blossoms in Washington D.C. Unfortunately for me, the long Winter has delayed the blossoms a bit, and because of a very long TSA line at the airport over the weekend I missed my flight. Those two things combined had me rethinking the weekend and heading up to Hyde Park in New York instead.
As I discovered (much to my dismay), Hyde Park consists mainly of strip mall after strip mall, but there are several really great pockets of interest.
First on my stop was the FDR Presidential Library and Museum – the highlight is the estate, Springwood, where Franklin D. Roosevelt was born and lived for most of his life, and is buried. The home is in tact with all the original furnishings, including the bed FDR was born on, the chair he sat in on all those election nights, and his room from boyhood. The most impressive room is the main parlor where dignitaries including Winston Churchill, and the King and Queen of England met with the President. You can peek into the tiny office where many parts of The New Deal were hammered out as well. You can also pose with the Roosevelt’s as I did (above – I’m the one in the yellow pea coat
).
You walk through the horse stable, which as a horse gal, was a thrill for me. I loved that they had a horse named “New Deal”.
The original property was a very long rectangle, so after visiting all the buildings; the grave site of FDR, ER and their beloved dogs, Fala and Chief; we proceeded over to Val-Kill – the cottage where Eleanor Roosevelt lived. This is a dreamy little spot perched along a stream. There’s a wonderful Summer camp feel to the place, although the tennis courts and pool have gone to ruin, the gardens are well maintained. My understanding is that you can hike from Springwood through the woods to Val-Kill and then proceed up the hill to Top Cottage. According to the Park Service, this will be the only way to see the site of the notorious hot dog eating incident this year as budget cuts have stopped the Summer tours of Top Cottage for the rest of the year.
Next we popped over to the Vanderbilt Mansion, which is as you can imagine is quite opulent. The park service gives a lovely tour of the main floor, the bedrooms, and the servant’s area (below stairs for all you Downton Abbey fans). It’s gorgeous, and grounds go on and on. The view of the Hudson River is amazing. I want to go back to see all the gardens at both estates later in the Spring and take that hike I mentioned above.
Two other stops that I plan to make when I go back: The Walkover the Hudson Bridge (I’d run out of time) – which is a former railroad bridge that has been transformed into a park over the Hudson! The Culinary Institute of America restaurants (they were closed this weekend) – can you imagine how delicious??!!
For more pics from my weekend check into the Hyde Park album on my Facebook page.
What’s the point of having cute weekendy outfits if you’re not going to take them fabulous places right? Today I was hoping to post a lot of pics of pretty pink petals from the Cherry Blossoms in Washington D.C. Unfortunately for me, the long Winter has delayed the blossoms a bit, and because of a very long TSA line at the airport over the weekend I missed my flight. Those two things combined had me rethinking the weekend and heading up to Hyde Park in New York instead.
As I discovered (much to my dismay), Hyde Park consists mainly of strip mall after strip mall, but there are several really great pockets of interest.
First on my stop was the FDR Presidential Library and Museum – the highlight is the estate, Springwood, where Franklin D. Roosevelt was born and lived for most of his life, and is buried. The home is in tact with all the original furnishings, including the bed FDR was born on, the chair he sat in on all those election nights, and his room from boyhood. The most impressive room is the main parlor where dignitaries including Winston Churchill, and the King and Queen of England met with the President. You can peek into the tiny office where many parts of The New Deal were hammered out as well. You can also pose with the Roosevelt’s as I did (above – I’m the one in the yellow pea coat
).You walk through the horse stable, which as a horse gal, was a thrill for me. I loved that they had a horse named “New Deal”.
The original property was a very long rectangle, so after visiting all the buildings; the grave site of FDR, ER and their beloved dogs, Fala and Chief; we proceeded over to Val-Kill – the cottage where Eleanor Roosevelt lived. This is a dreamy little spot perched along a stream. There’s a wonderful Summer camp feel to the place, although the tennis courts and pool have gone to ruin, the gardens are well maintained. My understanding is that you can hike from Springwood through the woods to Val-Kill and then proceed up the hill to Top Cottage. According to the Park Service, this will be the only way to see the site of the notorious hot dog eating incident this year as budget cuts have stopped the Summer tours of Top Cottage for the rest of the year.
Next we popped over to the Vanderbilt Mansion, which is as you can imagine is quite opulent. The park service gives a lovely tour of the main floor, the bedrooms, and the servant’s area (below stairs for all you Downton Abbey fans). It’s gorgeous, and grounds go on and on. The view of the Hudson River is amazing. I want to go back to see all the gardens at both estates later in the Spring and take that hike I mentioned above.
Two other stops that I plan to make when I go back: The Walkover the Hudson Bridge (I’d run out of time) – which is a former railroad bridge that has been transformed into a park over the Hudson! The Culinary Institute of America restaurants (they were closed this weekend) – can you imagine how delicious??!!
For more pics from my weekend check into the Hyde Park album on my Facebook page.
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