Day 11: Mad.Sq.Mark’t

While the sky is still blue and the temperatures are still warm enough to sit outside, head to Madison Square Park’s Mad.Sq.Mark’t. Lining Broadway from 23^rd Street to 25^th are rows of stalls selling everything from jewelry and candles, to green products and gifts for the kids (and for Fido)– a little holiday shopping preview. If last minute shopping is more your style, at least head to the food square for a some casual dining al fresco. You’ll know you’re in the right place when you see the towering hut of pumpkins at the entrance and tables under blue umbrellas and booths by Fatty Crab, Hill Country Barbeque Market and Breezy Hill Orchard to name a few. It’s just another example that in NYC, there is never a shortage of good food and good fun. 11am – 8pm daily, through November 1.

www.madsqmarkt.com

Day 9: 2009 Nike+ Human Race

For a few hours on Saturday morning, Brooklyn’s Prospect Park saw a wave of red as thousands of participants arrayed in Nike Plus shirts ran in the second annual Nike+ Human Race 10K. For days before, forecasters were predicting a downpour, but thanks to a thoughtful gesture by Mother Nature, the sky held off until most participants had crossed the finish line. The two-loop course made for a picturesque run with leaves in autumn colors swaying overhead and on the ground paving the way for many thousands of feet. At 6.2 miles the race was a fraction of next week’s ING New York City Marathon, but as Nike titles it, “the day the world runs”, it was nevertheless, a good preview.

www.nikerunning.nike.com

Day 2: Fort Tryon Park Medieval Festival

Catch the A train to 190^th Street and you land at Fort Tryon Park. A trek uphill and around the bend brings you to an elevated walkway overlooking the Hudson and its bordering landscape—a rather breathtaking view so far north.  And of course, high on the hill sits The Cloisters. Sunday’s Medieval Festival made for a different scene with tents of crafts and clothing straight out of the Middle Ages, face painting, bagpipes, Celtic dancers, a jousting tournament and a cast of characters Manhattan doesn’t see on an ordinary day. Covering everything from peasant-folk to the nobility, festival staff and visitors alike paraded around in costumes made of feathers, furs, laced-up boots, corsets and even a few full suits of armor. As if that wasn’t even enough to take you to another time and place, how about sitting on a haystack feasting on a glass of mead and a dragon’s toe? (In modern English that’s a smoked turkey leg!) For a departure from the buzz of a typical city weekend, make a visit to Fort Tryon Park. Medieval Fest or not, it feels like a world away.