As you may be aware, the United States has just recently celebrated its 250th Independence Day.
The Fourth of July is a fun holiday at the best of times, made even more special by marking the semiquincentennial anniversary of the country. Don’t worry- that was a new word for me too.
Although most New Yorker’s tend to spend the holiday out of the city, I was tempted into Manhattan by the once in a lifetime “Sail4th” event; an enormous fleet of the world’s tall ships.
Accompanying them from above, planes from militaries worldwide flew down the Hudson River.
All in all, 60 international ships, 40+ US Navy Vessels, and 100+ plus planes joined the parade down the Hudson.
With a 10:15am start time, I arrive at Battery Park at 9:30 and was pleasantly surprised to see a relatively small crowd. That is to say, I could kind of see the water, there was plenty of shade, and even a slight breeze.
The Goodyear blimp hovered overhead for most of the day, and was briefly joined by a collection of helicopters hauling a giant US flag around in a circle around the Statue of Liberty before the official start of the parade.
The first planes arrived at just after 10:15 with a burst of noise- the parade was being heralded by the Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron.
The tall ships were soon to follow, appearing in the distance like some sort of ghost from the past.
One of these parades on its own was unique enough, but both together felt once in a lifetime.
Still, it was extremely hot out- and with a temperature in the mid-90’s- I tapped out sooner than later.
On my way to shelter, I ran into a Revolutionary War reenactment group, who told me some interesting facts about the Revolution and gave me a little American flag. They were doing a performance in the Battery at noon, though I didn’t stick around to see it.
Instead, I headed a block or so over to check out the Fraunces Tavern. The Tavern is one of New York’s oldest pubs, and was subsequently involved in the American Revolution. The tavern served as a meeting point for the Sons of Liberty and even saw the likes of George Washington as he bid farewell to his officers.
The second floor of the building has been turned into a museum dedicated to the building’s history and it’s worth popping into!
I’d been here before, but never for a drink- something well needed on such a hot day! The building may be historic, but its draft selection was surprisingly modern. There were so many options I was interested in. I’ll have to come back on another day and see if they’ll let me do a flight! (Definitely unlikely).
After I finished my drink here, I ceded my seat to the Revolutionary War reenactor and the Navy officers who populated the building during the holiday.
From Fraunces, I made a detour to Brookfield Place for a quick stop at the Stella Artois World Cup Watch Party pop up. I’d been told that they were offering free Stella chalices with engraving, but it didn’t seem like they were doing that this weekend.
Instead, I got a plastic novelty cup, and settled in to watch the game. The pop up had its bar, of course, as well as its viral “Work from Bar” meeting room, but also had a selection of soccer themed games and activities.
Even better- it was inside and air conditioned. The perfect escape from poor weather!
I considered staying late for the fireworks display, but I’ve tried that in the past, and always had a difficult time finding the perfect view. Better to head to Long Island for some up close and personal street-fireworks!
Leave a Reply