It’s no secret that I ♥ NY; my family calls it “home.” It’s been so disheartening to learn of the destruction caused by Hurricane Irene in many parts of New York, but particularly here in the Hudson Valley. Hundreds of homes and working farms have been washed away by flooding. Last week I dedicated a blog post to Vermont, which also suffered incredible damage. This week, I wanted to do the same for my Empire State.
Doesn't get much bigger than dinosaurs!
(I also made a donation to the Red Cross, which has been working tirelessly in the affected areas. If you’re interested, here’s the link.)
There are a lot of BIG things to love in New York (state income tax not included). Over the past several years, the “Go BIG” family has traveled far and wide looking for the world’s biggests, longests, and tallests in NYS. Why not go see these entertaining sites and attractions for yourself?
Here’s what we’ve found so far, beginning in New York City, with links to our posts.
The World’s Largest Dinosaurs– an exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History. (Open only until January!)
The world’s largest toy store – the Toys R’ Us store in Times Square, AND the world’s largest Disney store, also in Times Square.
The world’s largest indoor theater — Radio City Music Hall.
The world’s largest public collection of video games — at the International Center for the History of Electronic Games, part of The Strong and the National Museum of Play in Rochester
The world’s largest collection of glass – within the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning
The world’s largest pancake griddle -- Penn Yan, NY
The world’s largest premium outlet shopping center-- Woodbury Common, in Central Valley
The world’s longest elevated pedestrian bridge – The Walkway Over the Hudson, which links Poughkeepsie to Highland over the Hudson River.
The world’s largest kaleidoscope-- located within the Emerson Country Store in Mt. Tremper
The largest Buddha statue in the western hemisphere — located within Chuang Yen Monastery in Carmel, NY
And my personal favorite:
Chomsky is the DEAL!
The world’s second largest garden gnome– “Chomsky,” on Kelder’s Farm in Kerhonkson, NY.
Chomsky’s fifth anniversary at the farm is being celebrated this weekend! If in you’re in the Hudson Valley, stop by for some fun! It should be noted that the farm was under ten feet of water following the hurricane, but it’s drying out, and they are determined to party! Hooray for them!
These are places we’ve been, but are returning this month to “research” their “world’s largest” claims:
85th Annual Feast of San Gennaro
Who knew it was the world’s largest outdoor religious festival? The Go BIG or Go Home family will go to this street festival in NYC’s Little Italy for “research”… which in my mind means zeppole and sausage and peppers.
Bronx Zoo
I always knew it was big, from our inability to walk the entire thing in one day. But it’s actually the world’s largest urban zoo, and features the world’s largest man-made rainforest, the Congo Gorilla Forest.
New Yorkophiles, what BIG things have we missed?
Dinosaurs are becoming a “thing” for us. Makes sense…they’re BIG after all! Last year, we went to the American Museum of Natural History in NYC for its temporary exhibit, “The World’s Largest Dinosaurs.” This spring, the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia is presenting a similar program, “Giant Mysterious Dinosaurs,” through April 15.
