Winter Sports Equipment Swap, Restaurant Week, Crystal Bowl Temple & more

Annual Ski and Snowshoe Swap and Sale in Cold Spring

Fahnestock Winter Park’s Fourth Annual Ski and Snowshoe Swap and Sale takes place on Saturday, November 2, 2013, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Taconic Outdoor Education Center in Cold Spring, NY. Visitors are invited to bring used ski equipment and accessories to the event and browse items for sale.

The swap provides opportunities to sell outgrown equipment on consignment while browsing new and used cross-country ski equipment, snowshoes and Nordic ski accessories. Shoppers can also learn about local outdoor opportunities to participate in winter fitness sports.

Winter Park staff members will be on hand to help sellers tag and price their items, and The Friends of the Winter Park will keep a percentage of each sale to support grooming the park trails for public cross-country skiing, snowshoe and sledding activities and renovating the Winter Park Lodge.

“This event introduces more people to the exhilarating, aerobic and ‘nature friendly’ world of winter sports,” says Robert Kelley of Pawling Cycle and Sport in Patterson, NY, who is offering a basic service and a wax clinic at the swap, as well as pre-season discounts on new skate and classic ski gear.

To make arrangements to drop off gear or receive a consignment form, contact Fahnestock Winter Park Director Paul Kuznia at Paul.Kuznia@parks.ny.gov or call the Taconic Outdoor Education Center at 845.265.3773.

The Taconic Outdoor Education Center is located at 75 Mountain Laurel Ln., Cold Spring, NY.

Foodies Flood Hudson Valley for Restaurant Week

Some of the best chefs in the region will showcase their talents and premiere new recipes during Hudson Valley Restaurant Week, scheduled for November 4-17,  2013. At this annual foodie event, some 150 area restaurants will offer special three-course prix-fixe lunches and dinners incorporating locally sourced ingredients.

Participating restaurants range from casual bistros to fine-dining establishments, with chefs using many ingredients from area vineyards, distilleries, farms and orchards. No passes, tickets or coupons are required; diners simply visit HudsonValleyRestaurantWeek.com, choose a restaurant from the list online, and call the restaurant directly to reserve a table. Lunches cost $20.95 and dinners cost $29.95, excluding beverages and tip. As restaurants submit their menus they will be posted on the website (click on the menu link next to the restaurant name). Note that menus may change, as ingredients are not always available and quantities may run out.

This two-week event attracts 200,000 diners a year to the Hudson Valley, which is a celebrated culinary destination and was named one of National Geographic’s top 20 “must-see destinations” in the world. In coordination with the event, many area hotels are offering special getaway deals on lodging.

 To see discount packages and the list of participating restaurants, visit HudsonValleyRestaurantWeek.com.

Grand Opening of New York’s First Crystal Bowl Temple in Larchmont

CrystalTones™ celebrates the grand opening of New York’s first Crystal Bowl Temple in Larchmont, NY, on Saturday, November 16, from 1 to 7 p.m. Crystal Bowl “ambassador” LaVita will be there to tone the healing sounds of the Alchemy Crystal Singing Bowls, regarded as powerful tools for transformation.

Everyone is invited to experience a day filled with the exploration of Crystal Bowls, Harmonic Tones, and light-body activation while learning how these bowls can increase life force energy. Visitors will be able to choose bowls that accelerate higher consciousness and enhance personal mastery, meditations, vibrational healing, and space clearing.

The Crystal Bowl Temple will offer a series of ongoing events and seminars, including Crystal Bowl Activations, Sonic Bowl Yoga, meditation classes and individual consultations.

“The entire human body, down to the level of our DNA, is crystalline in structure,” says LaVita. “This causes it to resonate with, and respond to, the extraordinary frequencies associated with quartz crystals and our Alchemy Crystal Singing Bowls. In this time of planetary awakening, people are discovering their innate abilities to tune in to these frequencies.”

To reserve a place at the grand opening of The Crystal Bowl Temple, receive directions and inquire about individual consultations, contact LaVita@CrystalTones.com or call 914.575.8170.

 

Couples Cooking Class and Thanksgiving Veggies at Hilltop Hanover Farm

On Friday, November 18, Hilltop Hanover Farm continues its “Couples Cooking” series with Karen Symington Muendell, chef and owner at Serves You Right, Culinary. Couples can attend to learn how to cook several healthy and delicious restaurant-quality dishes from scratch.

A graduate of The French Culinary Institute (now the International Culinary Center) and founder of the Yorktown Farmers’ Market, Muendell’s specialty is farm-to-table cooking with a Creole flair. The event begins at 7 p.m., the fee is $75 per couple and participants can bring a bottle of wine to accompany their homemade meal. The class is limited to 12 couples, and online registration is required at BrownPaperTickets.com/event/484780.

Those thinking ahead to Thanksgiving may also wish to order a Vegetable Box from Hilltop Hanover Farm. The boxes feature seasonal favorites grown with organic methods and a small book of recipes for side dishes to serve four people. The vegetables, presented in Hilltop Hanover totes, will be ready for pick-up on the Tuesday prior to Thanksgiving. Items may include Brussels sprouts, squash, potatoes, carrots, braising greens, salad mixes, herbs, cabbage, turnip, fennel and more. To order a box, complete the application found at HilltopHanoverFarm.org Thanksgiving may also wish to order a Vegetable Box from Hilltop Hanover Farm. The boxes feature seasonal favorites grown with organic methods and a small book of recipes for side dishes to serve four people. The vegetables, presented in Hilltop Hanover totes, will be ready for pick-up on the Tuesday prior to Thanksgiving. Items may include Brussels sprouts, squash, potatoes, carrots, braising greens, salad mixes, herbs, cabbage, turnip, fennel and more. To order a box, complete the application found at HilltopHanoverFarm.org or visit the farm office.

Hilltop Hanover Farm is located at 1271 Hanover St. in Yorktown Heights, NY. For more information, call 914.962.2368 or visit HilltopHanoverFarm.org.

Yoga Teacher Training to Become an Instructor or Deepen Practice

Birchwood Center is proud to announce their upcoming 200-Hour Yoga Teacher Certification, to be held in Nyack, NY, from January 10 through June 21, 2014. 

Prospective students are invited to join a lineage of teachers who have studied and taught the ancient wisdom of yoga, and discover why teaching yoga is such an intoxicating occupation. Birchwood Center’s Level I Yoga Teacher Training can serve as a starting point on a journey towards becoming a certified teacher of beginners and mixed level students. Those inspired to deepen their own practice and knowledge of yoga without teacher certification are also invited to participate.

The core of Birchwood Center’s Yoga Teacher Training is alignment-based hatha yoga technique, teaching methodology, yoga philosophy and meditation. The aim is to produce quality instructors who are creative in their teaching and committed to the practice and understanding of yoga as a way of life. Birchwood’s teacher trainings have graduated more than one hundred talented yoga instructors since 2002.

The 200-Hour program includes principles of asana and alignment; principles of Vinyasa; pranayama and the pranic body; yoga philosophy; anatomy and physiology; introduction to Sanskrit; chanting, meditation and mudra, finding your authentic voice and the business of yoga.

The Birchwood Center is located at 85 S. Broadway, Nyack, NY. For more information, call 845.358.6409 or visit BirchwoodCenter.com. 

 

New York City Conference Brings Experts to Share the Real Truth About Health

Some of the world’s top health and wellness experts will speak at The Real Truth About Health, a three-day conference promoting the truth about health, nutrition and the environment. The symposium runs from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., January 10 and 11, and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., January 12, at the Millennium Broadway Hotel’s Hudson Theater, in New York City. Attendees can participate in Q&A sessions throughout the event.

The roster of presenters includes Dr. Brian Clement, Ph.D., who has directed the Hippocrates Health Institute, in Florida, since 1980 and Dr. Michael Greger, M.D., a physician and founding member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, who speaks and writes about nutrition, food safety and public health issues.

Author of the award-winning book, Comfortably Unaware, Dr. Richard Oppenlander, a doctor of dental surgery who has been researching, lecturing and consulting on the topics of food choice and sustainability for 40 years, will talk about effect food choices have on personal health and the health of the planet.

Discussing the latest news and developments related to genetically modified organisms (GMO) will be Jeffrey Smith, the founding executive director of The Institute for Responsible Technology and consumer advocate promoting non-GMO choices.

 Cost: $229 by Nov. 14; $299 and up afterwards. For more information, call 516.921.1417, email Health@TheRealTruthAboutHealth.com or visit TheRealTruthAboutHealth.com.