dhammer53

Here we go again.

The 5th annual Brooklyn Tour will take place Friday April 29, 2005; during the FREDDIES weekend in NYC. The Freddie Awards are the day before.

The first 4 Brooklyn Tours were sellouts. Two years ago, due to an overwhelming response, I rented a 15 passenger van. We split the cost, so it's about $15 each.

Who knows this year I may have to rent a Greyhound bus.

Pick up 10:30 Friday morning. Location to be decided.
Besides touring Brooklyn (my home town), we eat, and eat, and eat. Can you say 'real' Brooklyn pizza? Can you say 'delicious' bakery? Just ask any of the folks who have been on this tour. We drive. We tour. We eat. This year, the tour is during Passover.

Open to ALL Flyertalkers.

After we finished the tour last year, we went for dinner. We went to an authentic Italian place in an authentic Italian neighborhood. Lots of jewelry showing.

Figure about $22 a person. This is 1/2 the price of Manhattan, and twice the portion.

The dinner will be open to everyone. If you're not on the Tour, you'll have to take the subway to the restaurant. It's about 40 minutes and $2 one way. I'll start a dinner thread soon.

So whether you come to the Freddies; or just happen to be in NYC on that particular weekend, consider yourself invited. I will control the list of attendees to make sure that Flyertalkers in 'good standing' attend.

If you've been on the tour before and want to go again, please sign up, and consider yourself waitlisted.

Past tour highlights include:

2001...poor AnnaS having a cold.
2002...Lisamcgu making us stop for White castle hamburgers.
2003...mjm insisting on a Starbucks break. After I stopped laughing at him for thinking that Brooklyn would even have a Starbucks... we found one.
2004...gorging on food at marysunshine's house...and this was a snack!

Note:

We rotate seats in the van.
We make plenty of stops.
New Yorkers are 'standby' for the tour. Preference goes to out-of-towners.

NO talking miles and points when I'm (ahem) lecturing on Brooklyn.


mjm will post and host a website for the tour attendees, and the dinner attendees.

It takes a certain type of person to put up with other Flyertalkers for an entire day. If you're going to be in NYC for the Freddies and have nothing to do on Friday, you're invited.

Please post below if you're interested.
FYI, last year, the Tour had a sponsor. This year.... but I'm working on it.


If you're interested in coming along, I need you to e mail me your:

Flyertalk handle and real name.
Hotel you're staying at, when available.
Cell #

Let the fun begin.


So far:

dhammer53
Shirl
GoodKarmaGuy
MileageAddict
SkiAdcock
Rbernheim + 1
Spiff
VPescado + TravelKhatt
holmedown
delacpa plus his lovely wife
lili-dui - you should have read lili's note to me. This Flyertalker should go to the top of the list.
JimCoddington + 1
Wireless
wahooflyer
Missydarling
cawhite60156
KathyWdrf
Monitor + 1
jetsetter
gfowler ---------------->>> total 25

I've rented the same wheels we used last year. This is an 'airport type shuttle bus' that's very comfortable.

MileageAddict

Tempting...very tempting...okay, I'm in! Put me on the list.

mjm

And as promised, here is the site for this grand event:

http://home.inter.net/mjm/realitytour05.html

It will be updated regularly so be sure to check the thread or the website periodically for any information Dan may need to convey to the whole group.

Have a blast everyone and I will be busy in the meantime figuring out how to convince my boss of the necessity for a vacation at the end of April

Mike

squeakr

mr. squeakr that is

we are going to try and find a way to come - either by extending our NY stay or coming back

and I know the rules about preference given to folks who have never been on the tour but what would mr. squeakr do w/ out me to translate the brooklynese he will hear?

SkiAdcock

Aisle seat in Row 1 please . Cheers. Sharon

squeakr

unlike UAL flights the tour specifically calls for rotating seats (altho it would be fun to see what happened if airlines did that as well )

iluv2fly

Oh boy. I'm usually in 1A. Fab.

ralfkrippner

Please, please, please, can I use my award miles to secure a seat...? Or even two?

I would like to confirm ralfkrippner +1 to this event...

dhammer53

I'm flattered that so many of you that have been on the tour in the past want to come again. Must be my Brooklyn accent.

Consider yourself waitlisted. I'll make a waitlisted list soon.

The reason we rotate seats is so that we all get to know each other. The other reason is that nobody should get stuck next to the guy in 1A.


The dhammer53 Brooklyn Reality Tour is open to < new > and old Flyertalkers.

Thanks again to mjm for hosting the site. ^

tazi

Put me on the list, Dan.

edit: email sent - add me to dinner list as well

cawhite

Dan, if you haven't already , please add me to the WL as a repeat!

indo79

Darn! my sister's graduating that weekend in Boston, otherwise I would be there.

Next year....?

holmedown

Can you put me down as a possible please - unfortunately will not know until the beginning of April due to work commitments.

ElmhurstNick

I had really hoped to attend this year but the late Passover means that it's Orthodox Good Friday, so none of that yummy food for me as I'll be fasting from anything good.

Hopefully next year, or maybe this will become so popular as to become a semi-annual event? <hint, hint...>

Marysunshine

and you think your sister's graduation is more of a priority than Dan's tour??????? Wow...just can't figure some people out

missydarlin

will there be firetrucks on the tour this year?

I'm sooo there!

AA 526 27APR SEAORD 1150P 534A 28APR
AA 394 28APR ORDLGA 700A 1004A
AA 731 30APR LGADFW 1051A 139P
AA1587 30APR DFWSEA 237P 443P

rbernheim

Add me to the list and dinner. Trying to talk #1 son into going, so he is a maybe.

iluv2fly

Can we stop at a certified kosher for Passover restaurant?

MileageAddict

Help a guy out....

I plan to redeem Hilton points (and I have Diamond status) for my stay in Manhattan. Please tell me which of these hotels is best for accomodations as well as convenience for Dan's van rental pickup. If you could pick your first, second and third choices, it will help me out greatly. THANKS

Hilton Times Square - 234 West 42nd Street

Hilton New York - 1335 Avenue of the Americas

The Waldorf=Astoria - 301 Park Avenue (I assume this will be a popular choice)

Millenium Hilton - 55 Church Street (for some reason, only 35k points a night)

Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square - 1568 Broadway (heart of Times Sq)

Doubletree Metropolitan Hotel New York City - 569 Lexington Avenue

Embassy Suites Hotel - 102 North End Avenue

Hampton Inn Manhattan-Madison Square Garden - 116 West 31st Street (grand opening is 2/7/05)

Hampton Inn New York-Chelsea - 108 W. 24th Street (looks dumpy from the pics)

Spiff

Please count me in. I managed to stay more than one night this time.

Kiwi Flyer

Actually the antarctica charter flights do rotate seats half way (shameful plug for my trip report).

Canarsie

I had the opportunity and the pleasure to finally meet dhammer53 in person for the first time sometime in December 2004 at his home. Because I was driving from Islip to Syracuse in New York, I made sure to set aside some time to meet the famed (not flamed) and esteemed (not steamed) FlyerTalk member.

Whilst dining on lunch at a “greasy spoon” diner which he regularly enjoys the food, dhammer53 and I had discussed — among a plethora of topics which included (but was not limited to) reminiscing about the olden days growing up in Brooklyn and about FlyerTalk — the possibility of me co-hosting the dhammer53 Brooklyn Reality Tour with him this year as long as I was available and if enough people signed up for the tour. If enough people expressed interest, we would have entertained the idea of possibly hiring two vehicles where he would host one and I would host the other.

I was glad that dhammer53 initially expressed interest in the idea. Ironically, as we both grew up in Brooklyn in neighborhoods not far from each other and despite the fact that there is not much of an age difference between us, we had never met each other until last month.

Unfortunately, as much as I would like to join in on the fun and visit my original hometown of Brooklyn, New York (and the Canarsie neighborhood in particular) where I was born and raised, I will regrettably have to pass on the 2005 edition of the dhammer53 Brooklyn Reality Tour this year due to a variety of different reasons, all of which result primarily from the date chosen for the tour.

Please accept my best wishes to all who partake in this tour to have the time of their lives and enjoy all that Brooklyn and dhammer53 have to offer. I am just sorry that I will not be able to attend this year...

squeakr

sorry canarsie won't be able to make it -

and I'm wondering have FT'ers been OFFICIALLY invited to the Freddies? If not then mr. s and I will NOT extend our NY trip to stay for the varuous festivities...

tazi

I stayed at this Hilton for the Football payoff Do a couple years ago .... great location and the room was very nice. It's not a long walk from the Churchill Suites as I recall .... but then, I walked from the WTC to Central Park in November so I would probably be a poor judge of what is considered "walking distance"

wahooflyer

Dan, count me in! It'll be great to meet you and everyone else in person. I'm a native NYer but live out of state now, and I've never spent much time in Brooklyn. Hope that qualifies me for the confirmed list.

I'll be staying at the Grand Hyatt from April 28-May 1 thanks to a Faster Free Nights award. Rumor has it that's where the Freddies will be held, so it'll work out well if that's the case!

delacpa

Dan: We are SERIOUSLY considering this; will get back to you in a few weeks -- sounds like a perfect "after tax season get-away"

dhammer53

FYI

We still haven't been invited to the Freddies . So, before you book your travel arrangements, you may want to hold off signing up for the trip.

Nah. The Brooklyn Tour takes place no matter what. It will be a stand alone DO.

In case you were wondering how the tour came about...

When Catman did the CatmanDO3 back in 2001 (with 80 plus attending), I asked him if I could take some attendees on a trip to Brooklyn during the day, just prior to the dinner. Catman had no problem with this. I think the Chief Alleycat appreciated the fact that I was helping to make the DO even more special. That 1st tour was a raw and somewhat nasty Saturday. We were some bunch. we really knocked ourselves out. It was the 1st tour and will always be special.

We all had such a good time that I repeated the tour a 2nd time. If you told me back then that I'd get up to doing a 5th tour , I never would have believed you.

This years tour will present some problems, as it is takes place during Passover. I may have to get my bakery goodies to go.

I'll compose a maybe list soon. I've edited the original post to reflect the definites. Thanks for understanding as no slight is intended.

Carnarsie , consider yourself 'shotgun' on the 6th annual dhammer53 tour.

wahooflyer , since you're an ex-New Yorker, I'll put you on the maybe list.

Betty and Dave, love to have you join us.

KathyWdrf

Add me as a maybe. (I haven't booked a flight yet.)

tazi

Dan, if we aren't invited to the Freddies is there any chance that you would be holding the tour on Saturday instead of Friday?

VPescado

Count me in. . .assuming we get invited to the freddies and there are still good fares available).

belle3388

Shhhh.... please do not tell Mr. Hammer that belle was here.

izzik

Does NJ count as out-of-town?

Canarsie

To a true die-hard Brooklynite, yes.

Watchful

One of these days it's gonna happen! Not this year though...

I'll just go eat some BBQ that weekend in your honor!

Mary2e

Dan - for the first time in the last several years I will actually be around for this one ^^.

I will try to make it for dinner - no sense in my taking up a seat to revisit the neighborhood I grew up in and still visit often .

gfowler-ord-1k

Dan:

Thanks again for doing this. Please sign me up.
Gene

jaguar

Dan,

Please count me in for the tour. Look forward to meeting everyone.

VPescado

OK, I am a definite. I have bought my ticket. I just hope we get invited back to the freddies!

MileageAddict

Has it been confirmed that the Freddies are even going to take place in NYC? If Randy and company has not secured space in NYC yet, then it's probably too late. Freddies have been done in Colorado Springs too...

VPescado

NYC is shown for '05 on the freddies website.