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 This year, Autumn (also known as Fall in
North American English) begins on September 23. Fall makes the transition from warm to
cold weather in the northern hemisphere.
The Eastern United States is famous
for the brilliant color of the Autumn foliage [the leaves of a plant] as many leaves turn
beautiful colors before dropping from trees.
 New York City Calendar—Some Free Events
Concerts at Julliard, Manhattan, and Mannes. These three world famous conservatories (schools)
of music and performing arts resume their free public concerts in
September. Consult the school bulletin
boards in the Student and Founders’ Rooms for schedules and directions.
September 3, Monday (Labor Day), 11am-6pm, Annual Brazilian
Day Festival. One of NYC’s most
interesting street festivals. Live
music. 6th
Ave, betw. 42nd&56th St. and 46th betw. Madison and 7th Ave.
September 7, Friday, 7-11 pm, Dance Party, Dance the night away on
the Hudson River. Pier 1 @70th St., Riverside
Park, 1,2,3, A trains to 72nd St. and walk west to Riverside Park
on the Hudson River.
September 8, 9, 15, 16, Saturdays and Sundays. Lincoln
Center Autumn
Crafts Festival. Not your usual crafts
festival. Very high-end juried craft
from all over the USA
outdoors at Lincoln
Center for the
Performing Arts. A great show in a
great location. Lincoln Center Plaza, 1 train to 66th
St. 1,A,C,D to Columbus Circle/59th St. and walk north on Broadway
to W. 63rd St.
September 8, Saturday, 7:30 pm. Musica Bella Orchestra, All-Bach concert. Pay-as-you wish donation. Holy Name Church, 245 Prospect Park West
@Prospect Ave., Brooklyn, F train to 15th St./Prospect Park, exit near or at rear of
train.
September 9 and 23, Sundays, 6-9 pm. Let’s Dance. Free salsa, swing, and hustle lessons by top
instructors from the Soho Dance Studio.
1,2,3,
A trains to 72nd St.
and walk west to Riverside Park on the Hudson River.
September 16, Sunday, 1-6pm.
Annual
West Side County
Fair. An American country fair
comes to Manhattan. Carnival rides and games, music, dancing,
sideshow performances, and more! Riverside Park
South between 62nd and 72nd Streets on Hudson River. 1,2,3, A trains to 72nd
St. and walk west to Riverside Park on the Hudson River, then south.
Sunday, September 23, 2 pm.
Vladimir Ashkenazy at Julliard. Limited free tickets available to be picked up at
Julliard Box Office beginning 9/10.
See directions on School bulletin boards.
September 7 to November 25, Visual Griots of Mali. Captures the importance of
African storytelling with the power of the camera. World Financial Center (WFC) Courtyard
Gallery. [Any train to lower Manhattan: A, C, J, M, Z, 2, 3, 4 or 5 to Fulton
Street/Broadway-Nassau: Exit onto Fulton Street and walk west to Church St.;
turn right and walk to Vesey St.; turn left and continue across West St. to
the WFC. E to World
Trade Center: Exit onto Church Street and walk north to Vesey St.; turn
left and continue across West
St. to the WFC. R or W to City Hall: Exit onto Broadway and walk south to Vesey St.; turn
right and continue to the WFC. 1 to Rector Street: Exit onto Greenwich Street and walk north to Liberty St.; turn
left and continue to the WFC.] See map on school bulletin boards.
School
Bulletin Boards
Consult the school bulletin boards for more free or low-cost
activities and services. The
Spanish-American Institute posts up-to-date information on the school
bulletin boards in the Student Room and Founders’ Room (room 13). Find out about free concerts, ice-skating,
swimming pools, kayaking, museums, recreation centers, flu shots, etc.
Back
Issues of the Student Club Newsletter
Back
issues are available online at the school homepage: http://www.sai2000.org. Each issue features something special about
an American holiday or about NYC—a neighborhood, a cultural center, an
activity, etc. Want to know more about
Hell’s Kitchen/Clinton—the Spanish-American Institute’s “other” neighborhood
(April, 2007)? Free ice-skating
(December, 2006)? The Statue of Liberty (June,
2007)? The Student Bike Club (August,
2007)? Send suggestions and comments
to: clubnews@sai2000.org.
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 September 3, Labor Day, is a national holiday
always celebrated on the first Monday in September. It is a holiday unlike most others,
honoring not historic figures nor events but ordinary working people.
The United States changed from an
agricultural [farming] economy to an industrial [factory producing]
economy in the late 19th Century.
Skilled workers and factory workers began to organize for better
working conditions. They began to
demand an eight-hour workday, a secure job, and a future in their trade or
job.
Some say Labor
Day started in September, 1882 when the first Labor Day parade was
held in New York City. 20,000 workers marched down Broadway to Union Square
carrying banners that read “Labor Creates All Wealth” and “Eight Hours for
Work, Eight Hours for Rest, and Eight Hours for Recreation!”
Today, many American communities celebrate Labor
Day with parades such as the one down Fifth Ave in New York City. Labor Day
is also the unofficial end of summer.
For school children, it usually marks the end of the summer
holiday. People go to beaches, have
picnics, and enjoy the outdoors during the last long weekend until Columbus
Day in October.
Some Unusual Occupations
Rich Man, Poor Man (Nursery Rhyme)
A “nursery rhyme” is a short rhymed poem for
children. Some are centuries old. How can you tell that this is an American
nursery rhyme?
Rich
man
Poor
man
Beggar
man
Thief
Doctor
Lawyer
Indian
Chief.
The Acrobats by Shel
Silverstein.
This is an amusing portrait of an unusual job. Why does the poet ask the man not to
sneeze?
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I’ll swing
By my ankles,
She’ll cling to your knees
As you hang by your nose
From a high-up
Trapeze.
But just one thing, please,
As we float through the breeze—
Don’t sneeze.
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Featured Museum—The Whitney
Museum of American Art
at Altria, 120 Park Ave.
at 42nd St.
The
Whitney Museum
of American Art at
Altria is a free branch museum of the larger (and not free)
Whitney. A short walk from the
Spanish-American Institute, it is located in the street-level pedestrian
plaza of the Altria office building.
It offers four solo exhibitions of contemporary artists a year.
Visit the Sculpture Garden
at any time. The Sculpture Garden
is a glass-enclosed atrium [courtyard] with public seating and an espresso bar. A nice place to sit and relax away from the
mid-town hustle and bustle.
The museum also produces Performance on
42nd St., an ongoing series of free music, dance, theater, and
performance art. See the school
bulletin boards or future issues of the Student Club Newsletter for
scheduled events
Gallery
Hours: 11am-6pm,
Mon.-Fri.
Sculpture
Court Hours: Mon.-Sat., 7:30 am-9:30
pm.
A City of Islands
NYC
is divided into 5 boroughs-Manhattan,
Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, and Staten Island. Manhattan
and Staten Island are islands. Queens and Brooklyn are attached to the
western tip of Long Island. The Bronx, part of the mainland, has its
own island, City
Island, a NYC
residential marine community. Manhattan, as island, has its own island too in the
middle of the East River—Roosevelt Island
(see August 2007 Student Club Newsletter.
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