Reviews
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Museums/Cultural
Lower East Side Tenement Museum
General, Museums/Cultural, Kids
This remarkable little museum teaches visitors about New York City’s immigrant past. You can enjoy it in several ways. First, you can tour 97 Orchard Street, which was constructed in the middle of the 19th century and served as home…
Japan Society
Japanese, Museums/Cultural, Classes/Conversation, Kids
For New Yorkers interested in Japanese language and culture, the Japan Society is a remarkable resource. Events here embrace many spheres of human activity: politics, finance, food (I even noticed a talk on the power of miso!), music, and more. …
China Institute
Mandarin, Museums/Cultural, Organizations, Classes/Conversation, Kids
China Institute was founded in 1926 by a group of American and Chinese educators, John Dewey among them. It resides in an Upper East Side brownstone from which it offers an array of lectures, symposia, films, exhibits, educational programs, corporate programs,…
Tenri Cultural Institute
Japanese, Museums/Cultural, Classes/Conversation, Kids
Tenri’s mission is to “promote the study of Japanese language and the appreciation of international art forms.” Located in Greenwich Village, it offers classes, exhibits, and performing-arts events.
Portuguese Circle
Portuguese, Museums/Cultural, Organizations, Social
The Portuguese Circle, according to its website, “is a group of Portuguese living in New York City, whose objective is to promote Portugal and its culture.” Since 2007 they have been organizing cultural, social, and gastronomic events. The group’s biggest…
Museum of the City of New York
General, Museums/Cultural, Kids
Founded in 1923, the Museum of the City of New York “celebrates and interprets the city, educating the public about its distinctive character, especially its heritage of diversity, opportunity, and perpetual transformation.” It offers exhibits as well as school and…
The Hispanic Society of America
Portuguese, Spanish, Museums/Cultural
Located on the southern border of Washington Heights in Manhattan, this organization has a free museum and reference library, dedicated to “the study of the arts and cultures of Spain, Portugal, and Latin America.”
Museum of Chinese in America
Mandarin, Museums/Cultural, Kids
In Manhattan’s Chinatown, this small, friendly, attractive museum has a standing exhibit on the history of Chinese immigrants in the United States. It is a history full of discrimination—and achievement in spite of it. The exhibit includes…
Ellis Island Immigration Museum
General, Museums/Cultural, Kids
The Ellis Island Immigration Museum is a must-visit place for anyone interested in American history. Almost 12 million immigrants came to the United States through Ellis Island, and I have read that nearly half of modern-day Americans are descended from them.…