Lewis, Pierre and I took a train from Grand Central Terminal. Perhaps, in a future year, NYC will invest some of its wealth in modern trains. But our sluggish and slovenly ride was brightened by the prospect of autumnal adventures in the pristine countryside.
Almost like a premonition of our upcoming adventure, our route took us past Van Cortlandt Park: 1,146 acres of greenery in The Bronx. It's named for a noble Dutch-English family that owned tracts of land in the 1600s and 1700s. It contains one of their homes (built in 1748 and owned until 1889) where General George Washington made strategies during the War of Independence. His advisors were French noblemen: Count de Rachambeau and Marquis de Lafayette. (Manhattan's Lafayette Street is named for the indispensable marquis).
After an hour, we chugged into Westchester County. Waiting at the Victorian-era station, our friend Henry Lee (he prefers to be called Lee) stood near his SUV with a welcoming grin and outstretched arms. He hugged each of us and promised that essentials for perfect martinis were ready at his "country home". (It was only breakfast time, but our gentlemanly foursome always sips martinis before dinner). That began our 4-day "autumn getaway" with him!
Since it was "peak" fall foliage season, some beautiful countryside awaited us!
Lewis was delighted to return to Lee's spacious home, named Wixon House. Lee said that the home "comes alive" whenever Lewis and I are there.
Seen above, Pierre occupied the guest room closest to ours. The home smelled of "breakfast", which Lee had ambitiously created to greet us. Using Lee's stereo, my iTunes playlist provided upbeat music by Lester Lanin's Orchestra, and that gave the mood of a party!
Seen below, I brought a fair-trade, organic Ethiopian coffee (roasted only 5 days earlier) from my local coffee shop: Astoria Coffee.
It was only 10 o'clock, but it was time for champagne!
Lee made his famously fluffy eggs. I made cranberry scones—for the first time (from scratch, using King Arthur flour). The oven aromatically provided hash browns. Such a great start!
Like us, Lee and Pierre are Anglophiles, so we shared a common enjoyment of British cinema and television. Lewis chatted about our fondness for a show called Agatha Raisin about a Londoner in the Cotswolds who solves crimes.
Pierre was engrossed with Downton Abbey, and Lee was in the midst of watching an Australian series, Miss Fischer's Murder Mysteries, that Lewis and I recommended previously.
While he tidied up the kitchen, he invited us to admire the foliage that surrounded the house. Wixon House is enshrouded by woodlands and a Nature Preserve. From every window, autumn colors brilliantly shimmered in the sunshine!
We started a spontaneous "Nature Hike", collecting fallen leaves as we went. I gathered a colorful bouquet, which I sprinkled along the dining room table(s).
Sharing my love of Nature prompted Lee to describe his local efforts to preserve the land from overdevelopment. He was impressed with my attitude. I said that my mindset of conservation originated with my experiences as a Boy Scout. *To see my many adventures as a Scout, please use this link:
We started a spontaneous "Nature Hike", collecting fallen leaves as we went. I gathered a colorful bouquet, which I sprinkled along the dining room table(s).
Sharing my love of Nature prompted Lee to describe his local efforts to preserve the land from overdevelopment. He was impressed with my attitude. I said that my mindset of conservation originated with my experiences as a Boy Scout. *To see my many adventures as a Scout, please use this link:
Our next activity was randomly chosen from a list of suggestions by Lee. Pierre chose a cozy church in Pocantico Hills, a hamlet within Mount Pleasant. It was a 45-minute drive. Union Church is famous because of its stained glass windows. Truly, it's a "diamond in the rough".
For $7.00, we got to see a mini-museum of art with a tour guide.
For generations, the tiny Gothic church has been funded and attended by the Rockefeller family, who are global influencers. (It is near the Rockefeller State Park Preserve). In stark contrast to the modest church, their grand estates, like the 40-room Kykuit (seen below)—built for their patriarch, John D. Rockefeller—are close by. Kykuit is the Dutch word for "lookout".
In 1909, its main gates were cast and wrought by a metalsmith named Kenneth Lynch. In 1928, he famously created contours for the eagles on the Chrysler Building.
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For Halloween, it's a spooky treat with intricately carved pumpkins that are aglow in every nook and cranny!
The locals are proud of their hometown villainous specter: The Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow (seen below, throwing his pumpkin head at his next victim). I'll tell you about that in the next segment: Day 2.
Below, one of their "master carvers" described how to make a Jack O'Lantern. Carving a foam pumpkin took 2 hours, much longer than a regular gourd.
In Danish folktales, a lygtemænd is like a will-o'-wisp, deriving its name from Medieval Latin for "fool's fire". Being an atmospheric ghostly light seen at night—especially over bogs and marshes—it is known in English folklore as a Jack-O'-Lantern, and it misleads travelers by resembling a flickering lantern!
*To see amazing Halloween costumes, please use this link:
After our adventurous night, we returned to Wixon House. Lee drove us through the dense forests at Croton Gorge Park. Remotely, he activated his home's lights and stereo, so we arrived at a homey ambiance. It was too bad that Pierre suddenly had to return to NYC the next day (it's becoming an impolite habit of him curtailing his weekends with us at the last-minute). Another mishap occurred when Lee's SUV suffered from a broken fan belt—just as we parked in his 3-car garage. Always the unflappable host, he poured us digestifs of Chambord and told us not to worry. The liqueur allowed us to change the topic, and Lewis recounted our visit to Chambord Castle, in the Chambord township...
For $7.00, we got to see a mini-museum of art with a tour guide.
For generations, the tiny Gothic church has been funded and attended by the Rockefeller family, who are global influencers. (It is near the Rockefeller State Park Preserve). In stark contrast to the modest church, their grand estates, like the 40-room Kykuit (seen below)—built for their patriarch, John D. Rockefeller—are close by. Kykuit is the Dutch word for "lookout".
The gates were scrapped during WWII but were remade in 1965 by Lynch's eldest son, Michael.
Later generations of Rockefellers decided to reverse the family's "robber-baron" image through benevolence.
That was also the beginning of the family's infatuation with modern art. In the 1920s, the family donated land/funds to build Union Church, created as an inter-denominational Christian church.
Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller hired famous artist, Henri Matisse, to create a "rose window" above the altar. It was Matisse's last work before his death in 1954. The window is dedicated to Nelson's mother, Abby Aldrich, who was one of the founders of NYC's MoMA.
In 1963 (after unsuccessful attempts to become the President of America), Nelson Rockefeller set his sights on Vice President. Meanwhile, his son, David, hired famed painter, Marc Chagall, to design a huge stained glass window depicting "The Good Samaritan". How ironic! Especially considering that it's dedicated to Nelson's dad: John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
Govenor Nelson's son, Michael Clark Rockefeller, died at sea, during one of his foreign explorations. Nelson hired famed artist, Marc Chagall, to create a stained glass window to honor him. Below is the result: a seraphim welcoming Michael into the Garden of Eden.
Unfortunately, it didn't please Mrs. Rockefeller, so the family paid Chagall to create another: Michael lost at sea, praying to Jesus.
Chagall then asked them if he could have the honor of being paid to design the remaining 6 windows of the church. While the Rockefeller's notoriously celebrated "profits"... Chagall chose to highlight "prophets". He picked Joel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Isaiah and Elijah... all from the Old Testament (which made sense, since he was Jewish).
Each "prophet window" is dedicated to a family member: Michael Clark Rockefeller, Governor Nelson, Peggy, Mary, and Laurance Rockefeller.
Outside, everyone admired how my outfit was color-coordinated with Nature's foliage!
To appreciate the scenery more, we drove to Blue Hill Stone Barns. Their pastures, garden, and livestock provide ingredients for their farm-to-table restaurants: there and in Manhattan. The one that we went to in Tarrytown was bestowed with 2 Michelin stars!
Surprisingly, their restaurant has a jacket/tie dress code! They were smug about it (which is stereotypical of the WASP population). Lewis and I dined globally at other 2-Michelin-star restaurants that never have such mandates, so their requirement (at a barn) seemed bizarre.
Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller hired famous artist, Henri Matisse, to create a "rose window" above the altar. It was Matisse's last work before his death in 1954. The window is dedicated to Nelson's mother, Abby Aldrich, who was one of the founders of NYC's MoMA.
In 1963 (after unsuccessful attempts to become the President of America), Nelson Rockefeller set his sights on Vice President. Meanwhile, his son, David, hired famed painter, Marc Chagall, to design a huge stained glass window depicting "The Good Samaritan". How ironic! Especially considering that it's dedicated to Nelson's dad: John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
Govenor Nelson's son, Michael Clark Rockefeller, died at sea, during one of his foreign explorations. Nelson hired famed artist, Marc Chagall, to create a stained glass window to honor him. Below is the result: a seraphim welcoming Michael into the Garden of Eden.
Unfortunately, it didn't please Mrs. Rockefeller, so the family paid Chagall to create another: Michael lost at sea, praying to Jesus.
Chagall then asked them if he could have the honor of being paid to design the remaining 6 windows of the church. While the Rockefeller's notoriously celebrated "profits"... Chagall chose to highlight "prophets". He picked Joel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Isaiah and Elijah... all from the Old Testament (which made sense, since he was Jewish).
Each "prophet window" is dedicated to a family member: Michael Clark Rockefeller, Governor Nelson, Peggy, Mary, and Laurance Rockefeller.
Guess how they're created? The glass was "fired" in his atelier in France. Each pane was painted. Then, Chagall used brushes, sticks, and his fingers to paint/etch the black lines over the glass.
*To see when Lewis and I witnessed the tallest stained glass windows in the world, please use this link:
Nelson used his gubernatorial and federal influence to have the National Trust for Historic Preservation maintain the property... and it's still used by the family.
Outside, everyone admired how my outfit was color-coordinated with Nature's foliage!
To appreciate the scenery more, we drove to Blue Hill Stone Barns. Their pastures, garden, and livestock provide ingredients for their farm-to-table restaurants: there and in Manhattan. The one that we went to in Tarrytown was bestowed with 2 Michelin stars!
Surprisingly, their restaurant has a jacket/tie dress code! They were smug about it (which is stereotypical of the WASP population). Lewis and I dined globally at other 2-Michelin-star restaurants that never have such mandates, so their requirement (at a barn) seemed bizarre.
Therefore, Lee used his navigation device to find another eatery. It's amazing what lovely restaurants you find, such as the one seen below!
We dined in a cozy lantern-lit room: succulent double-cut pork chops, sauerbraten, and chicken/scallops scampi. Martinis all around!
Our highlight of the night was a bunch of tickets that Lee got for us to attend BLAZE! It was featured on the Travel Channel's "Top Ten spookiest Halloween events in America". It's at the colonial-era Van Cortlandt Manor, in the Village of Croton-on-Hudson. Emigrating from the Netherlands, the van Cortlandt family built the house in 1665 (seen below). It is a national landmark, and its on the U.S. Register of Historic Places.
In 1697, the Dutch-born King William III of England...
We dined in a cozy lantern-lit room: succulent double-cut pork chops, sauerbraten, and chicken/scallops scampi. Martinis all around!
Our highlight of the night was a bunch of tickets that Lee got for us to attend BLAZE! It was featured on the Travel Channel's "Top Ten spookiest Halloween events in America". It's at the colonial-era Van Cortlandt Manor, in the Village of Croton-on-Hudson. Emigrating from the Netherlands, the van Cortlandt family built the house in 1665 (seen below). It is a national landmark, and its on the U.S. Register of Historic Places.
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...conferred a Royal Charter for them to own 86,000 acres, which they named Van Cortlandt (with a "t") Manor.
*To see our visit to the king's home in London, please use this link:
William III reigned from 1689-1702—shortly after England took New Amsterdam (founded 1624) from the Dutch and renamed it New York in 1664.
*New Amsterdam was named after the Dutch city of Amsterdam, and if you want to see our amazing experiences there, please use this link: https://halfwindsorfullthrottle.blogspot.com/2019/08/our-trip-to-netherlands-part-1-of.html
In Manhattan's Financial District, Cortlandt Street (and subway station) are named for that family. An ancestor was the burgemeester of New Amsterdam (New York's prior name) in the 1600s, when it was a Netherlandish colony.
Van Cortlandt's mills sustained travelers going between NYC and Albany. (In 1614, Albany's name was Fort Nassau, to honor the Dutch noble House of Nassau. A decade later, it was named Fort Orange for their noble House of Orange-Nassau, which still rules the Netherlands. By 1664, the English invaded and renamed it for their Duke of Albany: the future King James II. Albany is the capital of New York State).
In 1953, the site was preserved by John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
For Halloween, it's a spooky treat with intricately carved pumpkins that are aglow in every nook and cranny!
Candle-lit trails took us around the estate, decorated by thousands of hand-carved real and foam Jack O'Lanterns.
The locals are proud of their hometown villainous specter: The Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow (seen below, throwing his pumpkin head at his next victim). I'll tell you about that in the next segment: Day 2.
*Incidentally, another creepy legend exists in the vicinity. Located across the river in Orangetown (founded in 1680 by the Dutch), a labyrinth of mountainside tunnels remains from WWI. Haphazardly unattended, the 335-acre former military facility has been accused of harboring mafia corpses and demonic rituals. Initially named Camp Bluefields, it got a sobriquet of Tweed Tunnels... named after a despicably corrupt ruler of NYC from 1858 to 1873 (he died in prison in 1878).
Below, one of their "master carvers" described how to make a Jack O'Lantern. Carving a foam pumpkin took 2 hours, much longer than a regular gourd.
In Danish folktales, a lygtemænd is like a will-o'-wisp, deriving its name from Medieval Latin for "fool's fire". Being an atmospheric ghostly light seen at night—especially over bogs and marshes—it is known in English folklore as a Jack-O'-Lantern, and it misleads travelers by resembling a flickering lantern!
*To see amazing Halloween costumes, please use this link:
After our adventurous night, we returned to Wixon House. Lee drove us through the dense forests at Croton Gorge Park. Remotely, he activated his home's lights and stereo, so we arrived at a homey ambiance. It was too bad that Pierre suddenly had to return to NYC the next day (it's becoming an impolite habit of him curtailing his weekends with us at the last-minute). Another mishap occurred when Lee's SUV suffered from a broken fan belt—just as we parked in his 3-car garage. Always the unflappable host, he poured us digestifs of Chambord and told us not to worry. The liqueur allowed us to change the topic, and Lewis recounted our visit to Chambord Castle, in the Chambord township...
...in France's Loir-et-Cher region of the Loire Valley.
(many administrative regions in France still use the kingly "Flower of Louis" symbol in their emblems.)
It is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In addition to the mesmerizing double-staircase where two people never see each other, we loved exploring the roof! Circa 1547, it was like its own city of tall spires and chimneys. Here are pictures:
The conversation was pleasant, and the candles slowly lowered. Eventually, we all headed up the staircase and headed to dreamland.
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