My friend & I went to the annual Orchid Festival. It's was very enjoyable. The volunteers are…read moreinformative. Walking through the Arboretum is always very nice. Waking through the green house we saw an artist painting a picture of a woman.

I came to this place as a chaperone for a school field trip. I have to start by saying that the…read moreentire grounds are beyond amazing! There are so many plants, flowers, and a beautiful greenhouse. Everything outdoors was stunning, and despite the heat, it was a wonderful day to spend outside. The kids had a great time, and the parents acting as chaperones enjoyed the nature as well, we were able to hear the birds, smell the flowers, and take beautiful pictures. Everything was great from that perspective. However, when we took the tour inside the castle, things took a turn. There is no AC inside, and it was a very hot day. You can imagine having a large group of kids inside a stuffy museum after they had already been out in the sun! They had a scavenger hunt set up for the kids, yet when the kids actually found the items, the staff very angrily told them they weren't allowed to touch anything. It makes no sense to host a scavenger hunt for children if they aren't allowed to interact with the items. In every single room we entered, they were just barking orders: 'Don't touch, don't lean, don't do this, don't do that.' It was incredibly frustrating, especially given the heat. To make matters worse, one of the girls working with the tour guide kept complaining out loud, saying, 'Oh my God, oh my God, these kids.' It was very unprofessional. Vine a este lugar como acompañante en una excursión escolar. Tengo que empezar diciendo que todo el terreno exterior es más que increíble. Hay muchísimas plantas, flores y un invernadero hermoso. Todo afuera es espectacular y, a pesar del calor, fue un día muy bonito para pasarlo al aire libre. Los niños se lo pasaron genial y los padres que íbamos como chaperones también disfrutamos de la naturaleza; pudimos escuchar las aves, oler las flores y tomar fotos preciosas. Todo estuvo excelente desde esa perspectiva. Sin embargo, cuando hicimos el recorrido dentro del castillo, la situación cambió por completo. No hay aire acondicionado adentro y hacía mucho calor. ¡Imagínense tener a tantos niños dentro de un museo caluroso después de haber estado bajo el sol! Tenían una búsqueda del tesoro (scavenger hunt) para los niños, pero cuando ellos encontraban los objetos, el personal les decía de forma muy molesta y agresiva que no tenían permitido tocarlos. No tiene sentido organizar una búsqueda del tesoro para niños si no pueden interactuar con los objetos. En cada habitación a la que entrábamos, solo nos decían: 'No toquen, no se apoyen, no hagan esto, no hagan aquello'. Fue muy frustrante, especialmente por el calor. Para colmo, una de las muchachas que estaba con el guía no dejaba de quejarse diciendo: 'Ay Dios mío, ay Dios mío, estos niños'. Fue muy poco profesional.

Pretty lake. The lake is very clear, you can u can actually see through the water. There is a nice…read moreman-made waterfall and a "boardwalk" area where people stand and fish. I heard someone mention catching a wide-mouth bass. There was a few kayakers out enjoying the day. There is a small park with swings for the kiddies. I was there with my cat of course. She loved going into the foliage. It's a nice spot to picnic also!

The heyday of Yaphank has long passed (we're talking since the advent of electricity!) but it…read moreappears that the area must have received some government funding to spruce up the area with brick paths and bulkhead along the lake. So it's a fairly nice stop off area and it has a rural almost upstate NY feel. There are few "rural" areas left on Long Island and Yaphank, the town that time has forgotten, is a nice place to see what Long Island night have been like before the onslaught after 1945.

They don't grow hemp here, which is fine with me. They might, but I'm blissfully unaware of it…read more In-Stead they have a lot of good food. Hofstra and Adelphi and other Universities are here or nearby. It's a very dense suburb and really an extension of NYC. In some ways it's the capital of Long Island, in other ways it's like a less intense Queens or a more dense Staten Island. My friend lives here and we've shared a lot of food here over the years. Long Island food is underrated and enjoyable but nothing compared to Queens. The police here are sometimes very aggressive and protective, but it's still a great place to explore. Hempstead has almost a million people living in it - yes, one million. It's the 2nd largest city in NY and top 20 in the whole USA, except for the fact that it's not technically a city. But that's just a technicality. This is probably why there is so much to explore, to eat, and why it feels so dense here.

Location is extremely accessible with plenty of parking. Town of Hempstead Public Safety Officers…read moreare extremely pleasant, helpful and accommodating. We visiting late July 2021 to obtain our marriage license for our wedding in the Village of Cedarhurst. I want to send a special shout out and thanks to the extremely professional, kind and helpful folks in the Town Clerk's Marriage Licensing Bureau. Thanks for being so kind and helpful to Andrea and I and helping us to get our Marriage License without an "incident". J Staff in this Marriage License Bureau are extremely helpful, sympathetic, caring and efficient. A+ experience. Hopefully, I won't have to return back again. ;-) - LOL!

This is a small incorporated village on the south shore of long island and the west end of Suffolk…read morecounty. It is mostly known for the Amityville horror house.but there are a lot of stores and boutiques to visit, it also has some great restaurants. If you are into water it has a nice beach and a couple of marinas you could visit.

The Amityville horror house is very creepy.... What a tragedy that occurred in 1974....read more

I have no idea why I'm reviewing an iron (or whatever) bull; then again, this isn't just a bull,…read moreit's an oasis. For some reason when we were younger and all we did was drive around in the good il' days, listening to music, hitting record shops, finding cheap food, this. I'll represented our independence. This bull was always a strong reminder of feeling a little freedom. I've taken plenty of photos with this bull, from drunken escapades to somber and sober reminiscence... they will never be public Ah the Smithtown bull; now let's go to the famous duck!

Statue The Smithtown…read moreBull- everyone knows this landmark, conveniently located across from the worst strip club around; but I digress... This bull represents the bull that Captain John Smith rode in the Kentucky derby only to lose to Sea Biscuit, because Pocahontas was too heavy... Or, alternatively, this represents the bull that Richard Smith rode as far as he could in one day in order to gain as much land as he could from the chief of the Wyandanch Indians, in said ride. I like the 2nd version personally but no matter how much you suck at American History, you can rest assured that if you use this magnificent beast as a landmark, everyone will find their way to your house. Anatomically correct? You betcha - bronze junk and all.

Learning HISTORY is always worthwhile. This is one of best small tidbits of knowing a piece of…read morelocal History. Fascinating how it's right there among a beautiful residential area !

The secluded corner of Makamah Road and Hayes Hill Drive would seem an odd crossroads to find such…read morean archaic instrument of public intimidation and torture (as it's a bit off-the-beaten path), but here you have it, what they call "The Makamah Pillories." These double-headed stocks (see pic) are known to both snobbish locals (who see having the pillories only as a status symbol, pretending to be above the lowbrow vibe and fun entertainment factor here), and bottomfeeder, low level criminals, and drunks (who have found themselves in an uncomfortable position of humiliation and reprimand). Passers-by to this post are rare, and the possibility of a crowd gathering here is completely unfathomable: One who is bound here will likely be sobering up the better part of the night in a penance of solitude. . . Time is the corrector of erred judgments here, and I have learned much from the test, though my head, spine, and wrists do not want for a revisiting anytime soon.

We visit this lighthouse annually on our fire island trip. Volunteers are so friendly and love to…read moretalk about the history of the lighthouse. The walk up to the top, 182 steps is very doable! A few platforms to stop and catch your breath. The view at the top is unbeatable. Take the extra few steps up and you can see the light turning at the top!

If you haven't been to Fire Island's landmark lighthouse, have you REALLY been to Long Island??…read more Well, I grew up on LI and truthfully never made it over here til I started having out of town visitors. Lately though, as a semi-landlocked refugee from Ohioooooooooo, I make it a point (ha!) to get over (and up!) here every chance I get!! The beach is beautiful, (any/every season) the boardwalk hike (from Parking Lot 5) is VERY easy and scenic (look for deer!!) and the view from the top of this historic lighthouse is priceless!! There's a lighthouse museum next door to the lighthouse itself, which is worth a visit (very friendly/informative info/volunteers) but if you're in a rush (esp. toward the end of the day/sunset) head right over the lighthouse itself and get tickets for that climb/money shot!! If I'm able to do the climb with only minimal huffing and puffing (!!) you should be able to as well, and the AMAZING 365 degree view you'll find will be more than worth the "struggle!!" DO IT, L.I.!!!

Furman Square has been here forever, but was officially named and dedicated in 1993. It lies on…read morethe West side of South Ocean Avenue, just below Main Street (between Dragon and Phoenix Resturant (http://www.yelp.com/biz/dragon-and-phoenix-restaurant-patchogue#hrid:IVd-2YqxaIkZsNTd40EU6Q?fsid=9OcBmmLwE7sEZyvxsCEX-A) and Jimmy's Quality Shoe Repairing). The Square has a bench, a tree, some kind of Village Marker, and a one-way traffic inlet into the Church Street Municipal Parking Field. There is an unremarkable mural on the wall to the North, but the true attraction here is the Hans Gabali painting on the Southern wall. It features old-timey sights of South Ocean Avenue (see pics): 1. A dedication for the Incorporated Village Centennial. 2. Imagery of the (now bygone) Suffolk Traction Company. 3. The old Academy Street School (which is also gone). 4. An early Twentieth Century depiction of the Southeast buildings of the Four Corners. 5. The (still-there) Methodist Church (http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/U1-bhlcgRzGn7vQQzDBlPw?select=Ju0C1UqSeC40VwyY_JSvRw). 6. Colby's Ice Cream Parlor (formerly on the corner of South Ocean and Smith St., now relocated) 7. (What I assume is) The old Mascot Dock and Public Bathing Beach. It's a great mural and Patchogue is lucky to have a Gabali piece of such a historic and personal nature.