By Renee Baruch

Holiday weekends on the Upper West Side start early. You feel it the week before: fewer people crowding the supermarkets; fewer kids being escorted to and from camp or school by parents or caretakers; fewer riders on the buses and subways.

By the Wednesday or Thursday night before the long weekend, you can see families packing up what seems like all their worldly goods to escape from the greatest city on Earth. They head to the mainland — to the north, the west, the east-end traffic of the Hamptons, and the car-free oasis of Fire Island.

Friday night traffic isn’t like it used to be before a holiday weekend, because so many people leave town early now. But it is still a fearsome monster. By late Friday night, though, peace descends on the Upper West Side and it is delicious.

Labor Day weekend also brings a touch of nostalgia to the Upper West Side. It isn’t hard to spot the Columbia University freshman walking along with a set of parents in tow as they try to navigate our neighborhood. And if you look carefully, you can also see the Juilliard student trying to be totally cool and not gawk. 

The elevator comes the instant it is called; it is as quiet as a suburb on the street; and parking places abound. The number 7 bus becomes my own private limo service. I LOVE holiday weekends. For the first time in many years I am home to enjoy them, and I have discovered what I have been missing.

The tourists are still here in great numbers, and they crowd all the usual places at the usual times. Blockbusters at the Museum of Natural History and the dinosaur exhibits are still going to be horribly crowded. But the New-York Historical Society, Museum of Art and Design, and Film at Lincoln Center are considerably less crowded than they would be on a normal weekend. There are so many places where the delights of our neighborhood can be enjoyed in relatively solitary splendor.

You can get reservations at any restaurant — at least the local ones. Actually, skip the reservation and just walk in! Happily, a lot of errands won’t get done over these three days, because so many small establishments – dry cleaners, shoe repair shops, and other service businesses have closed for the holiday.

You are forced to enjoy what is laid out before you. Partake!

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