ooh, shiny!

[cellio]

I just learned about this one-week learning program (in July) at Yeshivat Hadar, an egalitarian yeshiva in Manhattan. The classes sound really engaging and meaty (click through for descriptions). Here's what they say is a typical day:

Morning:
7:30 am - Davening with Yeshiva community (optional for Seminar participants)
8:00 am - Breakfast
9:00 am - 12:30 am [sic] -- Text Classes offered for participants with varied levels of Jewish text experience, with special Talmud class for beginners, and an opportunity to integrate with Yeshivat Hadar's Talmud class for participants with Jewish text backgrounds.

Afternoon (all classes are with the Yeshivat Hadar fellows):
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm -- Lunch with the Yeshivat Hadar community
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm -- Halakhah Seminar with Rabbi Ethan Tucker
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm -- Break and Minhah (optional for Seminar participants)
4:00 pm - 6:30 pm -- Jewish Thought Seminar with Rabbi Shai Held (and Yeshivat Hadar students)

Evenings:
Dinner
Special Speakers
Nights out in NYC

I only know Hadar by reputation (of, mainly, the associated independent minyan, and what I read in Empowered Judaism by R. Tucker). Do any of my readers know more? They say they welcome students of diverse backgrounds; I assume the guiding principles (for learning and davening) are traditional.

Do I know anybody else who might attend? And is it actually practical to (1) lodge and (2) park a car in the upper west side? (Please take as given that I basically know nothing about NYC neighborhoods and precious little about getting around beyond "I hear good things about the subway system".)

Comments

[goljerp]

Some thoughts:

If you do drive to NYC, you could easilyleave it parked (or garaged - not sure about rates, but there is a garage across from JTS) and travel everywhere by bus or subway.

Places to stay: assuming you're not crashing with someone (I'd offer our couch, but we will probably be hosting someone that week already), you can investigate JTS guest rooms (just a few, but reasonable), or Union Theological Seminary Guest rooms (across the street from JTS). Of course, it looks like the Hadar stuff will be at 69th street, but that's not bad via subway (or about 35 min by bus). Regular Hotels in UWS are either a lot more expensive, or are not so great - I haven't checked it out recently, but my joke about Hotel Newton was, "Well, the gravity works!"

If you do come, we should figure out a way to get together. My minyan meets on the Saturday after that weekend (as does Hadar, of course). Or we could try to have dinner or something, but I'm sure the program will keep you busy.

[cellio]

Thanks for the info! (And the hotel warning. Hotel Newton sounds...special.) And yes, if I come I definitely want to try to get together with my friends there -- maybe even put some faces to names. :-)