Meeting up outside the Olde English in Albany.
Maeve started the tour off with some bits about Albany, and a quick tour through the Ten Broeck Triangle. She also threatened to quack Duncan.
Duncan appeared ready for the challenge.
After heading up I-787, we crossed the river into South Troy, made a stop at the Burden Iron Works, and then headed up town. / photo: Andy Kainz
The Poestenkill. / photo: Andy Kainz
/ photo: Andy Kainz
First snack stop: Famous Lunch.
Mini hotdog. / photo: Andy Kainz
We kept heading north, past the Green Island Bridge where Rockin' on the River was going on.
Troy mayor Lou Rosamilia waves as the Aqua Duck rolls by.
Back toward Monument Square.
Next snack stop: Bacchus, where owner Jim Scully and a bunch of friends had dressed up in togas. And they had pizza for us! / photo: Andy Kainz
Note Paul's eggcellent shirt.
photo: Andy Kainz
photo: Andy Kainz
photo: Andy Kainz
After heading down by Washington Park and Sage, it was back over the river toward Albany.
photo: Andy Kainz
Past the Central Warehouse. Chris, our Duck driver, is also an Albany firefighter. He was part of the crew that fought the big fire there a few years back.
Back in Albany, we headed for a "splash down" in the Hudson. River cruise snack: fudge fancies from the Cookie Factory in Troy.
Now we're on a boat.
photo: Andy Kainz
photo: Andy Kainz
By the end of the tour, even Maeve had come around on Troy. A little bit.
The Duck makes a stop in Troy.
The Troy > Albany AOA Aqua Duck tour was yesterday evening. And it was a lot of fun! (Also: hot, very hot.) Thanks to everyone who came along!
Serving as guide and Troy advocate was Duncan Crary. Maeve McEneny defended the honor of Albany. They both were great, sharing interesting historical facts -- and a few jabs back and forth.
Big thanks to the Albany Aqua Ducks -- and sponsors Brown's Brewing, the Arts Center of the Capital Region, Bacchus Wood Fired Pizza, and the Olde English Pub and Pantry. Also: thanks to Enjoy Troy for t-shirts and prizes, and Andy Kainz for the photos.
Here are a bunch of photos from the tour...
The photos are in large format above -- scroll all the way up.
Wait, there's more!
+ Here's a good photoset from Tim Dawkins, who was on the tour.
+ And Andrew Beam from the Record came along to write an article about it.
Another tour? A bunch of people have asked if there will be another tour. The answer is: maybe. We'd like to, but there are a lot of details involved. We'll see if we can work them out.
The Scoop
For a decade All Over Albany was a place for interested and interesting people in New York's Capital Region. It was kind of like having a smart, savvy friend who could help you find out what's up. AOA stopped publishing at the end of 2018.
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Comments
Famous, Fudge Fancies, and pizza = awesome.
Troy rules.
... said Welf on Jun 21, 2012 at 11:51 AM | link
And a very special thanks to Linda Passaretti and Tom Reynolds, the creators of the Enjoy Troy! meme and merchandise for their generous donation of Enjoy Troy! mugs, t-shirts, keychains, magnets, stickers and more for the folks on the tour.
You can purchase Enjoy Troy! merch at:
Art Centric Gallery
266 River Street
(across from Arts Center )
The Book Outlet
49 4th Street
(The Uncle Sam Atrium)
The River Street Beat Shop
197 River Street
(Antiques District)
Re:Vision Designs
169 River Street
(Antiques District
... said Duncan Crary on Jun 21, 2012 at 11:52 AM | link
Next time have some respect for the people that live there and don't sit in one place blasting music.
Editors: We apologize that the tour caused a problem for you. We've emailed you for more details so that can we avoid the problem if the tour runs again.
... said Jeremy on Jun 21, 2012 at 12:29 PM | link
Such a fun time! Thanks again for putting this together, and to Duncan and Maeve for being such great tour guides!
... said Lisa Barone (@LisaBarone) on Jun 21, 2012 at 1:02 PM | link
Stop being a grump Jeremy. It was a Wednesday evening, and not particularly late. You chose to live in a city, that means you live in a close proximity to public spaces, where loud things happen on occassion.
If a one-off five minute interlude of loud music is such a hassle you can't permit it to pass without comment then sadly, its time to jack your belt up to just under your chin, wear socks with sandals, and grease up your walker, because you're officially an old fogey.
... said Ike on Jun 21, 2012 at 1:35 PM | link
What Ike said...seriously. Want some cries with that whamburger? We live across the street from the Armory - you wouldn't last one week...
Such a fun time, and a really fun crowd. Great tour guides, great hosts, and great sponsors. Definitely looking forward to doing it again!
... said Dan On Spring Street on Jun 21, 2012 at 11:27 PM | link
I happened to be a couple blocks down the street when the loud music happened, and agree that it was excessive. It was REALLY loud, not just loud, and I think it went on for a lot longer than five minutes. If the goal was to blast the eardrums of the diners at Daisy Miller, they could have done it with half the decibels.
... said Burnt My Fingers on Jun 22, 2012 at 6:42 AM | link
A) It's Daisy Bakers. The diners were fine with it.
B) If the music bothered you, get up, walk out the door, and say something. The dancing people in togas would have turned it down and given you a slice of pizza for your troubles. Don't sit there fuminig and then whine about it after the fact.
Having fun on a weekday? WON'T SOMEONE THINK OF THE CHILDREN????
... said Cmaxby on Jun 22, 2012 at 8:31 AM | link
@Jeremy @Burnt My Fingers,
Perhaps a technicality, but to clarify: The music was from Bacchus, one of the sponsors of this event. "We" (the tour hosts) weren't blasting music from the Aqua Duck.
The music lasted for about 10 minutes. It started a little before 8 p.m. It was for a wonderful, whimsical sort of flash mob activity that was created and implemented by residents and business owners in the neighborhood. It was, in short: people using and having fun with their city. I'm sure that those involved will probably never forget it. And I hope we get to do it again ... with music.
Maybe I'm just reading into it, but I get the impression from Jeremy that he thinks we were "outsiders" swooping into his neighborhood and disrespectfully blasting music before taking off, never to return.
For the record, Jeremy:
I was the tour guide for the Troy portion. I've lived on First Street directly behind Daisy Baker's and Bacchus for 10 years. So I'm from the block. So were at least three other people who were on the Duck that night. And several of the patrons at Bacchus/Daisy's who were joining in the festivities were all from THAT block. The owner of Bacchus lives in the neighborhood, and has been operating a restaurant in that location and enriching our community for a very long time. He was the original owner of Daisy's when it re-opened. (What would life be like downtown without Daisy's?)
The new owner of Daisy's and the patrons there that evening were aware of what was going to happen. So no, the goal was not to blast their eardrums, "Burnt My Fingers." And fyi, it's Daisy Baker's not Daisy Miller. Daisy Miller is a character (from Schenectady) in a Henry James story.
I am sorry for any of my neighbors were disturbed during this brief activity. If we do it again, I'm sure all of us involved will consider the volume and the duration.
Now here are some things for both of you to consider:
There's live outdoor music in this neighborhood quite often during the summer and I think it enhances the experience of living in this city...in the downtown business district...where I myself live, work and play.
Last Saturday there were loud, live bands all day on three different stages in this neighborhood from 10 a.m. till 9:30 p.m.. during River Street Fest and then the Bootlegger's block party afterwards. It was great.
There's live loud music outside of The River Street Beat Shop (that you can definitely hear on Second St) every Saturday and Sunday. Love it.
Then there are special concerts in Monument Square like They Might Be Giants and Eddy Money. Love it.
There are also loud live city sponsored concerts every Wednesday night at Rockin' on the River. In fact, that was occurring in Troy at the same time we did our event on Second Street. Love it. More please.
Everyone is entitled to have their own opinion. And it's important to be respectful of others. But I am of the opinion that the fun musical interlude this past Wednesday night was fantastic and I hope it happens again.
I alway use my real, full name when I communicate with others. And I speak to people directly if I have a complaint about their behavior or even just a polite suggestion. (I even use my real, full name when I'm being a jerk! Online or off.) I respect and appreciate when others do too. So if either of you ever have a problem with me or something I'm doing in our neighborhood, contact me directly and use your real, full name. My website has my photo and my contact info so you can reach me or recognize me on the street.
... said Duncan Crary on Jun 22, 2012 at 9:52 AM | link
Well put as usual, Duncan.
... said Aram on 2nd St. on Jun 22, 2012 at 1:07 PM | link
Well, I'm sorry a few didn't enjoy the music, but I and my twitter friend Amy had a great and memorable time. I hope they do it again and I really appreciate the sponsors who were so gracious and generous.
... said FoFacy on Jun 22, 2012 at 1:09 PM | link
Aaaaand game, set, match goes to Duncan.
... said Lisa Barone (@LisaBarone) on Jun 22, 2012 at 1:10 PM | link
I figured i'd pipe up on this article.
I'm the DJ that played the music. We set it up at the last minute with a single speaker, to play a quick rundown of Shout by The Temptations. We use at least two of these speakers indoors, every time Troy Night Out afterparty is held at Daisy Baker's. I didn't have sufficient time to tune the volume levels for the neighborhood, since the AquaDucks literally turned the block, just as I plugged the speaker in.
We were then asked to play some music for a conga line around the AquaDucks, as Bacchus brought pizza out to those onboard.
I've lived in Troy over a decade, been a part of the late-night musical scene and enjoy the various festivities Troy offers, especially during the warmer months.
I'm sorry to say, I've stopped listening to the complaints of "residents" who move into a neighborhood, then expect it to be as quiet as a suburban home. If you want that kind of environment, move to Clifton Park. If you live on a city block where the Farmer's Market, River Fest and Bootlegger's broadcast their entertainment outloud, be prepared to understand tolerance and perhaps go outside and enjoy the festivities. After all, this is a city and while you're grumping indoors about "Your" neighborhood, the rest of us were outside having a good time.
The traffic held up at the intersection even enjoyed the fun.
So, live a little ;)
... said Eric Cintron on Jun 22, 2012 at 1:34 PM | link
I'm sorry I missed this awesome time, and appreciate all the photos. I was sorry to hear the updates about the Aquaducks today. I'd been hoping to go on the Pirate edition one of these days. Ah well. AOA, keep up with the cool stuff!
... said Laura on Jul 5, 2012 at 2:58 PM | link