Peaceful energy and natural beauty mix with cultural history, only an hours drive from Manhattan. No planning or preparation required.
The Monastery is home to the largest buddha statue in the US, located in the main building. A large prayer/meditation area surrounds the statue. The monastery asks that you remove your shoes before entering the buildings. For this reason, i recommend wearing thick, warm socks.
The grounds of the Monastery are beautiful and tranquil, so visit on a sunny day. Saturdays and Sundays they offer vegetarian lunch from Noon - 1pm ($6). Some Saturdays there are guided tours at 1pm, check their web site before you visit. Seeing the monastery wont take more than a few hours and can be done in less time. It's underwhelming simplicity and quiet are what draw most, don't go expecting Chinese Disney Land.
Fall and early winter are a great time to visit the Monastery. They are closed Jan 1st thru March 1st, but are open for Chinese New Year's eve and day (Jan 30th and 31st). The New Year would be a splendid time to visit, although it will be considerably more crowded than usual.
USA is a magical place for anyone. But those suggestions you wrote about are great! I want to do snorkeling experince someday!
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