Those of you who visited Bryant Park last winter probably remember being treated to an unexpected bit of comedy: watching people fall on their bums while attempting to ice skate at the Pond at Bryant Park. Well, it’s back again this year, and you can still skate for free (skate rentals cost $10, locker locks are $10).

The rink is scheduled to open tonight and will be open until mid-January 2008. Hours are Sunday - Thursday 8am - 10pm and Friday & Saturday 8am - midnight.

I didn’t get a chance to skate last year, but I hope to buy a used pair this year and get on ice skates for the first time in over fifteen years. That should be interesting.

In addition to skating, Bryant Park will also have a restaurant called Celsius and a bevy of holiday shops. I didn’t get to try the restaurant last winter, but it looked nice — kind of like an apres-ski resort restaurant — but I did go to some of the shops. I remember that I wanted to buy these weird, squishy hand-warmer things that were activated by snapping the metal coin inside, but they seemed too high maintenance (I think you had to boil the thing between uses). I also remember being amazed that the Sabon soap shop had its own sink inside its booth. Overall, Bryant Park wasn’t a bad place to kill some time during a lunch break.

Did anyone get to try the restaurant Celsius last year? How was it? What does everyone think about the shops and the ice skating rink taking over the park in the winter?