Spare Times for Dec. 27-Jan. Ice Skating (continuing) With the opening of a new rink at Prospect Park in Brooklyn - it replaces Wollman rink, built in 1961, and is now called the LeFrak Center at Lakeside - the number of rinks overseen by the city's Parks and Recreation Department is now nine. Students from nearby public schools were among the first to skate in the days before it officially opened, on Dec. 20. Each of the boroughs has at least one rink, with three in Brooklyn (also McCarren Rink in Williamsburg and Abe Stark Rink in Coney Island) and Manhattan (the Rink at Bryant Park, and Lasker Ice Skating Rink and Wollman Rink, both in Central Park). There are also the World Ice Arena at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink in the Bronx, and the World War II Veterans War Memorial Ice Skating Rink on Staten Island. For the LeFrak Center, enter the park at Parkside and Ocean Avenues. Hours and prices vary; skate rentals are available: nycgovparks.org. Nicole Herrington and Anne Mancuso Alice Austen House: "War and Peace" (through Sunday) More than 40 tintype images of active and retired members of the military, in uniform and civilian clothes, are included in this display of work by the photographer Melissa Cacciola. From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., 2 Hylan Boulevard, near Edgewater Street, Shore Acres, Staten Island, (718) 816-4506, aliceausten.org; donation, $3. American Museum of Natural History: "Kwanzaa 2013: 35th annual Celebration" (Saturday) This holiday event - featuring the Impact Repertory Theater, the Ugandan poet Emilia Ottoo, the Restoration Dance Theater Company, Balance Dance Theater, the filmmaker MK Asante and the storyteller Linda Humes, who serves as the host - will have an international market, raffles and other family activities. From noon to 5 p.m., Central Park West and 79th Street, (212) 769-5200, amnh.org; $22, $17 for students and 65+, $12.50 for ages 2 to 12, free for museum members. Merchant's House Museum: "New Year's Day Open House" (Wednesday) Celebrate New Year's Day, 19th-century style, with readings, punch and confectioneries to renew, revive and reaffirm friendships. From 2 to 5 p.m., 29 East Fourth Street, East Village, (212) 777-1089, merchantshouse.org; $20, $10 for members. Reservations are required. It can be viewed Sundays through Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; closed New Year's Day; closes at 5 p.m. on New Year's Eve. Museum of the Moving Image: "Indie Essentials: 25 Must-Play Video Games" (through March 2) Visitors can dive into the world of independent video games at this exhibition, presented by the Museum of the Moving Image and IndieCade: the International Festival of Independent Games. Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Monday through Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; 35th Avenue at 37th Street, Astoria, Queens, (718) 784-0077, movingimage.us; $12; $9 for students and 65+; $6 for ages 3 to 12; free for under 3. Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays until 7 p.m.; Friday through Wednesday, daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Closed New Year's Day; open until 5 p.m. on New Year's Eve. "New Year's Eve Concert for Peace" (Tuesday) A tradition started by Leonard Bernstein in 1984, this year's concert will feature Kent Tritle conducting the cathedral choir and orchestra in Mozart's Symphony No. 41, Handel's Organ Concerto in F and selections from Franz Joseph Haydn's oratorio "The Creation." Judy Collins is the guest artist; the soloist include the soprano Jamet Pittman and the baritone John Michael Moore; and the organist is Raymond Nagem. At 7 p.m., Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Avenue, at 112th Street, Morningside Heights, (212) 316-7490, stjohndivine.org; a limited number of seats are free and available on a first come first served basis; ticketed seats start at $30. New York Boat Show (Wednesday through Jan. 5) What better way to start the new year than by diving into this renowned 108-year-old boat show? This year it promises yachts, kayaks, marine electronics, fishing gear and more. If the equipment alone doesn't excite, you can also book outdoor adventures and explore possible travel destinations. Wednesday through next Friday from noon to 9 p.m.; Jan. 4 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Jan. 5 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, 655 West 34th Street, Manhattan, (212) 216-2000, javitscenter.com; $15; 15 and younger, free with an adult. New York Road Runners Midnight Run (Tuesday) Warm up for this four-mile run with dancing and a costume parade before setting off at the stroke of midnight under a blanket of fireworks. The celebratory race begins on the 72nd Street Transverse, swings past Cat Hill toward the reservoir, gives its participants a complimentary glass of sparkling cider on the 102nd Street Transverse, and finishes after a series of hills heading south along West Drive. Pre-race and post-race festivities are scheduled at the Central Park Bandshell from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. Online registration closes on Saturday at 11:59 p.m. Runners can register at New York Road Runners (9 East 89th Street) on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday from 1 to 7 p.m., and Tuesday 1 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., Central Park, 70th Street at Mineral Springs, (855) 569-6977, nyrr.org; registration fees range from $25 to $65. "Brooklyn Bridge Walk Into the New Year" (Tuesday) Learn about 19th-century New York City during a tour that covers City Hall and the Brooklyn Bridge, with a possible bonus sighting of area fireworks. Multiple times from 10:15 to 11:15 p.m., meeting in front of 160 Broadway, newyorktalksandwalks.com, (888) 377-4455; $40 in advance, $50 day of walk. "Edgar Allan Poe and His Ghostly Neighbors of Greenwich Village" (Saturday and Sunday) This search for the ghost of Edgar Allan Poe and others, led by New York Talks and Walks, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at Fire Patrol Station No. 2, 85 West Third Street, Greenwich Village, (646) 493-7092, ghostsofny.com; $20 by credit card, $25 in cash. Flatiron District Walking Tour (Sunday) This free tour of the Flatiron district meets at 11 a.m. on the southwest corner of Madison Square Park, at 23rd Street and Broadway, in front of the William Seward statue. "Happy New Year's Day Hike" (Wednesday) This Shorewalkers walk along the shoreline of northern Manhattan will pass parks and historic sites. It meets at noon at the information booth of the Port Authority Bus Terminal, Broadway and 178th Street, Washington Heights, (212) 663-2167; donation, $3. Hot Cider Tour of the Lower East Side (Sunday) Sip on hot cider and enjoy authentic eats - bialys from Kossar's and pickles from the Pickle Guys - while exploring Lower East Side landmarks that detail life of the Jewish immigrant community. Meet at the museum at 2 p.m., Museum at Eldridge Street, 12 Eldridge Street, Lower East Side, (212) 219-0888, eldridgestreet.org, bit.ly/1edlsaf; $20; $15 students and 60+. "Multiethnic Eating Tour" (Friday and Sunday) Let the holiday noshing continue on this culinary tour of the Lower East Side led by Big Onion Walking Tours. It meets on Friday and Sunday at 1 p.m. on the southwest corner of Delancey and Essex Streets; (888) 606-9255, bigonion.com; $25, $20 for students, active members of the military and 65+. "Victorian Christmas: Origins of Christmas Traditions" (Saturday and Sunday) Several Manhattan neighborhoods with a rich holiday literary tradition - including Gramercy Park and Chelsea - will be included in this walk sponsored by NYC Discovery Tours. Starting at 2 p.m., the walk will cover sites associated with authors who wrote about Christmas, including O. Henry, Clement Clarke Moore and Washington Irving. Reservations and meeting place: (212) 465-3331; $20.