A tourist’s Christmas in Midtown: First, the tree

A bit north and east, Barneys New York, at 666 Madison Ave. near 61st, is celebrating characters from a different genre: Its holiday windows feature favorites from “Saturday Night Live” like Roseanne Roseannadanna, the Church Lady, and Wayne and Garth, in the form of lifesize papier-mache ornaments.

Now head west. At 959 Eighth Ave., near 57th Street, you’ll notice a notable 21st century addition to the skyline: The Hearst Tower, its exterior framed with a grid of triangles that makes it easy to pick out from blocks away. Inside the lobby you will find a “spectacular waterfall,” said Matthew A. Postal, a researcher at the New York City Landmarks Commission and co-author of “Ten Architectural Walking Tours in Manhattan.”

Other skyscrapers worth seeking out, Postal said, include these monuments to 20th century Modernism: the Seagram Building, 375 Park Ave. at 52nd Street, and Lever House, 390 Park, between 53rd and 54th. At 42nd Street and Park, Grand Central Terminal is noted for its Beaux Arts design, and of course, back where you started, Rockefeller Center offers sleek Art Deco buildings and what Postal called “wonderful public spaces.”

One addition to midtown this holiday season is a gingerbread display at Le Parker Meridien Hotel, 119 W. 56th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues. Famous bakeries around the city, including Magnolia, Billy’s, Buttercup and the Cupcake Cafe, plus the hotel’s restaurant, Norma’s, created eight gingerbread houses that range from depictions of Grand Central to the Three Little Pigs. Stop by the hotel concierge desk and buy a $1 ballot to vote on your favorite; the money goes to City Harvest, which supplies programs that feed the city’s poor. Your ballot also enters you in a raffle for a trip to the hotel’s sister property in California, the Parker Palm Springs.

Nearby, the Official NYC Information Center at 810 Seventh Ave., between 52nd and 53rd streets, offers high-tech help for tourists as well as old-fashioned concierge services. Use interactive map tables to create itineraries that can be printed or sent to your phone or e-mail. Pick up sample neighborhood itineraries, ask the multi-lingual staff for help in booking tickets, or buy MetroCards (subway passes). If you prefer to plan before you hit town, visit http://www.nycgo.com.

Wander through the theater district to Times Square, using the new pedestrian plaza that runs along Broadway from 47th to 42nd streets. The TKTS discount ticket booth is at 47th.

If you liked the MOMA Design Store, you won’t want to miss the Muji store, at 620 Eighth Ave. and 40th Street. MOMA has some Muji items, but here you’ll find a larger selection of housewares, accessories and clothes in elegantly simple designs.

Nearby, The Pond at Bryant Park, 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue, offers free ice skating (admission is free, though you pay for skate rental). The park also hosts a holiday vendors’ market, as does Grand Central, a few blocks east.

To find interesting but moderately priced places to eat, I did what any self-respecting traveler would do these days: I posted a Facebook message, asking for recommendations from friends who live in Manhattan, work here or visit often.

The results, which include a few choices as far west as 10th Avenue, are as good as any guidebook or Web site: Wu Liang Ye, 36 W. 48th St., Szechuan Chinese food; Toloache, 251 W. 50th St., Mexican; Uncle Nick’s, 747 Ninth Ave., Greek; Hourglass Tavern, 373 W. 46th St., where vegetarians and carnivores can both find happiness; Taboon, 773 10th Ave., Middle Eastern; Aaheli, 826 Ninth Ave., Indian; and Meskerem, 468 W. 47th St., Ethiopian.

If those sound too adventurous for your tastes, La Bonne Soup, 48 W. 55th St., has a $17.25 meal with soup, salad, bread, dessert and beverage. Or go for burgers at Ted’s Montana Grill, 110 W. 51st St., or Prime Burger, 5 E. 51st Street. Finally, for fantastic coffee and cupcakes with the most beautiful frosting flowers you have ever seen, go to the Cupcake Cafe, 545 Ninth Ave.

One more spot worth visiting on your Christmas tour of midtown is St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The grand church on Fifth Avenue between 50th and 51st streets offers a way to contemplate the meaning of Christmas without all the shopping and the frenzy. It’s just a block from the Rockefeller Center tree, but it can sometimes feel a world away.