Franziska Castillo

Best way to get excited about food shoppingBelmont's Arthur Avenue Show your kids that the usually interminable trip to buy groceries can be fun—really! Step one: Pick up fresh pizza dough at Addeo Gennaro & Sons Bakery (2372 Hughes Ave at 186th St, 718-367-8316). Step two: Select bunches of basil, ripe tomatoes and house-made sausages at the Arthur Avenue Retail Market (2344 Arthur Ave between Crescent Ave and 186th St)—while dawdling long enough to squeal "eww" over the beef feet and brains. Step three: Score cheese at the aptly named Casa della Mozzarella (604 E 187th St between Arthur and Hughes Aves, 718-364-3867). Step four: Head home and make pizza in your own kitchen—the DIY satisfaction means it'll taste way better than anything your family could order in. arthuravenuebronx.com Best surprisingly clean river tripBronx River AllianceStrap the family into their life jackets and get psyched to slide down a sheer rock wall, paddle through a rarely seen part of the borough's botanical garden and hike around urban waterfalls. Yep, you're still in the Bronx. The nonprofit organization's eight-mile-long canoe and kayak trips aren't for wusses—your kids are pretty much guaranteed to get splashed—but they're safe. Even better, local cleanup efforts mean the river is, thankfully, no Gowanus. Outings run May through October; most are pay what you wish (718-430-4665, bronxriver.org) Best way to imagine you're part of the landed gentryVisit Wave Hill and the Bartow-Pell Mansion Mus