For many of the Manhattanites who attend the Winter Wonderland Ball at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, getting there is half the fun. "We were totally lost, but then I just turned on the GPS, made a few turns, and we were here," said Eleanor Ylvisaker, shivering off Friday's arctic chill as she made her way into the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. "My husband doesn't believe in GPS, but luckily, I do."

During cocktail hour, the air was abuzz with toy trains chugging over a mile's worth of tracks and the sound of young women, most of whom wore Escada, courtesy of the evening's main sponsor, exchanging compliments. None received more than Kerry Washington, whose floor-length blue-and-silver halter dress matched the canopy of the tent where dinner was held. "I didn't plan it this way, I swear!" she said. After dining on filet mignon and mashed sweet potatoes, Giorgio Armani's Christian Leone stayed to spin and dip Cristina Greeven Cuomo and Tinsley Mortimer all over the dance floor. "You know, I've never been to this event," shouted Erika Christensen over Justin Timberlake's Sexyback. "But I was just saying that I want to come again next year." Her driver must have GPS, too.