Carnival – Salem Happenings

Getting Your Kids Ready for School?

With the end of summer just around the corner, kids and parents everywhere are getting ready for the new school year. However, there’s no reason that your kids necessarily need to abandon all the fun just yet. In fact, if you’re looking for a couple of fun, but somewhat educational activities that will help your kids get back into a learning mindset and have one last hurrah before the 2015 – 2016 school year starts, I may have just the events for you.

The first place that you may want to check out, especially if your kids are into history or you wish they were, is Georges Island. This is because Georges Island has a number of events specifically designed to teach kids about the Civil War. Some of the events that are scheduled to take place at Georges Island this weekend include an interactive kids’ tour of Fort Warren entitled “Storming the Fort”; a Civil War Dress-Up that will give your kids the opportunity to not only learn about some of the clothing that kids and adults would have worn during the Civil War but also to wear some of it; a Civil War Lawn Games event that will give your kids the opportunity to play some of the games that kids and adults played during the mid-1800’s; and the Legend of the Lady in Black, which will let you and your kids hear the story of Mrs. Andrew Lanier, a woman whose ghost has been said to haunt the fort since she was imprisoned there in the early 1860’s. For more information on the events at Georges Island, which are free and open to the public, please visit the Boston Harbor Islands’ Events page.

The second place that you may want to check out, especially if you would like to expose your kids to a different culture, is the Boston Carnival Village. The Boston Carnival Village is a street festival that is specifically designed to create the same celebratory atmosphere that you would feel during Carnival in Trinidad. The biggest part of the festival is, of course, the Trini Style Carnival Parade, which begins at 1:00 P.M. tomorrow (Saturday, August 28, 2015) on Blue Hill Avenue in Boston and ends in front of the Franklin Park Zoo. This parade typically features Caribbean bands, dancers, and masqueraders in a huge assortment of colorful costumes marching by a festival filled with arts and crafts, food, CDs, DVDs, and more. For more information on the Boston Carnival Village, please visit the Boston Carnival Village website.

Girl in Civil War Dress Photo Credit: WalterPro4755 / Foter / CC BY
Carnival Dancer Photo Credit: LukePricePhotography / Foter / CC BY

The First Day of Spring

Today may be the first day of spring, but it certainly doesn’t look like it. In fact, looking out the window at the lightly falling snow, it looks a lot more like the first day of winter than the day that all of the buds are supposed to start becoming flowers once again. Some might even go as far as to say that it feels like we’re stuck in our own version of Groundhog Day reliving the same weather over and over again (and, who knows, maybe that’s what the groundhog was trying to say when he bit the mayor.) Fortunately, winter will eventually come to an end, and we’ll be able to start complaining about 90 degrees days and the fact that we could probably cook an egg on the sidewalk. However, until then, if you’re looking for a way to get outside and have some fun, you may want to check out the Revere Spring Carnival.

The Revere Spring Carnival, which is located in the Showcase Cinemas parking lot at 565 Squire Road in Revere, is a three-week event sponsored by the McCarthy-Trifone Recreation Committee. This event will feature all of your typical carnival fare, including rides, games, food, and a petting zoo. The Revere Spring Carnival is scheduled to open this Thursday (March 26, 2015) and will continue operating daily until April 19, 2015. For more information on the Carnival, please visit the Fiesta Shows website.

If, on the other hand, you’re really looking for something to do this weekend and/or you would prefer an activity that is more environmentally friendly, you may want to head over to the Franklin Park Zoo. This is because the Franklin Park Zoo is holding their World Water Day Celebration from 10:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. Sunday (March 22, 2015.) This celebration will not only allow to you see all of the animals and engage in all of the fun that the zoo typically offers but will also teach you about the different ways that the zoo attempts to conserve water and the ways that you may be able to help conserve water at home. And, if that wasn’t enough, there will even be hands-on activities conducted by staff from the New England Aquarium. For more information on the World Water Day Celebration at Franklin Park Zoo, which is included in the zoo’s normal admission price, please visit the Zoo New England Events page.

Photo credit: Evil Erin / Foter / CC BY

A Festival Weekend

The kids may be back in school and the warm weather may be about to disappear (at least a night) but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the fun has to end. In fact, now that the kids are back in school, there are a lot of people that are trying to take advantage of the nicer weather while they still can. As a result, this weekend has become sort of a festival weekend with everything from animals to music in the spotlight. And, if you’re looking for a way to enjoy the warm weather before the fall arrives, there’s no better way than to check out some of these festivals:

Animals

1. If you’re a dog fan, you may want to check out Pooch A Palooza. Pooch A Palooza is a dog festival that is scheduled to take place from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. tomorrow (September 6, 2014) and 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. Sunday (September 7, 2014) at the Topsfield Fairgrounds in Topsfield, MA. This festival features dog contests, dog play areas, dog tricks, food, games, kid’s activities and crafts, music, vendors, and more. For more information on the festival, which is of course dog friendly, please visit the Pooch A Palooza website.

2. If you’re more of a cat fan than a dog fan, you may want to check out the Gifford Cat Shelter’s Fall Festival. The Gifford Cat Shelter’s Fall Festival is a cat festival that runs from 1:00 P.M. to 4:00 P.M. tomorrow (September 6, 2014) at the Ellen M. Gifford Cat Shelter in Brighton, MA. This festival features an “Ask the Vet” session, cat crafts for sale, face painting, food, games, an opportunity to meet some of the shelter cats, and more. Best of all the festival is completely free to attend, and any money that you spend on cat crafts or other items at the festival will go to the cats. For more information on the Gifford Cat Shelter’s Fall Festival, please visit the Gifford Cat Shelter’s event page.

Cultural

1. If you love big colorful parades like the ones you might see during Carnival, the Cambridge Carnival International may be exactly what you’re looking for. This is because the Cambridge Carnival International is a parade and street festival that is designed to give you the experience of what Carnival would be like in the Caribbean or Africa without leaving the country. The parade, which starts near the Charles River at River Street and Blackstone Street in Cambridge, MA at 12:30 P.M. on Sunday (September 7, 2014) and ends near MIT, features a number of musicians, dancers, and masqueraders covered in beads, feathers, plumes, jewels, and everything else that you would expect from Carnival. The street festival, which is located in Kendall Square near MIT, will feature arts and crafts, balloon art, DJ’s, face painting, food (including African, Caribbean, Haitian, Indian, Jamaican, and traditional American cuisines), music, and more. For more information on the Cambridge Carnival International, which includes a number of free events, please visit the Cambridge Carnival International website.

Music

1. If you’re a big fan of local bands that have musicians that are actually from the area and not musicians that have been trucked in from somewhere else , the JP Music Festival may be the festival for you. This is because the JP Music Festival requires each of the bands in it to have at least one member that currently lives or works in the Jamaica Plain area. This means that you can expect to hear Bed of Coals, Bowleg Bradford, Cask Mouse, Morris and the East Coast, and a whole bunch of other bands you’ve probably never heard of but will still rock your socks off. For more information on the JP Music Festival, which runs from 12:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M. tomorrow at Jamaica Pond in Jamaica Plain, please visit the JP Music Festival website.

2. If you’re a big fan of local bands, but they don’t have to be that local or that sane, the New England Underground Music Festival may be more to your taste. This is because the New England Underground Music Festival, which runs from 6:00 P.M. today (September 5, 2014) to 12:30 A.M. on Sunday (September 7, 2014) at Cuisine en Locale in Somerville, MA, prides itself on finding and featuring the strangest collection of, as they put it, “weird, insane, beautiful” bands from the New England area. For more information on the New England Underground Festival, please visit the New England Underground Music Festival website.

3. If you’d rather hear someone you’ve actually heard of or at least someone who’s likely to be the next big thing, Boston Calling may be more what you’re looking for. This is because Boston Calling is a large music Festival at the City Hall Plaza in Boston, MA that runs from today (September 5, 2014) at 6:00 P.M. to Sunday (September 7, 2014) at 11:00 P.M that features some well-known bands and some up-and-coming bands that have opened for well-known acts like Fallout Boy. For more information on Boston Calling and/or to order tickets, please visit the Boston Calling Music Festival website.

4. Finally, for those of you out there who love music, but really wouldn’t consider most of the stuff at these other festivals as music, there is always the 35th Annual Banjo and Fiddle Contests at Boarding House Park in Lowell, MA tomorrow (September 6, 2014) from 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. This festival of dueling banjos and fiddles will feature a number of kids activities, informal jam sessions, and musicians competing to demonstrate their musical skill in nine categories ranging from young musicians to the Southern Appalachian Old Time style. For more information on the 35th Annual Banjo and Fiddle Contests, please visit the National Park Services’ Lowell Events page.

Photo CreditsCat and Dog Photo Credit: meknits / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)
Carnival Parade Photo Credit: experience Madeira, Algarve, Brazil !! / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)
Flaming Guitar Photo Credit: Yuri Samoilov Photo / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

The Back to School Blues (or the Back to School Jamboree?)

If you had any doubt that the end of the summer was rapidly approaching, you could probably remove that doubt with a single look at the events for this weekend. In fact, with children heading back to school in the very near future, most places realize that it’s virtually impossible to get a large number of people at any event. As a result, a lot of event coordinators just seem to give up around this time of year, and there’s not a whole lot going on. However, regardless of whether you’re sad to see the summer go or you’re doing the childless cha-cha in honor of the new school year, there’s still time to have some fun this weekend.

First, if you’ve always wanted to go to Carnival, but you’ve never had the time, money, and/or the inclination to leave the country, you may want to check out the Boston Carnival Parade this weekend. The Boston Carnival Parade is a parade and street festival that is designed to give you the experience of what Carnival would be like in Trinidad without leaving the state of Massachusetts. The parade, which starts on Blue Hill Avenue in Boston, MA at 1:00 P.M. tomorrow (Saturday, August 23, 2014) and ends near the Franklin Park Zoo, features a number of Caribbean musicians, dancers, and masqueraders in costumes that are sure to get your attention. The street festival and food court, which is located right in front of the Franklin Park Zoo, will feature arts and crafts, food (including both Caribbean and traditional American cuisines), music, and more. For more information on the Boston Carnival Parade, which is also known as the Caribbean Festival Parade, please visit the Boston Carnival Village website.

Secondly, if you’re longing for a time not so long ago and not so far away when people took wooden ships onto the open sea, the Antique & Classic Boat Festival in Salem, MA may have exactly what you’re looking for. The Antique & Classic Boat Festival, which runs from 11:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. on Saturday (August 23, 2014) and 10:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. on Sunday (August 24, 2014), will feature artists, a crafts fair, music, a touch tank, a variety of antique and classic ships ranging anywhere from 50 to approximately 200 years old, and more. For more information on the Antique & Classic Boat Festival in Salem, MA, please visit the Antique & Classic Boat Festival website.

Finally, if you’re looking for something to do with your kids and they’re just suckers for a good Disney movie, especially one with a particularly well-known ice queen, the Hatch Shell in Boston will definitely put a smile on their faces tonight. This is because the last movie in this summer’s Free Friday Flicks series, presented by WBZ, is a sing-a-long version of the popular Disney film, Frozen. For more information on this completely free showing of Frozen at the Hatch Shell, which begins at sundown tonight (August 22, 2014), please visit the CBS Boston website.

Photo credit: Jlhopgood / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-ND 2.0)

How to Have Some Winter Fun in New England

New England has been known for its harsh winters ever since the first English settlers stepped foot upon its soil. However, just because the area is regularly buried in snow with a temperature ranging anywhere from 0 to 50 and a wind chill of who knows what doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t enjoy the weather outside. In fact, if your children are going a little stir crazy (and, in turn, driving you crazy), there are a couple of wintry activities this weekend that are sure to put a smile on everyone’s face.

First, if you and/or your kids have always loved snow tubing, you should definitely check out Amesbury Sports Park. This is because Amesbury Sports Park boasts the steepest snow tubing hill in all of New England, and with 8 lanes that are kept almost constantly snow-covered during the winter (temperature allowing), your entire family should have no problem enjoying the hill over and over again. Best of all, it’s only $27 a person for up to three hours of snow tubing, and you don’t have to buy your own tube. It is important to remember though that you cannot bring your own sled, and you will have to sign a waiver for each person going down the hill before anyone in your group can go sledding. For more information on Amesbury Sports Park and its facilities, please visit the Amesbury Sports Park website or call 978-388-5788 ext. 106.

Secondly, if really steep hills seem a little unnecessary to you and/or the price of tubing doesn’t really sound like such a great deal when you have eight kids, you may want to take a trip down to Holyoke, Massachusetts. This is because the Third Annual Holyoke Winter Carnival runs from today, February 7th to Sunday, February 16th, 2014. This event will give you and your family the opportunity to enjoy arts and crafts, chili cook-offs, dancing, hockey, hot chocolate, ice-skating, music, quilts, races, scavenger hunts, and a whole lot more. For more information on the Third Annual Holyoke Winter Carnival, please visit the Holyoke Winter Carnival website.

Photo credit: gfpeck / Foter / CC BY-ND

Friday Fun: Race for a Good Cause

Have you ever wanted to feel what it was like to drive a race car or run like a cheetah? Have you ever wanted to race down the middle of the street or another area where racing is usually frowned upon without getting in trouble? Have you ever thought about turning a corner so fast that you leave everyone behind you in the dust? Well, if you answered “yes” to any and/or all of these questions, you may be in luck because there are a couple of events this weekend that will not only allow you to demonstrate your racing prowess but will also allow you to experience a warm, fuzzy feeling whether you win or lose.

First, the Boston Police Athletic League (PAL) is hosting the 5th Annual Boston PAL Grand Prix tomorrow, September 21, 2013, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. This event, which takes place in the Seaport District of Boston, is a team go-cart race in which members of each team of six will take turns driving through a street course that is designed to mimic a Formula 1 race track. However, the race track is not the only thing designed to mimic the Formula 1 experience, as the go-cart that each team will drive is said to handle in much the same way as an F1 race car. In fact, each go-cart will allow racers to soar by their families and friends at speeds of up to 45 mph. Fortunately, any friends and family that are a little squeamish at the thought of watching their loved ones race around the track, let alone driving it themselves, will have plenty of face painting, balloon animals, food, drinks, and other activities to keep them busy at the Grand Prix carnival. Best of all, all of the proceeds from the event will go to help pay for PAL’s youth programs. For more information on the 5th Annual Boston PAL Grand Prix and/or to register for the race, please visit the Boston Police Athletic League’s website or call 1-617-699-7099.

Secondly, if you’re more interested in a race that allows you to put your feet to the test than your driving skills, the Franklin Park Zoo may have the answer. This is because the Franklin Park Zoo is hosting the Run Wild 5K on Sunday, September 22, 2013. This race, which begins promptly at 8:30 a.m., features a 3.1 mile course that will allow runners to race through the zoo, Franklin Park, and White Stadium. Then, once the race is over, everyone 21 or over is invited to join their fellow runners for a “wild” party with drinks, music, games, and more. For more information on the Run Wild 5K or to register for the event, please visit the Race Menu website.

Friday Fun: First Weekend of Summer

Today marks the first official day of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and it already looks like this weekend is going to be a great time to enjoy the nice weather if you live in the Northeast. In fact, the sun is shining, the temperatures are in the mid 70’s, and the cats of the world are already trying to figure out the best way to get to the birds singing outside. As a result, this weekend is offering up the perfect weather to start off the summer right, and if you’re looking for a good way to get out of the office and enjoy the weather this weekend, you may want to look into a few of these events.

First, if your kids are really into kites or they’re driving you so crazy that you’re ready to tell them to “go fly a kite!”, you may want to head on over to Spectacle Island this weekend. Spectacle Island is holding a kite-flying day tomorrow, June 22, 2013, from 1:30 to 2:30 pm. This event will not only allow your kids to fly a kite in one of the best places to fly a kite in Boston, but will also allow your family to build their own kite for free. So, as Mary Poppins would say, “Let’s go fly a kite up to the highest height.” For more information, please visit the Boston Harbor Islands website.

Secondly, if you and/or your family are more into carnivals than kites, you can always head on over to Revere Beach. This weekend marks the last weekend of the Revere Beach Carnival, which means it’s your last chance to enjoy the food, rides, games, and petting zoo this year. The carnival is open from 1 pm to approximately 10:00 or 11:00 pm all weekend, and if you would like more information or discount coupons, check out the Fiesta Shows website.

Finally, if you’re really looking for some way to include your dog in your outdoor activities this weekend, the Avenue Marketing Group may have exactly what you’re looking for. The Avenue Marketing Group is hosting Pooch-A-Palooza on Saturday and Sunday this weekend from 10 am to 7 pm at Prowse Farm in Canton, MA. Pooch-A-Palooza is an outdoor dog festival featuring dog contests, music, kid’s games, food for both humans and dogs, and a whole lot more. For more information, please visit the Pooch-A-Palooza website.