Food – Salem Happenings

Topsfield Fair 2016: The Country’s Oldest Agricultural Fair

Chances are, your children already know that the cow goes “moo” and the pig goes “oink”. In fact, there’s a pretty good chance that they may even know that the lamb goes “baa.” But, if your kids would like to do some empirical research and determine for themselves exactly what sounds a cow, pig, sheep, and pretty much every other farm animal makes, all you need to do is head to Topsfield over the next week or so. This is because Topsfield Fair, the country’s oldest agricultural fair, runs from today (September 30, 2016) until Columbus Day (October 10, 2016).

This fair will give you and your kids the chance to see animals, artwork, crafts, educational exhibits, flowers, a different group of special performers each day (including the Axe Women Loggers of Maine, monster trucks, Mounties, and musicians), and a whole lot more than I could possibly list here. Best of all, there will be a wide assortment of concession stands and vendors selling everything from books to tractors and every food item imaginable, including apple pie, Chinese food, cinnamon rolls, corn dogs, fried Twinkies, sandwiches, steak, and pretty much everything else. For more information on Topsfield Fair and/or to order tickets for the fair, please visit the Topsfield Fair website.

Photo credit: Sultry/sulky/silly via Visual hunt / CC BY

Get Fired Up This Weekend!

Fire has fascinated humankind since the very beginning, and while the world has certainly changed a lot since then, people’s fascination with the natural results of combustion have not. In fact, it may have been the first men and women that discovered that fire could be quite useful while they were living in caves. However, we, the men and women of the modern age, have invented more than our fair share of ways to create and use fire ourselves to heat our homes, cook our food, move our cars, and accomplish a variety of other incredible tasks. Unfortunately, the incredible power of fire can also cause its fair share of problems for when fire is misused and/or allowed to spiral out of control, disaster and destruction is all that can follow in its wake. As a result, it’s important to appreciate the power of fire and its ability to aid or destroy, and if you’re looking for a way to experience this power in a safe environment, you’ll definitely want to check out one of these events.

First, if you’re looking for an exhibition of fire in all its forms, Somerville is the place to be this weekend. This is because Ignite! A Global Street Food and Fire Festival is scheduled to take place in Union Square Plaza in Somerville from 6:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M. tomorrow night (Saturday, August 15, 2015.) This festival will give you the opportunity to burn your mouth off with some of the spiciest food around as dancers, fire throwers, musicians, and more attempt to show you their inner and outer fire through a series of passionate performances. For more information on Ignite! A Global Street Food and Fire Festival, which is completely free to attend and open to the public, please visit the Somerville Arts Council website.

If, on the other hand, you’re more interested in a person’s inner fire or, in other words, what fire represents in a figurative sense, the FireBall may be exactly what you’re looking for. The FireBall, which is scheduled to take place at 8:00 P.M. tomorrow night (Saturday, August 15, 2015), is a fundraiser thrown by the Theatre on Fire. This fundraiser will allow you to participate in a fire-themed costume ball complete with prizes for the best costume, allow you to watch an awards ceremony, and allow you to help decide which of the eight theatre singers will win the Ultimate Boston Theatre Karaoke Battle. For more information on the FireBall, please visit the Theatre on Fire website.

Photo credit: JD Hancock / Foter / CC BY

Indulge Your Artistic Side This Weekend

Summer has always been a great time to explore the art around us because it’s much easier to sing, dance, and create outside when you aren’t knee deep in snow. In fact, there is never a shortage of performers ready and waiting to demonstrate their artistic skill during this time of year, and this year is certainly no exception. As a result, if you’re looking for a way to indulge your artistic side this weekend, you’re in luck because there are a couple of events that are certain to help you find the artistic indulgences that you seek.

First, if you’re looking for a way to hear some great music without giving all of your money to a ticket broker, you should definitely check out the Boston Summer Arts Weekend. The Boston Summer Arts Weekend, which runs from 11:00 A.M. to approximately 11:00 P.M. tomorrow (July 25, 2015) and 12:30 P.M. to approximately 6:00 P.M. Sunday (July 26, 2015) is an arts festival that celebrates music in all its forms. This festival features a number of well-known and not-so-well-known performers playing Americana, blues, classical music, children’s music, folk music, and more. Best of all, all of the performances at the festival are completely free and open to the public, so you can listen to hours of great music without paying a dime. For more information on the Boston Summer Arts Weekend, which is sponsored by the Boston Globe, Citizen’s Bank, and WBGH, please visit the Boston Globe’s Boston Summer Arts Weekend page.

Secondly, if you’re looking for a way that you can head to the beach and still tell people that you were taking in some art, Revere Beach has you covered. This is because Revere Beach is hosting the 12th Annual Revere Beach National Sand Sculpting Festival this weekend, which means that from today until Sunday, you can see over 20 sculptors from around the world carefully crafting incredible works of art out of sand. In fact, this festival will not only give you the opportunity to see some truly awesome sand sculptures but will also give you and your family the opportunity to enjoy kid’s activities and rides, fireworks, food, live music, and more. For more information on the 2015 Revere Beach National Sand Sculpting Festival, which is absolutely free for everyone to attend, please visit the Revere Beach website.

Photo credit: Eric Kilby / Foter / CC BY-SA

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 Snowy Valentine’s Day

Sick of the snow? Looking for something fun and warm to do this Valentine’s Day? Well, fear not. Even though Boston is under six and half feet of snow right now, there’s still plenty of stuff going on this weekend to keep you and your significant other entertained. In fact, even if you don’t have a significant other right now, there are a number of events in the Boston area this weekend that are sure to warm your heart even if they don’t necessarily warm your hands.

First, if you and/or your significant other are into sweets, there’s no better place to be this weekend than the Salem So Sweet Chocolate and Ice Sculpture Festival. The Salem So Sweet Chocolate and Ice Sculpture Festival is an annual tradition in Salem, Massachusetts that typically runs the week before Valentine’s Day, and this year is no different. This festival, which runs until 6:30 P.M. on Sunday (February 15, 2015), features over 15 ice sculptures (including some that aren’t completely buried in snow yet), chocolate tastings, discounts at local museums and restaurants, a raffle, wine tastings, and more. For more information on the Salem So Sweet Chocolate and Ice Sculpture Festival, please visit the Salem Main Streets Festival page.

If, on the other hand, you and/or your beloved are more interested in mysteries than ice and chocolates or you are looking for some way to combine your Valentine’s Day celebration with Friday the 13th (without watching a movie like My Bloody Valentine), you may want to check out Marriage Can be Murder. Marriage Can be Murder is a murder mystery scheduled to take place at the Elephant and Castle Pub in Boston at 5:00, 6:30, and 8:00 P.M. tomorrow (February 14, 2015). This production, which will be performed by the Mystery Cafe, will place you and a group of other individuals in the role of wedding guests tasked with determining who committed the most horrific faux pas imaginable — murdering one of the other guests. In fact, you will not only be able to go through clues and use fake money to bribe the actors for more information between scenes but also join in all of the typical wedding festivities like trying to catch the bouquet, doing the chicken dance, and more. For more information on Marriage Can be Murder and/or to order tickets, please visit the Mystery Cafe website.

Finally, if you don’t have a significant other or you’ve always thought Valentine’s Day was a lame excuse to sell more greeting cards, Area Four in Cambridge has you covered. This is because Area Four is hosting their Fourth Annual Haters Valentine’s Day from 5:00 P.M. to midnight tomorrow (February 14, 2015). This somewhat unusual Valentine’s Day celebration will allow you to watch a series of angry films; listen to emo music; and sample a variety of anti-Valentine’s Day themed dishes, including Arrabbiata “Angry” Pizza, Jerked Chicken, Irate Rice, and Skewered Lamb Neck. For more information on the Fourth Annual Haters Valentine’s Day celebration, please visit Area Four’s Yelp event page.

Photo credit: seyed mostafa zamani / Foter / CC BY

Fire and Ice

2014 has finally come to an end, and a new year and the winter weather that often comes with it is certainly upon us. In fact, as I sit here typing this post, I can see that my thermometer has thawed just enough to actually inform me that the temperature has moved from a delightful “freeze your extremities off” reading of 19 degrees to a “seemingly warm by New England in January standards” reading of 24 degrees. Now, I know what you’re probably thinking. Five degrees is not really much of a difference, but trust me, when the temperature starts to drop that low, every degree starts to feel like an ice age approaching or a sweltering heat wave (probably because you have thirteen layers of clothing on.) However, just because it’s cold enough that you could use your porch as your own personal freezer doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t have some fun this weekend. And, if fun is what you’re looking for this weekend, there are a number of places that will allow you to embrace the ice of the season or fan the flames to melt it away.

First, if you’re just looking for a way for you and your kids to embrace the icy magic of the season, you may want to check out the Snowflake Festival. The Snowflake Festival, which is scheduled to take place at the Brookline Arts Center from 12:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. tomorrow (Saturday, January 3, 2015), is a winter arts and crafts festival. This festival will allow you and your family to decorate cookies, learn about Monoprinting as part of a special free workshop, make brass and copper bracelets as part of a special workshop, make paper snowflakes and other wintery creations, eat cake in honor of the Center’s 50th anniversary, and more. For more information on the Snowflake Festival and Open House at the Brookline Arts Center, please visit the Brookline Arts Center website.

If, on the other hand, you’ve decided that you’re not really ready for this whole winter thing (and, really who above the age of 21 is ever truly ready), the Fire and Ice Festival in Boston may help you embrace the season or, at the very least, stave off the cold a little longer. The Fire and Ice Festival, which will occur at the Lawn on D at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC), runs from 4:00 to 8:00 P.M. tonight (January 2, 2015) and 11:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. Saturday and Sunday (January 3 – 4, 2015.) This festival will feature all things fire and ice, including an entire labyrinth made of nearly 300 giant ice blocks, fire pits, fire dancers, fire eaters, jugglers (with flaming objects of course), and a whole lot more. For more information on the Fire and Ice Festival in Boston, please visit the Official Lawn on D website.

Finally, if you’re just looking for somewhere good to eat that will certainly have the warm food you need to beat back the cold, you can always try my personal favorite, Fire and Ice. Fire and Ice, which has locations in Boston, Cambridge, Providence, Anaheim, and Lake Tahoe, is a create-your-own dish restaurant that will allow you to choose from dozens and dozens of different vegetables, meats, noodles, and sauces. Professional cooks will then take all of the ingredients that you have chosen, throw them on a grill, and cook you a meal that you certainly won’t forget. And best of all, if you chose a sauce or some other ingredients that you’re not really thrilled with, you can always go back up and try again because Fire and Ice is setup somewhat like a buffet. For more information on Fire and Ice, please visit the Fire and Ice website.

Photo credit: Furryscaly / IWoman / CC BY-SA

Unique Holiday Gifts

With 21 days until Kwanzaa, 20 days until Christmas, 16 days until the Winter Solstice, 11 days until the beginning of Chanukah, and less than 30 days for whatever other December holiday that you celebrate, you may be trying to find the perfect gift before time runs out. In fact, you may already be tearing your hair out trying to figure out what to get your loved ones this year because you want to get something uniquely awesome, but you have no idea what that is. Fortunately, if you are looking for a unique gift idea, there are several events this weekend that are devoted to one-of-a-kind gifts that your family is sure to love (and if they don’t, they’ll learn to love them because some of these gifts are awfully hard to return.)

First, if you’re looking for a gift that would be considered part of the apparel, accessories, and/or food family (and don’t worry, the food isn’t actually part of the clothing until you wear it for the first time and spill it all over yourself at dinner), you should definitely check out Boston’s Downtown Holiday Market. The Downtown Holiday Market, which is located at 459 Washington Street in Boston, will feature a different set of local vendors each week from now until January 10, 2015. Some of the vendors that you can expect to see this week include Alex’s Ugly Sauce, Epoca Amber Jewelry, Golden Rule Honey, Karol Peralta Jewelry, Mao Sim Silk, and Recycled Glass Jewelry. For more information on the Downtown Holiday Market, which is open from 11:00 A.M. to 7:00 PM Monday through Saturday and 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Sunday, please visit the Downtown Boston website.

Secondly, if you’re looking for a hand-crafted gift or a gift that is truly one-of-a-kind, you may want to head over to the Hynes Convention Center this weekend. This is because the Hynes Convention Center is hosting the CraftBoston Holiday 2014 show, which will feature 175 artists and crafters that are planning to exhibit and/or sell their carefully crafted apparel, baskets, ceramics, furniture, glassware, jewelry, leather, metal art, wood crafts, and more. For more information on the event, including a complete program guide with all of the artists and crafters that will be exhibiting their work, please visit the Society of Arts and Crafts CraftBoston Holiday page.

Finally, if you’re looking for a truly unique gift that you can get without making the trek into Boston, you may want to check out the Lexington Arts and Crafts Holiday Marketplace. The Lexington Arts and Crafts Holiday Marketplace, which is located at 130 Waltham Street in Lexington, MA, is a large arts and crafts fair that runs from now until Christmas Eve (December 24, 2014.) This fair will feature dozens and dozens of artists and crafters who will be more than happy to sell you baskets, beads, cards, ceramics, decorations, jewelry, metal art, needle art, paintings, photographs and prints, and more. For more information on the Holiday Marketplace, which is open from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM Monday through Saturday and 12:00 to 6:00 PM on Sunday, please visit the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society website.

Photo credit: John Drake Flickr / Foter / CC BY-ND

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)

Massachusetts Tax-Free Weekend

It may have been Benjamin Franklin that once said that “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes”, but he certainly wasn’t alone in the sentiment. In fact, Christopher Bullock, Daniel Defoe, Edward Ward, Mark Twain, Dorothy Parker, Margaret Mitchell, and a slew of other famous authors have expressed the same rather depressing idea that life may be uncertain, but you’re pretty much stuck paying taxes until you die (and many of them said it before Franklin.) However, if you’re in Massachusetts this weekend, where Franklin’s quote could be the state motto, you may be in luck because this weekend is actually Massachusetts’ Tax Free Weekend. As a result, you can now go out and enjoy all of the big box stores and all of the little shops that Massachusetts has to offer without giving 6.25% to the tax man. Even better still, there are a number of local festivals this weekend that will allow you to enjoy food, music, and more as you take full advantage of the lack of sales tax.

First, if you’ve been dying to spend some time by the water, Gloucester has a festival this weekend that you won’t want to miss. This is because the 33rd Annual Gloucester Waterfront Festival is this Saturday (August 16, 2014) and Sunday (August 17, 2014) from 9:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. The Waterfront Festival, which is located at Stage Fort Park in Gloucester, will feature a pancake breakfast, over 175 artists and craftsmen, food, music, an antique car show, and more. Best of all, the event is completely free (until you buy stuff from the vendors.) For more information on the 33rd Annual Gloucester Waterfront Festival, please visit the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce website or the Waterfront Festivals website.

Secondly, if you’ve always been a big fan of jazz, soul, and rock and roll, Salem, MA is definitely the place to be this weekend. This is because the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival is this Saturday (August 16, 2014) and Sunday (August 17, 2014) from 11:00 A.M. to 7:15 P.M. This festival, which is scheduled to take place at the Salem Willows, will feature artists; a beer garden; a tent with activities and games for kids; music education classes; and, of course, live music from over 10 bands that are extremely skilled in jazz, soul, rock, funk, swing, and more. For more information on the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, which is completely free (again, until you buy stuff from the vendors), please visit the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival website.

Finally, if you have a young girl between the ages of 8 and 17 who loves music or you really just like seeing little girls rock out, you may want to check out the Girls Rock Campaign Boston performance at the Brighton Music Hall tomorrow (Saturday, August 16, 2014.) The Girls Rock Campaign Boston is a volunteer summer program that gives girls between the ages of 8 and 17 a chance to form their own band, write their own music, learn to rock their favorite instrument, and more. In fact, the girls not only form their own band and learn everything they need to strut their stuff, but also get the opportunity to perform in front of a live audience at the end of the program. The show tomorrow, as you might have guessed, is that opportunity and it can be a lot of fun to see what these kids and teens can really do. For more information on the Girls Rock Campaign Boston program, please visit the Girls Rock Boston website, and if you would like to order tickets to the performance, please visit Ticketmaster.

Photo credit: DonkeyHotey / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Wait! What Are the Dog Days of Summer?

Do any of these stars look like a dog to you?

Last week, I talked about the fact that the dog days of summer were officially upon us. However, after I wrote that post, I realized that most people are probably familiar with the expression and what it means, but there probably aren’t too many people that actually know where the expression comes from. As a result, I figured that if you were wondering why we refer to this particular section of the season as the dog days of summer, it would be a good time to let you know that you can blame the Romans (and no, it has nothing to do with the fact that the average dog looks like it would rather starve four inches from its food dish than move in this kind of weather.)

In fact, the reason that this particular section of the summer is known as the “Dog Days of Summer” is because the Romans believed that the extremely hot weather that we have during July and August was actually a result of the star, Sirius. Sirius, which is also known as the Dog Star, rose at approximately the same time each day as the sun during this part of the summer in Roman times. This led the Romans to refer to this period as the Dog Days because they were the days in which the Dog Star brought the sweltering heat and the evil that they typically associated with the heat to the lands. We, of course, still use the term today to describe the sweltering heat of this part of summer, but we have a number of ways to escape the evil heat and enjoy ourselves anyway.

First, if you’ve always been a fan of sand sculptures or you just like the feeling of the burning hot sand on your feet, Revere Beach is definitely the place to be this weekend. This is because Revere Beach is hosting the 2014 Revere Beach National Sand Sculpting Festival from 10:00 A.M. to 10:00 P.M. on Friday and Saturday and 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. on Sunday. This festival will feature 15 of the world’s best sand sculptors, music, food, sand sculpting lessons for children, fireworks, and a whole lot more. Best of all, it won’t cost you a dime to get into the event. For more information on the 2014 Revere Beach National Sand Sculpting Festival, please visit the Revere Beach website or call 781-902-9742.

If, on the other hand, you’re one of those people that firmly believes the only place sand can end up is everywhere you don’t want it, you may want to consider heading to the Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, MA on Sunday (July 20, 2014.) This is because the Larz Anderson Auto Museum is hosting an American Car and Truck Day this Sunday from 10:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. This car show will allow you and your family to see a variety of patriotic vehicles while you enjoy something to eat. For more information on the American Car and Truck Day at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum, please visit the Larz Anderson Auto Museum Events page.

Photo credit: j-dub1980(THANK YOU FOR 100k+ Views) / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)