by pankaj | Mar 12, 2022 | Vacations & Leisure
Combine a summer beach holiday with four famous festivals and a fifth newcomer celebrating culture, tradition, and fantastic performances.
When summer is a whole flower in August, but hints of September and autumn start to claim one’s attention, many are still thinking about summer vacation plans. Suppose this describes you, and you are anywhere near the Great Lakes. In that case, there are many possibilities for a quick getaway that combines beach and water activities by day with exceptional cultural experiences in the evening. Festivals of music and theatre abound.
If you have time for a ‘real’ vacation, i.e., ten days or more, your trip could include a number of the large, long-established, well-known festival celebrations of culture. Classic and contemporary drama, classical music, Celtic music, and ballet and modern dance festival in Chicago await you in August in the Great Lakes.
Visit Three Great Lakes and See World-Famous Drama in Ontario
Every year the Shaw Festival at Niagara-on-the-Lake, on Lake Ontario, produces ten to twelve plays by George Bernard Shaw and his contemporaries, presented in four theatres. That adds up to nearly 800 performances, an audience approaching 300,000. This year, you could be one of them and watch the festival’s esteemed acting ensemble present Candida, On the Rocks, Heartbreak House, or My Fair Lady, or see one of the seven non-Shaw productions. The festival is celebrating its 50th season this year.
Niagara on the Lake, the community that hosts the Shaw Festival, is a summer vacation destination, one of the oldest small cities in Canada; it is also considered one of the most charming, with elegant houses and gardens on its tree-lined streets. The Niagara River joins Lake Ontario here. Is Niagara Falls twenty minutes to the south. ?Directly across from Lake Ontario in Toronto, which is about thirty miles due north.
Ontario has that if there is one drama experience to rival or surpass the Shaw Festival. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival, a mere nine years older than the Shaw Festival, sets the bar for classical theatre in North America. From its first production in 1953, this festival created excitement with its efforts to produce Shakespeare’s plays on an open stage or “under stage conditions for which they had been written,” according to former Festival archivist James R. Aikens.
The town of Stratford is not on any lake but is nicely positioned between three large ones. Toronto has spread out along the north shore of Lake Ontario just a two-hour car ride to the east, while an hour drive to the west brings you to charming beach towns on Lake Huron. Suppose you head north from Stratford for approximately two hours. In that case, you will come to the rocky Bruce Peninsula that encloses Lake Huron’s beautiful Georgian Bay or enjoy a shorter drive south to the sandy beaches of Lake Erie.
The Peninsula Music Festival and Irish Fest on Lake Michigan
Over on Lake Michigan, you can combine your beach vacation with music. In Door County, WI, the Peninsula Music Festival is an orchestral tradition dating back to 1953, the same year that the Shakespeare Festival began. It continues every August with professional musicians from major symphonies and rising young guest soloists. This year’s soloists have included cellist Wendy Warner, pianist Stewart Goodyear, and eighteen-year-old violin prodigy Caroline Goulding.
For a complete change of pace, travel down Lake Michigan’s shore to Milwaukee where the city’s Summerfest grounds, adjacent to the lake, will ring non-stop for four days, with the insistent rhythms of the fiddles, tin whistles, uilleann pipes, and bodhrans of Irish music and step dances.
WEEK OF FREE DANCE IN CHICAGO
At the bottom of Lake Michigan and also the bottom of the August calendar, there is one last festival for your consideration. While the Chicago Dancing Festival may not have the decades-long track record of the other events described here, it is undeniably significant. In 2011, the event celebrated its fifth year; it has brought some of the biggest names in the ballet and modern dance world to Chicago for free concerts that have been presented to tens of thousands.
The company, San Francisco Ballet.
Lar Lubovitch, Mark Morris, Azure Barton, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater are just some of the fantastic dancers and companies that have performed at the Harris Theatre and the outdoor Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago’s Millennium Park the last week in August.
The 2019 Chicago Dancing Festival has expanded to five days of performances beginning Tuesday, August 23, at various indoor venues, culminating with the outdoor concert at the Pritzker Pavilion. Saturday, August 27, featuring the Paul Taylor Company, Ballet West, the Joffrey Ballet, New York City Ballet artists, etc.
by pankaj | Mar 12, 2022 | Vacations & Leisure
The centuries-old skill of gold panning is being revived in countries worldwide as a sport in which the whole family can compete.
Like the gold prospectors of old, participants in a gold panning competition have to swirl sand and gravel out of the gold panning pan, leaving a trail of the heavier gold. The difference is that ion is done in a race against competition time. The sport aims to find, in the best time, all the gold flakes seeded into a bucket of gravel and sand. Time penalties are added for lost fragments.
Gold Panning Competition
Competitors collect a bucket of 15 – 20 kilograms of sand and gravel, which the chief judge has seeded with anything between 5 – 12 tiny gold flakes. Everyone has the same number of gold flakes in a single event, but they don’t know how many. Every participant also gets a clear glass tube sealed with a cap and partly filled with clear water to place the gold flakes they find.
With buckets and tubes and their pans, competitors move to the panning pools filled with 20 – 30cm of water. These pools are artificial and not in natural rivers or lakes to not pollute the environment. The pan, bucket, and glass tube are placed on the side of the pool while the participant waits for the starting signal.
The Gold Rush
When the signal goes off, some of the bucket’s content is poured into the pan, and water is scooped up from the panning pool. Skill comes to play in the way the mixture is swirled to wash out the sand and gravel and (hopefully) leave the heavier gold flakes behind. This process is repeated until all the original sand and gravel in the bucket is washed away, while all the time is looking out for and collecting the flakes of gold.
When finished, the competitor raises their hand for the timekeeper. Then, the tube with gold flakes is placed inside the pan, and the participant moves to the judges to count the gold flakes.
Speed is essential. At Poland’s 2019 International Gold Panning Championships, the category winner for proficient men, Keranen Veikko of Finland, found his seven gold flakes in 1 minute and 14 seconds.
Gold Panning as a Family Sport
Gold panning competitions have events for beginners, proficient men and women, veterans, juniors, and children. That is, everyone in the family may participate. There are also 2-man, 3-man, and five-person team contests so that family members can compete together as a team.
For information on where and how to participate in gold panning, visit The World Gold Panning Association site, which links the 21 affiliated associations in countries worldwide.
Gold Panning Championships
The World Gold Panning Championships in 2019 will be held in Pilgrims Rest, South Africa, and in 2020 in Biella, Italy. June 2019 sees the Scottish and British Gold Panning Championships in Scotland and the European Championships in Finland.
by pankaj | Mar 12, 2022 | Travel Tips
The Pacific Edge Hotel in Laguna Beach, CA, recently held a fundraising event to benefit the Mauli Ola Foundation.
The Pacific Ocean was a serene and beautiful backdrop for a recent fundraising event held at The Pacific Edge Hotel in Laguna Beach, CA. As part of Laguna Beach a la Carte event, for only $45, attendees lounged at The Deck and were treated to expansive ocean views, a specialty cocktail competition, a taco cook-off, and a stand-up paddleboard race. The community came together to attend the event in hopes of raising money for the Mauli Ola Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to helping kids suffering from Cystic Fibrosis by exposing them to the benefits of saline treatment through surfing.
The Deck, an open-air bar and restaurant, is located steps away from the beach at the Pacific Edge Hotel, a Hotel of Joy. What was once a deck reserved for weddings and private events has been transformed into a popular eatery for those wanting an ocean view and tasty California cuisine. So whether you’re looking to grab a romantic cocktail at sunset or take the family out for a casual meal, The Deck offers something for everyone.
“Laguna Beach is the quintessential casual, laid-back California beach town with a touch of urban sophistication, incredible weather, and pristine beaches,” said Bill Tremper, general manager of Pacific Edge. “We wanted to create a culturally relevant space, where people can unwind while enjoying quality food and great service. In addition, we want to give locals and visitors alike an unforgettable Laguna Beach experience.”
Cocktails for a Cause
The following mixologists concocted their favorite libations for the cocktail competition guests voted on at this special event.
- Erik Trickett from 320 Main in Seal Beach: Angel’s Envy Bourbon, pomegranate juice, molasses, lemon juice, and dijon mustard.
- Danielle Tarango from Nirvana Grill: Chase Vodka, passion fruit juice, triple sec, simple syrup, lime, cilantro, cayenne pepper, sugar.
- Giovanni Labile from Ocean Avenue Brewery: St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, strawberries, lemon juice, natural sugar, prosecco, and ginger.
- Gabrielle Dion from Broadway: Zaya Rum, black cardamom, pineapple juice, lime, bitters.
- Steve Garcia: Peligroso Silver 100% Blue Agave Tequila, green tea, simple jalapeno syrup, pineapple juice, grapefruit juice, shiso, and sake.
The winner of the cocktail competition was…Gabrielle Dion! The winning cocktail will be on the menu at The Deck for the summer.
Not Your Typical Taco
Guests were treated to free tacos from the following restaurants and chefs who vied for the best taco in town.
The winning taco award went to La Sirena Grill, committed to supporting sustainability.
Guests lined the beach to cheer on their favorite team during a stand-up paddleboard competition to round out the day. The following sections enjoyed the competitive spirit for a good cause:
And the trophy went to…SUP Company!
It was a fun and delicious day for the benefit of the Mauli Ola Foundation and all the excellent work they do in helping to change the lives of children with Cystic Fibrosis.
by pankaj | Mar 12, 2022 | Vacations & Leisure
Unusual stag does and weekend ideas. From crazy zorbing to adrenalin pumping Bear Gryll’s style outdoor activities. Top ideas for fantastic stag weekends.
The stag do. It’s tricky to get right; one false move and you’re tied to a lamppost. Or worse, the last days of marital freedom get spent down the same old pub, warm beer in hand. So there has to be a safely exciting, wildly sensible alternative, right?
If you’re stuck for ideas, take a look at some of these stag weekend alternatives bound to get those creative stag night cogs a-turning.
Zorbing: the transport of the future
It may sound like something from Flash Gordon, but zorbing involves rolling around the countryside in a giant spherical plastic ball and still communicating strangely? Possibly, but that hasn’t stopped it from turning into a 21st-century craze. The zorbing orbs are often built for more than one person – perfect for splitting up a stag party into teams and taking a quick bet on who can get down that hill the fastest.
Word of warning: If one group suffers from travel sickness, it’s probably best they sit this one out!
Gorge scrambling: Fancy yourself Bear Grylls’ carbon copy, but only have suburban monotony to test your skills on?
Never fear; take any stag party to the limits with the gorge scrambling. Dive over rock faces, take a leap of faith into a plunge pool, and most importantly, show the rest of the boys precisely what you’re made of – all under the safe supervision of an expert.
Split your sides at a Comedy Club
If laughter is the best medicine, piling into a comedy club with your mates will leave you overdosing on the stuff. Choose the club sure to get your do warmed up and line your stomachs with an often inclusive meal. With comedy clubs in cities from Amsterdam to Birmingham, you could always sample the varied nightlife afterward.
Some companies like Chillisauce even offer to arrange the whole stag weekend for you. So you avoid the bother. They often have the option of choosing advantageous activity package deals too.
Off-road driving
Fancy an adrenalin kick without getting your own hands dirty? Take a 4×4 plummeting around an all-terrain course and let those massive mud flaps take care of all the mess. It’s a fantastic experience for anyone who’s wanted to put their driving skills to the test and probably a lot safer than attempting break-neck Formula 1 style racing around a track. Let’s face it, the idea of mounting rugged hills and traversing through puddles the size of a small lake sound a heck of a lot more fun than any artificial flat track any day.
White water rafting
See the whites of your knuckles as you and your friends perform death-defying maneuvers across swirling masses of river rapids, and all of this is nothing but a flimsy pontoon. Ok, so the floats are nowhere near flimsy, and the rapids can be as ‘swirling’ or still as you like. In addition, individual rapid courses are available worldwide, from beginner’s choice to expert handling required.
River rapids promise adrenalin-fuelled mayhem to a slightly bumpy paddle downstream, depending on the location and course chosen. Manufactured rapids can be found from English city down south, Bristol, to the arguably more exotic Prague. For a real-life tour down a river, head to courses found in Dublin or Bulgaria’s Sofia for a once-in-a-lifetime rapid experience.
White water rafting will shake a shed load of adrenalin-fuelled good times into a stag weekend, leaving you with the rest of your night to compare notes on your [obviously] superior command of mother nature.
The name’s Bond, Casino Bond.
Try a stint at an upmarket casino if all that testosterone-fuelled sport’s got you exhausted. Bet what you can afford and maybe even win some money to spend on the next pit-stop of the night. If you choose to dress like your favorite Bond, hire a limo with your winnings to get you out of there in style. Catching the bus back in a bow tie may leave you pretty shaken, not much stirred.
Get those guns blazing.
Be it the stag do favorite paintballing or the not so conventional Airsoft courses. Make like Battle Royale and see who will be the last man standing. Airsoft bullets’ sort the men from the boys, and thanks to the realistic look of the Airsoft rifles, you won’t be judged too harshly if you do decide to, let’s say, don a red bandana and army combats.
Remember to say hi to my tiny pal.
