Weird things that drop on New Year’s Eve

by Jamie Rhein on

Jeffery wrote about weird New Year’s traditions around the world. There are also weird items that drop at midnight New Year’s Eve.

Sure you can watch the ball drop at Time’s Square in New York City on New Year’s Eve, either in person or on television, or you can watch a walleye drop. A walleye is a fish caught in Lake Erie. Every year a 20-foot, 600 pound fiberglass walleye is dropped in Port Clinton, Ohio to ring in the New Year.

Port Clinton isn’t the only town to drop unusual items to mark a new beginning. I’ve known about Walleye Madness for year’s but came across this Reuters article with nine other unusual New Year’s drop items. As you will notice, most items are food related. The links lead to articles and references with information about each of these quirky events.

A Hotel Underwater? Thank Jules Verne.

by Jamie Rhein on

There are Japan’s capsules hotels that Willy Volk blogged about and there are the Swiss igloo hotels that Neil Woodburn blogged about. For another option, although you’ll need to scuba dive to get there, try Jules’ Underwater Lodge at the Key Largo Undersea Park. This lodge, inspired by Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea has offered an upscale intimate place to scuba to for a night’s stay or longer for 21 years now.

I first read about this lodge in an ESL (English as a Second Language) book on idioms. I can’t remember the idioms covered in the story but one of them had to do with visitors being able to sit by a window and watch the fish pass by. There was also an idiom that involved a chef preparing terrific food. This story was a huge hit, though not as huge as the one about the man who advertised for a wife in the newspaper and said whoever was interested should apply at his booth at a shopping mall on a particular day. Shoot! Could this have been a Valentine story?

The Jules Underwater Lodge story explained how the people who stay there don’t drown. The hotel looks mighty sweet and comfy to me. If you don’t know how to scuba dive to get to bed, you can take lessons at the Undersea Park. You’ll need more than one day to learn, however, so you’ll have to lodge above ground first. Think about taking lessons closer to home then reward yourself with a trip here (one of the website’s suggestions). There are several package options for those who are interested in the more simple fare to those whose tastes run to the elegant. Also, there are 21st year celebration discounts. Check the lodge’s press release for the details.