Blowing Bubbles in Union Square

by Jamie Rhein on

If the Green Market that happens at Union Square in New York City every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday isn’t enough of a reason to head there, or if the shops and eateries that surround it and its playground and benches where you can people watch for hours doesn’t entice you to make the trip, then perhaps millions of bubbles might do it.

Tomorrow, Saturday, March 24 at 12 noon, 400 bottles of bubbles will be handed out to attendees, meaning anyone who shows up. This event called Bubble Bath is an interactive art project of sorts by artist Anthony DeFranco. It’s where everyone participating will unscrew the lids of their bubbles, pull out the wands, pucker their lips and blow. Four hundred people and 400 bottles of bubble is a lot of bubbles. The whole point of this endeavor is to have fun in the simpliest of ways, but in massive quantity.

Because more than 400 people will probably show up, the organizers are suggesting, if possible, for people to bring their own bubbles to help out the cause. More importantly though, show up. It seems to me, this would be a really terrific happening if one of these days this bubble blowing for enjoyment could occur simultaneously across the world at the same time. Thanks to Adam Cipoletti for the tip. We’re happy to spread the news. Here is a link to the Village Voice article that also mentions the event. The photo is from another bubble blowing happening at Astor Place last June.

St. Patrick’s Day Around the World

by Jamie Rhein on

If it were possible to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day around the world, like if you started in Australia and worked your way west around the globe, where might you land?

Here are 6 possibilities. None of them in Ireland:

At The Mean Fiddler in Sydney, Australia, St. Patrick’s Day is a family event, and it lasts the whole weekend. Besides great music , there’s authentic Irish food fare.

The Tokyo Irish Music Festival 2007 in Japan is another two day event. This is a real blend of east meets west. Michael McGuire of River Dance is part of the performance line-up. So is Taka Hayashi who joined Riverdance a few years back.

For free T-shirt and hat give-a-ways, head to O’Malley’s Irish Pub in Shanghai, China. The doors won’t close on St. Patrick’s Day until the last person leaves (or something like that). The next day is a truly kid-oriented Irish festival. I think the idea is to give the kid’s something to do while the adults get over a hang over.

If you happen to be in Turkey, here’s a website to help you find a pub on your own. The addresses are given.

At Finnegan’s Irish Pub in Florence or Rome, Italy, you’ll find the real Irish deal and Irish sports broadcasts. The website has maps to help you get to that pint of ale before St. Patrick’s Day is over.

In Dublin, Ohio, (I had to pick this one, I live near there.) St. Patrick’s Day starts off with a run and finishes off with my husband’s favorite Irish Band, The Prodigals. They’re excellent and they tour everywhere.

For a comprehensive look for Irish pubs in other global locations, check out the website, Irish Abroad.

Happy St. Patty’s Day and “Top of the mornin’ to you,” or some such thing. The photo is from last year’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York City. It is a blast. I went year’s ago.

Indoor Kite Festival. No Wind Needed

by Jamie Rhein on

Yesterday, the wind whipped through my yard pulling the covering off the outdoor furniture. Yes, it’s March and the wind has picked up. Thinking about wind got me thinking about kite flying.

Turns out, you don’t need wind to fly a kite. In Lincoln City, Oregon people fly kites indoors. At least the end of March they do. Not just any kite will stay aloft above a high school gym and not just any technique will keep it up in the air. At the Indoor Kite Festival, March 30-April 1, you can learn exactly how to send a kite soaring. During the festival, expert kite flyers demonstrate how to get a kite to look like it’s dancing at the end of its lines. The result is that as the flier moves in certain ways, the kite will move in response. Instead of the wind being a force, the kite flyer is. There is a video on the website that highlights different performances and some kite flying tips.

If you go, you can take kite flying lessons and there are activities geared towards children. This festival could hardly be any cheaper. It costs $2 for all three days. For an article that explains more about the festival, click here. The photo is of Penny Lingenfelter who is featured in the video on the website. She explains what helps this kite fly.

Car Trip Check List: Handy and Smart

by Jamie Rhein on

Spring break is on its way. This make me think of taking a road trip. Why stay home when there is a new place to go or a relative to visit? As someone who goes dashing about the house to round up items the night before I head out and overpacks each time, I came across this handy check- list for car travel on Family Fun magazine’s website. Instead of wondering what else I need to pack, using this list might help me focus my efforts. The item on the list I absolutely love is wet wipes. I am a huge fan. With wet wipes and a roll of paper towels I can handle about anything.

I noticed that this list is missing a TV, a VCR, a DVD player or a Gameboy. I have to agree. My family isn’t big on gadgets. (Well, my now teenage daughter is and can’t believe her parents are so lame.) Even when we traveled from Ohio to California then onto New York and back to Ohio, the radio, cassette player and portable CD player were our only outlets for high tech entertainment. All those miles with a toddler and an 11 year-old. Yes, possibly we are freaks. When traveling with a toddler or a young child, I can’t recommend sticker books enough.

The car in the photo is not mine, by the way. It’s a Flickr post taken by pinprick. I am impressed, however, with how everything is packed in with enough space that the driver can still see out the window–sort of. I’ve been there.

Seeking Warmth Without the Sun? Indoor Waterparks are 84 Degrees.

by Jamie Rhein on

Snow days getting you down? Waiting for Old Man Winter to head on out? Wishing you were Gadling blogger Willy Volk and you lived in Florida so you soak up some sun and enjoy the beach? You may not be able to get the sunshine you want if you live in the snow addled parts of the U.S., but warm water fun is close by —and it’s multiplying. Hotel owners are seeing their bucks grow when they add a water park to an already existing hotel or build a new hotel with a water park as the main attraction. Read.

Ohio, for example, has seven water parks to date. Last year I went to one of them. Kalahari in Sandusky is in the northern part of the state. This was a family occasion of sorts with my husband’s brothers, sisters and their spouses and kids convening for a day. Honestly, it was a blast and getting wet is not my favorite thing to do. I tend to like my exercise on dry land. With our ages ranging from just turned 4 to 50, there was something for everyone. Even my son, the four year-old at the time, braved the family-sized inner tube slide that, after our long climb to the top of a series of stairs, took us on a wild ride down a curving shoot, out of the building and back inside before dumping us into a tank at the bottom. A highlight for me was watching people try to surf on a simulated wave. Most people shot off the surfboard like a rocket while trying to keep their swimsuits on. Did I try it? Are you nuts?

Some water parks you need to be a guest to go to. Others, like Kalahari, sell day passes. This year we’re thinking of heading to Splash Lagoon in Erie, PA to meet up with a friend of mine and her family. It’s halfway between us. She lives near Rochester, NY. Each of us could stand some 84 degree weather right about now.