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Decmber 2nd - Decmber 8th
by Pam & Michael Davison
I hope all of you had a fabulous Thanksgiving Holiday! Now that Thanksgiving has passed, the parks, museums, historic sites and downtowns are filled with Christmas and Holiday Season activities. There are tree lighting ceremonies this week and a handful of parades to get you in the mood for the season.
This is a great time of year to visit some of your favorite parks or some new ones. Take some time for yourself and your family and escape the hustle and bustle of the 'Shopping Season'. If you visit some of the larger parks, there is a good chance you will even spot some wildlife, especially deer, now that the cover of the leaves is gone. A sunny day in a park is a great place to take that holiday family picture, too.
For more info on everything going on, go to www.Parkgeek.com click on "Event Search" and fill in the dates. Be sure to include Thursday through Sunday so you don't miss anything. Select the search button and start planning! See below for more...
Christmas Tree Lightings all around the Triangle
Friday night kicks off the holiday season in many towns around the Triangle with a variety of municipal Christmas Tree Lightings. Christmas on Salem Street starts with carols and the official lighting of Apex's Christmas tree. With the street closed to vehicles, historic Salem Street becomes a walking mall of twinkling lights and greenery, and shop owners beckon you inside with hot cider, cookies and a chance to win great prizes during Scrooge's Scavenger Hunt. Listen for the jingle of bells and you're sure to see Santa arrive in front of the Chamber. Then you can hop aboard a horse drawn sleigh for another view of Apex.
Down in Garner on Friday night they will Light Up Main. The festivities will include lighting the town Christmas Tree, entertainment, refreshments and Santa's workshop with children's arts and crafts. The forcast even calls for snow!
Morrisville Christmas Tree Lighting will be an evening of musical entertainment, crafts for the children and refreshments. Santa Claus will be available for pictures with the children during the event.
Snow is also guaranteed in Downtown Knightdale for their Tree Lighting along with entertainment and Mrs. Claus and Santa's head elf.
Cary joins in on the festivities on Saturday with their Tree Lighting Ceremony.In addition to the tree lighting, there will be actors, singers, dancers, and musicians from the community onstage. Not only will the beautiful 30 foot cedar tree be illuminated, but they will also unveil the "community tree" inside Town Hall. Groups that serve our local community have provided handcrafted ornaments to be displayed on the community tree.
Durham will combine all the elements of a tree lighting with a mini parade, music, arts & crafts, sledding, a petting zoo, and more during their first Holiday Fun Fest on Saturday at the CCB Plaza.
Saturday will also bring the Tree Lighting in Downtown Raleigh during the Raleigh Winterfest Kickoff. In addition to a Christmas Tree lighting, the afternoon will open the downtown ice rink, treat you to a variety of live entertainment, offer carriage, carousel & train rides and include a craft market. The Ice Rink will reamin open through the first two weeks in January so click through for the times and admission fees.
Parades, Parades and More Parades!
Two weeks ago Raleigh kicked off the season with their Holiday Parade. This weekend several other towns across the Triangle will host their annual Holiday Parades. Come out and cheer on the floats and the local marching bands as they usher in the Season.
There are a few more next weekend, but here are this weekend's Christmas Parades. Hillsborough and Knightdale are Saturday. For those of you living in southern Wake County check out the parades in Garner Saturday and Fuquay-Varina on Sunday. West of Raleigh, Apex will have it's annual parade on Saturday.
Bring your sled and come dressed to play at the Winter Wonderland in Cary's Bond Park. Snow My Yard will make snow for you to enjoy on their popular sledding slope. You do need to register for a time slot on either Saturday or Sunday.
Historic Homes invite you to visit Holidays Past
Enjoying the Holiday season does not mean you need to stay out in the cold. Go inside and visit some of the areas Historic Parks and Homes. In Raleigh the Joel Lane Museum House will host a Colonial Christmas celebrating the simple joys of a historic Christmas in partnership with the North Carolina Museum of History. The History Museum will also host a Colonial Christmas Program and on Sunday, there will be a trolley you can ride between the two venues.
Celebrate an 1870 Christmas at Christmas by Candlelight. The evening tours of Duke Homestead feature period decorations, caroling, hot apple cider, and other goodies.
Annual Hillsborough Christmas Candlelight Tour is a self guided tour that features private homes and public or historic buildings. Many of the houses that will be included will be new to the tour and many are of historic significance to the 250-year-old Town of Hillsborough.
The Burwell School Historic Site will host two concerts by the Ebenezer Baptist Church Choir along with fun family activities, games, and crafts. Hot cider and cookies will also be available.
Come celebrate a Civil War Christmas at the Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site. Costumed interpreters will decorate the kitchen in festive themes and serve cookies and hot cider. Also on hand, costumed military interpreters will be available to discuss how the common solider spent his holidays.
First Friday & More
First Friday Movie Night is back at the The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences with an extra large screening of "Galaxy Being" - the first episode of the popular 1960s sci-fi television series "Outer Limits".
Enjoy a free self-guided tour of local art galleries, art studios, museums, retail, restaurants and alternative art venues during First Friday Gallery Walk in Downtown Raleigh.
Thursday night at the Paige Walker Arts & History Center you have the unique opportunity to enjoy an evening of original works hightlighting our local talent during an evening of Theater Readings.
Also Thursday night, Carolina Science Cafe at the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center is a free monthly educational program for adults, offering a behind-the-scenes look at cutting-edge research. Each Carolina Science Cafe features an expert presentation, followed by informal discussions.
The North Carolina Museum of Art is offering some wonderful free lectures this weekend. Friday night you are invited to join Johns Hopkins University professor Richard Halpern as he peels back the layers on Norman Rockwell's work to discuss sexual innuendos found in the artist's illustrations. Saturday you can join a Museum docent for an informal half-hour discussion of Binh Danh: In the Eclipse of Angkor. On Sunday, Sculptor Bob Trotman will be at the museum discussing his process for creating the wooden characters in the exhibition Inverted Utopias.
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