Museum of Fife and Drum Corps and a Connecticut country inn in Essex

THE MUSEUM OF FIFE & DRUM

Essex, Connecticut

At the Museum of Fife & Drum learn about America’s visual and music background dated from the Revolutionary War to today. Listen to shrills of fife and the beats of long drums as you observe the numerous artifacts on display such as drums, fifes, military swords, uniforms, medals, awards, and photographs. If you enjoy colorful and upbeat parades, then this is the perfect place for you to visit on your next Connecticut River vacation. There will even be free concerts every Tuesday evening during July and August usually featuring two corps per night. If you’re a drum corp, club, historical society, or college/high school music group, call the museum at (860) 767-2237 to arrange for a group tour. The donations are only $3 for adults, $2 for youth (ages 13-17), and children under 12 are free. Click the link proceeding for travel directions. Not even one mile down Comstock Avenue is the Copper Beech Inn, a four-star country inn and four-diamond, wine-spectator-award winning restaurant. It’s located in the beautiful Connecticut River Vally aside the Long Island Sound shoreline nearby several charming historic towns, shops, attractions and many outdoor activities. Currently they are advertising a two-night Summer package highlighting an Essex Steam Train & Riverboat Cruise, champagne upon arrival, free dinner for two one night in Brasserie Pip, and VIP discount coupons for Clinton Crossing Premium Outlets. Add a 3rd night for 50% off the regular room rate and enjoy your stay in Ivoryton, Connecticut.

Laconia, NH Motorcycle Bike Week 2009

Laconia Bike Week 2009

June 13-21

The Summer is coming closer and that means one thing for every New Hampshire motorcyclist. Laconia Bike Week is America’s oldest bike week hosting this June for the 86th time and the turnout will be better than ever. On Saturday June 13th, the extravaganza will begin with an all-you-can-eat pig roast, live music, and a Harley Fashion Show. For the following 8 days, there will be plenty more music, food, shows, and of course motorcycle rides to experience. The top ten features for this year will be:

Aquarium and animal petting zoo in Cape Cod, MA

For 40 years now, the ZooQuarium in West Yarmouth, Massachusetts has provided a fun-filled family adventure for you to explore and discover the marvelous creatures that live close by to the busy roads of Cape Cod. At the Petting Zoo you can get right up close and feed the farm animals while learning how they came to be such an important part of human life. At the Aquarium, you’ll see up close the creatures that lurk the Cape Cod waters from Stripers to Lobsters, Frogs to Turtles. You can even pick up and touch the little critters that inhibit the shoreline at the Tidal Touch Pool. You may see hermit crabs, horseshoe crabs, mussels, sea stars, urchins, clams, fiddler crabs, and much more. At the Zoorific Theater, the naturalists present and will teach you about the animals that you may have never gotten close to like skunks, alligators, or even hedgehogs. In one upcoming event (July 18 & 19, September 5 &6), the Rainforest Reptile Show from Beverly, MA will demonstrate why reptiles are so important to the planet and will let you get up close and personal with many different type of reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates. About 25 minutes east down Route 28, is a four-diamond sea captain’s estate nestled on two acres of Cape Cod soil now called the Captain’s House Inn. Check out their many specials and packages and enjoy a luxurious weekend in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Factory outlet shopping mall center in Tilton, NH – Tanger Outlet Stores

Tilton, NH

As the season is turning into a new, hot, and fun-filled Summer, why not change the wardrobe a little bit? The Tanger Outlet Centers are home to the nation’s leading brand name manufacturers and premium designer labels. You’ll be buying directly from the manufacturer, which ensures affordable prices at retail rates on the same quality products every time you visit. Exclusively for the year of 2009, there are a few additional discounts available for you. Show your AAA/CAA member card to a Tanger Outlet Center service representative or management office nationwide and receive a full access to the EXCLUSIVE savings book. Tanger is awarding a free oversize, re-usable Tote when you make same day Tanger purchases of $75 or more and bring your receipts to the Shopper Services Center, but hurry soon as this offer is ending May 31, 2009. There will be a sidewalk and weekend sales in celebration of Canadian Victoria Day and Memorial Day. If you have a business meeting or large function with more than 25 attendees coming up, e-mail the General Manager at enproulx@tangeroutlet.com to request your free coupon voucher gifts for your guests.

Below is a list of the premium stores you’ll find at the Tanger Outlet Center in Tilton, NH:

History Museum and the Allen Sisters Photography Art

Hay Cart - Photography by Allen, Frances and Mary (c. 1899)

One of the greatest treasures in Memorial Hall Museum and Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association in Old Deerfield, Massachusetts is the vast collection of Allen sisters’ prints and glass plate negatives. Frances Allen and Mary Allen are renowned for idealized photographs of country scenes, figure and child studies, and landscapes dating from 1885-1920. This excerpt from their photography journal in 1894 is a bit of insight to their work:

We use the camera simply as a quick way of sketching, and regard all the technical part, which comes after the exposure is made, as a necessary evil…. In pictures, artistic excellence is usually entirely at variance with what is called a perfect photograph. The eye cannot focus itself on every object in its field of vision at the same time. If a photograph does this, the effect is hard and unnatural. But there must be method in this madness. A picture is not necessarily beautiful because it is blurred, and there’s need of all one’s technical skill, even after a good negative is made, in adapting the print to its peculiar individual qualities.

The Memorial Hall Museum is open seasonally (May 1 – November 1) from 11 am – 5 pm, 7 days a week. Admission is $6 for adults and $3 for youth and students aged 6 – 21. Only a few blocks away is the Deerfield Inn, a traditional country inn located in the center of this 350-year old landmark village. Right now they are running a special package to get a free third night at the Deerfield Inn! When you book a two-night weekend stay and extend your getaway into a Thursday or Sunday, that third night will be free! Also included is a twenty-five dollar credit towards food and beverage on your free room night. This offer is only for a limited time (June 18-July 25, August 14-September 6) so book soon and enjoy your stay in Deerfield, Massachusetts.

Vermont craftspeople display their arts and crafts in Open Studio Weekend 2009

Vermont Crafts Council hosts the Open Studio Weekend 2009

May 23 & 24, 2009

Back in September, the Vermont Crafts Council organizes directions and maps to all the sites of the Vermont craftspeople whom work in studios located in or close to their residences. Throughout the Winter, they continue accepting applications of sites and develop directions. Around the first week of April, it all comes together to make The Open Studio Weekend, named one of the Top Ten Summer Events in a Vermont Chamber of Commerce competition in 1997. On this event, you will be able to see for yourself the production of many finished works of art, the atmosphere of their workplace, and even talk with the artist them self all in the place of the artists’ workplace. You’ll see the swatches that have not been chosen for the quilt or the work that is experimental or not serious enough for the gallery. As you can see on the map below, it will be almost impossible to run out of places to visit on this exciting weekend. Thinking about attending both days of the Open Studio Weekend? The Distinctive Inns of New England can help you find the right place to stay in Vermont to make your weekend just a bit better with luxurious accommodations.

Going from idea to reality: Placing studios on the map.

Glacier and rock cave hiking at the Polar Caves Park in Plymouth, NH

Fifty thousand years ago, a continental glacier moved southward over New Hampshire covering mountains and valleys creating America’s most sensational glacial caves within the most beautiful of woodland settings. As the ice sheets thawed, great blocks of granite cracked and loosened from Hawk’s Cliff. These massive granite blocks fell at the base of the cliff forming Polar Caves Park in Plymouth, New Hampshire, an amazing series of natural caves and passages to walk through. Flat soled walking shoes should be worn and baby strollers will not fit through the caves but may be used elsewhere. Try the Polar Caves Park Mining expeditions to scavenge and reveal stunning fossils and minerals just like real miners. All year around Polar Caves is home to a wide variety of birds and animals: Fallow Deer, Pheasants, Peacocks, Swans, and a wide variety of ducks. Bring your favorite BBQ food, music, a frisbee, and plenty of family friends for a picnic lunch in the pine tree forest. Polar Caves is open 7 days a week from May 9, 2009 until late October from 9am-5pm. The rates for the 2009 season are as follows: ages 10+ are $14, ages 4-9 are $10, and kids under age 4 are free! Nearly 20 minutes east past I-93 on the beautiful shore of Squam Lake is the Manor on Golden Pond awaiting to be your perfect accommodation for this day of fun.

Visit the historical basketball coaches and players at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

Latest News at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

Dream Team and Piston Coach Hall of Famer, Chuck Daly, passes away at 78
May 11, 2009

Chuck Daly in 1994 with his Hall of Fame Medallion

Chuck Daly gained worldwide fame as coach of the legendary Olympic Dream Team in 1992, but long before Barcelona and the gold medal, the twelve-year NBA coach was established as one of the game’s premier mentors. (Read more)

For all you extreme basketball fans or simply the interested, visit the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame museum in Springfield, MA and learn about the most incredible athletes of our past. Learn and understand the fascinating stories of legendary players and coaches whom performed phenomenally and touched many lives. Tickets run for no more than $17 and its usually open from 10am-4pm (click here for details on tickets and hours). After all the basketball excitement, you have plenty of choices of where to go for dinner: Max’s Tavern, Pazzo Ristorante, Cold Stone Creamery, j.Quincy’s & Samuel’s Sports Bar, Subway, Onyx Fusion Bar & Restaurant, and UNO Chicago Grill. Stop by the Official Museum Store online or in Springfield, MA and grab something suitable before visiting the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Rabbit Hill Inn’s fresh, healthy cuisine from local Vermont farmers markets

The season has begun for you to enjoy only the freshest farm produce of the year. What’s better than a relaxing weekend getaway and knowing you’ll be eating the freshest produce around. Chef Matt, from the Rabbit Hill Inn in Vermont, highlights their menu with foods that come less than 60 miles away every day. This includes dairy, produce, herbs, poultry, and meats and their seafood the premium catch from the Main coast. This dedicated locavore Chef visits select farms and farmers markets daily for product harvested just a few hours before. As a result, this Four Diamond cuisine is truly extraordinary and refreshing. During your next visit, be sure to stop by the local farms for the freshest ingredients and plenty more delicious goodies such as locally roasted coffee, artisan cheese, chocolates, jarred and canned treats, flower, plants, and fine crafts. This could be why Vermont is one of the Top 3 Healthiest States in the USA!

Outdoor Rock Climbing and Day Spa Package in New Hampshire