Students from the Burke School of Irish Dance perform to Ohio's "theme song" at the Irish Cultural Heritage Festival yesterday. I like going to the festival just to see the dancers. Burke is a top Irish dance school which has produced a world champion, although not at its Ohio school. Great achievement since it is my impression that it is very difficult for non-Irish (nationality) dancers to win worlds. We were lucky to get seats; the place was packed.
ETA: Hello Innocent Bystanders!
Showing posts with label festivals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label festivals. Show all posts
Monday, July 27, 2009
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Irish Experience
We needed to get out of the house today, so we went to the local, and annual, Irish Cultural Festival. Mr. Evil Genius bought all three of his girls some jewelry, I got to see some handsome Irish men ;), and we got to hear some Irish music and see some Irish dancing. The Scientist knew one of the Irish dancers from a sleepover party given by one of her good friends, also an Irish dancer. The two girls hung out for a while, in between performances by the girl's dance school. I bet none of you, even those who live in Ohio, have ever seen an Irish dance performed to "Hang On Sloopy." It electrified the crowd. O-H-I-O!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Christmas Fair
As promised, here are pictures of a larger Christmas fair in East Berlin in December of 1989. This one had carnival rides and pony rides for children.
It being a Christmas fair, you could also talk to Sankt Niklaus himself and tell him what you wanted him to bring you!
Also, here is a picture of the top of a food stand. We studied Märchen, or fairy tales, in German, and I thought this was cute. Can anyone tell me, or guess, which fairy tale this is from? Can the Artist translate it? :)
Speaking of food, in Germany at the time, it was considered very rude to pick up food with your fingers to eat. So with food such as french fries, at Burger King, say, you were provided with a little plastic fork. At Christmas fairs, you usually received a toothpick-type object, and in E. Berlin it was a very splintery, chopped-up looking toothpick. But mmmm, the fries were good!
It being a Christmas fair, you could also talk to Sankt Niklaus himself and tell him what you wanted him to bring you!
Also, here is a picture of the top of a food stand. We studied Märchen, or fairy tales, in German, and I thought this was cute. Can anyone tell me, or guess, which fairy tale this is from? Can the Artist translate it? :)
Speaking of food, in Germany at the time, it was considered very rude to pick up food with your fingers to eat. So with food such as french fries, at Burger King, say, you were provided with a little plastic fork. At Christmas fairs, you usually received a toothpick-type object, and in E. Berlin it was a very splintery, chopped-up looking toothpick. But mmmm, the fries were good!
Monday, December 04, 2006
Christmas in Deutschland
On November 9, 1989, I woke up in my college dorm room to the radio announcement that the Berlin Wall had been opened. Since I was traveling to Berlin the very next month, this was awesome cool news!
On December 3, 1989, a group of college students, including myself and my DH-to-be, arrived in Berlin, with three professors from our college. Here is a Christmas fair near the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtnis Kirche in Berlin. Christmas Fairs in Germany seem to be the equivalent of the little fairs that pop up in many small towns in America over the Fourth of July. I think this one only had food, but there was one in East Berlin that had carnival rides similar to an American Fourth of July fair. I'll post pics of that later.
Here's a picture of Checkpoint Charlie, as we drove past it.
Here's a Mercedes-Benz building lit up for Christmas.
Here's my DH standing by the Berlin Wall, and taking off a few pieces.
It was exciting to be in another country for Christmas, although the weather was mostly gray and gloomy, and oddly enough, no snow in most of the places we visited. I'll continue to share my experiences with you as the month goes on.
On December 3, 1989, a group of college students, including myself and my DH-to-be, arrived in Berlin, with three professors from our college. Here is a Christmas fair near the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtnis Kirche in Berlin. Christmas Fairs in Germany seem to be the equivalent of the little fairs that pop up in many small towns in America over the Fourth of July. I think this one only had food, but there was one in East Berlin that had carnival rides similar to an American Fourth of July fair. I'll post pics of that later.
Here's a picture of Checkpoint Charlie, as we drove past it.
Here's a Mercedes-Benz building lit up for Christmas.
Here's my DH standing by the Berlin Wall, and taking off a few pieces.
It was exciting to be in another country for Christmas, although the weather was mostly gray and gloomy, and oddly enough, no snow in most of the places we visited. I'll continue to share my experiences with you as the month goes on.
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
I Hate Holidays
At least, I know I am not really thrilled about Easter coming, and I imagine that is partly the cause of my current low mood. I feel rather Charlie Brown-ish. Holidays should be special; that's why they're holidays, right? Because they're special? But they're really not anymore, for me.
Maybe I'm getting old. When I was a child, a big part of the holiday excitement was the preparation, the things you did only once a year, the special meals, the family gatherings. But a lot of the wonder of a decorated tree or colored egg is gone, to my everlasting sadness. I certainly never wanted to lose that thrill, that special magic. And holidays anymore are just getting to be my husband, my daughters and myself.
Am I thankful and grateful that Christ took the punishment for my sins and died on the cross, then rose again, showing His complete victory over sin, death and the power of the devil? Absolutely, as much as a frail, sinful human can be. At the same time, feelings are transient; that's part of their nature. So I hope no one mistakes my lack of enthusiasm for a day on the calendar for a lack of appreciation of the events we choose to celebrate on that certain day. It's just that I don't like losing the holiday feeling. It makes me wonder what we celebrate holidays for, and makes it harder for me to create the special holidays for my own children that I think they should have. I think we in our human-ness need holidays, need fasts and feasts. I just need to learn how to enjoy the feasts again.
Maybe I'm getting old. When I was a child, a big part of the holiday excitement was the preparation, the things you did only once a year, the special meals, the family gatherings. But a lot of the wonder of a decorated tree or colored egg is gone, to my everlasting sadness. I certainly never wanted to lose that thrill, that special magic. And holidays anymore are just getting to be my husband, my daughters and myself.
Am I thankful and grateful that Christ took the punishment for my sins and died on the cross, then rose again, showing His complete victory over sin, death and the power of the devil? Absolutely, as much as a frail, sinful human can be. At the same time, feelings are transient; that's part of their nature. So I hope no one mistakes my lack of enthusiasm for a day on the calendar for a lack of appreciation of the events we choose to celebrate on that certain day. It's just that I don't like losing the holiday feeling. It makes me wonder what we celebrate holidays for, and makes it harder for me to create the special holidays for my own children that I think they should have. I think we in our human-ness need holidays, need fasts and feasts. I just need to learn how to enjoy the feasts again.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)