Christmas Village Returns

Some years I do a tree, some years I don't.  This is a no tree year.  However, not to be left without some seasonal cheer--my Winter Village/North Pole display is now too large to fit on the fireplace mantle!  

Winter Village - North Pole - Arctica - Earth - OOOOO

The 11:05 from Trondheim arrived on time and is collecting passengers on their way to Fundy Bay. 

Near that station the annual Holiday markets entice residents and visitors alike to sample treats and by a tree to decorate.

The All Volunteer Christmas Jinglers fill the streets with Holiday favorites like Santa's favorite "Grandma Just Got Run Over By A Reindeer"--word on the street is Mrs. Claus is NOT amused.

The trolley collects riders while some children get ready to play a little ice hockey.

On the far end of town, the homes are festooned with lights and wreaths, ribbons and bells.  Visitors without accommodations will always find a place at the table and cot before the hearth in Winter Village.

Midway more shops greet gift seekers and the official North Pole Post Office struggles to keep up with the late coming volume of mail.  Why, look!  A hot air balloon from far away Zimbabwe has just arrived.

North Pole Proper with the Claus' home all the toy workshops and the Elves Residence is never more frenetic than in the month of December.

Mrs. Claus distributes freshly baked cookies to keep up the Elves strength!

While Santa himself is busy assuring quality control.

Studio Theater: Summer 1976

 "Summer 1976" by David Auburn is the story of two women who met one summer the impact of which remained a visceral part of their lives.  Designed as a double memoir where the two actors take turns telling the story of the summer, often recounting the same moment from their own perspective.  It's clever, it's poignant, it's absolutely funny!--and in the hands of these two consummate talents, it's a damn fine ride!  Holly Twyford takes on Alice, the free spirited, pot smoking college professor's wife.  New in town, and just making friends.  Kate Eastwood Norris is the particular art teacher, Diane, who survives on family money.  It isn't long before contradictions in both women's lives begin to pop up and eventually drive the narrative forward entwining and interweaving two separate lives into something that is stronger...and then not.  

The set is simple and functional.  Perfect for a play where the words really do tell the story.  What appear at first to be a series of random sized wooden panels become mini-screens upon with are projected shapes, lines and colors that slowly transforms along with the friendship of the two women.  It's often subtle, until you see how much is different--like the relationship.  Absolutely an amazing collaboration between Set Designer Lee Savage and Sound Designer Jesse Belsky.  

In all ways, "Summer 1976" is a triumph.

Kate Eastwood Norris (Diane) and Holly Twyford (Alice)

National Aquarium: Australia Wild Extremes

 When you leave Shark Alley at the National Aquarium, you are directed toward an upward moving escalator which will conveniently deposit you in the lobby and the gift shop!  Now, the first time I visit any zoo or aquarium, I endeavor to purchase a coffee mug as a souvenir.  I already have a lovely one that dates back to my first visit some 30 years ago.  Occasionally, I will purchase a second mug if I discover a newer version that is compelling.  At $28.95, the one I have from 1994 is still lovely enough!

Outside the gift shop there is one final set of escalators.  They lead to another glass pyramid, and another recreated ecosystem.  This one?  Australia.  Of course, it goes without saying that an area as modest as a huge glass pyramid on the roof of a building isn't going to be "Australia" any more than it could be the United States.  However, it offers up a little slice with a smattering of fish, reptiles, birds and fauna.  If you are a fan of turtles--you'll definitely want to add it on to the experience as there are 7 or 8 different species featured here.  Without further ado.

Shingleback Skink, Tiliqua rugosa

Hosmer's Skink, Egernia hosmeri

Plains Death Adder, Acanthophis hawkei

This bridge leads you past a 35 foot high waterfall on your right, and a wall of glass on your left.

The falls actually plummet down this faux rock face to a large pool at the very entrance of the National Aquarium.

The pool is home to some magnificent specimens of North American game fish like Rainbow Trout, and from this perspective has no association with Australia whatsoever.  

On the other side of the bridge the wall bears marks similar to those left on stone faces by the Aboriginal people of Australia for millennia. 

Woma, Apidites ramsayi

Mary River Turtle, Elusor macrurus

A pair of Masked Lapwing, Vanellus miles

Parting shot.

National Aquarium: Shark Alley

 As if a deep dive into the Atlantic Ocean at the National Aquarium weren't enough, there's yet another tank below!  This one is about 12 feet in height, it otherwise has the same footprint as the one above.  It is home to a range of shark species.  Large majestic animals.  And it ends with a view of the lowest point in the Black-tip Reef habitat--the beautiful open bay that was the first wonder to greet us at our arrival.

Swimming on the walls between the two tanks are the silhouettes of sharks backlit with blue neon light.

The Hammerhead is easy to distinguish.

Sandbar Shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus

Largetooth Sawfish, Pristis pristis

Black-tip Reef Shark, Carcharhinus melanopterus

Nurse Shark, Ginglymostoma cirratum

National Aquarium: Atlantic Coral Reef

 This is as close as I will ever come to scuba diving into an Atlantic Coral Reef.  With a plethora of superlatives, I continue our visit to the National Aquarium!

The escalator at the National Aquarium from the roof-top Rain Forest deposits you before another stunning wonder.  This is an ovular tank that is over 30 feet (three stories) tall without a seam to be seen.  And if forms an elongated "donut" of sorts in which the guests are on the inside!  The design evokes being on the Deck of a cruise ship, until you began your descent on a series of downward sloping gangways that lead you to the next level of deck which completely follows the contours of the tank.  It's really one of the most amazing thinks you'll ever see.

This pattern of loop-decking and descending pathways repeats itself until you have had the opportunity to view the habitat from above and then at various levels all the way down.  Inside of coral festooned rock formations and expanses of open sand-floored zones providing the hundreds of fish a large variety of natural places to live.  

The one drawback?  The acoustics.  With all the plexi-glass and concrete the echo factor is immense.  While I spent time there a group of middle schoolers were also all about.  Their unregulated voices combined with those of a few frantic chaperones really impacted my experience.  I can see how people with sensory impairments might find this part of the National Aquarium a frightful and intolerable space.  

At one point, an African American boy (say 13) ran past me in the dark followed by his teacher/a parent.  The adult was shouting, "Don't run off!  Stay with your group!  There are lots of people who want to kidnap boys like you!"

And I thought, "Seriously?  Slow down, Hun, have another glass of Kool-Aide."

The conceptual design is both elegant and daunting (especially in the dark)

On the top level, it mimics standing on the Deck of a cruise ship.

Looking over the edge, you can see down through 30+ feet of water to the creatures and formations below.

Time to descend...

The further down you go, the more you see.  The majority of fish prefer the safety of the basin.

All of the habitats are seen from the darkness of the interior decks and corridors.