Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the Feast of St. Anthony. The sublime
(fresh seafood prepared while you wait,
live music, dancing in the street) min-
gles with the ridiculous (carnival
games, tacky T-shirts, fried-dough
stands) to leave a lasting impression of
fun and indigestion. Visit www.fisher
mansfeast.com or www.saintanthonys
feast.com for a preview. Weekends
throughout August.
August Moon Festival,
Chinatown. A
celebration of the harvest and the com-
ing of autumn, the festival includes
dragon and lion dances during the
parade through the crowded streets,
and demonstrations of crafts and mar-
tial arts. It's also an excuse to stuff
yourself with tasty mooncakes. For
details, visit
www.chinatownmain
street.org
. Mid-August.
September
Boston Film Festival
(
&
617/523-
8388;
www.bostonfilmfestival.org),
various locations. Independent films
continue on the festival circuit or make
their premieres, sometimes following a
lecture by an actor or filmmaker. Most
screenings are open to the public with-
out advance tickets. Mid-September.
October
Salem Haunted Happenings,
various
locations. Parades, parties, a special
commuter-rail ride from Boston, for-
tune-telling, cruises, and tours lead up
to a ceremony on Halloween. Contact
Destination Salem
(
&
877/SALEM-
MA
) or check the website (www.
hauntedhappenings.org) for specifics.
All month.
An Evening with Champions,
Bright
Athletic Center, Allston. World-class
ice skaters and promising local students
stage three performances to benefit the
Jimmy Fund, the children's fundraising
arm of the Dana-Farber Cancer Insti-
tute. Sponsored by Harvard's
Eliot
House
(
&
harvard.edu/~ewc). Early or mid-Octo-
ber (tickets on sale in August).
Oktoberfest,
Harvard Square, Cam-
bridge. This immense street fair is a
magnet for college students, families,
street performers, musicians, and crafts
vendors. Sponsored by the Harvard
Square Business Association (
&
617/
491-3434;
www.harvardsquare.com).
Second Sunday of October.
Ringling Brothers and Barnum &
Bailey Circus,
TD Banknorth Garden
(
&
617/624-1000
events line, 617/
931-2000 Ticketmaster; www.tdbank
northgarden.com). The Greatest Show
on Earth makes its annual 2-week visit.
Mid-October.
Head of the Charles Regatta,
Boston
and Cambridge. High school, college,
and postcollegiate rowing teams and
individuals—some 4,000 in all—race
in front of tens of thousands of fans
along the banks of the Charles River
and on the bridges spanning it. The
Head of the Charles (
&
617/868-
6200;
www.hocr.org) has an uncanny
tendency to coincide with a crisp, pic-
turesque weekend. Late October.
November
Thanksgiving Celebration,
Plymouth
(
&
800/USA-1620;
www.visit-
plymouth.com). Plymouth observes
the holiday with a “stroll through the
ages,” showcasing 17th- and 19th-cen-
tury Thanksgiving preparations in
historic homes. Menus at
Plimoth
Plantation,
which re-creates the
colony's first years, include a Victorian
Thanksgiving feast. Reservations
(
&
800/262-9356
or 508/746-1622;
www.plimoth.org) are accepted begin-
ning in June. Thanksgiving Day.
December
The Nutcracker,
Opera House,
Boston. Boston Ballet's annual holiday
extravaganza is one of the country's
biggest and best. This is
the
traditional
617/493-8172;
www.hcs.
