By Lani Gering The Harbor slowly started gearing up for the season last month with the return of free fitness classes on the plaza, the movies on the Potomac and live entertainment on the streets. June brings back the Salute to Sunset concert series on Saturdays at 7 pm. These performances take place on the Plaza Stage and run through September 16th. New this season are the Stars & Stripes concerts that will take place in the amphitheater in Spirit Park. Spirit Park is the newest venue in the Harbor and is located right off of the entrance to the Harbor. You can’t miss it. These performances will take place on Wednesdays at 7 pm. Both of these series are comprised of bands representing the arms of the military the likes of the Navy – Commodores, Cruisers and Sea Chanters; the Army – Singing Sergeants, “Pershings Own” Country Roads and the 247th Army Band; the Air Force – Airmen of Note and Max Impact. I have listened to all of these groups at one time or another while living in the Harbor and they are all wayyy talented! These performances are definitely crowd pleasers! Concert goers are encouraged to grab food from one of National Harbor’s many restaurants and enjoy a picnic along with the music. Concerts are subject to weather conditions and may be cancelled for inclement weather. Visit www.nationalharbor.com/events/annual-events/stars-stripes-military-concerts/ for information on the Wednesday Stars & Stripes Concerts or http://www.nationalharbor.com/events/annual-events/salute-the-sunset/ for the Salute the Sunset Concert Series on Saturdays. Give me a Frozen Strawberry Lemonade The Flight Deck at the Capital Wheel rolled out their new summer beverages last month and they have some winners! Since they aren’t licensed to serve “distilled spirits”, they have to get creative with spiked seltzers and the like. They have partnered with Truly Hard Seltzer…
By Lani Gering You all are probably wondering what’s up with that headline besides being very creative J…I just wanted to get your attention since there are two “firsts” coming to the Harbor this month. The announcement of these events caught my attention since I have a keen interest in both. The Boat Show Being involved with an avid sailor who is always looking for the next bigger vessel, I am pretty psyched that the Inaugural DC Boat Show is coming to National Harbor! It will be here all weekend from the 5th to the 7th. May traditionally is the beginning of boating season in the DMV and this show comes in on the heels of the spring shows in Annapolis in April. At the time of this writing there should be 40 boat dealers who will be displaying over 300 boats on land and in water. Boat shows give you the opportunity to climb aboard a wide variety of vessels from sail to power (both pre-owned and new) and the chance to place an immediate sale or to order. Tour the boats, grab food and drinks, listen to live music throughout the show, peruse the vendor tents for the latest in boating gear, meet the experts, and commune with boaters from local and far away harbors! The show will have a lot to offer in the way of entertainment with live music in three locations throughout the weekend. A beach party is scheduled for Saturday, the 6th where musician Shawn Owen will play off the back of a Lagoon Catamaran. Bobby McKey’s Dueling Pianos will be performing in the afternoon in Spirit Park and more than 15 live musicians will perform throughout the weekend at various locations in the show! Pernod Ricard, the Official Spirits Sponsor, will be providing drinks from their vast portfolio…
By Lani Gering Wow! Can you all believe that it has been 15 years since National Harbor made its debut? Those years certainly flew by. I remember when Milt Peterson first unveiled his plan for the project and the hullabaloo that ensued afterward, most specially on the Alexandria side of the Potomac. Comments like “He is building a resort that is going to take away our tourist business.” “It is never going to work. Who would want to spend time in Prince George’s County? It is dangerous!” and so on…. Well….no tourist business was taken away from Old Town. In fact, the Gaylord has provided hundreds of thousands of tourists each year to our fair city. Old Town has something the Harbor doesn’t have – hundreds of years of history. I lived in a wonderful condo in the Harbor from 2010 to 2021 and never felt in danger once. In fact, I wish I still lived there but the Economic impact of the pandemic forced my move. When Peterson took on this project he didn’t know that the economy would take a bit of a hit in the early 2000’s. When the downturn occurred he stayed true to his word (unlike many others in the building business) and put his money where his mouth is and kept the project going. After the completion of the Gaylord and the main footprint of the “Heart of the Harbor” – it officially opened on April 1, 2008. We were there at the ceremony and were happy to be part of a little bit of history being made. “When Milt Peterson, first saw the piece of land, he saw something that no one else saw,” said Jon Peterson, CEO of Peterson Companies. “As a developer, we always look to provide what a community is…
By Lani Gering Whoa…what is wrong with this weather? I have no clue what it’s going to be by the time this issue hits the streets but it’s in the mid 60’s as I write this and is going to hit 80 degrees in the DMV tomorrow! Pretty wild temps for this area in late February and I’m not complaining as long as a freak freeze doesn’t blow through any time during Cherry Blossom season. Speaking of which…the Okame cherry trees in the Harbor have been blooming for over a week now. Many of you might remember that the last of the 200 of these trees were planted in the Harbor in 2019 and in these last 4 years they have grown exponentially. They grow about two feet a year and are very desirable for areas that want quick, hardy, spectacular color. They are also more tolerant to the cold than most other types of cherry trees and are early bloomers with flowers lasting up to three weeks. They are earlier than ever this year and are way ahead of National Harbor’s Cherry Blossom Festival that kicks off on March 16 and runs through April 16. In a region that is known for its cherry blossom displays and celebrations, the trees at National Harbor have quickly become a large draw not only because they are some of the first to blossom, the Harbor Festival is full of celebrations that complement the events that take place in D.C. Information on National Harbor’s Cherry Blossom Festival is in this link. https://www.nationalharbor.com/events/annual-events/cherry-blossom-festival/ March and April are both great months to visit the Harbor before the onset of Memorial Day and the beginning of tourist season. One of the newest attractions and also one of my favorite is Spirit Park. You may remember when…
By Lani Gering For the last few years I have dedicated the February column to the Chinese New Year themed installation in the Conservatory at the MGM Grand. I just love the Chinese New Year “stuff” and I really get excited when I go to a Chinese restaurant and they have the place mats that have all of the years and animals on them. You know, the ones that tell you who you are and aren’t compatible with, what your personality is like, etc. According to my reliable source – Chinesenewyear.net – Rabbit is the fourth animal in the Chinese zodiacs. About said Rabbit…legend has it that Rabbit was proud – and sometimes arrogant – about its speed. He was neighbors with the Ox and always made fun of how slow he was. One day the Jade Emperor said the zodiac order would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived at his party. Rabbit set off at day break but when he got there, there were no other animals in sight. Thinking that he would obviously be first, he went off to the side and napped. However, when he woke up three other animals had already arrived. One of them was the Ox that he had always looked down on. This year’s display, as in the past, has elements of Chinese gardens, the likes of pagoda’s and koi fish, along with 16,000 flowers, massive Chinese lanterns and a glistening pond where the beautiful silk rose koi fish is frolicking. The Money Tree is back as well. As far as the animatronics go…the Rabbit moves his ears and there are wild birds chirping in the trees along with the water fall and koi pond. While not as impressive as the Year of the Tiger – it seriously is…
By Lani Gering ….with the exception of the 20th Anniversary of MAGFest, aka Music and Gaming Festival, taking place at the Gaylord Resort from the 5th through the 8th. This year’s gathering is classified as a SUPER MAGFest! I was introduced to MAGFest several years ago. I was living in the Harbor at the time and on one of my “walkabouts” I saw literally hundreds of people pretty much dressed the same (faded jeans, plaid shirts and a several in what I would call odd costumes) unloading case upon case of water, energy drinks, etc. in front of every hotel in the Harbor. It appears that being a 24 hour-a-day gamer is very dehydrating. Here is the Readers Digest explanation of MAGFest: MAGFest, Inc. is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization — that’s right! MAGFest is more than just a fun musical festival to party at several times a year! Our status as a non-profit organization is a way for us to further our mission statement, which is: MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE THROUGH VIDEO GAMES. We achieve this through numerous events, such as Super MAGFest, MAGWest, MAGStock, and Bit Gen Gamer Fest. During these events, we also support other not-for-profit organizations, such as Child’s Play. Other primary goals of MAGFest include: -To educate the public about video game music, art, and history. -To promote public appreciation of video game music, art, and history. -To preserve for posterity the culture and history of video games. Being of a certain age I immediately thought that this was a gathering of teenagers and college kids who hung out to play video games. Upon closer inspection, I saw people from every age group gravitating to the Resort to “begin the games”. It really is pretty sophisticated and fodder for some amazing people watching. For…
By Lani Gering I am so happy that ICE! is back at the Gaylord after a two year hiatus and runs through New Year’s Eve. One of my favorite things to do is to sip on a holiday beverage or two at the Belvedere Lobby Bar and take in the tree lighting and laser light show before donning the blue parkas and trekking through the fantastic ice maze. We missed this year’s media preview event so I haven’t taken my ride down the ice slide or ice tubed yet either so….that is on the calendar in the next couple of weeks. I don’t usually like to use press release information but since I couldn’t attend the preview, their PR people provided me with all of the info I needed so I am passing it on: Using more than 2 million pounds – or 1,000 tons – of ice, the amusing holiday classic, ‘A Christmas Story™’ will be brought to life in ice sculpture form by a team of 40 world-class ice artisans from Harbin, China. This is the first time A Christmas Story has been featured at ICE! during the resort’s holiday celebration. This year, guests will experience over 10 scenes from the hilarious family tale in magnificent hand-carved sculptures made of ice. Featured scenes include the old man’s major award, Aunt Clara’s pink nightmare and the ultimate triple dog dare at the school’s flagpole and more! Starting with more than 6,000 massive ice blocks, the carvers work approximately six weeks – more than 12,000 man-hours – to create the nearly 17,000 square foot frozen attraction. The artisans, using skills passed down from generation to generation, follow a 300-page design book to create the ice spectacle. The specially designed ICE! tent will be kept at a frosty 9 degrees Fahrenheit…
By Lani Gering Patriotic Tribute to the American Flag National Harbor celebrated Flag Day on June 14th with the groundbreaking of a new attraction – Spirit Park – and it is set to open on Veteran’s Day. I wasn’t quite sure why they wanted to use some of the only “green space” we have in the heart of the Harbor as well as taking up a significant number of parking spaces but as it started coming together, I guess I get it. It will definitely add another dimension to the Harbor and it is inclusive of some very cool sculptures and the amphitheater style layout is very attractive. To better tell you what the park will entail, I garnered the following information from Bendure Communications: The park is 1.776 acres (in honor of Independence Day) and will feature a 50 by 80-foot custom-made flag that will go on a flag pole that is 177 feet 7 inches tall (first Flag Day was on June 14, 1777.) The flag will be one of the largest American flags flying in the country. It will be surrounded by 13 smaller flags (representing the original colonies.) Many elements of the park will pay homage to the flag’s signature features, as well as incorporate American themes throughout. Spirit Park is based on the development of a patriotic, historically accurate, educational and moving tribute to the flag. It will include multiple touch points of interest relating to the history of the flag and its iterations from creation through history to what it is today. The park includes an amphitheater with six rows of seating (representing the number of white stripes on the flag) and a 50-foot round stage representing the 50 states. Spirit Park will host everything from military concerts, history lectures, military events, private veteran…
By Lani Gering I love the month of October! I love fall and I love it that the holidays are just around the corner! I am so looking forward to getting out my sweaters and jeans and wearing the cool socks I have collected over the years with my boots. Don’t get me wrong, I do like keeping my tan as long as possible but I am over the 88 degree days! It has been a little over two years since I moved back to Old Town and I still miss living in the Harbor, especially this time of the year! While the summer activities and concert series have come to an end there are still plenty of things to keep you busy here. The tourist traffic slows down, the weather tends to be cooler and the Gaylord is gearing up for the holidays. If you are football fan, bring your chair or a blanket and sit in front of the big screen on the Plaza and take in the action on the weekends. The NCAA games air at 12 noon on Saturdays and NFL games at 1 pm on Sundays. The “Commanders” – I still can’t get used to calling the Redskins that – will definitely air and you can check the Harbor Facebook page for other games scheduled. There is always something happening at the Capital Wheel and at the Flight Deck right beside it. October is a fantastic month to enjoy a spin around the Wheel and a beer or glass of wine on the Deck. This is probably one of my very favorite places here in the Harbor. It sits right on the water and is a fabulous place to people watch. It is a great location to frequent both during the day and at night….
By Lani Gering Let me tell you my people, it has been a long time since I have been impressed with a new concept in the hospitality realm – most specially in the sports bar arena – and I have experienced quite a few during my 28 years with the Old Town Crier. Remember when the multiple TV’s with every sport in the realm on screen came on the scene? That was pretty cool since you could watch rugby when your pals were glued to football or golf but Harbor Social (HS) has taken the sports bar experience to a whole other level. Located on the ground floor in the Gaylord – former home of National Pastime – Harbor Social has incorporated the wall of televisions for NP (don’t mess with something that isn’t broken) into an amazing interactive experience. Interactive is the key word here. The concept of HS is to get patrons to put down their communicating devices long enough to interact with each other via eye contact and actual spoken words. The drink coasters even get into the act with fun questions that can engage the group. While we were there I got into a conversation with a couple of people of different generations regarding “Favorite Saturday Morning Cartoon?”. Mine was the Jetsons, one guy loved Thunder Cats (????) and the really old guy’s was Mighty Mouse. We had a fun conversation about things in our generations while sipping on an adult beverage and discussing the merits of duck pin bowling. This sports bar brings people together through nine interactive games including duckpin bowling, bocce ball, darts, shuffleboard, pool, air hockey (this is my game and I can’t wait to go back), corn hole and numerous games like a table top version of the popular “islandy” hook…
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