So Christmas has come and gone and many of us are counting down to New Year’s. The theme parks are busy and shopping is still at full tilt, but I received a question via Twitter from @Orlando_FL_Rep asking what they could do with guests this week besides the theme parks. Many of us might be in a similar situation, so I thought I’d put together some suggestions, and I tried to think mostly indoors, as it is still pretty cold outside. I am sure there are other great things to do, so feel free to add your ideas in the comments section!
What if Mary, Joseph, and the 3 Kings had access to today’s social media tools? Ponder no longer as this video shows us how the story of the Nativity would be just a tad different.
As social media addicts, we think this is pure genius! (And special thanks to Top 5 reader Stephen Nelson for showing us this!)
Enjoy and maybe watching this video will become a Christmas Eve tradition! LOL
Of course there are many places to have a rocking New Year’s Eve in the Central Florida area. Most of the local clubs will be having parties, as well as all the theme parks, each ending in a fabulous fireworks show. But to narrow down your choices, here’s where we are recommending that will be sure to be a great end to 2010 and awesome start to 2011.
Another family place with great restaurants and shops, both open late for the party. And, listen to bands throughout the night, including VonRay and the Mo Geetz Band until fireworks at midnight.
It’s December 23, and as Seinfeld fans everywhere know, today is Festivus! That means airing of grievances, feats of strength, setting up a metal pole, and even Festivus miracles…Festivus is all too real!
For the uninitiated, here’s a short summary of the holiday:
Yes, people everywhere pour into the streets and bars to perform heroic acts of strength, to loudly complain, and to jubilantly celebrate the day! Even Orlando-based AirTran got into the mood by offering their “Don’t be distracted by Tinsel, Celebrate Festivus with AirTran.” (Unfortunately, their celebration ran from December 1-12, missing the actual holiday by quite a bit, but they still get kudos for effort.)
Fortunately for the rest of us, Festivus is alive and well in the rest of Orlando with a few observances around town (Or you can have your own!):
Head to the Festivus for the Rest of Us festival at Orlando Tastings Wine Bar
It’s happened again… another flash! The Orlando International Airport was serenaded yesterday by a flash chorus… we love this rash of flashes lately!
Word has it that this was coordinated by United Arts of Central Florida with the airport security and management, and was directed by Rollins College’s John Sinclair. We love the idea of bringing a bit of cheer to weary holiday travelers. Nobody does that better than Central Florida, eh?
Fortunately I had already left to pick up my son from a party before the filming began (Whew!)… but here’s the full routine from last night as filmed by Studio K:
To give you an idea of burlesque dancing, here’s a trailer for Christina Aguilera and Cher’s new movie of the same name:
It looked easy enough, just prance around with a sassy attitude, shimmy the shoulders and whip your hair a few times…right? I had been an elite gymnast and competitive cheerleader in college, surely this would not be a big deal… right?
Well… let’s just say it had been quite a while since I had shimmied anything.
I arrived to find most of the participants much younger than me and dressed in fishnet stockings, bustiers, and high heels. Suddenly I looked rather frumpy in my cut off sweat pants and sneakers. And the black feather boa just looked kind of silly wrapped around my neck and it was apparently moulting…but strengthened by the solidarity of my fellow lady bloggers, I didn’t make a run for the door but bravely made my way to a waiting chair.
Katy, Bess, Kelly, and Kiran
Studio K's dance floor
A perky, in-shape instructor, Alice Renee K, dressed in a black bejewelled bustier, began to strut her stuff and we did our best to follow along. A wall of mirrors allowed me to track my progress, and at first I felt pretty confident. (Of course, all we were doing was sitting in the chair and sapping our fingers to the beat!)
Then the choreography took us out of a chair and first the right arm goes out, then the left and… and OMG!!!! What was that hanging down under my arms? GASP!!! That was NOT there the last time I did any type of dance lesson! (I guess a decade or so will do that to your body!) I suddenly had wings hanging down off my arms…perhaps they used to be arm muscles, but now I looked like a saggy chicken who had trouble taking flight! Oh dear…
And now that I was totally distracted by my floppy arms I completely missed the next eight count. I was hopelessly lost as the instructor started the music and everyone began the routine again. (And I just heard Studio K took video of us… I feel blackmail is somewhere in my very near future!)
Sigh.
Dancing...
So, what did I learn from my humiliating experience last night?
Well, that I need to get in the gym, that I need to wear long sleeves next time I dance, and that I will have to continue to take Ibuprofen for the next several days to ease my aching back!
But, despite all of my aches and pains and chicken wings, I also learned that it is kind of fun to try something new. And while I am not the next Christina Aguilera, I can still have a good time pretending to be.
Orlando has a variety of dance studios that cater to the whimsical adult who wants to get in shape while having a good time. It doesn’t matter your experience or ability level (obviously!) so don’t let never having done it before stand in your way. Get out there and try it! And, with Florida’s cold winter seemingly set to stay awhile, indoor exercise doesn’t sound so bad!
Some very lucky children (who had obviously been very good) got a visit from Santa recently. His sleigh touched down outside the Enzian Theater and Santa moseyed inside… take a look:
And, if the weather ever warms up, your children will love the Enzian’s next Popcorn Flickfeaturing The Iron Giant on December 16 at Winter Park’s Central Park.
Last night I had the opportunity to get a backstage look at Orlando Live, a kicking local broadcast featuring all things about the City Beautiful. Viewers can tune in for the live show or watch past episodes on-demand. I had never been behind the scenes at a working television studio during a broadcast before, so it was quite the experience!
Orlando Live is filmed in Studio 1A at Full Sail, an exciting place all on its own; especially the Backlot area! (By the way, the nationally syndicated morning television show The Daily Buzz is filmed in Studio 1B, right next door! Cool!)
Studio 1A at Full Sail
So, I arrived an hour-and-a-half early in order to watch the run through of the show as well as a walk through of my own segment so the camera people could figure out their angles, shots, etc. I couldn’t believe how many people it takes to produce this show… lots of camera men, sound guys, directors, prop people, production staff, etc. I was very impressed!
I took a seat in a green room of sorts (ironically it had one wall painted green–for a green screen probably) along with the two other bloggers being featured, Kim Taylor and Ashley K. Edwards, both of the Pulse of Central Florida.
Kim Taylor, Bess Auer, and Ashley Edwards
After a short run-through, we were fitted for microphones and then ready to go. In the studio audience were Kyle Menard from Brink Magazineas well as my hubby @swimmerjoe and his younger brother, Tyson Auer, a stand-out-baseball player from UCF who is getting a shot at playing with the Angels this spring. Tyson brought a few other friends to support me as well… and I needed it because I was nervous!
SwimmerJoe in the studio audience
Uber-Host Peter Murphy came back to chat for a few minutes before we went live… I don’t know how he stays so calm and relaxed just moments before broadcasting!
Bess and host Peter Murphy moments before the show's live broadcast
Well, the show began and I got the opportunity to shoot a few quick pics before my segment:
The control room
House music
Singer Aaron Childree and band
Colleen Burns presenting a Yelp segment with her assistant, Haley the Yorkie
And then it was time for the blogger segment, so Kim, Ashley, and I took our seats by Peter. I wanted to capture the moment, and I just had time to quickly shoot this movie with my iPhone, with only seconds to spare!
Our segment began and in his casual manner, Peter set us at ease and got us talking about blogging about the Orlando scene. Kim and Ashley seemed like old pros and I found myself beginning to enjoy it, too. Suddenly, though, just as Peter was interviewing me, my phone buzzed with my son texting me… Peter grabbed my phone! Talk about bad timing! But at least my son was thrilled to get a “shout out” on a live broadcast!
Top 5 editor Bess Auer being interviewed live.
Well, I made it through the broadcast and loved it! If you haven’t ever seen Orlando Live, I highly recommend you peruse some of the past episodes “on demand” at their Vimeo site. It’s a great place to find out loads of info about our great city as well as hear some fabulous local musicians of note.
After I got home, I had a chance to go through my hubby’s swag bag he snagged as a studio audience member. It was provided by Yelp Orlando and was loaded with fun stuff. If you are not familiar with Yelp, it is an awesome site to find out anything about local places, such as restaurants, eateries, coffee shops, day spas, etc. Colleen Burns does a really incredible job heading it up, and I loved talking with her last night. (And her little cutie pie Haley, too!)
Swag from Yelp Orlando
I will post my segment just as soon as I get a copy, but in the meantime you can watch the full program here. Thanks for a great time, Orlando Live! You are now a regular program for me to watch… simply awesome!
We saw this posted on the Enzian Theater’s Facebook page, so we had to share! We love it… opera sprung upon unsuspecting patrons at Eden Bar… hahahahaaa!
I had heard some rumblings about opera making a re-emergence here in Central Florida, and so maybe this is just the beginning! We’re hoping so!
RT @FLBlogCon: While you can view the sessions a for this year's conference, we'll be announcing speakers a few at a time! http://t.co/7weQ…3 hours ago
