June 30, 2011
Rabbit Rabbit Day
Today is RABBIT RABBIT DAY!
“Rabbit rabbit” is a common British superstition. The most common modern version states that a person should say “rabbit, rabbit” or simply “white rabbits” upon waking on the first day of each new month, and on doing so will receive good luck for the duration of that month. It has to be the FIRST thing you say for that month though. If you groggily say something else before getting it out in the morning, or if you stay up past midnight the night before and say something past 12, it DOESN’T COUNT! This task of saying “rabbit, rabbit” first thing is a more difficult task than one would imagine. In the United States, the tradition is especially common in Nantucket, Cape Cod and other towns within Massachusetts.
Variations exist in many different states in the US, and in other countries. For example, in central Pennsylvania, the custom is to say “Rabbit”last thing before going to sleep on the last day of the month, and to say it again first thing on the first day of the month. In northern New England, it is sometimes customary to say “rabbit rabbit” at the beginning of a new day, although this isn’t considered to have the impact of saying it upon the start of a new month. In Ireland, children traditionally say “coinín bán” (Irish for “white rabbit”) the first time they meet someone on the 1st day of any month.
Do you want to learn about other cultures and their superstitions? Wish you could travel more to other countries and experience them hands on? If you
are in the area, you should come over to Festiva Hospitality Group’s location in Portland Maine. At Festiva we can show you and your family how you can take longer vacations, more often, and for less money than you could ever imagine! You can visit every country you want. We are a family friendly resort and we look forward to meeting you so that we can make your life more fun! Maine is just one of the amazing states that we have one of our resorts at! Head over to our website at www.festiva.travel so that you can see for yourself the beautiful places that you and your family could visit!
June 29, 2011
Jolie Holland in concert
Texas-born Jolie Holland fuses folk, traditional country and blues into songs that are, as the old book says, ‘as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves’. Loosely inspired by Neil Young’s Zuma, Holland’s fourth album, Pint of Blood, is out on ANTI- records on June 28th. Embracing the live-studio rock approach of the 60’s and 70’s, Holland nods to The Velvet Underground, the Stones, and Bowie. The New York Times has called Holland “the folk singer who’s from everywhere and nowhere”, but her latest work is a matured distance from her days in The Be Good Tanyas, firmly settled in a grounded personal sound of artistic exploration. Sallie Ford pulled up her Carolina roots and moved across the country to Portland, Oregon, where she met her band, the Sound Outside. Channeling the vocal stylings of Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith and Etta James, the group is doing for roots music what Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings have done for the contemporary soul music revival.
Show is at SPACE Gallery, Thursday 07.07.2011, Doors at 7:30 PM, Starts at 8:00 PM, $15 advance, $18 day of show, 18+
While in town for the concert, stop by Festiva Adventure Club, check out our log cabin in the city, and hear about our great deals on our Members Only Vacation Packages. Ask one of our Festiva Hospitality Travel Agents how they can get your family to take vacations while still respecting your budget. More information can be found at www.festiva.travel.
June 28, 2011
Houlton Agricultural Fair
Looking for something fun leading up to the 4th? Why not go to the Houlton Agricultural Fair. The fair will run from Friday July 1st to Monday July 4th. The first day will be a day dedicated to the kids. Events will include a 4H Horse show, an ice cream eating contest, an Oreo stacking contest and even laser tag. Kids day will end in a fire works show starting at 9:15pm. The second and third day of events will run similar to the first day and will include more for the adults. Events such as The Lumberjack Show, a skillet show, a Frisbee throw a karaoke contest and a pie eating contest.The 4th will open with a parade at 10am. There will be contests held for events that have been running for the length of the fair including a softball and baseball contest, and even a laser tag tournament. The night will end in a huge fireworks display, the biggest north of Portland. Tickets for each day will cost only 10$ and will include all rides.
Love traveling to events? Why not swing by Festiva Adventure Club located at 190 Riverside St in Portland. View a quick 120 minute reservation and find out how much Festiva can save you on your next vacation. Festiva Adventure Club has been around for over 10 years and has the experience you can trust. Call 1(888)695-0200 to set up a reservation today!
June 27, 2011
Beaches in Maine
Never know what to do on a warm summer day? Sick of visiting the same beach over and over again? Why not explore some new ones. Have you visited Old Orchard Beach? Its rated #1 beach in Maine every year. Looking for more than just beach on your next trip? Why not try Ferry Beach State Park. You could picnic, explore the natural sand dunes or even take a walk on one of their nature trails. Have an age range of children? why not head to Reid State Park. There are 3 very different beach sections. Your older ones can play in the big waves while your smaller children can play in the more protected area of the beach. Sick of being stuck in the crowd at the beach? Why not try Popham Beach located in Phippsburg. Its a beautiful sandy beach that even has tidal pools to explore. The only downside is that it is often windy.
Love exploring the beach? While your scooting from one to another why not stop by Festiva Adventure Club. Festiva is located at 190 Riverside St in Portland. Festiva has been around for over 10 years and has the experience to provide your family with the best vacation possible whether its on the beach or not! Call 1 (888)695-0200 to set up a reservation for a quick 120 minute presentation today!
June 26, 2011
Josiah Wolf with The Gloaming, if and it, Dj pEACEFANg TONIGHT!
Josiah Wolf in concert tonight!
Josiah Wolf, like his younger brother and WHY? bandmate (and Anticon labelmate) Yoni, has never been able to escape the call of music. His father, a Cincinnati rabbi, taught him drums at the age of 9, so that curly-haired kid could provide the backbeat for worship service. Later, he’d dabble in darker arts (i.e. grunge) and fall in love with the hard bop of Thelonious Monk on his way to the University Of Cincinnati’s music conservatory. Inspired by the likes of the Silver Jews’ melancholy acoustic storytelling and multiple cross-country relocations over the past decade, Josiah’s solo album, Jet Lag, finally came to fruition in a cottage in the woods outside Cincinnati. The Gloaming is a boy/girl duo from Portland, Maine that specializes in making big sounds come from small instruments. Locals if and it round out the bill and Dj pEACEFANg brings his deep Sunday night selection of all things electronic to keep the jams rolling between sets.
Show is Sunday 06.26.2011 at SPACE gallery, Doors at 8:30 PM, Starts at 9:00 PM, $8, 18+
While in town for the concert, stop by Festiva Adventure Club, check out our log cabin in the city, and hear about 
our great deals on our Members Only Vacation Packages. Ask one of our Festiva Hospitality Travel Agents how they can get your family to take vacations while still respecting your budget. More information can be found at www.festiva.travel.
June 25, 2011
Relay for Life kicks off…TODAY!
Festiva in Portland has been collecting donations to give to Relay For Life by having Hawaiian Day and 2 Dress Down Days. Each employee paid 1 dollar for the right to dress in a Hawaiian themed outfit back in April. This past May and June, we had a dress down day, where the employees paid 3 dollars for the right to wear jeans, flip flops and anything comfortable they wanted.
And today? The relay is upon us.
What is Relay For Life?
The American Cancer Society Relay For Life is a life-changing event that gives everyone in 
communities across the globe a chance to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against the disease. At Relay, teams of people camp out at a local high school, park, or fairground and take turns walking or running around a track or path. Each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the event. Because cancer never sleeps, Relays are overnight events up to 24 hours in length. Although every Relay For Life is different, there are certain traditions at all Relays, no matter where they are held. These traditions help participants celebrate, remember, and fight back.
What can I do? Isn’t it too late?
No way! It’s never too late. You can CLICK THIS LINK to donate to Festiva Portland’s Relay Team! Also, the event in Windham, ME will have donation raising events on site aside from the walking. There will be race car photo opportunities, glow in the dark bracelets and other handmade jewelry for sale, slices of pizza, hot dogs and cupcakes to purchase, hair extensions and nail painting and more! All proceeds go to the same cause, ending cancer. even if you cannot donate financially, you could donate your time by helping set up or clean up, or just cheer the walkers on. After 10 hours on the track, they will need some encouragement. Check Cancer.org for your local Relay For Life event to see what events will be happening near you!
June 24, 2011
Zombie Kickball VI!
Not your average kickball game…
WHAT: Zombie Kickball VI
WHEN: Sunday, June 26, 2011 from 12:00pm – 4:00pm
WHERE: Softball field, Eastern Prom, Portland ME 04101
COST: Free! Just bring your undead team spirit and sense of humor, you won’t be disappointed.
FMI: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=199022546796183
120 people have already signed up! If you would like to join the horde of cheerful undead kickball players or just come and watch ‘em lurching around the playing field, be there this Sunday. Stop by and play a round, or stay the entire time! All zombies welcome.
Like having fun in your time off? Enjoy attending or playing sports, undead or regular? Why not stop by Festiva Adventure Club? Located at 190 Riverside St in Portland. View a quick 120 minute presentation and find out how you can have cheaper but more extravagant vacations MORE OFTEN. Festiva
has been around for over 10 years and has the experience to provide your family with the best vacation possible for less. Call Festiva today to set up a reservation at 1(888)695-0200!
June 23, 2011
Let’s go to the DRIVE-IN!
The summer weather won’t be here forever and the winter is long and hard. So why not spend a couple of warm nights with your family, eating popcorn and watching a movie underneath the sky or inside of your car??
At Pride’s Corner drive-in theater in Westbrook, the THEY’VE BUMPED IT UP TO SHOW 3 FILMS A NIGHT! Not sure I could sit that long, but if you want bang for your buck, this is the place. The picks right now are The Green Lantern, The Hangover II and Cars 2. Not too shabby and something for everyone. So go outside, breathe in the fresh air, and enjoy the quality time that you can spend with your family. There’s something about experiencing a movie at a drive-in theater that the modern day multi-plex cinemas cannot come close to competing with. Whether it’s nostalgia or the commu
nity and family oriented atmosphere, there’s an appeal for all ages at the drive-in theater.
When you are done with the movies, Festiva Resorts can take care of you! Festiva Resorts would like to thank you if you come in for one of our 120-minute presentations with dinner certificates, Funtown combo passes, visa gift cards, and so much more. To learn more, visit our website at www.festiva.travel.
June 22, 2011
Haven’s Candy
Haven’s Candies is a haven for those with a sweet tooth.
From lobster shaped chocolate on a stick to salt water taffy by the yard, Haven’s is here for you. Whether you are a townie looking for a good ‘ole Maine treat, or a tourist trying to take in the experience, you should go to Haven’s Candies.
If you love salt water taffy, then Haven’s Candies is exactly where to go. Haven’s has been hand crafting salt water taffy and other delicious confections right here in Portland, Maine. They make over 16 flavors of taffy including cake batter, molasses peanut butter, blueberry and a variety of sugar free flavors. You can even visit the factory store in Westbrook and watch the skilled candy makers at work.
At Haven’s Candies you will also find a variety of hand made chocolates, nine flavors of
hand stirred fudge, roasted nuts and a large selection of nostalgic candies (who remembers buttons???). Haven’s has been making handcrafted candies in Maine since 1915, and even today much of their candy production process is still done by hand. On the day I visited, staff members were feeding salt water taffy into their decades old candy wrapping machine, running pretzels under one of their two enrobing machines, and making molded chocolates.
We got a lesson into how they make the cream centers of their chocolates: a mold is used to press shapes (hearts, ovals, circles, etc.) into a tray of starch, the cream in liquid form is poured into the indents by hand, and the creams are cooled to solid state before they’re removed from the starch, dusted off, and run through the enrober, where they go under a chocolate waterfall. The creams are made with inverted sugar, which causes the solid creams to turn to the proper cream consistency (or to a liquid in the case of cherry cordials) after 
they’ve been enrobed. Pretty nifty! Haven’s finishes each chocolate by hand with a little swirl or other decorative touch so that they can be distinguished from each other.
Haven’s is one of those gems that isn’t a tourist trap, just a good Maine business happy to help a hungry customer. With three locations it’s easy to make Haven’s a stop when you’re in the Portland area.
Love food from all over, especially sweets? Wish you could enjoy foods from all over the world? Why not stop by Festiva Adventure Club, check out our log cabin in the city, and hear about our great deals on our Members Only Vacation Packages? Ask one of our Festiva Hospitality Travel Agents how they can get your family to take vacations while still respecting your budget. More information can be found at www.festiva.travel. Maybe your next dessert will be gelato from Italy.
June 21, 2011
D Cole Jewelers Birthday Celebration!
Love fine Jewelry? Come down to D Cole Jewelers for their 30 year anniversary. D Cole Jewelers is located at 10 Exchange St in Portland’s Old Port. The sell a little something for everyone. You can walk out with a fine piece of silver jewelery for just 10$ or buy something extraordinary and walk out with a piece costing $15,000. Their kick off party to their 30 year celebration will take place on June 10 and will be running all month long. The event will start at 10am and run until 8pm. There will be treats and beverages all day. Even a contest that will be running to the end of the month to see who has the oldest D Cole Jewelers receipt. The winner will get a 100$ gift card. D Cole Jewelers have been an important part of the old port, winning The Portland Pheonix’s’ Best Jeweler for 15 years. D Cole Jewelers will have an event or month long promotion for every upcoming month of this year to celebrate their 30 years of business.
Love exploring new things? While your in Portland why not stop by Festiva Adventure Club located at 190 Riverside St. View a quick 120 minute presentation and find out exactly how much Festiva can save you on your next family vacation. Festiva Adventure Club has been around for over 10 years and has the experience you can trust. Call 1(888)695-0200 to set up a reservation today!
