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Two free family-oriented festivals this month in Durham and Cary honor Latino heritage and showcase its splendor through music, dance, and kids’ activities.
In Durham, the sixth Annual Latino Festival takes place Aug. 7 from 3 to 8 p.m. at Rock Quarry Park with a full lineup of musicians and dancers, authentic foods, and a marketplace selling arts and crafts. Kids can create traditional Latin American crafts and be entertained by storytelling, face painting, a clown and games.
Organized by the Durham Parks and Recreation Department, the festival brings an array of musical styles and artists from across North Carolina including salsa musicians Orquesta GarDel, The Farándula Show Latin musical group, pop singer impersonator Angel Figueroa and the Baile Azteca dance group. Area radio station reporter Julio Martínez will be this year’s host.
Fitness-minded adults and children also can participate in the following: Zumba instruction, a fun exercise workout that combines Latin and international music with dance; a children’s tennis clinic; and a soccer tournament for teens ages 14-16 and younger kids ages 5-13. Registration for the tournament begins at 3 p.m.; the tournament is at 4 p.m.
Festival-goers also can learn about health, education and employment opportunities in the community.
Rock Quarry Park is at 701 Stadium Dr., Durham. Visit www.ci.durham.nc.us/departments/parks/latino_festival.cfm or call 919-560-4355 for more information and a festival schedule.
In Cary, the sixth Annual Ritmo Latino Festival celebrates Latino heritage at Bond Park’s Sertoma Amphitheatre and Kiwanis Shelter on Aug. 15 from 1 to 6 p.m. The day features live entertainers, vendors, artists, dance lessons for adults, activities for children and a wide selection of Latin foods. Ritmo Latino is co-sponsored by Diamante Inc. and the Town of Cary Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department. Visit www.diamanteinc.org or call 919-460-4963 for more information. Bond Park is at 801 High House Rd., Cary.
– Janice Lewine
Two shows coming to Raleigh this month are sure to captivate children with song and dance performances by some much-loved characters: The Wiggles and Curious George.
The Wiggles: Wiggly Circus Live will have young fans wiggling in the aisles as they sing and dance with their favorite wiggly friends. The 26-city tour stops in Raleigh Aug. 15 at the Raleigh Memorial Auditorium. Shows are at 12:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., and ticket prices range from $11 to $76 (tax not included).
The Wiggles originated as a group of three early childhood education students in Sydney, Australia, nearly 20 years ago. Since then The Wiggles album has achieved Gold and Platinum status with songs that are entertaining and educational.
Group member Anthony Field believes their success comes in part from understanding childhood development. “A lot of what we do comes from a child’s perspective,” Field says. “It’s got a lot to do with what songs are about and the language we use, and I like to think we know how to write pretty catchy tunes.”
A second family-friendly show visiting Raleigh this month is the inaugural tour of Curious George, Live! For 65 years, Curious George and his adventures have entertained children and parents around the world, and now those adventures are headed for the stage at Raleigh’s RBC Center.
Curious George Live! Performances are: Friday, Aug.13, 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 14, 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.; and Sunday, Aug. 15 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15, $20 and $25. Gold Circle seats and $55 Monkey Seats are also available. Monkey Seats include a VIP seat and a pre-show meet-and-greet photo opportunity with Curious George. On opening night, all seats (except Gold Circle and Monkey Seats) are $13.
Tickets for both The Wiggles: Wiggly Circus Live and Curious George, Live! are available through www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 800-745-3000.
— Carol McGarrahan
Fireflies, foxfire fungus, viper fish and deep-sea starfish may not appear to have much in common, yet they share a unique ability to produce their own light, a process known as bioluminescence. These and other light-generating creatures are the focus of a special exhibit, “Glow: Living Lights,” at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh that explores this intriguing phenomenon.
Investigate the chemical process that produces “cool” light and discover through models, photographs and film footage how terrestrial and sea creatures — including railroad worms, snails, jellyfish, krill, cookie cutter sharks and vampire squid — use their glow to catch prey, ward off predators and even find a mate. Learn about fireflies, nature’s famous luminescent beetles, and how they light up in the night sky. As one of summer’s most played-out courtship rituals, a male firefly flashes every six seconds to attract a female, her flash following two seconds later.
Discover the techniques and equipment used by scientists to study bioluminescence and explore the many benefits of this research, from detecting of environmental pollutants and harmful pathogens to helping advance the study of cancer-fighting drugs.
An inaugural BugFest Illustration Contest celebrates this unique exhibit as well as BugFest, the museum’s most popular event planned for Sept. 11. Entrants are invited to illustrate their best and most realistic version of a bioluminescent or aquatic bug in its surroundings. Judging will be based on artistic merit and scientific accuracy. Entry deadline is Aug. 15, 2010; submission forms are available on the museum’s website. Three winners from each of five age groups will receive a prize. All participants receive free admission to the “Glow: Living Lights” exhibit.
Exhibit hours are Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. with the last entry at 4 p.m. daily. Admission to the exhibit is $7 for adults, $5 for students and $4 for children ages 5-11. Members and children age 4 and under are free. Tickets can be purchased online at http://naturalsciences.org, at the museum box office or by calling 919-733-7450 ext. 212. The exhibit runs through Sept. 12.
The N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences is at 11 W. Jones St., Raleigh. General museum admission is free.
—Janice Lewine
Looking for a break from the heat? Wet ’n Wild, located just south of Greensboro, at new Exit 34 on Business #85 (Holden Rd. Exit), is the largest water park in the Carolinas and ranked among the top 10 water parks in America by The Travel Channel and ABC’s “Good Morning America.
The park features more than 3 million gallons of water park fun, a wide diversity of rides and attractions, sprawling across 41 acres. WET’N WILD EMERALD POINTE entertainment is for all ages from tots to seniors featuring all thrill levels from mild to wild! Guests enjoy more than 38 rides & attractions, beautifully shaded areas, private cabanas for rental, comfortable lounge chairs, lockers, cooler and basket storage, a relaxing picnic area, a wide variety of delicious foods and beverages (from snacks to catered meals) and lots more including the newest high-thrill attraction, Dr. Von Dark’s Tunnel Of Terror, featuring a 40-foot drop into a water tornado, all in total darkness!
Admission is $32.99 for an All Day Splash and $21.99 for an Under 48 inches All Day Splash. The 4:00PM Splash is $23.99 and $18.99 for an Under 48 inches 4 p.m. Splash. A Senior Splash (age 55+) is $21.99 and age 2 and under is free admission. Admission tickets, discount combo meal/locker packages, cabanas and birthday parties may also be purchased online at http://www.emeraldpointe.com/.
For general WET’N WILD EMERALD POINTE park information, please call (336) 852-9721, toll-free in N.C., S.C. or Va. at (800) 555-5900 or visit the website at http://www.emeraldpointe.com/.
Benjamin Franklin coined the famous saying, “A penny saved is a penny earned.” Kids have a fun opportunity to learn this important truth at Moneypalooza, a colorful new learning gallery at Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh that aims to teach the value of money and promote healthy money habits to kids ages 4 to 10.
Moneypalooza was formed in partnership with the N.C. Bankers Association to address the important and timely issue of financial literacy. Research shows that good financial habits are best learned in early childhood, and through Moneypalooza’s age-appropriate and hands-on activities, kids learn how to earn, save and spend money wisely.
“Learning about money and saving it can be lots of fun. It’s like a party in your piggy bank,” says Pam Hartley, vice president of exhibits at the museum.
Visitors can help Ellie run a lemonade stand, walk Aunt Polly’s dog and feed her cats, and bake pizzas with Mr. Vito to earn money on payday. At Banker Ben and Betty’s action-packed bank, kids stack, deposit, withdraw and disburse funds, and even take out a loan, while other activities show them that little bits of savings add up.
In other smart-money games, kids learn budgeting skills by examining a family’s wants and needs, count and sort oversized coins to determine how many equal a dollar, and learn about charity by donating a portion of their earnings to help those less fortunate. For those inclined to climb, Moneypalooza boasts a two-story bank structure to explore.
Admission to Marbles Kids Museum is $5 for ages 1 and up. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. The museum is located at 201 E. Hargett St., Raleigh. For more information, call 919-834-4040 or visit www.marbleskidsmuseum.org.
— Janice Lewine
Move over T. Rex and chill out Velociraptor. Some of your lesser-known cousins have arrived in Durham, and they’re an impressive group, even if they’re not as famous.
The Dinosaur Trail has returned to the Museum of Life and Science, more than 10 years after Hurricane Fran wiped out its predecessor. Funded with bond money and private donations, the new trail is the only outdoor dino exhibit in the state and features 25 life-sized models from the late Cretaceous period, between 100 million and 65 million years ago.
And if some of the critters featured aren’t as well-known as those that regularly crop up on TV and in movies, they are all species that would have been found in North America. A gentle-looking Parasaurolophus rests near the trail’s beginning, the only model that visitors can touch and walk around. Farther along the path, an Albertosaurus looms large and appears much less gentle than the Maiasaura guarding her eggs nearby. A plaque next to each dinosaur provides information, such as what the dinosaur ate and how it moved. The paved path curves through largely shady areas between the different models, while the sounds of birds, crickets and rustling leaves contribute to the natural setting.
A group of paleontologists, paleoartists and exhibit fabricators created the sculptures using steel skeletons, Styrofoam, plastic and paint that was sealed. “There were quite a lot of people who were instrumental in creating the dinosaurs,” says Taneka Bennett, the museum’s director of marketing. “They’ve been built to withstand the elements. Even hurricanes, I’ve been told.”
Even the landscaping was planned to be authentic, using plants representative of the Cretaceous period, such as fan palms and dawn redwoods. “Everything from the environment to the dinosaurs is lifelike,” Bennett says.
After walking among the dinosaurs, visitors can use shovels and sieves to hunt for their own bits of scientific history in the Fossil Dig Site. Fossil dirt from Aurora, N.C., was brought in for the 1,000-square-foot site. The area contains fossilized marine life such as coral, shells and sharks’ teeth estimated to be 23 million to 5 million years old. Guests can keep anything they dig up.
The Dinosaur Trail is part of 13 acres of outdoor exhibits at the museum, which also has 65,000 square feet of indoor exhibit space. The Museum of Life and Science is located at 433 Murray Ave., Durham. Visiting the trail is included in the paid museum admission. To learn more, visit www.lifeandscience.org or call 919-220-5429.
— Aleta Payne
A new permanent exhibit at Durham’s Museum of Life and Science combines life and science to teach visitors about health. With 2,600 square feet of space, Investigate Health offers a sneak peak into the world of research about what impacts wellness and the power humans have to affect their own health.
The exhibit, which officially opened Feb. 21 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., features six interactive activity centers to illustrate the science behind health issues, with the Investigate Health Lab as its centerpiece. Museum staffers will help with dozens of experiments in the Lab using microscopes and other scientific equipment. It is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., with a new lab activity each day to look into questions such as the sugar content of Oreos versus granola bars and what happens to the heart during exercise.
Other Investigate Health learning stations include:
- Allergies – Use a microscope to study live dust mites, which are a common cause of allergies.
- Hand washing – Prove that hand washing removes germs and figure out which spots tend to be missed.
- Stress – Look at the link between mental stress and the body and practice relaxation techniques.
- Sunscreen – See how sunscreen protects skin from ultraviolet light.
- Crash test demonstrations – View video of crash tests in slow motion to study the importance of properly using seat belts and booster seats. Demonstrations of crash-test simulations are Tuesday through Saturday at 10:15 a.m., 12:45 p.m. and 3:45 p.m.
The Museum of Life and Science is at 433 Murray Ave., Durham. For more information about the exhibit or museum, go to www.lifeandscience.org or call 919-220-5429.
— Aleta Payne
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