Thanksgiving weekend is upon us, and with that marks the season where the outdoor activities wind down and the indoor activities rev up. There’s plenty of Thanksgiving themed fun all over the city, and whether you’ve got kids or you’re still one yourself, make sure you get out and enjoy all the fall festivities.
Sparty and the Green Queen at Saunders Farm, photo from their website.
Saturday starts with the Metcalfe Farmers Market during the day at the Metcalfe Fairgrounds. Starting at 6:30am, The Farmers Market promises farm fresh produce, plants, pottery and furniture. Only two weekends are left in its season, and this weekend’s special event is Harvest Day. Another great daytime activity for the family is heading down to the Canadian Agriculture and Food Museum for some special behind the scenes look at harvesting crops and food sustainability, as well as the energy that can be harvested from the sun, wind and crops themselves.
From 11am-3pm on Sunday, Watson’s Mill is having their annual Harvest Festival presented by the Orpheus Musical Theatre Society. The festival is complete with pie-eating contests, tug of war, wagon rides and all the other fun fall activities you’ve been looking forward to. For those willing to travel outside the city, Calabogie has Scenic Chairlift Rides through all of the beautiful fall leaves, and Hugli’s Blueberry Ranch in Pembroke has pirate pumpkin canons and pig races, as well as a 125ft hill slide. Saunders Farm is open 10am-5pm on Thanksgiving Monday as well, so make sure you get your fill of mazes, fudge and pumpkin carving before jumping on one of their famous wagon rides (Both scary and un-scary!).
For those who are just enjoying the long weekend free of festivities, there’s plenty of live music to see this weekend. Pressed has local groups Modern Dinosaurs and Destroy Clocks taking the stage Friday night boasting some electronic and spacey jams, and Montreal natives Maica Mia playing some experimental rock Saturday night with Black Hairgrease afterwards. Both nights are all-ages shows and start at 8pm; tickets are $10 for Friday and $7 for Saturday.
Spectrasonic has a stacked Friday with D.O.A playing some hardcore punk at Zaphod’s, I Spell It Nature playing some post-rock at Cafe Dekcuf and Current Swell playing indie rock at Mavericks, all starting at 8pm. House of Targ has Mad Parish, World War 4 and The Donner Party playing some metal/ thrash starting Friday at 9pm. Babylon is hosting Grillz & Glam’s 4th Birthaversary party Friday night at 11pm celebrating 4 years together and joining sponsor Top of the World to create the first kitten juggling boy band. Saturday night, Mugshots Jail Bar will have 10.11 Frequency with New Fries, Baby Labour and Badminton Racquet playing at 10:30pm.
For music with a little more action, check out Mercury Lounge. They launch The Disco Ball this Saturday night, and everyone is encouraged to come in costume. Admission is free to anyone in costume from the 70’s and 80’s, and promises disco visuals, drag hosting and disco-boogie dance lessons. Finally, Monday night the beautiful and talented Danielle Allard plays Lowertown Brewery at 9pm. With a pint of their seasonal beer, listening to her smooth and easy sound is a great way to finish off the weekend.
And of course, Support Local continues this weekend – a month long festival of art, culture, food, music, beer, and all around local awesomeness. Be sure to test your smarts at The Hintonburg Public House on Sunday night. For a listing of month-long events, click here.
Relax and stay warm this long weekend, Ottawa and remember to #hashtag your Instagram weekend pics with #Apt613Weekend41!
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