Holidazzle shared today the first of it’s 2020 virtual experience, The Holidazzle Show.

The Holidazzle Show presented by Comcast will bring elements of Holidazzle to you and yours wherever you are, whenever you’d like. Four episodes of The Holidazzle Show presented by Comcast will be available on Holidazzle.com with new episodes airing Friday, November 27 and the three following Thursdays: December 3, December 10, and December 17.

The Holidazzle Show presented by Comcast will bring elements of Holidazzle to you and yours wherever you are, whenever you’d like. Four episodes of The Holidazzle Show presented by Comcast will be available on Holidazzle.com with new episodes airing Friday, November 27 and the three following Thursdays: December 3, December 10, and December 17.

The show will feature a visit from Santa, DIY holiday projects, entertainment, small business holiday gift ideas, local food spotlights, and more. The Holidazzle Show will complement Holidazzle’s 2020 virtual experience providing online content including interactive social media challenges, past photos and videos, live craft demonstrations, and HoliTivities featuring free activities for all ages.

“We are excited to bring the spirit of Holidazzle to you and yours this holiday season through our 2020 Holidazzle virtual experience,” said Leah Wong, vice president of external relations, mpls downtown council. “Wherever you are, you can enjoy the entertainment and activities you’ve come to expect each year at Holidazzle, and we look forward to being together again when we can safely return to an in-person celebration.”

“Holidazzle has been an important long-standing tradition in our community and we are thrilled this year’s celebration will continue in a new way,” said J.D. Keller, regional senior vice president, Comcast Twin Cities. “All of us at Comcast are proud to be the presenting sponsor of The Holidazzle Show and are excited our customers can seamlessly experience this free and festive destination on the X1 platform.”

Additional details will be announced throughout November.

Other online content and activities include HoliTivities, Holiday cooking recipes, Mpls Craft Market virtual shopping experience featuring local makers, Where to enjoy winter in the Minneapolis area, Virtual ice skating lessons, Weekly social media challenge, Past Holidazzle photos and videos, and more.

Visit Holidazzle.com or follow Holidazzle on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to enjoy this year’s virtual content.

Holidazzle—which typically takes place in Loring Park—is moving online this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and continued concerns around public gatherings. In addition to Holidazzle, the Mpls WinterSkate ice rink in Loring Park will take the season off to prioritize public health.

minneapolis.edu/about-us/hours-operation

“Holidazzlers” can park in the Minneapolis College ramp at 1420 Hennepin Avenue and take the ‘warm way’ through heated skyways and buildings to get to Loring Park. The ramp provides convenient parking for just $5.

“We are pleased that, once again this year, the Upper Midwest’s best winter holiday festival is being held right in our backyard,” said President Sharon Pierce. “The vibrancy of the event and the entrepreneurial spirit of its vendors mirror the energy of our campus and students.”

Signs in the parking ramp will provide directions to take the ‘warm way’ through campus to Holidazzle. This route is available during the campus’ hours of operation.

Minneapolis College, the only public higher educational institution serving the vibrant downtown area, prepares its students with real-life work experience and targeted academic programming. Like Holidazzle, Minneapolis College also has a long history in the downtown area. Since 1914, it has been providing high-quality, affordable education pathways, first as Girls Vocational High School, then Minneapolis Community College and Minneapolis Technical College, then Minneapolis Community & Technical College (MCTC) and now rebranded as Minneapolis College.

“Providing convenient, reasonably priced parking for this event is one way we are able to serve downtown Minneapolis and the broader community,” Pierce said.

Minneapolis College offers more than 100 liberal arts, career and technical programs designed to prepare students to transfer to a four‐year college or university or to begin a career in high-wage, high-demand professions. It also offers a robust selection of Continuing Education & Workforce Development options. The College’s innovative Exploratory Majors provide students who are undecided about a major to begin progressing on their educational pathway while still deciding which specific academic program to pursue. Apply now for Spring semester.

Minneapolis College is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges & Universities system. Located in the heart of downtown Minneapolis, nearly 10,000 students enroll annually. Minneapolis College is an active partner with many local initiatives designed to strengthen the social, economic and cultural vitality of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. The College’s Foundation provides scholarships and emergency assistance awards to highly motivated, low-income students. For additional information, please visit Minneapolis.edu. 

The Minneapolis holiday tradition Holidazzle returns to Loring Park on Friday, November 29 for four weekends of community festivities. This year’s Holidazzle adds new programming and  offerings to the favorite weekly activities enjoyed annually at Holidazzle, offering a free outing filled with activities and holiday cheer for all ages and abilities.

Holidazzle 2019

Thursdays – Sundays, November 29 – December 22

Thursdays from 5 pm – 9 pm | Fridays from 5 pm – 10 pm

Saturdays from 11 am – 10 pm | Sundays from 11 am – 7 pm

Loring Park| Free & open to the public

“Holidazzle welcomes you and yours to Loring Park to celebrate the holiday season and create memories in our downtown Minneapolis community,” said Leah Wong, vice president of external relations, mpls downtown council. “There is a great lineup of activities to enjoy, and each weekend will include different festivities and shopping opportunities making each visit unique and special.”

This year’s Holidazzle presents a number of new things to see and do:

Lampworking Style Glass blowing demonstrations each Friday from 5-10 pm

Story time sessions featuring authors and Santa on Saturdays and Sundays

Local adoptable rescue animal visits on Saturdays and Sundays

Pop-up ice rink skating performances

Most Epic Dog Day featuring events & giveaways on Sunday, Dec. 8

Yeti Day giveaways on Sunday, Dec. 15

Expanded Holidazzle Kids Zone presented by U.S. Bank

Performance deck

Introduction of the new Yeti illuminated interactive art installation

Cooking demos featuring the talented Minneapolis culinary scene

New food vendors featuring a variety of styles, tastes, and options (including vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free). Exclusive items on Thursdays & Sundays only.

Added offerings from Fulton Beer (the exclusive “Small Talk Stout” Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, as well as “Goodwill Gold” Golden Lager and Lime seltzer) and Sociable Cider Werks Candy Apple cold beverage

The Wandering Mug coffee, lattes and hot chocolate

Mpls Craft Market, hosting makers daily at Holidazzle, providing a rotating mix of holiday shopping options each weekend in addition to nine flagship, full-run Holidazzle gift vendors

Plus, annual favorites returning to this year’s Holidazzle include:

Holidazzle Fireworks presented by Xcel Energy (Nov. 29, Dec. 7, 14, 21 at 7 pm)

Meet Santa and take photos for free during all Holidazzle hours

Eight Holidazzle Movie Nights presented by Metro by T-Mobile (featuring Elf, Home Alone, A Christmas Story, The Grinch [2018], Miracle, Polar Express, Smallfoot and Christmas with the Kranks)

Free skating with complimentary skates available at Mpls WinterSkate

Local Musical Performances

Bonfires & Warming Houses

The Thwing, an interactive multi-person swing

Photo and Instagram opportunities inside giant snow globes

Alpacas from The Abbey Alpacas on site each Sunday

Silent disco skating on Thursday nights

SolSta Vinyl Night in Fulton Beer Garden on Thursday nights

Drag Queen Bingo at the Fulton Beer Garden on the final Friday nights (Dec. 6, 13, 20)

Exclusive Holidazzle brunch each Sunday

Visit the Holidazzle schedule page for details: www.holidazzle.com/schedule

Holidazzle offers an incredible assortment of on-site prepared food and beverages representing Minnesota’s culinary scene, including limited time items: the exclusive Holidazzle sausage (featuring wild rice and cranberries) from Kramarczuk’s, two new Fulton Beers including a Chocolate Oatmeal Stout called Small Talk Stout and Golden Lager called Goodwill Gold, and Sociable Cider Werks’ Fat Bike hot mulled apple cider and a cold Candy Apple cider released first at Holidazzle. Other food offerings in the lineup include:

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

Fair Faves

Fresco Foods*

Gorkha Palace

Heavenly Feast Bar-B-Que*

iPierogi

K-Town Street Foods

Kramarczuk’s

MSP Pretzel*

Poffertjes (The Littlest Pancake)

Root to Rise Kitchen*

Tasty Gyros*

Twin Cities Paella

* – New vendors for 2019

Complementing the prepared food and beverages, Holidazzle will have an assortment of shopping options including clothing, accessories, ornaments, craft artwork, syrups and more.

The Abbey Alpacas

The Beer Dabbler

Cabin Customs

Hippy Feet

KCM Woodworks

Northern Drift

Three Rivers Farms

North Shore Apparel MN/Martin’s

Simple Trends

The Mpls Craft Market will also be bringing makers each day to Holidazzle. Their space will be packed full of local artists and makers selling handmade jewelry, clothing and accessories, woodwork, home decor, prints, fiber art and more. The lineup of artists will be different each day, so visit us throughout the weekend and you’ll always find something new. For daily updates on the full listing of Mpls Craft Market makers, visit Holidazzle.com..

Also, of note: lighting and ambiance will be part of the Holidazzle experience, including twinkle lights within Loring Park, and a new illuminated interactive art Yeti exhibit by Christopher Lutter-Gardella, who created the Wolf and Moose found exclusively at Holidazzle from 2016-2018.

Exclusive food items on select days include Thursday Night Bites (including Fresco’s Foods’ beer braised beef pie, Heavenly Feast Bar-B-Que’s burnt mac & cheese with pork or beef, Root To Rise’s butternut squash & cashew ricotta fried veggrolls with maple cream dipping sauce and more) and Sunday Brunch (including K-Town Street Foods’ breakfast burrito, iPierogi’s beer soup, Fresco’s Foods’ sausage gravy and egg pie and more). Pair your brunch offerings with a Mimosa from Sociable Cider Werks or a Bloody Beer at Fulton Beer.

When planning a trip to Holidazzle, visitors can enjoy Free Ride Nights courtesy of Metro Transit each Saturday throughout the run. Get there by bus or light rail with a free-ride pass, which can be downloaded at Holidazzle.com/directions. Print or digitally show your pass for each passenger to enjoy your free ride. The free-ride pass is good from 10 am-11 pm each Saturday from Nov. 30 through Dec. 21.

Other arrival opportunities include parking for $5 or less during all Holidazzle hours at Minneapolis College’s parking ramp (1420 Hennepin Avenue). A drop-off and pick-up location will be available on the corner of Yale Place and Willow Street includes Uber and Lyft zones, and ADA-accessible parking spots are available along Willow Street.

For Chris Rudd, barbecue runs deep in his roots.

The owner and pit-master of Heavenly Feast Bar-B-Que grew up in Milwaukee but spent summers with is dad visiting family in Texas, laying the foundation for a future putting his own spin on southern comfort cuisine here in the Midwest.

“My father is from Texas,” he said, “and barbecue is very important there.”

So Chris acquired a taste early on and began honing his own skills for family and friends. But it wasn’t until an opportunity arose as a fill-in at the 2008 Highland Fest in St. Paul that he turned his passion into a family business.

For the past 11 years, he’s found success selling barbecue here in the Twin Cities. Now, this winter, he’s looking forward to bringing Heavenly Feast Bar-B-Que to Holidazzle. You can stop by and find him in Loring Park on Thursdays through Sundays from November 29 through December 22. Holidazzle runs 5-9 pm on Thursdays, 5-10 pm on Fridays, 11 am-10 pm on Saturdays and 11 am-7 pm on Sundays.

When you walk into Loring Park, just follow the aroma. It will be hard to miss and harder to walk by without stopping.

Heavenly Feast will be bringing an assortment of delectable options to Holidazzle, including Pulled Pork or Chicken BBQ Sandwiches, BBQ Sundaes, Ribs, Rib Tips, BBQ Baked Potatoes and sides ranging from cole slaw to baked beans and chips.

On Thursdays, they’ll be serving up an exclusive option of Burnt Ends with Mac & Cheese (pork or beef), and on Sundays they’ll be offering a BBQ Brunch Roll-Up (sausage, bacon, cheese, eggs & hashbrowns rolled up & smoked) during Holidazzle brunch hours from 11 am-2 pm.

While you’re there, you can get to know Chris and see how barbecue continues to be a family affair.

“Nine members of immediate and extended family work our various events,” he said. “We’re excited to meet new people and bring joy to them through our food.”

With a decade of experience behind the apron and decades more honing his craft, Chris is ready to take on the Holidazzle crowds, brave the Minnesota weather, and give Minnesotans the experience of real barbecue in the heart of the city.

“My biggest goal in doing what I do is to meet new people and bring joy to them through my food,” Chris said. “I want people to know that this is my passion and that real barbecue is meat smoked over wood and not just meet with sauce on it.”

He and his family are excited to meet you at Holidazzle this holiday season.

“To me, Holidazzle is a way to bring people of the Twin Cities together to enjoy the holiday season,” Chris said. “I am excited about being in a new venue that will allow me to share my passion with people that have not had a chance to enjoy it at other events.”

The Abbey is bringing the full alpaca experience to life at Holidazzle again this winter. You’ll have a chance to enjoy it first-hand.

Not only will The Abbey Alpacas be on site selling hand-knit and crocheted 100 percent alpaca hats, mittens, gloves, scarves, socks and blankets each day of Holidazzle—which runs Thursdays through Sundays from November 29 through December 22 in Loring Park—but they will also be bringing real life alpacas each Sunday from 11 am-7 pm.

These cute alpacas are fun for all ages to see up close, and they also give real context to where The Abbey’s products come from.

“We’re excited to meet the people, enjoy the festive atmosphere, and share our wonderful and cute alpacas with everyone,” owner Jennifer White said.

Holidazzle is open Thursdays from 5-9pm, Fridays from 5-10 pm, Saturdays from 11 am-10 pm and Sundays from 11 am-7 pm.

The Abbey Alpaca, based in McLeod County west of Minneapolis, has become an annual favorite at Holidazzle because of their stylish products and their cute alpaca friends.

They are devoted to raising quality “Huacaya” alpacas, and they pride themselves on providing the very best quality alpaca for their customers.

Jennifer said she hopes people at Holidazzle will take away how warm and wonderful alpaca products are. She said alpaca is seven times warmer than wool, is hypoallergenic, and is softer than cashmere.

She’s excited to meet Holidazzle goers, let them meet their alpacas up close and provide options to purchase warm alpaca products for the winter season.

Nicole Brecht has a keen eye for dazzling up winter clothing—hand-crafting something into a style others will love.

She’s always got her eye out for opportunities to create something fun and unique. Gaining inspiration from fairs and craft sites, she’s built a business out of adding her own touch to a new product.

“I love the process of finding [something] old and reclaiming it into a new product that others will enjoy,” Nicole said.

Over the past 10 years, Nicole has put her creativity to work in the form of her Simple-Trends business. She started making products for herself and for friends, and it blossomed into others asking if she would make items to sell.

From there, Simple-Trends took off.

This holiday season, you can find her at Holidazzle each Thursday through Sunday from November 29 through December 22. Holidazzle is open in Loring Park on Thursdays from 5-9 pm, Fridays from 5-10 pm, Saturdays from 11 am-10 pm and Sundays from 11 am-7 pm.

Simple-Trends will be selling hand-crafted recycled wool sweater mittens, children’s fleece mittens (many with reversible sequins), scarves, headbands, and dog collars for all seasons and themes.

You’ll quickly get a sense for how she puts her own stylish spin on the products she makes.

“I enjoy what I do. All the products are hand-crafted,” Nicole said. “Each pair of recycled wool mittens is hand-crafted from the purchase of materials from all over the country, to the special cut that accentuates the design on the mitten, to the hand-sewing the puts it all together.”

For Nicole, Holidazzle represents an opportunity to celebrate the holiday season with friends—new and old—and share with others the products she so greatly enjoys making.

She is excited to meet new people at Holidazzle and share her gift of design and style with gatherings of friends and family this holiday season.

“I hope they leave with warm hearts and even warmer hands,” Nicole said, “with a new pair of mittens!”

It started by simply bringing family and friends together. Maryam Kuyack simply enjoyed hosting parties and gatherings at her house, cooking sweet and savory treats she enjoyed growing up.

Ten years later, she still loves that sense of community with those closest to her. But those tasty treats have a much wider audience.

Today, that passion for getting together with loved ones has evolved into Tasty Gyros, a Minneapolis-based company located on East Lyndale that brings a taste of her culture to the Twin Cities.

“I am from Iran, and I love to share food from my country,” Maryam said.

This winter, you can taste her delicious menu while enjoying the holiday season in downtown Minneapolis.

Tasty Gyros will be on site each day during the Holidazzle season, which runs Thursdays through Sundays from November 29 through December 22 in Loring Park. Holidazzle is open 5-9 pm on Thursdays, 5-10 pm on Fridays, 11 am-10 pm on Saturdays and 11 am-7 pm on Sundays.

They’ll be selling their lamb gyro sandwiches, falafel sandwiches—which are vegetarian and vegan—and sweet flaky baklava. Their menu is popular across the board—young and old, meat lovers and vegetarian.

And they cook everything to order on the spot with fresh ingredients and signature sauces.

“We take great pride in using fresh and top-quality ingredients,” Maryam said.

Maryam is excited to be part of the Holidazzle lineup, because it is a chance for her family-owned and operated business to get to know new people. One of her favorite things about Minneapolis is the diversity of both people and restaurants. This will be the first gyro offering at Holidazzle, making it a chance for people to enjoy the holiday season in Loring Park while gaining an appreciation for different cultures and foods.

Stop by and visit Tasty Gyros while you’re enjoying family fun at Holidazzle.

Try walking by Cindy’s Cinnamon Roasted Nuts at Holidazzle. The aroma coming from their tent is taunting, really, to the point where it seems nearly unfair. The cinnamon scent rising from the bins that are spinning the fresh, warm nuts right on site are hard to resist.

If you’re lured in for a taste test of the pecans, almonds or cashews, you’re not alone. It happens to nearly everyone–a collection of people who simply cannot get past that tent without at least trying just one.

Quite often, it leads to walking away with a whole sleeve.

Cindy’s Cinnamon Roasted Nuts is providing a delicious treat for your walk through Holidazzle, your trip home or for someone special as a gift during the holiday season. You can stop by Cindy’s throughout the Holidazzle run in Loring Park, beginning Thursdays through Sundays from Friday, November 29 through Sunday, December 22. Holidazzle is open Thursdays from 5-9 pm, Fridays from 5-10 pm, Saturdays from 11 am-10 pm and Sundays from 11 am-7 pm.

“The nuts are made with cinnamon sugar, vanilla and water,” said Jeff Sullwold of Cindy’s Cinnamon Roasted Nuts. “They are gluten-free and dairy-free. We make them on-site and fresh.”

Cindy’s Cinnamon Roasted Nuts began 15 years go at the Minneapolis Farmers Market Annex. They’ve grown over the years and have been part of several Twin Cities major events including the Minnesota State Fair and the Minneapolis Convention Center. They are also found at Gopher hockey, Gopher football and Vikings football games.

But joining Holidazzle is something special. The group is able to be part of a winter holiday tradition here in Downtown Minneapolis, and in the process they are able to help with spreading the holiday cheer through a festive-smelling and great-tasting treat.

“Holidazzle is a way to enjoy outside in the winter time,” Sullwold said. “It will be one of the best Christmas markets in Minnesota.”

Sullwold said it’s an opportunity to not only enjoy the holiday season with the community, but it is also a chance to share their product with the neighborhood. The hope is that they’ll be able to spread a little holiday cheer through their cinnamon roasted nuts.

“My wish is when people see me at an event that they develop a habit of coming back and looking for me time and time again,” Sullwold said. “I enjoy when the people come to an event and they say I am what smells so good. I love farmers markets holiday markets any kind of market I enjoy the people and I enjoy the vendors.”

The Beer Dabbler has been bringing the art of craft beer to the masses since 2008.

Beer Dabbler founder Matt Kenevan’s original idea for his business came when his experience hosting non-profit events in a previous career combined with his wife’s experience in the burgeoning craft beer industry. Matt brought Joseph Alton and his experience with marketing, retail and hospitality, and The Beer Dabbler was founded.

Starting out strictly as a festival and events company that wanted to bring craft beer to underserved areas and markets around the Midwest, The Beer Dabbler quickly grew into a multi-faceted business.

Today, The Beer Dabbler has grown into a fully-fledged independent media organization. They publish The Growler Magazine, produce events for themselves as well as other organizations, and operate both brick-and-mortar and online retail businesses. Their retail operation, The Beer Dabbler Store, launched back in 2012 when they saw a rise in demand for brewery-branded merchandise and various craft beer-centric gifts and accessories. Since then they have hosted large and small pop-up retail events and were even named Business Insider’s list of “The 50 Coolest New Businesses In America.”

You can check out this cool new business and get all sorts of apparel, artwork, glassware, books, bar trinkets and many products from local and national breweries at Holidazzle as they will be returning this year. They will also be offering a few exclusive items from their very own line of craft beer-inspired gear.

Holidazzle’s full calendar run is Thursday through Sunday from Friday, November 29 through Friday, December 22. It is open Thursdays from 5-9 pm, Fridays from 5-10 pm, Saturdays from 11 am-10 pm and Sundays from 11 am-7 pm.

“Holidazzle is the quintessential Minnesota holiday event,” founding partner Joseph Alton said. “I love the idea of taking a stand against hibernation by celebrating our beautiful holiday season in the Twin Cities. The reputation of the event and my own experiences taking in its revelry are the driving forces behind our interest in participation.”

Joseph hopes people take away an even greater appreciation for craft after visiting them at Holidazzle.

“We make a point to celebrate our local craft beer and spirit makers through featured brewery apparel and merchandise,” he said, “but we also feature handmade goods from local craftsman and artwork and designs from some of the Twin Cities’ coolest local artists.”

Renata Luniewski has fond memories as a young girl in Suwalki, Poland, making pierogis with members of her family for Christmas Eve supper. She, along with her mom, grandma and cousins, would gather round and work together in making this traditional Polish treat for the whole family.

“They’re so popular in Poland, especially now before Christmas, it’s a tradition to make pierogis for supper,” she said. “So that was the beginning.”

Now, at Holidazzle here in downtown Minneapolis, she’s beginning a new holiday tradition to enjoy with her husband and daughter that again revolve around pierogis.

[Related Post: CLICK HERE to watch Renata discuss pierogis on WCCO-TV during the 2015 Holidazzle.]

Renata and her husband, Robert, run the Pierogis Wonderland by Polish Bistro at Holidazzle. They’ve got pierogis made both with meat and with cheese and potatoes on hand, and they also have blintzes available to round out your meal. The pierogis are available with our without bacon bits and sour cream as toppings, and the blintzes have powdered sugar sprinkled on top.

It’s a tradition that followed both of them from their native country to America, where they are helping celebrate the holiday season together in a very familiar way. When they were growing up, it’s hard to imagine that they’d be sharing this experience together so far away from home.

You can visit Holidazzle on Thursdays through Sundays from Friday, November 29 through Sunday, December 22. Holidazzle is open Thursdays from 5-9 pm, Fridays from 5-10 pm, Saturdays from 11 am-10 pm and Sundays from 11 am-7 pm.

The two have known each other since elementary school. Renata was a close friend of Robert’s sister growing up. When Robert took part in an exchange program and came to the University of Minnesota in the mid-1990s, Renata came to visit and see the U.S. She soon followed him to America and took part in the same program at the U of M, and when they were both were here as students they began dating.

They’ve lived in Minnesota ever since. Today, they have an 11-year-old daughter that helps them with their pierogis here at Holidazzle and has become the next generation of their family to enjoy the experience.

It was six years ago when the couple began making their pierogis as part of the Polish Festival along the Mississippi River during the summer, and that has turned into something that the whole family can do as a bonding exercise.

“We love it, we really do,” Renata said. “Minnesota feels like home. It’s wonderful people, same weather as Poland, and we have many Polish friends here. It’s been great.”

Their experience with the Polish Festival has always been fun because it allows them to connect with other people of Polish descent here in the Twin Cities. The Holidazzle experience has been equally rewarding, but for a different reason. With their customers being almost exclusively American-born, they get the thrill of either introducing people to pierogis for the first time, or hearing about how many people do know the Polish treat from past experiences.

“It’s so much fun to meet the people,” she said. “So many people know pierogis, it’s unbelievable. So many people come with a story that they remember their grandma or great grandma making it. So that’s really fun to hear people tell their stories and to talk to them.”

Part of the fun is that the process has never changed. It’s still the same ingredients, the same recipes and the same steps that she used as a young girl back in Poland. All ingredients are natural, and no preservatives are used.

And here at Holidazzle, it’s the blending of a time-honored Polish cuisine tradition with an annual Minneapolis holiday get-together. Robert and Renata both have enjoyed the Holidazzle over the years, and they’re thrilled to be part of it again in 2019.

“It’s such a fun time, it really is,” she said. “All the events, the choir music and the bonfire behind our tent, that’s really great.”