Blue Ridge Country - November/December 2017 - 32

Tennessee DeparTmenT of TourisT DevelopmenT

The 42nd Annual Fantasy of Lights Christmas Parade in Gatlinburg, TN begins at 7:30 p.m. on December 1.

of a Christmas celebration (bit.
ly/1TGf2Wg) in Roanoke, Virginia.
Have a picture made with Santa, and
enjoy roasted chestnuts, carriage
rides and street performers.

ENJOY SPECIAL
HOLIDAY
ENTERTAINMENT

Reliving the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge
and his change of heart thanks to
the ghosts of Past, Present, and Future is a tradition for many. The tale
comes to life this year when the Jenny Wiley Theatre in Pikeville, Kentucky stages "A Christmas Carol,"
December 1 - 20 (jwtheatre.com).
"It's a family tradition for many
families to come here year after
year for the holidays," says Michael
Headla, general manager of Smoky
Mountain Opry (smokymtnopry.
com) in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
"I think people are surprised by the
level of talent in the show. We go beyond their expectations and have a
huge cast of 25. They all go through
20 costume changes in a show. Plus,
our Christmas show culminates in a
live nativity. It's pretty magical."
Nearby, the Hatfields and McCoys work on some holiday peace
during their Christmas dinner

32 BlueRidgeCountry.com

shows. Guests chow down on fried
chicken, barbecue, mashed potatoes
and more as the cast entertains with
song, dance and a little feuding (bit.
ly/2xqZvnO).
Enjoy the tradition of strapping
on ice skates and joining others at
an open-air ice rink in downtown
Greenville, South Carolina. It's open
November through January (iceonmain.com).

BUY HANDMADE
GIFTS (OR BE
INSPIRED TO
MAKE YOUR OWN)

Wrapping up handmade items
bought from area festivals and fairs
leads to lots of smiles and satisfaction. It's the 30th year for the Hard
Candy Christmas Arts and Crafts
Show in Cullowhee, North Carolina. Held November 24-25, you'll
find heritage crafts such as quilts,
corn shuck flowers, clay art, primitive furniture, and goat milk soap,
among other treasures (mountainartisans.net).
The 8th Annual Arts & Crafts
Christmas
Spectacular
(bit.
ly/2wCvkNi) takes place in Morgantown, West Virginia on November 10, 11, and 12. Experience

more than 150 exhibits of floral
arrangements, jewelry, soft sculpture, scented candles, holiday decorations, and other arts and crafts.
The Folk Art Center, located at
milepost 382 on the Blue Ridge
Parkway, offers its annual Holiday
Makers Sale on December 2 and 9
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It's a chance
to find a great deal as almost 70
artists of the Southern Highland
Craft Guild liquidate their overstocks at a 10 to 50% savings off
the retail prices (southernhighlandguild.org/holiday-sales).

TAKE PART
IN A BRAND
NEW
TRADITION

If you're looking for a new tradition to add to your family's list,
you might want to travel to the
High Country of North Carolina.
Tweetsie Railroad (tweetsie.com)
is getting ready to roll out its first
Christmas Train. "We just felt like
we wanted to extend our season,"
says Cathy Robbins in the Tweetsie
Marketing office. "A lot of people
are here getting Christmas trees so
it was time for us to create a Christmas event. We're very excited.

http://www.main.com http://www.landguild.org/holiday-sales http://www.jwtheatre.com http://www.tweetsie.com http://www.artisans.net http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com

Blue Ridge Country - November/December 2017

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