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Getaway: hot ticket
By Times staff
© St. Petersburg Times
published October 24, 2002
Peace and play to the people
[Times photo: Michael Rondou 2001] |
Circus McGurkis, the free-form people's fair, brings its eclectic blend of arts and crafts, music, wares and activism to Lakeview Park in St. Petersburg this weekend. You never know what to expect during the event, which bills itself as "a celebration of love, community and the power of nonviolence to change the world."
Above, Devon Gary, 2, joins in with other musicians at the 30th Circus McGurkis last year.
The festival runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday with an 11 a.m. march for peace through the park, timed to coincide with an antiwar rally and march in Washington, D.C.
The park is on Lake Maggiore, near 20th Street and 26th Avenue S. The annual festival is sponsored by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and Tampa Bay Peace Education Program. Admission is free.
The rain date is Nov. 2. For more information, call (727) 896-0310 or check www.circusmcgurkis.org.
Floating history lesson to dock
[Photo: AMISTAD America Inc.]
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The Amistad, a replica schooner that serves as a floating classroom to promote racial good will, is scheduled to dock at the Pier in St. Petersburg Monday through Nov. 3 and Dec. 15 to 22. That's according to officials at Connecticut's Amistad America.
Local organizers recently said they couldn't raise money to support the visit and canceled events that had been planned to coincide with it.
But Will Mebane, Amistad America's vice president for marketing and development, said last week that the ship will arrive "without hesitation, without qualification, without doubt." And the city of St. Petersburg confirmed Monday that the event is back on.
The original Amistad was the subject of a 1997 film. Used as a general commercial vessel, it was pressed into service to carry 53 slaves kidnapped from Sierra Leone and being taken from one Cuban port to another.
But 53 passengers revolted and took over the ship, which later was seized by a Coast Guard revenue cutter. Charged with murder, the passengers were defended by former president John Quincy Adams, who argued successfully for their release before the Supreme Court. In 1841, 35 surviving passengers were returned to Africa.
The replica was launched in March 2000 and has visited about 35 cities,
At the Pier, the schooner is scheduled to be open for school tours only on weekday mornings, andopen to the public 2 to 4 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends.
Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for children. For more information, call (727) 898-6566 or check www.amistadamerica.org.
Thomas the Tank Engine set for departure
[Photo: HIT Entertainment] |
Thomas the Tank Engine, star of beloved children's programs, videos and merchandise, concludes its visit to the Tampa Bay area this weekend, pulling the passenger cars of the Florida Gulf Coast Railroad Museum on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Sir Topham Hatt will be along for the ride. There also will be kids' activities and displays of Thomas merchandise.
Train rides depart every 45 minutes, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.. Tickets ($14) may be limited on some days, so call ahead. The museum is on 83rd Street E (behind post office) in Parrish in northern Manatee County. Toll-free 1-877-869-0800 or www.fgcrrm.org.
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