Happy Thursday, as usual!

Holiday markets, lights, historical tours, and even some animal goings-on this week. No excuse to sit at home. Our dinky state is unfairly jam-packed with things to do to make your weekend so memorable.

Thanksgiving is dead-ahead, so think ahead a tiny bit and plan for some family events this and next weekend, or maybe even a (temporary) escape from your in town relatives before you lose your mind (in a good way, of course).

Let’s get right to it and plan weekend for maximum relaxation and fun!

In This Issue

holiday markets 🎅…

a baby sloth 🦥…

underground mansion action 🏠…

Outdoor & Nature

• Coggeshall Farm “Thanksgiving”. This is unique! You can watch reenactors making a Thanksgiving meal in the 1700s hearth and see how kitchens and cooking happened back in the day, with all the period utensils. Think Sturbridge Village type reenactment. History buffs and foodies will love this.

• Did you know “birding” is a thing? Yes, it’s more commonly called “bird watching”, but whatever you call it, this guided walk through Swan Point Cemetery by Audubon Society of Rhode Island and the Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership sounds DELIGHTFUL. But it’s Monday afternoon…perfect time for a…”dentist visit”?

• Get your running shoes, and your hollow leg, out one more time. “Gear N Beer 5k” registration still open, but limited to 2000. You get a race shirt (if there any left!), post-race buffet, a variety of beers & ciders, plus great raffle items from sponsors.

• 🦥 SO CUTE! Check out “Scout” the baby sloth born at Roger Williams Zoo last month - missed that one! Momma Fiona is doing great and he’s getting big…slowly.

Arts & Entertainment

• Head over to Four Corners in Tiverton, not this weekend but next, and shop on “Artist Sunday” - 14 artists plus live music. This is the local chapter of a nationwide movement. Very cool.

• Lights INSIDE & OUTSIDE at The Breakers! “Sparkling Lights at The Breakers” opens it’s 5th season this weekend. The Breakers as you’ve definitely not seen it before if you haven’t already gone. Sparkly opulent holiday splendor for the whole fam.

• “Nutcracker Ballet” at Stadium Theater in Woonsocket. Well, you know this is one of those “I’m going to do this this year” type of events, that many have never done. Don’t you want to know where the Sugar Plum Fairy come from? Or the Snow Queen? Just BOOK IT and go before you miss and have to wail till next Christmas!

• 🪿 Did you get tickets for “A Christmas Carol” yet? Bah, humbug! Opens this week and books quickly. If you have half a brain to get to Trinity Rep to see this, book it soon (now).

Food & Drink

• Here’s a food thing I didn’t know was a thing! Providence and Newport Food Tours! Each tour hits 5-6 unique food spots where you'll taste local dishes, learn about the chefs, and get the low down on each city's food culture.

• Thanksgiving with Gilded Age glamour at the Auberge, 3 course diner by the executive chef. The lap of luxury in a peak-cozy setting.

• Fill up your holiday table and check off your gift list at the LAST Casey Farm Pop-Up Holiday Farmers Market. 20+ vendors with local produce, prepared foods, and artisan-made gifts at this FINAL market of the 2024.

• Newport Vineyards brings it. Beer and wine flights ALL DAY for a mid-week night out. Roll in any Wednesday for discounted wine or beer flights. But also see the events calendar for more fun excursion options at the vineyard, including first-come first-served fire pits.

• 👨‍🍳 We’ve all had (right, I hope?) Boston brown bread, at least B&M in the can (with beans, maybe hotdogs too), but I just found out about native Rhode Island brown bread…the less famous rye-and-corn bread cousin of the Boston version. First published date at least the 1880s but obviously much older than that.

• Pumpkin Pie lovers, prepare your mind, brace your tastebuds: Custard Pumpkin Pie is a thing that exists. You must get some or die trying.

Rhody Moments

• “Why RI is so small?” Super fast quick 1.5 min video history lesson if you didn’t already know. Very cool! “Founded by dissidents…” The more you know…

• 🐥 Have you seen a Rhode Island Red hen give birth to a clutch of golf balls? “Lay those golden nuggets…”

• Did you catch the final supermoon of 2024 last Friday? If you did, we got you covered here. Golden glory, captured by Albert Olsen in Coventry. (NOTE: for next year at this time, don’t miss the many “Full Moon Hikes” like we featured last week).

Everything Else

• “Beneath the Breakers Tour”? Yes, go UNDERGROUND. In the BASEMENT of The Breakers. How did they actually run these homes? Get a deep guided tour. The “house engineer” even kept journals with all the deets! Fascinating!

• Oooh, gift idea for those in the state or those pine to be here :) “Hidden History of Rhode Island: Not-to-Be-Forgotten Tales of the Ocean State”. Lot’s of human interest stories sure to intrigue and delight for hours.

• 🏡 You’ve driven by it 1000x, but have you been inside? “Free Open Houses at the Betsey Williams Cottage”, but this is the last weekend. Built in 1773, the cottage and 100 acres became the foundation for the park 100 years later.

Photo of the Week

That’s it for this issue of the Rhody Weekender. Make the most of it!

See you next week!

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