Created and Maintained by: The Photoimaging Information Council
Calendar of Events
Take Great Pictures' Calendar of Events is a wonderful photo resource for any traveler. Here we feature some of the best photo ops throughout the US and the World, from hot air balloon festivals to various cultural celebrations to off-beat events, our Calendar is sure to get you some great photographs. Check out schedules for Mardi Gras, St. Patrick's Day, New Year's Eve, July 4th, and dozens more holidays.
August
2 - 6,
2006 Maine Lobster Festival - Rockland, ME
The focus of the festival is, of course, fresh hot Maine lobster. At the 2005 Lobster Festival, nearly twelve tons of luscious lobster was prepared in our huge steamer on the shore (that's a show in itself). In addition to lobster, many other seafoods are available, including steamed and fried clams, fried Maine shrimp, shrimp cocktail, steamed mussels in wine and vegetable sauce, and all varieties of traditional summer fair food, all prepared in the traditional Maine way.
Each year on Wednesday night the coronation of the Maine Sea Goddess takes place. This glamorous event is one of the highlights of the Festival. Twenty young women from the midcoast area vie for the Sea Goddess crown, scholarships,and prizes. The chosen winner represents the Maine Lobster Festival, the lobster industry, and Rockland, Maine, with appearances at other events and associations throughout the ensuing year.
In an extremely popular and fun event, the Crate Race, contestants from all over take chances navigating a string of 50 partially submerged lobster crates. The winner is the person who stays upright over the largest number of crates. In recent years a young man from Austria won, with over 2000 crates crossed before he fell into the cold waters of the harbor. The all-time record is held by a midcoast girl, Susan Lundquist, who managed 3,007!
"Mighty Mud Mania" began in 1976 as the "Shout It Out Decathlon", a promotional gimmick for Johnson's Wax "Shout" Spray pre-wash. The activity was held in Chaparral Park in Scottsdale and the Johnson's Wax Company provided 300 white t-shirts for the participants. Johnson's dropped the program because our Arizona mud was too tough for the pre-wash. However, the City of Scottsdale felt the activity was so successful, that our Parks and Recreation Division incorporated the event into the summer recreation program. Re-named "Mighty Mud Mania", the activity has been held since then as the culminating activity of all the Scottsdale Parks and Recreation summer programs.
You'd be forgiven for believing the king is alive in Memphis in August, since the town swarms with Elvis impersonators making a pilgramage to observe the anniversary of the king's death on August 16. It seems the mania surrounding Elvis Presley knows no heights, but it certainly spikes during what Tennesseeans call Elvis Week.
The center of the action is Graceland, the Presley mansion. Only here can you really begin to appreciate Elvis's predilection for purple velvet, green shag pile, and gold-plated phones. A tour of Graceland now includes a previously closed section with never-before-seen items like the desk from Elvis's personal office and an extensive collection of his stage costumes. On the night of the 15th, devotees hold a candlelit vigil outside Graceland, with many teary-eyed fans filing past Elvis's gravesite.
August 28 -
September 4,
2006 Burning Man 2006 - Empire, NV
The isolated barren Black Rock Desert of northern Nevada will once again sprout its perennial fantasy metropolis of Black Rock City. This huge counter-culture event usually features a full-blown city of improbable structures, fascinating art installations and strange events that attract thousands of participants and spectators at one of the wildest and most imaginative happenings in the USA.
