“Staycation,” the current trend to vacation at or near home, is growing more and more popular these days. If you want to travel but haven’t the time or budget, bring the destination to you. Host a dinner party or evening at home where you enjoy the country where you want to visit by soaking up the music, sites, sounds, aromas, etc. It takes some planning but a fab evening can be enjoyed by all. And if you want to spread the duties around, assign pieces of the festivities to your friends. Saves time and expense and gets everyone involved. Here’s how it works:
1. Assume you want to go to Italy. Other distinations might be Hawaii, Switzerland, Germany, Africa, Greece, India, Tahiti, Mexico or Thailand, wherever! Pick your destination and get busy. Perhaps gather pictures to spice up invitations, create a table centerpiece, make placemats, crazy hats, gather regional recipes, etc.
2. Invite some friends to enjoy an “Italian Festival.” Plan a meal at home with your “destination” as the theme. BENVENUTI or VIVA ITALIA banner across the door, an aroma candle can set the mood, let upbeat music fill the air. Not interested in Italy….Other variations might be An Evening in Paris, Fiesta De Espana, Carnival in Rio, Aloha Luau, DownEast Clambake, to name just a few…give your imagination free reign! Prepare the meal yourself or assign each guest to bring a “piece” of the meal, similar to a “pot luck dinner.” Better yet, cook together by assigning parts of the meal to small groups. Consult favorite cookbooks and have ingredients ready to go. Experiment with flaming dishes, special breads, novelty desserts. Your guests help in planning, creating and carrying off the entire party. Costs are kept down, and its fun for everyone.
3. Increase the mood and festivities with music, decorations, and drinks. Send “theme” invitations to spark creativity and interest (pictures cut from magazines, old posters, etc.). Or try some of these ideas:
· Go to travel agencies and see if they have literature from a country, posters from that region of the world, pictures ready to be discarded, travel maps, etc.
· Exchange “Italian” gag gifts
· Encourage guests to bring a decorated “Italian theme hat”; provide gag prizes
· Play music of that region or country
· Serve wine or drinks from the locale
· Enjoy a “Bocce” game outdoors before or after dinner
· Organize a pasta bar with several pasta varieties and a few sauces; let guests create their own entree
· Create an “Italian” centerpiece for the dinner or serving table
· Decorate a room in the “theme;” let candles light the way
· Provide (or assign) individual favors (takeaways) for guests
· Rent a movie filmed in that region for “after dinner entertainment”
· Enjoy dancing from that geographic region before or after dinner
· Host a sing along featuring songs from that region
· Learn a folk dance from that locale
· Post Italian phrases on a mirror
· Build on these ideas; create better ones
Your dinner might spark friends to host festivities during the year or sponsor other seasonal events such as a leaf raking soup and cider party in the autumn, a wreath or ornament making party during the holidays, skate fest in the winter, or a spring clean up pizza party.
Before you know it, your “VIRTUAL VACATION” may multiply to several “trips” throughout the year. So it’s not only cost effective but also extends festivities to other seasons.
If you get another “Italian urge,” drive over to Providence, R.I. on a summer Saturday night. Eat Italian on Federal Hill and enjoy Water Fire festivities downtown! (Check online to make sure WaterFire festivities are scheduled the night you choose to go).
AAA has several evenings of pre-planning for a vacation. Includes a talk from an expert who has been to the area,
slideshow or video, Q & A, and different scenarios from cost to insurance.
Amanda Cuda (connpost.com) wrote a great piece on ‘Travel to Africa without leaving Connecticut’ at Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk. ( Check it out, click here.)
Write and tell us about your virtual vacation ideas and plans.
What worked, what didn’t, and what you learned along the way.
Leave comments below.
BENVENUTI!
