Niagara Falls has a wonderful nightlife featuring several night clubs, bars, and karaoke! There are even several wineries and breweries to visit, including the Niagara Brewing Company which hosts several events throughout the year; Oktoberfest and Beer on Ice. The Niagara Brewing Company is Niagara’s newest craft brewery and has a 100% customer recommendation rating! Find out more about the Niagara Brewing Company here: http://niagarabrewingcompany.com
Written by: Kelsey Chapman
Niagara Falls is home to the Skylon Observation Tower, built in 1964, featuring 3 observation decks, 2 dining rooms, a revolving dining area, and a fun center at the base of the tower! The tower stands at 520 feet and on a clear day has the observation visibility of up to 80 miles! The revolving dining room seats 276 people and does 1 complete revolution per hour! Find out more here: http://www.skylon.com
Written by: Kelsey Chapman
Niagara Falls also features an abundance of outdoor recreation, including the botanical garden, the centennial lilac garden, Niagara Glen, the Niagara River Recreation Trail, and the Queen Victoria Park. The outdoor recreation doesn’t stop there! They feature horse and carriage rides, helicopter rides, the Niagara Falls incline railway, and the Niagara Belle! The Niagara Belle is a leisurely way to experience the Niagara River in a paddle wheeler boat. The Niagara Belle is a 3 hour cruise on the river and includes a buffet-style homemade dinner (but is also available for lunch or brunch)! Find out more about the Niagara Belle here: http://www.niagarasunsetcruises.com 
Written by: Kelsey Chapman
Fabulicious
From Thursday, November 14th 2013 11:00 AM to Thursday,November 21st 201310:00pm
An opportunity to dine at some of Niagara-on-the-Lake’s finest restaurants with special three-course menus at amazing prices — 3 course lunch for $25; 3 course dinner for $35.
http://signaturekitchensofniagaraonthelake.com/
Winter Festival of Lights festivities are going to be spectacular this year. Mark your calendars opening ceremonies kick off the season starting November 9th! http://www.niagarafallstourism.com/play/festivals-events/winter-festival-of-lights/
Looking for a place to stay view us on: http://www.niagara-on-the-lake-cottagerental.com/ or call is at 905-980-0346 to make a reservation.
By Corey Larocque, Niagara Falls Review
Wirewalker Jay Cochrane stands atop the Hilton Hotel in Niagara Falls with the Skylon Tower in the background in this 2012 file photo. (MIKE DIBATTISTA/NIAGARA News
“Just a note aside, I had the pleasure of viewing Jay Cochrane live in Niagara Falls, what a showman”!! Maria Rekrut
Jay Cochrane, the highwire performer known as the Prince of the Air, was a great friend to Niagara Falls over the years. News of his death Wednesday saddened a town he came to love and whose people came to love him – even though, by many accounts, he was a difficult man to get to know.
Since 2002, Cochrane’s blue, sequined jumpsuit and platinum blonde hair, were fixtures in Niagara Falls. He was a colourful entertainer who constantly pushed the boundaries of his art to new heights. In the summer of 2012, he thrilled spectators daily by walking a tightrope from the top of the Skylon Tower to the rooftop of the Hilton hotel.
When news broke that he lost his battle to cancer at the age of 69, it prompted a well deserved outpouring of tributes from the thousands of people who witnessed his hundreds of highwire performances or who dealt with him through the children’s charities for whom he devotedly raised money.
Journalists at The Review who interviewed and photographed him over the years got to know him as the consummate professional. Charming, but aloof. A brilliant showman despite some eccentricities. (The trumpet fanfare from the Superman theme song announced he was about to begin his show).
He adopted us. And we embraced him. He didn’t just breeze into town for a one-night stand and then move on to the next spectacle.
He’ll always be one of the lingering “what-ifs” in Niagara Falls history. What if the Niagara Parks Commission had dropped its longstanding opposition to stunting when Cochrane asked 10 years ago, instead of when Nik Wallenda got the green light in 2012?
But Cochrane has earned a rightful place in the legion of endearing colourful characters whose exploits make Niagara Falls history the thrilling, unique place it is.
Where else but in Niagara Falls could you look 750 feet up in the sky, see a man walking a tightrope between two skyscrapers and say, “Oh yeah, that’s Jay… It must be 7 o’clock.”
He was so good you could set your watch to his performances. He often said he had to be perfect in his line of work.
Cochrane was a class act, a thrill to watch and a delight to know.
Corey Larocque
Widely considered Canada’s most haunted town, Niagara-on-the-Lake (NOTL) is the place to be on Hallowe’en. You’ll be in good company: Famous ghosts include Captain Colin Swayze, a Canadian militia officer killed in 1813 at the Angel Inn, where reports of eerie nighttime shenanigans date back to the 1820s. In Queen’s Royal Park, the ethereal “Woman in White” is said to linger nightly at the gorgeous gazebo, still longing for her lost love after almost a century. And at St. Mark’s Anglican Church, the cemetery is the final home of many War of 1812 casualties, some of whom do not reportedly rest in peace.
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory staff show off their Hallowe’en treats, which include a full-sized chocolate skull.
Ghost tours and antics
For a more formal introduction to the spirits, you can sign up for a number of different ghost tours.
Fort George is hosting special Hallowe’en ghost tours on October 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27, 30 and 31. They start at 7, 7:15, 7:30, 10, 10:15 and 10:30 p.m. Tickets are $17 and you must buy them in advance by calling 905-468-6621.
The guides from Ghost Walks and Dark History Tours will regale you with stories on an entertaining jaunt to the haunted parts of town. Extra tours around Hallowe’en make sure everyone gets a shot at meeting some spectres. Tickets are $13 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for kids 13 and under.
The Haunted Shop on Queen Street will give you the shivers as you browse for creepy gifts and treats. Be sure to ask about the resident apparition.
On my last Hallowe’en visit to NOTL, my Niagara B&B hosts lent me their book, Ghosts of Niagara-on-the-Lake by Maria Da Silva and Andrew Hind. This is a comprehensive and fascinating look into the NOTL spirit world. And of course, Niagara B&B owners know all the stories—some even have phantom guests.
Posted by E. Lisa Moses
SMALL TALK VINEYARDS
In partnership with
The ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA – NIAGARA BRANCH
Present:
STARGAZING in the VINEYARD
Saturday, September 21st – 8-11PM
Doors open at 7:00pm – FREE ADMISSION!
Available for purchase:
Wine by the glass – $6
Tasting platters with a selection of local cheeses, smoked meats & crackers – $15
Small Talk Vineyards
1242 Irvine Rd, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON
Looking for accommodations – Call 1-866-226-4730 or 905-980-0346
From A Spark to a Flame – Celebrating 50 Years of Choral Brilliance!
Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem – A Gala Presentation
Chorus Niagara, Niagara’s premier 100-voice choral ensemble, with Artistic Director Robert Cooper, present Giuseppe Verdi’s masterwork Requiem Saturday May 4th, 7:30pm, at the historic Lake Street Armoury, 81 Lake Street, St. Catharines. Audiences are invited to attend a post-concert reception for the historic lighting of Chorus Niagara’s 50th Anniversary Candles and to enjoy a sample of the anniversary celebration cake.
This 50th Anniversary season finale features over 200 singers and instrumentalists and showcases a brilliant quartet of Canadian Opera stars. Joining the 100 voices of Chorus Niagara are Choralis Camerata and Chorus Niagara’s Community and Side-by-SideHigh School Chorales. The Niagara Symphony Orchestra accompanies the massed choir. This gala performance celebrates not only the Golden Anniversary of Chorus Niagara, but also the 200th anniversary of the birth of Giuseppe Verdi, Italy’s most celebrated operatic composer.
Audiences will be dazzled by a Canadian superstar operatic quartet, comprised of Leslie Ann Bradley, soprano; Anita Krause, mezzo-soprano; David Pomeroy, tenor and Stephen Hegedus, bass-baritone.
Leslie Ann Bradley, soprano, possesses a voice described as ‘warm, voluptuous and beautifully expressive’. Opera Canada has described her as ‘A stylish singer that recalled a young Renee Fleming.’ Equally at home in opera, concert and recital, Ms. Bradley has performed with the Calgary Philharmonic, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, Toronto Opera in Concert, Brott Summer Music Festival, Boston Midsummer Opera, Toronto Operetta Theatre and the Aldeburgh Connection. A graduate of the University of Toronto Opera Program with a Master’s Degree, Ms. Bradley is also the winner of several prestigious awards. She has appeared on BRAVO television in ‘Love Story’ and recorded two episodes of ‘Opera Easy’ for BRAVO.
Verdi’s Requiem was first performed in Milan Italy in May of 1874. It was composed in memory of Italian poet and novelist Alessandro Manzoni, who was much admired by Verdi. Giuseppe Verdi is the composer of many well-known operas including Nabucco, Rigoletto, Aida, Otello and Falstaff, favourites of opera companies around the world today. Requiem, was a departure for the composer, who was considered to be an agnostic. Verdi’s operatic style lent a complex and theatrical flair to the Mass format, making it a dramatic audience favourite.
Tickets are available from the Brock University Box Office in St. Catharines 905-688-5550 ext. 3257; toll free 1-866-617-3257; online www.arts.brocku.ca , or from a chorus member. Media Contact Paul Price 905-227-2356 paul.price@cogeco.ca
Looking for accommodations in Niagara on the Lake call 1-866-226-4730