Above is the official poster for the movie. There is now a sequel being streamed on Netflix in the States and probably overseas maybe, of Ralphie (the child actor now a grown man) with his own family. I am looking forward to that too and will be watching both movies before Christmas. The exhibition at the resort was opened five days earlier than usual, to coincide with the new film's release.
Ginny of Let Your Light Shine, asked if this exhibit was open all year round. It isn't Ginny, it opened on November 25th and will close on December 31st.
This exhibit was carved by a team of 40 world-class ice artisans from Harbin, China. They used 2 million pounds of ice. There are ten scenes from the movie shared.
The slide made totally of ice attracted both children and adults.
Christmas Morning…
and Mom asks Ralphie to try on this year's handmade gift. You can see a YouTube link here of Ralphie's gift from Aunt Clara. I really felt for Ralphie in this scene.
There's a scene where a pack of dogs invade the house and steal the turkey.
Naughty dogs!
But all is not lost, the local Chinese restaurant comes to the rescue. They order duck but back then people weren't used to the more exotic presentations. The staff at the restaurant were endearing as they tried to make a wonderful Christmas experience for Ralphie and his family.
The Children are in bed...
and Christmas is over in 1983.
I have one more post as we walked past the sign and came across my favorite ice sculptures of the exhibit.
You can click on this link to read all about the production of A Christmas Story.
This is the Parker House where Ralphie lives with his family. Everything is made of ice, apart from a few props. The porch was busy, and people were taking turns looking inside the windows. A few people asked me if I could take their photo which I happily did. One funny man asked me if I worked there as he had seen at least three people hand their cameras to me. He had that twinkle in his eye, made me laugh, and I kept moving. It was very chilly inside. We were given parkas as it was about -2 degrees F.
The Parker's 'car' was right there at the side of the house.
Truth be told I have never been to an ice sculpture exhibit before, and certainly not one like this. I think I once saw a large piece at a hotel years ago as a buffet centerpiece at some kind of reception, but that's been so long ago the memory is foggy. William comes to mind, who hosts Ottawa's Daily Photo. He has shared the ice exhibit that occurs in his city ever since I have been a visitor and longer than that maybe. I have always been fascinated by his posts. Those ice exhibits, the word elegant comes to mind. These are excellent but in a kitschy way, and fun as you are taken back to funny or cringy moments in the movie. There are also some very poignant scenes but the leg lamp, well I really felt for his wife, let's just leave it at that.
Ralphie's Dad won it in a competition. I won't give the whole story away in case you haven't seen the movie before. They actually sold these in the gift shop. In fact, I saw one last December, in the window of a house in a neighborhood that goes all out for decorating. The street is a show piece for the holidays and attracts long lines of cars. I'm wondering if it will be there again this year. I must check it out. Should I have bought one? Nahhh! Not this year anyhow.
This takes place every year at the Gaylord Resort and Convention Center in National City. The themes change and this year there were scenes from the movie that I recognized immediately. I have seen it many times. It was made in 1983. It makes me laugh and there are some 'awwww' moments, and it makes me cringe sometimes, but I will probably watch it again with Gregg before Christmas. It gives you the feel of what it must have been like in 1940. The acting is great and the Dad is Darren McGavin whom I have enjoyed in other movies/TV show from way back when. Here's a description I borrowed from Wikipedia and more can be read if you click the link. It reads:
"Set in December 1940, the film is presented in a series of vignettes, with narration provided by the adult Ralphie Parker reminiscing on one particular Christmas when he was nine years old, in the fictional town of Hohman, Indiana. Ralphie wanted only one thing that Christmas, a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle. Ralphie's desire is rejected by his mother, his teacher Miss Shields, and even a Santa Claus at Higbee's department store..."
No more telling about the movie, I'll just let the photos speak for themselves. Gregg checked out the window too and there he is waving at us. A touch of nostalgia for him? He remembers a Roy Rogers bicycle given one year.
All for now. There will be another batch in my next blog post.
We only decided to go to National Harbor a few days previously. Perhaps I should have done more research on our hotel, but as we were within a 30-mile radius, I jumped in. We were both ready for a trip as it has been a while. To Gregg I said, "What do you think about going over to National Harbor and stay overnight somewhere?"
We have talked about it several times over the past year. He was on his laptop and had booked the hotel, plus tickets for the ice show I had been telling him about. I was very surprised when we pulled up to the place. It was a lot larger than any we have stayed at before. The top photo shows only a small part of it. I had forgotten it was also a convention center. Me in the planning stage: "The hotel where the ice show takes place, wouldn't it be a good idea to stay overnight, so that we didn't have to drive home late and in the dark?" It was also very nice that we didn't have to worry about parking. It was a hike to the exhibit but mostly inside the hotel, with a short walk from there to the large enclosure (my idea of a hike may be different than yours). The weather was quite dreary, but all our entertainment was at the hotel for our short stay, so no walking around in the rain.
There are two buildings inside the atrium that look like regular sized homes. They are shops.In the photo below, halfway down the large atrium window, you can make out the arches supporting the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. Virginia is on one side of the Potomac River, Maryland is on the other. We were in Maryland where National Harbor is located. This is also the view from our room.Just to give you an idea of how big this place is, there are 1,996 rooms and 110 suites, seven restaurants, and a 19-story glass atrium with views of the Potomac River. As mentioned, it is also a convention center and it has 95 event rooms, 537,430 square feet of meeting space, and a 20,000 square-foot spa. It also employs 2,000 people.
We went on a weekday thinking this would be a quieter time. It was but I can only imagine what it must be like on the weekend. There were lots of families there for the ice show.
There is a 55-ft tree suspended from the ceiling. It comes to life when it gets dark and all the lights are switched on. There is also a stage and we were treated to Christmas carols later that evening, along with a laser light show when the singing had stopped. The people above must have been in the preparation stage as that show didn't take place until later. I took videos of the laser lights and have included short movies of them below. Here are three photos to be going on with. This display is free. My photos and the two short videos don't do it justice. (If anyone has a problem with flashing lights, I would skip the movies.)
The lights and music are synchronized with a fountain that shoots 60 feet high.
There is also a nightly indoor snowfall.
It is very pretty at nighttime.
We stopped off at this place. No tables inside but plenty in front. It is well stocked with beverages and food, and other items. A coffee for me and a cold drink for Gregg. Neither of us were feeling that hungry and by that time were a little tired, so we decided not to go to the restaurant for a sit-down meal. Instead we bought chicken salad sandwiches to share, and took them up to our room. They were excellent!
We walked by a duck pin bowling alley with a bar.
Close-up of the mural.I enjoyed the hotel very much. There are a lot of hotels in this area. Within walking distance if you go out the front doors, the MGM National Harbor Resort and Casino is just up the road to the right.
Now for the videos.
If you go here it will take you to a website called Fun in Fairfax VA where I got some information, and I enjoyed their photos.
I can see where the flashing lights might be a problem for those who have issues, so please don't play them if you think they would affect you.
On select days, Christmas on the Potomac features two Christmas shows in the Atrium. Both shows are free to watch but guaranteed ticketed seats have the best view, so I read. We were in our hotel room while taking these. If we come here again next year, we thought we would reserve a room more in the center of the atrium’s back wall looking straight on, and probably not much higher than the fifth floor. Our room was on that floor but in the corner with an okay view. We could open the doors which had a rail but no balcony, and decided that we would prefer looking down from a more central position. The center rooms and those on the side of the atrium have the balconies. It would be great to sit out and listen to the choir from above, and watch the laser show afterwards. I expect these rooms would go fast, and booking them well ahead of time would be the way to go. Just something to think about.
I hope you have enjoyed seeing a little bit of our hotel. This link will take you to the original built in Nashville, Tennessee, with its history. That hotel was built to support the Grand Ole Opry. Similar hotels have been built in Texas and Florida.
I can't describe just how I feel, when I go round on a Ferris wheel, the lights, they shine so bold and bright, above the carnival grounds tonight.
My mood is uplifted into the air, as my heart beats without a care, I feel so free, as if I could fly, with nothing between the ground and I.
The cool night wind flows in my hair, the people look so small, way down there, I hold my breath as I go over the top, a feeling, surreal, I don't want to stop.
As fear escapes and I enjoy the ride, I can't help but look down, over the side, I am up among the stars and the moon, an exciting feeling that ends, all too soon.
By
Ava Courtney
Elwyn Brooks White (July 11, 1899 – October 1, 1985)was an American writer. He was the author of several highly popular books for children, including Stuart Little (1945), Charlotte's Web (1952), and The Trumpet and the Swan (1970). In a 2012 survey of School Library Journal readers, Charlotte's Web came in first in their poll of the top 100 children's novels.
