Enjoy the taste of Thailand

My daughter and I recently checked out two recently opened Thai restaurants in the northtowns. Thai Orchid Café in the Evanstown Plaza has a beautiful contemporary deco. However, we got our food take out that particular evening. The Pad Thai is especially good. we also tried a chicken and mixed vegetable stir-fry and Vietnamese curry, which was also good.

We ordered some of our favorite beverage, Thai iced tea, to go. We even got my husband to try Thai food, but I’m not sure if he cared for it too much. He did not like the Thai iced tea at all, which meant that there was more for us! Of course we had to order pizza for the boys, because they won’t try foods that have vegetables in it. Thai Orchid Café, 716-565-2094, 416 Evans Street, Williamsville, NY 14221

We also had the opportunity to have lunch at the new second location of Saigon Bangkok, which just opened a couple weeks ago at the corner of Maple and Transit Road in Williamsville in the Tops Plaza. We started out with the spring rolls. I had the Panang Curry, which was very good and my daughter opted for the Red curry. Both were very good. Again we had the Thai iced tea. Saigon Bangkok, 716-632-8884, 8080 Transit Road, Williamsville, NY 14221.

Other Thai restaurants we have visited include the original location of Saigon Bangkok, 716-837-2115, 512 Niagara Falls Blvd. Amherst; King & I, 716-839-2950, 2188 Kensington Avenue, Amherst and one of our favorites, but a bit of a drive, The King and I: Cuisine of Thailand, 585-427-8090, 1455 East Henrietta Road, Rochester, which has the best sesame chicken!

Wine and Chocolate Weekend along the Chautauqua Lake Erie Wine Trail

Why not enjoy some wine and chocolate with your significant other along the Chautauqua Lake Erie wine Trail, which has 21 wineries in Chautauqua County and northern Pennsylvania. Enjoy locally produced wines paired with a chocolate creation at each winery.

February 7 & 8, 2009
Tickets $25 Weekend, $20 Sunday Only
Available online until February 1; by phone until February 5th - 877-326-6561

Lodging at local Inns, B&Bs and Hotels still available

Please visit www.chautauquawinetrail.org for more information

Ice Weekend at Peek'n Peak Resort and Spa

Ice Weekend at Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa


Findley Lake, N.Y., January 20, 2009 – Guests can enjoy special Ice Weekend festivities at Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa this weekend. On Saturday, January 24, Peek’n Peak will feature an ice bar on the deck of the Retreat Lodge. Beverage specials will be available both at the bar and inside the lodge. In addition, two ice luge displays will feature specialty drinks including Pepsi Amp for non-drinkers or under 21 guests and Bacardi Freeze or Glacier in a Glass for guests who wish to enjoy alcoholic beverages.

At 3 p.m. on Saturday, Peek’n Peak staff will feature an ice carving demonstration on the Retreat deck. Watch as a three hundred pound block of ice is transformed into a winter themed creation before your eyes!

For more information about the Ice Weekend or to make reservations, please call 716-355-4141 or visit www.PKnPK.com.



About Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa

Established in 1964, Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa, in Findley Lake, NY, is a regional destination for golf and snow sports, 30 minutes east of Erie, PA and 30 minutes west of Jamestown, NY. The resort features 27 ski slopes and trails, 10 miles of cross country terrain, two highly acclaimed golf courses, exquisite day spa, fine dining, and a vast selection of accommodations and other amenities, as well as a prestigious RCI Gold Crown rating. For more information, visit PKnPK.COM.

The Peak gets an average snowfall of more than 200 inches a year. During the 2007-2008, the ski season lasted for a record 128 days. The resort is open seven days a week, from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on weekends and holidays, and from 9:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on weekdays.

Author Mason Winfield (and others) to "lift the curse on Buffalo" January 23

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kellie Galucki
KGalucki@gmail.com
(716) 655-6663


SPECIAL EVENT


Wide right, no goal, Blizzard of '77, McKinley assassination............is Buffalo cursed? ( Don't answer that question.) Are we just going to stand here and keep taking it?


Join author and "Supernatural Historian" Mason Winfield, Haunted History Ghost Walks, Inc.,mystical luminaries and movers and shakers as we attempt to "Lift the Curse on Buffalo" in 2009, the 2nd annual event at the historic Town Ballroom. Whatever we did in 2008 obviously didn't work, so we have to do it again.


Haunted Tours of the basement and tunnel (where gangster Al Capone once operated). Local author book sales & signings. Ghosthunting demonstrations. Beer tasting with Flying Bison Brewery. Bills & Sabres footage on the big screen. A diverse team of Religious and Spiritual leaders from the mainstream and alternative community will be present to bless our city. One of them is bound to work!


Well know Psychic Readers & Mediums will offer Readings for a separate fee. See what 2009 has in store for you.


Ghost hunters, bring your gizmos...you never know what might happen at the Ballroom!


"Supernatural Historian" Mason Winfield
Algonquin mystic Michael Bastine
Psychic & past Lily Dale President Ellen Bourn
Bishop & Healer Father James Lagona, DD JD
Astrologer/psychic Cassandra Bauerle
Ghosthunter/author Rev. Tim Shaw
Researcher/author Rob Lockhart


Lift the Curse on Buffalo
A Psychic Celebration for the Niagara Frontier
Fri Jan 23
7-10pm
The Town Ballroom
681 Main St.
Buffalo, NY
$15 Admission
For more information call (716) 655-6663
or visit http://www.masonwinfield.com/

A great website for Ex-Pats (and locals as well)

Check out this great website put together by John Wingspread Howell, a Buffalo ex-pat, now a writer and financial planner in Illinois.

Buffalo Ex-pat http://www.buffaloex-pat.com/ has tons of information about the Buffalo area that is of interest to "ex-pats," people who grew up here, but who have moved away (and are longing for home). Locals will also enjoy this site too!

The photos are absolutely stunning (see one of them above). The website features information about area sports teams (both pro and college) history (including the 1901 Pan-American Exposition), some Buffalo trivia and much more.

Free admission to RTPI this weekend

Roger Tory Peterson Institute

Doors Open!


SATURDAY JANUARY 17, 2009

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM


Free Admission to RTPI and many other exciting organizations in the area!

Bring a Friend!

Cure that cabin fever!



*Free Admission *Refreshments *Prizes
*Books, Gifts, Toys, Logo Products
*Bird feeders - Buy a feeder, receive a FREE bag of birdseed!
*RTP Prints for sale
*RTP Centennial DVD "A Boy, A Book, A Legacy"
*Exhibit: "Letters From Eden" by Julie Zickefoose


TOUR THE RTPI HEADQUARTERS BUILDING

RTPI Library Photo by Peter Aaron/ESTO



Tour our beautiful building, designed by world class architect Robert A.M. Stern, dean of the School of Architecture at Yale University. He combines the Swedish woodworking influence of Roger's Scandinavian heritage with the adirondack camp flavor and 19th century Arts & Crafts movement that are characteristic of many of Stern's designs. Seeing our building alone is worth the trip!



OUR OWN BACK YARD


"Teaching our children about their hometown and building a sense of pride in them about Jamestown will make them think about moving back home after college or later in their career." - Ann Mason, Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce.

This Saturday, January 17, RTPI will join with some of Jamestown's biggest attractions and open their doors for the fourth annual Doors Open Jamestown, a yearly event which features free admission and special events.

Based on an international movement to educate people about the treasures that exist in their own region, the Open Doors Jamestown event will include free admission at each venue, as well as a live broadcast by Media One at the Lucy-Desi Museum, and is sponsored by the Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce.

After you visit RTPI, be sure to visit these other participating venues:

Jamestown Audubon Center and Sanctuary at 1600 Riverside Road, on Route 62, heading toward Warren PA.

Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center at 300 North Main Street, Jamestown NY.

Fenton History Center on Route 60 just south of the Washington Street Bridge in Jamestown, NY.

Robert H. Jackson Center at 305 E. Fourth Street in Jamestown NY.

Reg Lenna Center at 116 E. Third Street, Jamestown NY.

Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena at 319 W. Third Street in Jamestown, NY.

Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame at 15 W. Third Street in Jamestown, NY.

Together, we can make a difference in our own back yard!


Sincerely,

Linda Pierce
Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History


The mission of the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History is to continue the legacy of Roger Tory Peterson by promoting the teaching and study of nature, and to thereby create knowledge of and appreciation and responsibility for the natural world.

Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 10 AM - 4 PM
Sunday 1 PM - 5 PM
Closed Mondays
Closed Sundays in Jan Feb March Phone 716-665-BIRD (2473) 800-758-6841

News from Peek'n Peak Resort

Findley Lake, N.Y., January 6, 2009 – Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa is pleased to announce the addition of a new terrain park feature for the 2008-2009 winter season. Visitors to the Peak will see a full size school bus buried in the snow this season. Skiers and boarders can ride or jump over the bus. To kick off this new feature, Peek’n Peak will host the Back to School Bus Jam on Saturday, January 10th. This free event is open to skiers and boarders. Registration takes place from noon – 1p.m. at the Retreat and the event begins at 1 p.m. Prizes will be awarded in several categories.
Peek’n Peak will also host the 2nd annual chili cook-off this Saturday at the Retreat from 12 – 3 p.m. Tasting tickets are available for $1 at the event and guests can vote on their favorite chili. Participants include Ashville General, Brick Village Gourmet, Burning Asphalt Sauces, The Kelly Hotel, Tamarack Bar & Grille, Union Station Brewery and US Foodservice. For more information, please visit PKnPK.com or call 716-355-4141 x2525.

Scout Day at Peek’n Peak
Findley Lake, N.Y., January 7, 2009 – Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa will offer a discount on lift tickets, equipment rentals and lessons this Saturday, January 10, to Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and their immediate families. Discount lift tickets are up to $20 off the regular price. Scout Day lift ticket pricing is $34 for adults and $28 for juniors (6-11 years). Children 5 and under ski free with a ticketed adult. Rental equipment discounts are up to $9 off the regular pricing. Scout Day rental equipment rates are $19 for adult ski rental, $24 for adult snowboard rental and $15 for junior/child ski rental or $20 for junior/child snowboard rental. A Scout Day Lesson Package is also available for $48 which is a savings of $12 and includes a beginner area lift ticket, group lesson and equipment rental. This beginner package is available for ages 12 and older. Scouts must present a valid scout ID at the lift ticket window to receive the discounts. Scouts are encouraged to talk with their group leaders about earning a winter sports merit badge as part of their skiing or snowboarding fun at Peek’n Peak.


Peek’n Peak to Host Junior Ski Race
Findley Lake, N.Y., January 7, 2009 – Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa will host a Niagara Frontier Ski Race on Sunday, January 11, 2009 starting at 10 am at the Sugar’ n Ouse lodge area. The race will attract over 150 junior ski racers age 7-12 from the tri-state area.

The race will be a two run slalom event with trophies and medals handed out to the top boys and girls. These competitors will represent all the Western New York ski areas which include Peek’n Peak, Holiday Valley, Holimont, Kissing Bridge and Buffalo Ski Club.

This race is a qualifier for ski racers who will move on to the New York State Championship Race to be held in the Adirondacks at Gore Mountain, North Creek, New York. Racers advancing to this level and beyond may one day find themselves competing for slots on the US Ski Team to compete in events at the World Cup and Olympic level. New York State is one of the most active skiing states in the nation boasting more ski areas than any other state.

Alpine racing events such as the one hosted by Peek’n Peak are just one of the many family fun activities that attract thousands of skiers to enjoy winter recreation activities and provide a substantial economic boost for the surrounding area. Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa is proud to sponsor this activity and the Peek’n Peak Junior Race Team as these young skiers become our ambassadors throughout the region.


About Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa
Established in 1964, Peek’n Peak Resort and Spa, in Findley Lake, NY, is a regional destination for golf and snow sports, 30 minutes east of Erie, PA and 30 minutes west of Jamestown, NY. The resort features 27 ski slopes and trails, 10 miles of cross country terrain, two highly acclaimed golf courses, exquisite day spa, fine dining, and a vast selection of accommodations and other amenities, as well as a prestigious RCI Gold Crown rating. For more information, visit http://www.pknpk.com/ .
The Peak gets an average snowfall of more than 200 inches a year. During the 2007-2008, the ski season lasted for a record 128 days. The resort is open seven days a week, from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on weekends and holidays, and from 9:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on weekdays.