A blooming good time at upcoming garden shows in Stratford, Toronto

   One-Tank Trip for Feb. 25/12

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Even after a not-so-difficult winter weather-wise, it’s always nice to look forward to spring.

   Get a head start on spring sensations by tiptoeing through the tulips, daffodils, roses, daisies, pansies and petunias.

   They will be in abundance along with other gems of the earth at two highly anticipated garden shows in Stratford and Toronto.

Flower displays burst with the colours of spring at the Stratford Garden Festival.

   Blooming good time

   “Celebrating Our Roots,” conveying an intertwining of nature and music, is this year’s theme for the Stratford Garden Festival next Thursday through Sunday (March 1 to 4).

   The landscapers will “draw their inspiration from the vast resource of our musical roots” in creating their gardens, said Deedee Herman of the hosting Lung Association, Huron-Perth.

   In its 12th year, the event at the Stratford Rotary Complex (353 McCarthy Rd.) features “lots of new exhibitors as well as returning favourites,” she said.

Family Day Weekend in Ontario, a time for fun

   One-Tank Trip for Feb. 11/12

  

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Here are ways to keep everyone happy on the Family Day Weekend in Ontario.

   This includes outdoor adventures in parks, indoor Kids-Fests and Snowman Mania – in spite of the absence of winter.

Family Day weekend events include cruising along the 300-metre skate path at Arrowhead Provincial Park north of Huntsville. (Ontario Parks photo)

   Walk on the wild side

    - Ontario Parks suggests the following including Winter in the Wild at Algonquin Provincial Park.

   The Saturday (Feb. 18) event starts with a guided morning bird walk, lunch at the visitor centre and a visit to the "Collection Room" with natural history items including bird and animal skins, pinned insect and plant specimens, some of which are 80-years old.

Love is in the air for Valentine's Day celebrations

   One-Tank Trip for Feb. 4/12

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Love is in the air as Valentine’s Day approaches and here are a few suggestions that turned up in the One-Tank Trip E-mail in-box.

   Do not disturb

   “Why not take time out from our silly schedules for a little romance at a hideaway for two and fall ‘inn’ love again?” asks Laurel Armstrong, a tourism industry representative in Southwestern Ontario.

   On behalf of Ontario's Finest Hotels, Inn and Spas, she reports there are “25 Valentine’s Heartening Getaways” available.

Lovers can check into the Valentine’s package available at the Little Inn of Bayfield.

   “From a romantic and cozy lakeside inn to the luxury of a world-class spa housed in an historic mansion, Ontario’s Finest Hotels, Inns and Spas offer couples with romantic notions an unparalleled variety of memorable locations and those special-extras packages in special settings,” said Kathy Nichol, executive director.

Ontario updates its service centres along Highways 401 and 400

   One-Tank Trip for Jan. 28/12

 

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Heading out on the highway for a “one-tank trip” or even commuting is more pleasurable with the much-improved service centres across Ontario.

   The ONroute Highway Service Centres along Highways 401 and 400 are reminiscent of the modern refuelling, food and rest stops on U.S. interstates and throughways.

ONroute Highway Service Centres are opening along Highways 401 and 400 across Ontario to better serve motorists, including this one in Trenton. (Photo by Ben Rahn/A-Frame)

   The Ontario government’s redevelopment program is replacing 23 outdated centres, intending the new ones to be “a welcome beacon of genuine hospitality, innovation and safety during your travels.”

   More than 500,000 people travel these two highways daily, making them among the busiest roadways in North America.

   The three-year program includes staffed Ontario Tourism Information Centres at ONroute  Tilbury South and ONroute Bainsville, which are the gateways to the Highway 401 corridor from the east and west.

   All of the centres include self-serve stations stocked with news and tourist brochures about their respective local communities, along with free WiFi.

A travel "bucket list" for kids before they're 15

   One-Tank Trip for Jan. 21/12

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Should young kids have a so-called vacation “bucket list?”

   Ontario Parks thinks so and has come up with a “suggested list of 15 things to do with your kids before they turn 15.”

   “Parents interested in the outdoors and family camping have a short window of time before kids’ seasonal jobs and other interests can change family holiday time,” said publicist Lori Waldbrook.

   She offers the following as a starter list:

   Get camping, swimming, fishing . . .

Things to do before they’re 15 at Ontario Parks includes teaching kids how to camp. (Photo – Ontario Parks)

Winter? Are we there yet as Wiarton Willie slumbers and Winterlude has contingency plans

   One-Tank Trip for Jan. 14/12

    (c) By Jim Fox

   Oh, the weather outside might be frightful – that is if you are a diehard frigid-winter sports enthusiast.

   Milder temperatures and less snow on the ground are making it difficult for organizers of winter festivals.

   Wiarton Willie, the weather prognosticating groundhog, will have some explaining to do about what happened to the winter and whether what we’ve had is all we’ll get.

There’s lots of pomp and ceremony when Wiarton Willie emerges to give his prediction on when winter will end. This photo from 2005 shows Willie, Jim Mitchell, his handler (in the white tuxedo), and then-Mayor Carl Noble, Town of South Bruce Peninsula.

   In the meantime, the National Capital Commission (NCC) has contingency plans in place if things don’t cool down in time for the 34th year of the big spectacle, Winterlude in Ottawa-Gatineau.

Glitz in gear at the Charity Preview gala of the North American Auto Show in Detroit

   One-Tank Trip published on Jan. 7/8, 2012

  

   (c) By Jim Fox

   DETROIT – It’s glitz in gear as the “new car smell” will permeate Cobo Center packed for a soiree to admire and even fondle the latest models.

   Yes, it's like prom night for big kids at the Charity Preview of the North American International Auto Show next Friday (Jan. 13).

Models displaying the latest models add to the glitz at the Charity Preview of the North American International Auto Show. (Jim Fox photo)

   The “Motor City” is on a roll again and gaining momentum after stalling out for a few years with the auto industry in disarray, so it’s time to party again.

   The high-society event is a prelude to the show’s public days that run from Jan. 14 to 22 and feature more than 500 new cars and trucks.

   “We are seeing a decidedly upbeat industry,” with gala ticket sales up 20 per cent, said chairman Bill Perkins.

   More than 12,000 people will pay $250 US each to attend the black-tie affair as the festive merrymakers make an evening of it -- many arriving in limousines and heading out for a night of partying afterwards.

Writer Jim Fox tries out a new Jaguar convertible at the North American International Auto Show. (Barbara Fox photo)

  

Motorcycle and boat show put some summer in the winter

   One-Tank Trip published on Dec. 31/11

  

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Put some summer in your winter if just for a day and go for a spin to the motorcycle show in Mississauga or paddle around at the Toronto boat show.

   Get your motor running

   The North American International Motorcycle Supershow is an adrenaline rush with hundreds of the latest bikes along with the oldies but goodies.

The North American International Motorcycle Supershow will unveil the 2012 lineup of bikes along with showing vintage and collector cycles.

Holiday fun to bring in the New Year

   One Tank Trip published Dec. 24/25, 2011

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Looking for some fun over the holidays?

   Bring in the New Year at the “Honeymoon Capital of the World,” talk to the animals, check out Leonardo da Vinci’s Workshop or make gingerbread at the fort.

Colourful fireworks over Niagara Falls help to welcome 2012 at a free party at Queen Victoria Park.

   Lighting up the night sky

   Spectacular fireworks over the falls help to welcome 2012 in Niagara Falls.

   Some 40,000 people are expected for the free concert in Queen Victoria Park starting at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 31.

Mysteries of ancient Mayan civilization revealed at Royal Ontario Museum

   One-Tank Trip for Dec. 17/18, 2011

 

   (c) By Jim Fox

   You don’t have to travel to Mexico or back in time to explore the mysteries of the legendary ancient Mayan civilization.

   Maya: Secrets of Their Ancient World is at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto with about 250 artifacts including sculptures, ceramics, masks and other precious works.

The head of a man with a headdress made out of stucco from Palenque, Chiapas Mexico in the Late Classic Period, 600 to 900 CE. (Handout – Photo credit: CONACULTA-INAH, Jorge Vertiz)

   And, there’s a hotel package for an overnight stay and tickets to the exhibition or to museums and galleries in the Ottawa area.

   There’s also a game-day overnight package to catch a Canadiens hockey game in Montreal.

Motown sounds, "Elvis" and lavish productions offered at this time of year

   One-Tank Trip published on Dec. 10/11, 2011

 

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Seasonal song-and-dance routines, lavish productions and concerts fill the entertainment calendar at this time of year.

   Take a “one-tank” trip back to Motown, experience an Elvis Christmas show and legendary stage performances of Hair, Mary Poppins and the Wizard of Oz or rock-and-roll with the Disney gang.

Motown Gold, a musical revue at Stage West Theatre Restaurant in Mississauga, recalls the hits from the 1960s and ’70s.

   And, the hits just keep on coming

   Motown Gold, a musical revue, relives the Marvelettes’ hit Dancing in the Streets with audience members dancing in their seats.

   The all-Canadian cast of singers and dancers is at Stage West Theatre Restaurant in Mississauga now through Feb. 5.

Old-world Christmas traditions at markets in Toronto, Kitchener

   One-Tank Trip published on Nov. 26/27, 2011

   (c) By Jim Fox

   ‘Tis the season for some “old-world” holiday traditions – Christmas markets.

   Toronto’s Distillery Historic District has a re-enactment of a traditional European-style market while downtown Kitchener is the place for a festival of German Christmas.

Kris Kringle, an old-fashioned Santa, arrives by horse at the Distillery District’s Toronto Christmas Market.

   Markets have been part of the festive time for centuries in Germany, with the oldest recorded in 1310 in Munich.