A midsummer vacationer’s dream

By WANDA WAYFARER

Midsummer has quickly settled upon the river valley. Our roadways and streets are packed with cars, our restaurants and B&Bs are packed to capacity and our river is filled with kayaks, canoes and rafts. People travel from all over the United States to make our area their tourist destination.

There must be something wonderful that draws thousands of people to the area to enjoy the best of what the river valley has to offer. Those of us who have it right in our own back yards can take it for granted. It’s time to take a closer look.

This Friday, make your way to the beautiful hamlet of Narrowsburg, NY to see the Delaware Valley Opera’s performance of “La Perichole” (845/252-7272). “La Perichole,” which translates as “The Street Singer,” is an operatic performance about a woman and her jealous lover. The setting is the streets and the Viceroy’s palace in Peru. The cast of characters and the plot make for an unusual opera experience.

The Tusten Theater, a small but beautiful brick theater set in the middle of Narrowsburg, is the venue for the opening night performance of La Perichole. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and tickets to the performance cost $25 for adult admission.

On Saturday, you will want to make your way down to Port Jervis, NY for its Arts Walk (570/491-2393). The annual celebration of arts starts at 11:00 a.m. and runs until roughly 6:00 p.m. in Port Jervis’s historic Front Street.

The day-long event will celebrate Port Jervis’s arts and music renaissance. There will be all kinds of entertainment throughout the event including live music, stilt walkers, ballet and dancers.

A variety of art and crafts will be available for purchase as well as food and beverages. Sculpture, pottery, photography, woodworking and metalworking will all be on display throughout the festival.

Admissions to the day’s events are free.

The Arts Walk won’t be the only exciting happening in the Port Jervis area over the weekend. There is also the 14th annual Deerpark Family Festival (845/856-6694). This annual fair is set amid the wide-open acres of New Hope Farms on Route 209, two miles outside of Port Jervis.

Each year the celebration grows in size and stature. This year it runs from Thursday, July 19 to Sunday, July 22. Admission to the festival is free, but there is a $5 charge for parking.

On Saturday, the fair will begin at 3:00 p.m. and end at midnight. The family-friendly event will include amusement rides for all ages (with a pay-per-ride price tag) including Ferris wheels, teacups, zippers, bumper cars, humongous slides, swings and much more. In between the rides you can feast on delicious fair food, ranging from hot dogs to gyros, and my personnel favorite, funnel cake.

The Deerpark Family Festival will also have displays of fireworks, live performances by local bands, all sorts of craft vendors, a classic car show, a fire truck competition and a chamber member expo. The River Reporter will be in attendance at the expo so come over and say “hi” to us as you travel around the fairgrounds.

Pennsylvania will join in the festival spirit as well, with Honesdale’s 47th Annual Street Festival and Sidewalk Sale this weekend (570/253-5492). Head over there on Sunday for some wonderful shopping deals on almost anything that you can imagine.

Honesdale’s picturesque Main Street will be lined with clothing, gifts, crafts and foods, all for incredible good deals. Main Street boasts some wonderful clothing (from babies to adults) and country gift stores as well as sporting goods, jewelry, antiques, books and healthy living items.

The sidewalk sales event runs from Friday, July 19 through Sunday, July 21. There will be street music, the Wayne County Farmer’s Market will be going on trackside, and historical exhibits will be held at The Wayne County Historical Society.

If you are looking for some wonderful deals on almost everything that you can imagine, Honesdale will be the place to be this weekend.

So, set your itinerary, then get out and enjoy the wonderful weather and the variety of summer fun our area has to offer.