Thursday, December 27, 2007

What's New?

We've added some more links in the photos section, so check those out (12/27/07)

Monday, November 5, 2007

honeymoon photos, part 2

here are some more photos -
these are from the week we had in a timeshare, and from a couple day trips we took from there (one to malaga, and one to tanger, morocco).
enjoy!

benalmadena-malaga-tanger

map of honeymoon


View Larger Map

hint - head towards spain/portugal if the view shows somewhere else . . .

Saturday, November 3, 2007

honeymoon photos

we'll put up our honeymoon photos bit by bit to let you see where we went.
our first day we landed in lisbon we wandered around the city with our friend deborah, did a night tour of alfama, the historic district where she lives, and then went to this great restaurant for a night of food and fado. yummy!

day 1 & day 2 - lisbon and portugal south of lisbon

portugal


the next day we wandered around on our own, got a rental car (stick shift) and drove out of town headed south . . .

Thursday, November 1, 2007

wedding photos

here are some of the photos taken during the weekend. i'll keep updating this list. if any of you do NOT want your URL listed here, let me know and i'll remove it.
thanks.
e


awesome video

this video from our friend mike captures some of the sights of earthdance and the sounds of the women's circle on sunday morning.
wow.

we're back!

so after much traveling, we are back at home. digging out from the accumulation of mail, email, phone calls, amazing presents, and the mess of the last few weeks of planning before the wedding. we'll put up some stuff about our honeymoon here . . .

to get you started, listen to a little fado.

this is a video from our first night in lisbon, when we stayed with our dear friend deborah. she took us to this great little restaurant in the alfama (the neighborhood where she lives) and we had a great dinner and saw this amazing fado. wow. thank you deborah!!

Monday, October 1, 2007

Countdown!

The countdown is on. Alli and I are headed up to Earthdance/9 Mt on Thursday to get some quiet time in before you all arrive for the party! We can't wait to get out there, and can't wait for you all to join us. All this planning, all these details, and finally finally we get to celebrate with you, and celebrate our love in front of all of you. We can't wait!
We know some of you have been bugging about the "Look Good, Feel Good" Dress Code. Don't fret. Just come and look good, and feel good. If in doubt, colors always look good.
Just so you know, we'll be asking you all to participate in our wedding in many ways. From actually saying something in the ceremony to perhaps moving a chair, helping us organize some little aspect of the day, or passing the word. . . We hope you'll join us in the fun.
We can't wait to welcome you to the fun!
See you in a minute!
erich & alli

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

welcome!

hi there! thanks for visiting the blog. have fun reading around and checking things out. don't forget to look at the history of the blog so you can see our early posts, back in the blissful first days of engagement. =)

muchos besos.

BUS

There will be a BUS running from select locations in Northampton out to Earthdance on Saturday and Sunday. This will be a very limited schedule since the trip take 30 minutes each way. We encourage you to catch the bus or designate a driver and/or participate in a carpool.

SUNDAY
Bus Pickup Locations and Times: (Tentative - stay tuned!)
Northampton Hotel: 1 pm
Clarion Inn, 1:15 pm

Bus Dropoff Locations & Times:
Bus will leave Earthdance at approximately 9:30 pm
Northampton Hotel, 10:15 pm
Clarion Inn, 10 pm


SATURDAY
Bus Pickup Locations and Times: (Tentative - stay tuned!)
Northampton Hotel: 3 pm
Clarion Inn, 3:15 pm

Bus Dropoff Locations & Times:
Bus will leave Earthdance at approximately 9:30 pm
Northampton Hotel, 10:15 pm
Clarion Inn, 10 pm

Directions to Earthdance

From the SOUTH and SOUTHEAST (Northampton, MA; Hartford, CT):
Take Interstate I-91 North to Northampton, MA. Take exit 19 and go straight at the stoplight onto Damon Road. Go straight through the next stoplight onto Bridge Road, which leads to Route 9 at Look Park.

Turn right and follow Route 9 West approximately 20 miles towards Pittsfield.
In Cummington, you will pass the turn-off to Route 112 South on your left. Stay on Route 9 for 3.2 more miles. Turn right on Packard Rd., which will turn into Prospect St. when it hits the Plainfield town line. The turn-off onto Packard Rd. isn't obvious, it's after Stage Rd and Beechwood Rd. It's on the right, after a red house and a white house, and before a green house. If you get to West Cummington, you've gone too far.
Proceed one mile up the hill. After the road flattens and straightens out, Earthdance is on the left, just after #262.

From the EAST (Boston, MA):
Take the MA Turnpike (I-90) West to Interstate I-91. Then follow directions in "From the SOUTH."

From the NORTH or NORTHEAST (Greenfield, MA):
Take Route 2 West to Route 112 in Buckland, MA. Follow Route 112 South to Route 116 North in Ashfield (Note: for a short distance, Route 112 and Route 116 join and read as South and North simultaneously!).

When you turn right on Route 116 North, you will continue for eight miles.
After you pass through the village of Plainfield and head down a long hill, turn left on Prospect Street. Go 2.5 miles, just past Mountain Road on the right, and turn into the Earthdance driveway, the second driveway on the right after Mountain Rd.

From the WEST (Pittsfield, MA; Albany, NY):
Take Route 9 East out of Pittsfield. In Dalton, when you turn left onto North St to stay on Route 9, you have 13 miles to go.

When you pass an "Entering Pioneer Valley" sign, it's exactly 2 more miles. Turn left onto Packard Rd, which will turn into Prospect St. when it hits the Plainfield town line.
The turn-off to Packard Rd. is hidden on the left. There's a "School Bus Stop Ahead" sign, then a "No Passing Zone" sign. With little warning, there's another "School Bus Stop Ahead" sign followed by the hidden turn-off to Packard on the left. If you see Beechwood Rd or Stage Rd on the left, you've gone too far. If you backtrack to West Cummington, you've backtracked too far.
Proceed on Packard/Prospect Street for one mile. When the road flattens and straightens out, Earthdance is on the left, after #262.

Earthdance Address
252 Prospect Street
Plainfield, MA 01070

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Local (non-Wedding) Activities

Berkshire Activities

There are many things to see and do in the Berkshires, from local historic towns such as Lenox, to scenic hiking trails, to contemporary art at the MassMoca in North Adams.

  • Mass MoCA (Massacusetts Museum of Contemporary Arts) - North Adams, MA, OPEN 11–5, CLOSED TUESDAYS
  • Tanglewood (Summer home of the Boston Symphony, year-round concerts) - Lenox, MA, concerts Oct 5, 6, 8 (all are All-Ravel Concerts)
  • Jacob's Pillow (Extraordinary Dance) - Becket, MA - Season ends in late August

Northampton - A funky, small New England college town, named "The Best Small Arts Town" in the U.S. Lots of cultural events and outdoor activities. Great restaurants, more than 50 in a three-block radius! (thanks to gonomad for all this info). Also check out the NoHo website for local local info.

BEST ATTRACTIONS
  • The arts! Tons of galleries, museums, small theatres and public arts spaces. Browse all day and see performances by top theatre, music, literary and dance artists in the evenings!
  • Shopping: many local small businesses selling eclectic unique things.
  • Smith College Campus: beautiful campus to stroll around on -- especially the path around the pond and the campus greenhouses.
  • Check out the Paradise City Arts Festival in October.
  • Sitting in a main street cafe (there is a Starbucks and Woodstar coffee on Gothic St.) and watching the parade go by. There will be kids on the street, pierced and shaven, with skateboards and attitude, but it is always friendly. The farmers market sets up every Saturday downtown.
BEST UNUSUAL ATTRACTIONS
  • The old state mental hospital grounds. Wild, overgrown boarded up buildings. "Cider House Rules" was filmed here. Some find it beautiful to walk around; others find it creepy. There is a circular loop that goes through farm fields and woods and is a perfect place to walk your dog.
BEST ACTIVITIES/ GUIDES
  • There are lots of outdoor activities from hiking to rafting, as Northampton is located in the foothills of the Berkshire mountains and near the Connecticut river. Local outfitters can arrange everything from kayaking to ballooning. Contact Wildwater Outfitters in Hadley, 413-253-5500.
For some free activities, try:
  • Hiking Smith College campus.
  • Riding bike/rollerblading along the Northampton/Belchertown bike path, an eleven mile path that can be bumpy due to roots coming through the asphalt, but is still a pretty, if bumpy, ride.
  • Hanging at coffee shops like Starbucks, Woodstar, Northampton Coffee, Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters all in the downtown area.
BEST ALTERNATIVES
  • In addition to the nightly lectures and performances held on Smith’s campus and around town, there are also lots of local options for informal learning from yoga to arts and crafts. Look at the bulletin boards around town and pick up a local paper.
  • Iron Horse Music Hall, a small, cafe/performance space with legendary big name performers.
  • Flywheel: in nearby Easthampton -- funky performance space featuring lots of local and regional bands. Volunteer run.
BEST EATS (We haven't tried these - just took it from GoNomad.com)
There are lots of inexpensive eateries featuring all kinds of food from around the world. This is a college town, so remember that coffee shops and cafes are also plentiful!
  • Bela-- Total vegetarian, small, funky-- Cheaper
  • Pizza Paradiso--wood fired pizza, pasta, great atmo, moderate
  • Amanouz Cafe--Moroccan cuisine, cheap and filling
  • Green St. CafĂ©, India House Teapot -- more expensive
BEST ENTERTAINMENT
If you can’t catch a performance or lecture at Smith College Campus, try the following:
  • Iron Horse: famous concert venue. Small and intimate. Many national folk, jazz and alternative bands/musicians. Check schedule in the weekly Valley Advocate, or online at iheg.com
  • Pleasant St Theatre: small comfortable movie theatre showing art/foreign films.
  • Academy of Music: Larger, but not mainstream, movie theatre. Also occasional opera house.
  • Calvin Theater. Part of the Iron Horse Group, national acts in music, theater, dance and spoken word.
BEST LOCAL HAUNTS
  • Joe's Pizza
  • Haymarket Cafe. Northampton Brewery's rooftop garden
  • Bart's Ice Cream Shop.
  • The Elevens , for local music.
BEST SHOPPING
There are plenty of unique shops in town featuring the works of local artisans, but Northampton is a book-lover’s paradise.
  • Thorne's Market -- lots of small businesses in a non-mall mall.
  • Raven - used books.
  • Beyond Words -- new age type books.
  • Faces -- funky items, furniture and clothing.
  • Market St.-- side street with many used clothing stores, book stores and antique stores.
  • King St. Flea Market, Sunday mornings.

Pittsfield

Not to be left out, check out the town sponsored tourism site.

Monday, March 26, 2007

Important Posts

Here is THE important info for the weekend. If you want to bookmark this post, the URL is: http://rosswig.blogspot.com/2007/02/important-posts.html

Places to Stay

Where can you stay? Well, there are many choices. . .

here is a list of places to stay in the area: (feel free to find your own accomodations). For a map of all these places, click here. I'll try and make the places RED as people get them booked.

  • EarthDance - FRIEND OPTION #1!!! (where we'll do the wedding) has dormitory style housing with communal bathrooms. There are some spaces also on tent platforms. Food is provided at a nominal additional cost, which is great cause there aren't really restaurants close by earthdance. Email us at rosswig at gmail dot com to reserve your room. If you want to stay with friends, check the room configuration (Basement, First Floor, Second Floor) and ask for either specific rooms or to be placed with specific peoples when you write. Otherwise, we'll deal with who stays with who. ;) IMPORTANT - do NOT call EarthDance, they do NOT take reservations. This all must be done through us. thanks.
    • EarthDance Costs are as follows:
    • Bed in a Shared Room = $60/night/person
    • Bed on a Tent Platform (with full building access for showers, toilets, etc) = $40/night/person (the tent platforms have cots)
    • Your Own Tent (with full building access for showers, toilets, etc) = $30/night/person
    • Food for lodgers/tenters served at Earthdance = Saturday Breakfast, Lunch (for Dinner we will host a BBQ), Sunday Breakfast, Lunch. Food is included in your lodging costs, as is access to showers, 24 hour tea and snacks, sauna, and of course, the lovely dance studios and spaces.
  • The Hill Gallery, Walter Korzec
    137 East Windsor Rd.
    Worthington, Ma. 01098
    413 238-5914
    For 2 couples; rooms blocked, guests must book by June, Private bath, breakfast, 6th and 7th blocked, $100.00 per night

  • East Windsor Guest House, Sue and Dick Jacobs
    565 Worthington Rd.
    Windsor, Ma. 01270
    413 684-3191
    3 guest rooms all upstairs; no blocking of rooms, 3 rooms share 2 baths; 1 upstairs and 1 down, 2 twin beds, 1 double, 1 queen, There’s a cat in the house! Breakfast is included; menu adjusted to needs, $75.00 a night for double occupancy, 15 minutes from Earthdance
  • Swiss Chalet, Vicky Russin-Nash
    P.O. Box 8
    Cummington, Ma. 01026
    413 634-2267
    6 miles from Earthdance, Blocked for 2 couples and rooms held up to beginning of Sept. Shared bath, breakfast, adjusts menu to needs
  • Penrose Victorian Inn, Nancy and Dick Zimmer
    133 Main Street Rte 9
    Haydenville, Ma. 01039
    413 268-3014
    4 rooms, private baths; 1 bath across hall, $115.00, $125.00, $135.00; with breakfast. No children under 14. Saturday and Sunday—2 night minimum, Held until 6th of September
  • Flower Hill Farm, Carol and Sean Duke
    B & B and Retreat
    Williamsburg, Ma. 01096
    413 268-7481
    No blocking of rooms. Queen and single for 3 rooms (They are suites).
  • Worthington Inn, Debi & Joe Shaw
    Old North Rd. Rte 143
    Worthington, Ma. 01098
    413 238-4441
    3 rooms with private baths, $90.00 per night
  • 1886 House, Joe and Carol Lingg
    202 East Street
    Chesterfield, Ma. 01012
    413 296-02232
    2 rooms with private baths, 15 miles from Earthdance (20 minutes), Breakfast and adjusts menu to dietary needs, $100.00 (1st floor) and $130.00 (2nd floor)
  • Brennan’s Inn, Julie, Maureen
    Cummington
    413 634-5493
    5 minutes from Earthdance, 3 rooms; 1 queen, 1 twins, 1 double w/ shared bath upstairs, 3 more baths downstairs, $80.00 per night with breakfast, Game room downstairs

  • Northampton Hotel - 413 587-8105 - right in the center of town (Northampton), close to restaurants, shopping and more. Ask for rooms blocked off for the Ross/Ludwig wedding.
    25 rooms blocked for Sunday until Sept. 6th
    10 rooms blocked for Saturday until Sept. 6th
    $210.00 per night
    ** Bus will run from this location on day of wedding **

  • Clarion Inn in Northampton (pages here and here) - 1800 582-2929 - a bit outside of town (Northampton), but very nice. Pool for swimming. Ask for rooms blocked off for the Ross/Ludwig wedding. Blocked until Sept. 6th
    At exit 18, out of center of town, They are 50% booked now.
    From $145.00, address: One Atwood Dr. Northampton, Ma. 01060
    ** Bus will run from this location on day of wedding **

  • Pittsfield is also fairly close to Earthdance, but the town is not as much fun as Northampton. There are a few motels in town should you choose to stay there.
  • For more info on each town, check out these links: Accommodations in Pittsfield, Accommodations in Northampton, also here for more Northampton places to stay, Accommodations in Amherst.


What not to bring

while we're trying to have a very positive weekend, and avoid the word "no" as much as possible, there are some things that you'd probably enjoy more at home than at earthdance. so, if it is not too much, please leave these things at home:

  • pets (there are some allergic folks who wouldn't be so happy)
  • high heels (we're in the country out here, and if it is at all wet, you won't be able to maneuver)
  • cell phones (they won't work at earthdance anyway)

What to Bring

Please bring some (or all) of the following to the party:

  • yourself
  • musical instruments (djembes, djun djuns, guitars, kazoos, percussion toys, congas, trombones, saxamaphones, trumpets, banjos, mandolins, bass guitars, sousaphones, etc)
  • comfortable clothes
  • sheets (if you are staying on earthdance property)
  • sleeping bag (if you are staying on a tent platform, or if you get cold easily)
  • comfortable shoes (hiking, long walks in the woods or the local streets are an option)
  • yoga mat (if you choose to do some yoga while you are there)
  • dance clothes (there are 2 beautiful dance studios on the property that are ours to use for the weekend)
  • flashlight
  • slippers (for inside since shoes are a no-no inside the buildings)
  • swimsuit (there is a sauna and a quarry for our use, although clothing is optional . . .)
  • frisbee, soccer ball, football, etc
  • readings, blessings, sharings for the couple
  • beautiful, loving, positive energy

Carpooling!

If you want to carpool, this is the place for you. Whether you're a crunchy hippy, don't have a car, just want to meet cool new friends, or are coming in from out of town, we encourage you to carpool. Please use this even if you are only going from Northampton to Earthdance! And please offer a ride to those "stuck" in Northampton! Thanks!

Here's the scoop:
* To OFFER a ride - please post a comment to the blog with your departure date and location (ie - leaving Somerville on Friday, Oct 5 at noon) as well as the space you have available (ie - we have room for 2 adults and 3 cases of wine) either for people or wedding goods (we're doing a lot on our own, and would love assistance transporting materiel). please include an email or phone number so ride needers can accept.

* To LOOK for a ride - please post a comment with your hoped for departure date location, and any other fun info. please include an email or phone number so people can get in touch.

In either case, you can of course just respond to another persons comment . . .

Earthdance Map




Directions are on the Earthdance site or you can click on the map to the left and then put in your start point. . .



Earthdance is located at:
252 Prospect St.
Plainfield, MA 01070

Flying Information

You can fly to several airports nearby and several not so nearby. Getting from the airports to Earthdance can be done by shuttle or carpool. Don't forget to do a little carbon offsetting (Terrapass is one fine place to do this).

We LOVE www.kayak.com for finding cheap flights.

Closest Airport: Hartford/Springfield, CT: Bradley International Airport
Other airports nearby are Boston (Logan International) and Albany, NY, and even further afield are the NYC area airports (JFK, La-Guardia, Newark, Stewart).
To Get To Northampton, MA from Bradley International:
  • Valley Transporter; (413) 253-1350; Cost: $45 from Bradley to anywhere in Northampton; Schedule: call to arrange (a good option). Bradways Limo Service; (800) 325-1976; Cost: $65-70 to Northampton; Call to arrange times. For more options, click here.
To get to Earthdance from Northampton, MA:
  • check out the carpool options, or get in touch with Alli/Erich so we can help coordinate a ride to Earthdance. Getting a ride back to Northampton can be coordinated while at Earthdance.

Sunday, February 18, 2007

We have a date!

Okay folks! Here we go! We have fabulous date for arts and entertainment to unite in marriage!
It is October 7, 2007
We look forward to celebrating our lovage with everyone! A Save the date to follow....

it's official . . .

we've been announced to the community as an engaged couple. thanks to c&b we had a awesome party with family and a few friends last night at sugarbar in nyc. yeah! family from as far away as cali made it to the party, and it was a wonderful wonderful feeling to be surrounded by so much love and so many amazing people. look for some photos here shortly.
a big thank you to all our family and friends for supporting us thus far in our relationship and journey!

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

exhausting

this whole wedding business is exhausting!
we've got the engagement party all set. got the invites out. and i (we) are very excited and thankful to have a chance to bring together our families for this little party.
we're also facing the challenge of wanting to do the wedding in 2007, but know that we want to do it outside, and know that we want to bring people together to help us celebrate us for more than just one day. and we have lots of friends, and lots of family, and lots of family friends. and not many places can do all that before the weather turns iffy in the fall.
so think good thoughts, think happy thoughts, and think open calendar thoughts. and if you know of any places that fit those somewhat vague criteria, please drop us a line . . .
p.s. - thanks to papaD for the engagement photo session. if you want to see what we did, drop a line and we'll send you the link . . .

Tuesday, January 9, 2007

Gift Registration

We both feel blessed that we have everything we truly need and more, and more material possessions are far down on our list of needs. We also consider your presence in our life a HUGE gift and are grateful for your visits, calls, emails, and positive energy.

However, we have started a few registries for your viewing and for our entertainment!

We would be overjoyed if people choose to donate to a NGO/good cause/charity with us in mind, and we've also set something up with justgive.com that will allow you to donate to one of our favorite charities in lieu of a gift to us.

The gift registries in our name exist at:

  • justgive.com - some of the causes that we would love to have you donate to in our honor (go to that link and search for our last names)
  • thehoneymoon.com- (you can help us have a fun time in Spain and Portugal!) - follow the link or just go to thehoneymoon.com and search for our last names
  • Crate and Barrel - bare necessities
  • Gaiam - some nice organic cotton sheets and such (go to the link and search by our names)
  • Macy's- oh, how domestic we are becoming!
  • REI - some fun outdoorsy stuff
  • William Sonoma - the high-end life long stuff (knives, pots, pans, etc)
  • FireOpal - some very unique glassware, pottery etc from local artisans
  • other stuff we might like, but are not at these stores
    • frames for photos/art - sizes: get in touch


Thank you for your generosity!!