December 2, 2024 • 19 mins
A wonderful seasonal tradition for West Palm Beach returns! "Holiday in Paradise" fills December with music, fun and activities for the whole family! Special guest on the podcast is Sandi, the world’s only 35-foot, 700 ton holiday sand tree! Stand by for a full rundown of what’s on tap this year, including some new guests for 2024! With Mary Pinak Marketing and Community Events Manager for the City of West Palm Beach!
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Episode Transcript
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(11:04:58):
Welcome to the City Center podcast. I'm
Jerry Marcello. West Palm Beach is the
place to be as old man winter settles in
around the country. Along with our near
perfect temperatures comes a holiday
tradition for West Palm Beach. It's time
for the return of holiday in paradise and
Sandy, the world's only 35
foot, 700 ton holiday sand tree.
(11:05:20):
Stand by for a full rundown on what's on
tap this year, including some new guests
for 2024. That's next on the City Center
podcast from West Palm Beach.
Another year, another holiday in
paradise. It is going to be particularly
(11:05:40):
special. Joining us today is Mary
Pinnack, who is the marketing and
community events manager for the city of
West Palm Beach. Mary, welcome.
Thank you. Good morning. For those who
don't know about holiday in paradise,
let's give them an overview about what it
is and what goes on. Sure. Well, holiday
in paradise is the city of West Palm
Beach is very, very special December
(11:06:02):
offering for the entire community
residents and tourists.
And it features Sandy and Sandy is the
world's only 700 ton, 35 foot tall
holiday tree sculpted completely from
Florida sand. Wow. And she's tropically
splendorous. That's even a word, right?
(11:06:25):
So you basically we have this, this event
going on where the centerpiece is Sandy
with the 700 tons of sand. There's also
other things going around.
There are other things to do. Is there
music playing? What else? Sure. Well,
first of all, Sandy, she stars in her own
music and light shows every single night
from December 5th through the 31st. And
so she's really special during the day
(11:06:48):
because you can see all the details of
the sculpting. But at night, she's really
in her glory. Beautiful shows. And this
year, she's bringing back Ferris, the
Ferris wheel. But every year
she brings a special guest.
And this year she stopped in Peru before
she got here. Sandy did. Wow. And she is
(11:07:09):
sharing harmony. Wow. And harmony is a
llama. Well, I'll tell you what, we have
something very special for the folks who
are watching this. We not only have
through the magic of television, the
ability to go out remote to the site of
holiday in paradise. We've got a mic in
front of Sandy tree and Sandy's going to
join us right now. Sandy, are you there?
(11:07:30):
Hi, Jerry. How are you this year,
darling? We're doing great. Welcome back.
We talked last year. You look even bigger
and more beautiful this year. Well, thank
you. I know I am more beautiful. You
know, as women age, we are like wine. We
just get better and better. And I must
(11:07:50):
admit, I am a tad bigger than I've been
in the past. Just a tad. But I'm a woman
of substance, Jerry.
Indeed. Indeed. But let me let me bring
up a good point here. Mary was talking
about the fact that during the off season
when we're not here in West Palm Beach,
you traveled the entire world. And this
year you were in in South America. Is
(11:08:10):
that is that what I understand? That's
correct. I went down to Peru and it was
fabulous. The food was spicy hot. Some of
it, though. I had to ask for it a little
modeler. I'm a sassy girl,
but I'm not a spicy girl.
Indeed. So so while you were there in
Peru, you came across something that we
(11:08:31):
just touched on. Tell us a little bit
about the what you've brought back for us
this year. Well, I have brought back
something that every community needs.
South Florida included. I have brought
back harmony. Harmony so we can all de
stress from our everyday lives. And a
harmony is the most
(11:08:52):
beautiful llama you've ever seen.
She is all dressed up in bright colors.
She's got her Florida garb on and she is
ready to celebrate. I have not seen a
llama dressed in Florida. Is it like
Lily? She has some flowers. She has some
pink and green on her. You know the
(11:09:13):
Florida colors, Jerry. Wow. So okay. So
that's amazing. We were going to have a
llama be a be part of part of the event
this year. Tell us a little bit about more about that.
Yeah. So not only are we going to have
many beautifully sculpted llamas this
year, Harmony and her happy herd because
she has to bring a happy herd. You know,
(11:09:35):
she has to have an entourage. True.
Because she's got a match up with Sandy,
you know. And that's not easy. As if
that's even possible. No, I know. I'm
begging your pardon, Miss Sandy. And we
also are going to have a live llama at
some of our events that the kids are
going to love. So Harmony will be the best.
So Harmony will be there in person at the
tree lighting on December 5th. Okay. At
(11:09:58):
the Sandy's pancake breakfast on December
8th. And then she's going to be at the
movie night on December 13th where we're
going to actually show two Disney movies
that are, guess what, starring a llama.
So it's a llama-mazing holiday, Jerry.
Well, that is really great. Now hopefully
(11:10:18):
people will take advantage of coming down
and actually seeing the llama. And that
would be a really neat thing. So, okay.
So we have the llamas. We have beautiful
Sandy there. We have, tell us a little
bit, you mentioned earlier a little bit
about Ferris. Tell us about what Ferris
is and what's in store.
Well, you know, a couple of years ago,
(11:10:40):
Sandy thought she better bring her cousin
down and he's a little bit, he can be a
little bit obnoxious, not obnoxious, but
he has a really outgoing personality. So
she brought Ferris down and it's a about
a 55 foot tall Ferris wheel, beautiful
Ferris wheel. And he was such a hit that
(11:11:00):
now she's not letting go of Ferris. And
Ferris likes sharing the limelight as
much as Sandy will let him.
Well, he's not the brightest crown in the
box. If you know what I mean, Jerry.
I understand Ferris does
have his ups and downs.
He just goes round and round and it never
ends up anywhere. You
know, people like that.
(11:11:23):
So we have Ferris back again this year
and I have had some folks who actually
took part and rode on Ferris and say that
the view is breathtaking, whether it's
day or night. So that's really, bring
your camera. It's quite a view.
Yeah, it really is. I mean, some of the
best selfies you can get, not just with
Sandy, but then taking pictures of the
intercoastal, the beautiful vista that we
have. It's the highest location that you
(11:11:45):
can get on the waterfront.
Now, I'm only open at night. Ferris is
only open at night, though, from six to
10. He will be spinning during the
pancake breakfast. If you buy tickets to
the pancake breakfast, oh, it's
delicious. Santa's there, Mrs. Claus, and
you will get a Ferris ride during the day.
But that's the only special time. Ferris
(11:12:07):
is kind of lazy. He
won't work 24 hours a day.
We need to talk to him about it.
Okay, so that's really important. Now, we
mentioned, you mentioned your pancake
breakfast. Let's go over a little bit
about that because that's not just a walk
up. That's something that you want to buy
tickets to. Tell us a little bit about that.
Absolutely. So we started this, I think,
four or five years ago. So, so popular.
(11:12:30):
The kids come out with their parents.
It's a great time to get to see, not just
have these fabulous pancakes, but to see
Santa. You're not waiting in those long,
long lines that you can
find at other locations.
So it's $17 plus fees per person. Well
worth it. Not only do you get the pancake
breakfast, you get the Santa. You also
(11:12:52):
get, as Sandy said, a ride on Ferris that
day. And you get to pet the live llama.
So where else can you do all four of
those things at one time?
And Mary, some of my sponsors are coming
out that day to do
activities with the children, too.
And that's perfect. We love
that. We love all the activity.
It's a perfect event for kids and
(11:13:13):
families as well. Okay, so if I'm
interested in taking part in
that, where can I get tickets?
Yep. So wpb.org slash events. You go
right there. Yep. Go to the city website.
We'll hook you right up with the
location. You can buy
your tickets in advance.
Okay, so we've touched base on some of
the major things that are taking place at
Holiday in Paradise. So let's go over. Do
(11:13:35):
you have any sense of if there's some
special events you really want to talk
about that go through the month?
Yeah, sure. Absolutely. Well, the first
one right off the bat is the tree
lighting, where we light
Sandy for the first time.
Yeehaw!
It's always the best event to start
things off. That'll be December 5th.
It'll be during Clamatus by Night, which
is our heritage event where music and
(11:13:57):
memories are made. So
it's perfect for that.
And that'll be from 6 to 10. From 6 to 9
will be a really good band. Uncle Morty's
Rhythm Cream, all the way from
Gainesville, Florida.
And I hear they are a super fun time. And
then we'll have, like I said, the llama.
We have a holiday gift boutique. I think
(11:14:17):
we have over 30 vendors in that this
year, which is the most ever. So you can
do your shopping right off the bat.
That's awesome.
Right off the bat. Tons of food vendors.
Santa Claus will be out. So it's going to
be a great time. And then on December the
8th, as I mentioned, is
Sandy's Pancake Breakfast.
December the 13th, we have the movie
Night. And that is with the Emperor's New
(11:14:39):
Groove and Crook's New Groove. The two
Disney movies starring a llama. So you're
going to get your llama fill.
La Malicious. It's going to be fantastic.
La Malicious. And then on December the
15th is Sunday on the Waterfront. And
that is that spectacular Aloha Islanders
tropical show, which features the
(11:14:59):
Polynesian dancers and the fire eaters.
Everybody talks about that.
Yeah. And I want to say that's at least
your 10 that we've brought them back.
It's an annual tradition. It is
completely an annual tradition. And then
on December the 18th is Soul in the City
Jazz with the Lady Ella Band, which is a
(11:15:21):
tribute to Ella Fitzgerald.
And it's going to be amazing. She also
has a little holiday in there too. So
that also requires tickets. So you'll
want to go to the website for that. My
gosh, we have a lot going on.
Sandy, tell me, do you have one of your
favorite events? Is there something that
really stands out for you?
(11:15:41):
I tell you, Jerry, I just love the entire
month. I even love November when the team
is sculpting me. It's so nice to see
people come on down during the green
market during the day and
look at me on Saturday mornings.
I am not shy, Jerry, in case you haven't
gathered that. And I like to say hello to
(11:16:03):
everyone here. I've been coming here for
13 years now, Jerry.
It's my happy holiday place.
Well, we're just so excited to have you
there. And yeah, I mean, right now, you
know, at the time we're recording this,
it's a perfect opportunity to go on down.
The weather's been spectacular. Go on
down to the green market. Go ahead down
(11:16:24):
there and check out how beautiful the
sculpture as you're forming and you're
blossoming out in your full glory.
Exactly. And I'll be there every Saturday
through December, too. So if you want to
see my detail, come during the day and
then come at night and
see my spectacular shows.
(11:16:45):
I think people don't really realize it.
We just think we turned on some lights
and that's it. No, there's a giant laser
light show that goes on.
Oh, my gosh. You know, the first year of
Sandy, it was just kind of a little
glowing experiment, let's call it. Right.
Right. And then she really boomed her
second year going forward. And it's just
grown just from lighting Sandy to the
(11:17:06):
entire downtown all the
way up Klamata Street.
It is a spectacular vision. Yeah. It
makes you feel like you're in someplace
you've never been before because you're
seeing things you
can't see anywhere else.
Indeed. And for folks who have not gone
to the gone there, that is truly a sight
that is be with you for the rest of your
(11:17:26):
life is how beautiful it
is when it's all lit up.
So let's go ahead and do something that
we did last year, which I think was
really, really helpful. You know, we we
are you guys are experts at getting folks
to be down there and enjoying themselves.
What would you give as far as some pro
tips to folks who have never been here
before? What's the best place to park? Is
should they eat first? How long should
(11:17:47):
they be in plan on being
down on the site? Right.
Well, I think let's start by going to the
website. It's up right now and you can
see everything that's going on the entire
month of December. Once again, the web
web address. W p b.org events.
W p b.org slash events. Yeah, we want to
go there first. You want to get your full
itinerary. You want to mark the things
(11:18:09):
that you want to make sure you go to. You
want to get your tickets in advance
because the Sandy's pancake breakfast
historically sells out.
Yeah, the jazz is going to be.
I'm sure I sell out to those are the two
paid events. You want to mark the night.
She want to get there for the Ferris
wheel because it can be really busy on
the weekends to so I would say get your
(11:18:31):
schedule ready. Get your Sandy schedule
set. And then when you do plan to come
down, I always recommend to get a little
early. Get here a little early. And the
great thing is you can come down at five.
You can eat an early dinner.
One of our, you know, terrific
restaurants that are on the street. There
are many on Clematis all around all
around downtown. Come come down to the
(11:18:53):
waterfront. You can see a couple of
shows. The kids can play in Paradise
Island, which features the be good ship
lollipop. It's a giant sandbox with a
real pirate ship in theme with the be
good ship lollipop. So you can spend at
least a couple of hours in Sandy land.
You can see the four sand sculptures on
the waterfront, which
(11:19:13):
are amazing. The ship is
a great place to come in. You canwatch the shows. You can watch the shows this
year. So there's a lot to do. Catch
another show. Maybe you go up the street
for a couple of after dinner drinks or
maybe go get some ice cream. Then come
back and you can watch the shows right
till 10. You can make an entire night out
of it. And as Sandy said, if you come
during the day, you can see the full
(11:19:34):
detail. Play in the lawn. There's just
things you know, it's just this past
weekend with this weather. It was just
the place. And one of the city's most
great hotels, the band West Palm is has
an ice skating rink. So after you come
visit me, you can go take a little skate.
(11:19:54):
There you go. Do you like Sandy? Do you
like it during the day? Like people visit
during the day or do you prefer the
nighttime? I'm just a people person,
Jerry. I like him coming anytime. I want
him to smile and say hello. It makes me
smile to make them smile. What a
personality. It's just something amazing.
(11:20:15):
She really captures the spirit of the
holidays here in West Palm Beach.
Absolutely. One logistics thing. Say I'm
coming into town with my car. Where
should I park? Is there a place to park?
Yeah, I would always go to the city
parking garages first. And on our
website, we link up to those too. Again,
as far as a tip, know where you're going
(11:20:35):
to go to park in advance. Sometimes you
can get lucky and get a meter, but I
don't count on that.
I head to the garage.
And on the weekends, there's a $5 flat
rate for the garages during the green
market. If you're heading to the green
market during green market hours, the
city hall and the quadrille, the
(11:20:57):
climatous garage are free. So yeah,
again, don't get stressed out about it.
No, you're heading to the holiday. Happy
place. You're going to find a place to
park down here. A lot of people are going
to be visiting. A lot of people have kids
home. Is there a day of the week that's
better than another as
far as really enjoying
the thing without being too crowded?
(11:21:18):
Well, obviously, if you come down during
the events, there's a lot more activity
going on. If you're somebody that wants a
quieter experience, although the music
and light shows are going on Mondays and
Tuesdays are sometimes a little quieter.
But you never know. The closer you get to
(11:21:39):
the holidays, the closer you get to the
week of December 20th,
it's busy. Because here's why.
People come down, as Sandy said, they're
coming down to see her sculpted. And
they're saying, Oh, I got to see when
she's done. I have to come back down
here. So then they come to the tree
lighting or they come that first weekend.
Well, then it's so amazing to them. I've
(11:21:59):
got to tell my family, friends and
neighbors. So then they come back 234
more times. So it's really interesting to
watch that. And you can listen to them at
the tree while they're telling. They're
telling their story of how Sandy's made,
which sometimes I got to jump in there
and say, well, quite right.
But yeah, well, it sounds like any day of
(11:22:20):
the week is a good day to go. Just have
your plans. Come on down. And really,
from what you described, it's the best
thing to do is to go down there and plan
on it like an afternoon evening. The
whole day you could be downtown. Totally.
Oh, definitely, Jerry. That's what I was
gonna say. Come on down and plan your
whole day down there. You can go daylight
(11:22:42):
into evening, eat dinner and then see one
of my shows at night. It's amazing.
Fantastic. Fantastic. Well, Sandy, I want
to thank you for taking the time to talk
to us today via remote, via the magic of
television. Thank you for joining us and
thank you for being here in West Palm
Beach again this year. Well, bless your
heart, Jerry. Thank you so much. I hope you enjoyed this.
(11:23:03):
I am so lucky to have met Mary and she
brings me here every year. Her and her
team, they do everything to get me here
and it takes a lot. Let me tell you, I'm
more a little more than your average
girl. I have to echo exactly what Sandy
said. Thank you to you and to the entire
(11:23:24):
team at the parks and Rexford City of
West Palm Beach. You guys deliver every
year and it's gonna be particularly
spectacular this year.
It truly is our pleasure. It's personally
my favorite time and thing of the year.
So Sandy's a bestie forever. Forever,
Sandy. Thank you darling. Bless your
(11:23:46):
heart. Thank you, Sandy. And thank you,
Mary, for joining us today. Thank you.
And thank you for joining us. We hope
you'll come to downtown West Palm Beach
for a wonderful visit to Holiday in
Paradise. The City Center podcast is a
production of the City of West Palm Beach
Communications Department. I'm Jerry
Marcelo. We'll see you next time.
Welcome to the City Center podcast. I'm
Jerry Marcello. West Palm Beach is the
place to be as old man winter settles in
around the country. Along with our near
perfect temperatures comes a holiday
tradition for West Palm Beach. It's time
for the return of holiday in paradise and
Sandy, the world's only 35
foot, 700 ton holiday sand tree.
(11:05:20):
Stand by for a full rundown on what's on
tap this year, including some new guests
for 2024. That's next on the City Center
podcast from West Palm Beach.
Another year, another holiday in
paradise. It is going to be particularly
(11:05:40):
special. Joining us today is Mary
Pinnack, who is the marketing and
community events manager for the city of
West Palm Beach. Mary, welcome.
Thank you. Good morning. For those who
don't know about holiday in paradise,
let's give them an overview about what it
is and what goes on. Sure. Well, holiday
in paradise is the city of West Palm
Beach is very, very special December
(11:06:02):
offering for the entire community
residents and tourists.
And it features Sandy and Sandy is the
world's only 700 ton, 35 foot tall
holiday tree sculpted completely from
Florida sand. Wow. And she's tropically
splendorous. That's even a word, right?
(11:06:25):
So you basically we have this, this event
going on where the centerpiece is Sandy
with the 700 tons of sand. There's also
other things going around.
There are other things to do. Is there
music playing? What else? Sure. Well,
first of all, Sandy, she stars in her own
music and light shows every single night
from December 5th through the 31st. And
so she's really special during the day
(11:06:48):
because you can see all the details of
the sculpting. But at night, she's really
in her glory. Beautiful shows. And this
year, she's bringing back Ferris, the
Ferris wheel. But every year
she brings a special guest.
And this year she stopped in Peru before
she got here. Sandy did. Wow. And she is
(11:07:09):
sharing harmony. Wow. And harmony is a
llama. Well, I'll tell you what, we have
something very special for the folks who
are watching this. We not only have
through the magic of television, the
ability to go out remote to the site of
holiday in paradise. We've got a mic in
front of Sandy tree and Sandy's going to
join us right now. Sandy, are you there?
(11:07:30):
Hi, Jerry. How are you this year,
darling? We're doing great. Welcome back.
We talked last year. You look even bigger
and more beautiful this year. Well, thank
you. I know I am more beautiful. You
know, as women age, we are like wine. We
just get better and better. And I must
(11:07:50):
admit, I am a tad bigger than I've been
in the past. Just a tad. But I'm a woman
of substance, Jerry.
Indeed. Indeed. But let me let me bring
up a good point here. Mary was talking
about the fact that during the off season
when we're not here in West Palm Beach,
you traveled the entire world. And this
year you were in in South America. Is
(11:08:10):
that is that what I understand? That's
correct. I went down to Peru and it was
fabulous. The food was spicy hot. Some of
it, though. I had to ask for it a little
modeler. I'm a sassy girl,
but I'm not a spicy girl.
Indeed. So so while you were there in
Peru, you came across something that we
(11:08:31):
just touched on. Tell us a little bit
about the what you've brought back for us
this year. Well, I have brought back
something that every community needs.
South Florida included. I have brought
back harmony. Harmony so we can all de
stress from our everyday lives. And a
harmony is the most
(11:08:52):
beautiful llama you've ever seen.
She is all dressed up in bright colors.
She's got her Florida garb on and she is
ready to celebrate. I have not seen a
llama dressed in Florida. Is it like
Lily? She has some flowers. She has some
pink and green on her. You know the
(11:09:13):
Florida colors, Jerry. Wow. So okay. So
that's amazing. We were going to have a
llama be a be part of part of the event
this year. Tell us a little bit about more about that.
Yeah. So not only are we going to have
many beautifully sculpted llamas this
year, Harmony and her happy herd because
she has to bring a happy herd. You know,
(11:09:35):
she has to have an entourage. True.
Because she's got a match up with Sandy,
you know. And that's not easy. As if
that's even possible. No, I know. I'm
begging your pardon, Miss Sandy. And we
also are going to have a live llama at
some of our events that the kids are
going to love. So Harmony will be the best.
So Harmony will be there in person at the
tree lighting on December 5th. Okay. At
(11:09:58):
the Sandy's pancake breakfast on December
8th. And then she's going to be at the
movie night on December 13th where we're
going to actually show two Disney movies
that are, guess what, starring a llama.
So it's a llama-mazing holiday, Jerry.
Well, that is really great. Now hopefully
(11:10:18):
people will take advantage of coming down
and actually seeing the llama. And that
would be a really neat thing. So, okay.
So we have the llamas. We have beautiful
Sandy there. We have, tell us a little
bit, you mentioned earlier a little bit
about Ferris. Tell us about what Ferris
is and what's in store.
Well, you know, a couple of years ago,
(11:10:40):
Sandy thought she better bring her cousin
down and he's a little bit, he can be a
little bit obnoxious, not obnoxious, but
he has a really outgoing personality. So
she brought Ferris down and it's a about
a 55 foot tall Ferris wheel, beautiful
Ferris wheel. And he was such a hit that
(11:11:00):
now she's not letting go of Ferris. And
Ferris likes sharing the limelight as
much as Sandy will let him.
Well, he's not the brightest crown in the
box. If you know what I mean, Jerry.
I understand Ferris does
have his ups and downs.
He just goes round and round and it never
ends up anywhere. You
know, people like that.
(11:11:23):
So we have Ferris back again this year
and I have had some folks who actually
took part and rode on Ferris and say that
the view is breathtaking, whether it's
day or night. So that's really, bring
your camera. It's quite a view.
Yeah, it really is. I mean, some of the
best selfies you can get, not just with
Sandy, but then taking pictures of the
intercoastal, the beautiful vista that we
have. It's the highest location that you
(11:11:45):
can get on the waterfront.
Now, I'm only open at night. Ferris is
only open at night, though, from six to
10. He will be spinning during the
pancake breakfast. If you buy tickets to
the pancake breakfast, oh, it's
delicious. Santa's there, Mrs. Claus, and
you will get a Ferris ride during the day.
But that's the only special time. Ferris
(11:12:07):
is kind of lazy. He
won't work 24 hours a day.
We need to talk to him about it.
Okay, so that's really important. Now, we
mentioned, you mentioned your pancake
breakfast. Let's go over a little bit
about that because that's not just a walk
up. That's something that you want to buy
tickets to. Tell us a little bit about that.
Absolutely. So we started this, I think,
four or five years ago. So, so popular.
(11:12:30):
The kids come out with their parents.
It's a great time to get to see, not just
have these fabulous pancakes, but to see
Santa. You're not waiting in those long,
long lines that you can
find at other locations.
So it's $17 plus fees per person. Well
worth it. Not only do you get the pancake
breakfast, you get the Santa. You also
(11:12:52):
get, as Sandy said, a ride on Ferris that
day. And you get to pet the live llama.
So where else can you do all four of
those things at one time?
And Mary, some of my sponsors are coming
out that day to do
activities with the children, too.
And that's perfect. We love
that. We love all the activity.
It's a perfect event for kids and
(11:13:13):
families as well. Okay, so if I'm
interested in taking part in
that, where can I get tickets?
Yep. So wpb.org slash events. You go
right there. Yep. Go to the city website.
We'll hook you right up with the
location. You can buy
your tickets in advance.
Okay, so we've touched base on some of
the major things that are taking place at
Holiday in Paradise. So let's go over. Do
(11:13:35):
you have any sense of if there's some
special events you really want to talk
about that go through the month?
Yeah, sure. Absolutely. Well, the first
one right off the bat is the tree
lighting, where we light
Sandy for the first time.
Yeehaw!
It's always the best event to start
things off. That'll be December 5th.
It'll be during Clamatus by Night, which
is our heritage event where music and
(11:13:57):
memories are made. So
it's perfect for that.
And that'll be from 6 to 10. From 6 to 9
will be a really good band. Uncle Morty's
Rhythm Cream, all the way from
Gainesville, Florida.
And I hear they are a super fun time. And
then we'll have, like I said, the llama.
We have a holiday gift boutique. I think
(11:14:17):
we have over 30 vendors in that this
year, which is the most ever. So you can
do your shopping right off the bat.
That's awesome.
Right off the bat. Tons of food vendors.
Santa Claus will be out. So it's going to
be a great time. And then on December the
8th, as I mentioned, is
Sandy's Pancake Breakfast.
December the 13th, we have the movie
Night. And that is with the Emperor's New
(11:14:39):
Groove and Crook's New Groove. The two
Disney movies starring a llama. So you're
going to get your llama fill.
La Malicious. It's going to be fantastic.
La Malicious. And then on December the
15th is Sunday on the Waterfront. And
that is that spectacular Aloha Islanders
tropical show, which features the
(11:14:59):
Polynesian dancers and the fire eaters.
Everybody talks about that.
Yeah. And I want to say that's at least
your 10 that we've brought them back.
It's an annual tradition. It is
completely an annual tradition. And then
on December the 18th is Soul in the City
Jazz with the Lady Ella Band, which is a
(11:15:21):
tribute to Ella Fitzgerald.
And it's going to be amazing. She also
has a little holiday in there too. So
that also requires tickets. So you'll
want to go to the website for that. My
gosh, we have a lot going on.
Sandy, tell me, do you have one of your
favorite events? Is there something that
really stands out for you?
(11:15:41):
I tell you, Jerry, I just love the entire
month. I even love November when the team
is sculpting me. It's so nice to see
people come on down during the green
market during the day and
look at me on Saturday mornings.
I am not shy, Jerry, in case you haven't
gathered that. And I like to say hello to
(11:16:03):
everyone here. I've been coming here for
13 years now, Jerry.
It's my happy holiday place.
Well, we're just so excited to have you
there. And yeah, I mean, right now, you
know, at the time we're recording this,
it's a perfect opportunity to go on down.
The weather's been spectacular. Go on
down to the green market. Go ahead down
(11:16:24):
there and check out how beautiful the
sculpture as you're forming and you're
blossoming out in your full glory.
Exactly. And I'll be there every Saturday
through December, too. So if you want to
see my detail, come during the day and
then come at night and
see my spectacular shows.
(11:16:45):
I think people don't really realize it.
We just think we turned on some lights
and that's it. No, there's a giant laser
light show that goes on.
Oh, my gosh. You know, the first year of
Sandy, it was just kind of a little
glowing experiment, let's call it. Right.
Right. And then she really boomed her
second year going forward. And it's just
grown just from lighting Sandy to the
(11:17:06):
entire downtown all the
way up Klamata Street.
It is a spectacular vision. Yeah. It
makes you feel like you're in someplace
you've never been before because you're
seeing things you
can't see anywhere else.
Indeed. And for folks who have not gone
to the gone there, that is truly a sight
that is be with you for the rest of your
(11:17:26):
life is how beautiful it
is when it's all lit up.
So let's go ahead and do something that
we did last year, which I think was
really, really helpful. You know, we we
are you guys are experts at getting folks
to be down there and enjoying themselves.
What would you give as far as some pro
tips to folks who have never been here
before? What's the best place to park? Is
should they eat first? How long should
(11:17:47):
they be in plan on being
down on the site? Right.
Well, I think let's start by going to the
website. It's up right now and you can
see everything that's going on the entire
month of December. Once again, the web
web address. W p b.org events.
W p b.org slash events. Yeah, we want to
go there first. You want to get your full
itinerary. You want to mark the things
(11:18:09):
that you want to make sure you go to. You
want to get your tickets in advance
because the Sandy's pancake breakfast
historically sells out.
Yeah, the jazz is going to be.
I'm sure I sell out to those are the two
paid events. You want to mark the night.
She want to get there for the Ferris
wheel because it can be really busy on
the weekends to so I would say get your
(11:18:31):
schedule ready. Get your Sandy schedule
set. And then when you do plan to come
down, I always recommend to get a little
early. Get here a little early. And the
great thing is you can come down at five.
You can eat an early dinner.
One of our, you know, terrific
restaurants that are on the street. There
are many on Clematis all around all
around downtown. Come come down to the
(11:18:53):
waterfront. You can see a couple of
shows. The kids can play in Paradise
Island, which features the be good ship
lollipop. It's a giant sandbox with a
real pirate ship in theme with the be
good ship lollipop. So you can spend at
least a couple of hours in Sandy land.
You can see the four sand sculptures on
the waterfront, which
(11:19:13):
are amazing. The ship is
a great place to come in. You canwatch the shows. You can watch the shows this
year. So there's a lot to do. Catch
another show. Maybe you go up the street
for a couple of after dinner drinks or
maybe go get some ice cream. Then come
back and you can watch the shows right
till 10. You can make an entire night out
of it. And as Sandy said, if you come
during the day, you can see the full
(11:19:34):
detail. Play in the lawn. There's just
things you know, it's just this past
weekend with this weather. It was just
the place. And one of the city's most
great hotels, the band West Palm is has
an ice skating rink. So after you come
visit me, you can go take a little skate.
(11:19:54):
There you go. Do you like Sandy? Do you
like it during the day? Like people visit
during the day or do you prefer the
nighttime? I'm just a people person,
Jerry. I like him coming anytime. I want
him to smile and say hello. It makes me
smile to make them smile. What a
personality. It's just something amazing.
(11:20:15):
She really captures the spirit of the
holidays here in West Palm Beach.
Absolutely. One logistics thing. Say I'm
coming into town with my car. Where
should I park? Is there a place to park?
Yeah, I would always go to the city
parking garages first. And on our
website, we link up to those too. Again,
as far as a tip, know where you're going
(11:20:35):
to go to park in advance. Sometimes you
can get lucky and get a meter, but I
don't count on that.
I head to the garage.
And on the weekends, there's a $5 flat
rate for the garages during the green
market. If you're heading to the green
market during green market hours, the
city hall and the quadrille, the
(11:20:57):
climatous garage are free. So yeah,
again, don't get stressed out about it.
No, you're heading to the holiday. Happy
place. You're going to find a place to
park down here. A lot of people are going
to be visiting. A lot of people have kids
home. Is there a day of the week that's
better than another as
far as really enjoying
the thing without being too crowded?
(11:21:18):
Well, obviously, if you come down during
the events, there's a lot more activity
going on. If you're somebody that wants a
quieter experience, although the music
and light shows are going on Mondays and
Tuesdays are sometimes a little quieter.
But you never know. The closer you get to
(11:21:39):
the holidays, the closer you get to the
week of December 20th,
it's busy. Because here's why.
People come down, as Sandy said, they're
coming down to see her sculpted. And
they're saying, Oh, I got to see when
she's done. I have to come back down
here. So then they come to the tree
lighting or they come that first weekend.
Well, then it's so amazing to them. I've
(11:21:59):
got to tell my family, friends and
neighbors. So then they come back 234
more times. So it's really interesting to
watch that. And you can listen to them at
the tree while they're telling. They're
telling their story of how Sandy's made,
which sometimes I got to jump in there
and say, well, quite right.
But yeah, well, it sounds like any day of
(11:22:20):
the week is a good day to go. Just have
your plans. Come on down. And really,
from what you described, it's the best
thing to do is to go down there and plan
on it like an afternoon evening. The
whole day you could be downtown. Totally.
Oh, definitely, Jerry. That's what I was
gonna say. Come on down and plan your
whole day down there. You can go daylight
(11:22:42):
into evening, eat dinner and then see one
of my shows at night. It's amazing.
Fantastic. Fantastic. Well, Sandy, I want
to thank you for taking the time to talk
to us today via remote, via the magic of
television. Thank you for joining us and
thank you for being here in West Palm
Beach again this year. Well, bless your
heart, Jerry. Thank you so much. I hope you enjoyed this.
(11:23:03):
I am so lucky to have met Mary and she
brings me here every year. Her and her
team, they do everything to get me here
and it takes a lot. Let me tell you, I'm
more a little more than your average
girl. I have to echo exactly what Sandy
said. Thank you to you and to the entire
(11:23:24):
team at the parks and Rexford City of
West Palm Beach. You guys deliver every
year and it's gonna be particularly
spectacular this year.
It truly is our pleasure. It's personally
my favorite time and thing of the year.
So Sandy's a bestie forever. Forever,
Sandy. Thank you darling. Bless your
(11:23:46):
heart. Thank you, Sandy. And thank you,
Mary, for joining us today. Thank you.
And thank you for joining us. We hope
you'll come to downtown West Palm Beach
for a wonderful visit to Holiday in
Paradise. The City Center podcast is a
production of the City of West Palm Beach
Communications Department. I'm Jerry
Marcelo. We'll see you next time.
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