This year was a stellar year for the Nocturne crew. Considering it's all volunteer, it was VERY…read morewell planned and perfectly executed. Their use of social media was outstanding this year (which last year lacked). Facebook and twitter were a buzz with Nocturne posts. The atmosphere on the street was awesome. Happy, relaxed, and just plain 'ol fun. It was easy to tell the "bar goers" from the "Nocturne crawlers" from the way they were dressed, Nocturnites were sporting layers, whilst the bar people sported mini skirts that could have been belts (not that I'm complaining). Many small businesses stayed open late to accommodate the 20,000+ people that hit Halifax for the evening. It's good to see a city pull together for an art event, now that we see the cities potential we need to do it more (not just art events). 5 stars all the way Nocturne! Already looking forward and planning next year!

Wow! How can you not give this event a strong five. The work alone that was put into it, I thought…read morewas fabulous. This was my first time being part of this event and what a night it turned out to be. I was amazed at the amount of people that filled out streets, around five thousand I believe. My favorite was the "Car Wash", that song along brought back memories. The waterfront had a fabulous outdoor acrobatic event. Also - we went to where you could talk on a cell phone to people around the world, our person was in Cambodia. I will say, I think they need to make it a two day event next year. There was too much for us to cover and it had so many zones in all areas of the downtown core, it even expanded to Dartmouth which I hear had a roller rink, how cool is that. One thing Please: Put the map and details up sooner on the website for everyone to look at so you can map out your evening or you could do as us, roll the dice and hope you hit something you like. I loved the DD bus to get from zone to zone. See you on the streets!

If you love Christmas lights, this parade is for you. People do an amazing job on the floats and it…read moreis a lot of fun to watch. My only complaint is the cold can make it a bit uncomfortable so be sure to bundle up and be prepared for massive crowds and traffic.

The shows are presented by volunteer amateur astronomers, mostly for the Halifax Centre of the…read moreRoyal Astronomical Society of Canada. Currently, public shows are on alternate Thursdays only. Ages range: 8 and up. This is not a fancy planetarium like in some spiffy science centres, but the setting is friendly and intimate, and the presenters approachable. It is a great way to learn about the sky, and the show always goes on, rain or shine!

Let's start with the only bad thing: your neck might get a bit sore after staring up at "the night…read moresky" for an hour. Seriously, I kind of wish that they just put mats down on the floor and everyone could lie down and stargaze. So, if you've never been, here's the deal: They do different presentations throughout the year, typically an hour in length and $5/adult. You do have to e-mail ahead of time to reserve space (see their Web site). You'll get a star chart print-out and some optional brochures if you want to expand and/or apply your learning. Once you're in, they gradually adjust your eyes to night vision by dimming the lights. Then the magic begins. You wouldn't think at the beginning that a simple domed tent and some strange looking machine could transport you into the night sky. But it happens. The presenter my evening also made sure to inject a fair bit of humour. The machine itself was made by hand in the 1950s and technically belongs to the Museum on Natural History but is on permanent loan to Dalhousie.

Waterfront festival staging area was extremely inhospitable. Saturday afternoon 2:00, wiltingly…read morehot. Not a lick of shade. No seats. Someone guarding a bunch of plastic chairs. Not sure what that was about. Performers singing and for 20 (?) people. Unclear what we were allowed to bring and what we weren't. Not like any jazz festival I have ever attended. Other smaller venues were much better (hydrostone was fantastic). But the main stage...dismal

A great festival that brings some amazing musical acts to Halifax each and every summer…read more The have all kinds of different acts to choose from, with the cost of the act varying the entire time as well. The waterfront location provides a beautiful backdrop for the main stage to look out on, but this festival is so much more than just a one stage act. There are musical acts all over the city throughout the week that you are able to take in and enjoy. The afternoon's down on the waterfront stage are free, and a great chance to have your kids and yourself, get a break from the Biebers and the Britney's of the world. To see where the real music came from. All the samples they hear in the back round of what is passed off as pop these days. So get out Halifax, and soak up some good old fashioned jazz music.

I honestly think live theatre performances can intimidate some people. They are often perceived as…read moreexpensive, lengthy and stuffy. Thankfully, we have Fringe to combat that! If you've never been to (or heard of) Fringe before, it's an annual theatre festival made up of smaller, independent and alternative plays. Some are locally works; some have toured internationally. Some are making their grand debut; others have been around for years. Many of the plays are short, they don't cost much and no one's expecting you to get all gussied up to go see them. And the topics? Range wildly. Everything from the life of sex workers to exploring someone's imagination to domestic violence to the changing nature of friendships to robot apocalypses. And they're everywhere! Fringe is hosted at a variety of venues across the city and each play has multiple performances at a weird mix of times so you'll almost definitely be able to fit it into your schedule. Seriously, get some theatre in your life, people.

Movies outdoors on the Halifax waterfront? Fantastic idea!…read more I especially love when they have singalongs!

This is what makes summertime in Halifax great…read more Watching movies with your pals under the stars with the harbour at your back. It makes me feel all romantic about this sometimes frustrating city. This summer, the fine folks at the Atlantic Film Festival have outdone themselves. The alFresco filmFesto programme will be... The Summer of Murray. Bill. Murray. Six glorious nights of Bill Murray. My friends, this is going to be a magical summer. One can only assume that Bill Murray will smile down upon us and bless our fair hamlet with his wisdom, humour, and grace. And mad golf skills. I cannot wait.

I should start by saying that I am really not a sci-fi or comic buff. I don't participate in…read morecosplay or steampunk or watch Anime in my spare time. However, I do enjoy the occasional supernatural or sci-fi movie and tv show, and above all I can respect the creativity and passion of those that ARE sci-fi/comic buffs! Hal-Con is like the mecca for my local city's contigent of such folks. I actually attended as a volunteer for Yelp Halifax Saturday morning, then attended the events in the afternoon with my sister and boyfriend (who is part of the sci-fi/comic buff group previously mentioned), more out of curiosity than anything. I had never been to such an event before, and wanted to see what it was like. I had SO much fun. I didn't buy anything that the vendors were selling, and to be honest I would never really do so since (again) this stuff really isn't my thing. However, I enjoyed looking and admiring everything so much - some of the detail and technical knowledge that goes into making the models, pictures and costumes that filled the rooms everywhere I looked was mind-boggling. Plus the crowd was just "nice" - people were actually saying 'excuse me' and 'sorry' when they bumped into you, which was a revelation. The real reason I attended this year was to take my sister to meet Nicholas Brendon, aka Xander Harris from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and I succeeded! (see attached photographic proof). I totally turned into a dorky superfan upon meeting him, I am not even going to lie. Even though the meeting was about 1 minute from start-to-finish (hello, photo, goodbye) it was still the highlight of my day. I mean, come on, what person who was a teenager in the mid-to-late 90's did NOT watch Buffy and want live in it?! (No? Just me? Oh....ok) The event seemed super busy and the crowd seemed to be enjoying everything, so I would say kudos to the organizers. This looks good for next year! Even though I had no idea what 90% of the costumes or references were, I still had a great time.

Without any legitimate claim to nerd or geek status (I always admit that I am, at best,…read moregeek-adjacent), I was a little nervous committing to a full weekend at Hal-Con. I pictured hoards of people giving me the side-eye whenever I gawked at their incredible costumes, or rolling their eyes when I bashfully asked questions about their hobbies. Well, guess what? Even without knowing much about anything happening throughout the weekend, I felt 100% welcome among this crowd of misfits, I learned so much about things I didn't even know existed (Steampunk, anyone?), and only felt weirded out whenever the furries were around. From my perspective, it was a five-star experience with more to see and do than even our region's largest and most popular festivals and events. *The exhibition space hosted tons of incredible local vendors with everything from Nintendo plush toys to locally authored and illustrated books and comics, making it easy to support local shops. *The artist aisle did the same for artisan wares from zombie brain egg holders (it makes sense when you see 'em), to cardboard dolls of The Big Bang Theory and Jem and the Hollograms. *Two massive games room meant easy access to just about any board, video, card or even pinball game you can imagine. And all this is happening at the same time as countless workshops, panels, autograph signings, and interviews, not to mention my favourite activity of running up to strangers in incredible costumes and getting photos of their most epic poses. Easier than you'd think! The few kinks: 1) ATMs were accessible but scarce, 2) not much food or drink on site, 3) and holy moly was the schedule ever overwhelming. That last one's a good thing, but it was tough to keep tabs on everything you wanted to check out. Well worth checking out next year!

Loved the cottage industry ethnic food stands. Jamaican patties, pork rolls, fetta and spinach…read morecroissant, japonese hand helds, Korean vegetable pancakes. Ate too much before trying the sweet potato glass noodles. Crafts and artisans sold varied from bougie to rustic. ATM was ornery. But everyone has square . If driving come early (10) before parking fills

TL;DR/The Short Version: Popular Farmers' Market. Too…read morecrowded for me. A good variety of vendors, but I prefer the Halifax Brewery Market, personally. The Long Version: When my husband and I were in Halifax recently, we did 2 Markets back-to-back, this one and the Halifax Brewery Market and I personally liked the Halifax Brewery Market better, as it had more interesting foods and vendors and wasn't as crowded. My impression is that this Halifax Seaport Farmers' Market is more for tourists and the Halifax Brewery Market is more for locals, but I could be wrong. I got a Pancit Bihon for my husband and I to share at Pinoy's Best Halifax. It was $7 for a small serving. It tasted good and had this Liptons Chicken Soup smell that I loved, lol. Weird, I know. I just didn't like that they microwaved it in a plastic container. I would have preferred it if it was kept in metal warming trays and served into a cardboard container. My husband got a 4L jug of Maple syrup from Ripley's Maple ($58) for his sister. She was coming to Halifax too but not when the Halifax Seaport Farmers' Market would be open so she asked him to get it for her. He gave it to her in Halifax and she was driving home, so we cannot attest to whether the jug would survive a flight in checked baggage, it would be at your own risk, lol. I'm glad we checked out this market. If we were in the area again on future visits to Halifax I would drop by, but I wouldn't specifically plan to go to it like we did this time. (179)

I don't get it? I left Greekfest feeling regretful and ripped off. Is there a different festival…read morethe other reviewers are talking about? $5 to get in, upon scanning the area I saw a big tent with dancers, a "score on the goalie" event, a church, and a little shop where you can buy greek flags and stuff. Thats it. Me and my mom went together, she was hungry and decided she wanted to get a bite to eat first. You buy your meal ticket and then go into the tent that serves food. I got a vegetable plate and mom got a Greek plate. The Greek plate was $14, an I think the vegetable plate was like $12, can't remember. The vegetable plate was ok. The potatoes were the highlight but I ended up throwing the stuffed pepper and dolmades out. The tiropita barely had any feta in it and they gave me the smallest husk of bread ever, I saw other plates with a big piece but mine was pathetic. When I asked for tzatziki they seemed irritated. Disappointing for $12. My mom ended up not eating her moussaka and said she regretted paying $14 for her food. Since I threw out a good portion of my meal I got a custard pastry, it was $3 which was too much. It didn't have much taste to it and it disappointed me. The lemon roasted potatoes were very good with the tzatziki, but I give 2 stars because the dancers were great and the music was cool. I can't see myself going again as I didn't think it was worth the money.

After a 3 year hiatus due to some necessary travel on my end, I returned to Halifax to attend my…read morebeloved Greekfest which happens annually. Now just a bit of background: I love Greek food. I love Greece (and WILL travel there someday). I normally love Greekfest but this year I found it to be a little underwhelming. The weather was beautiful as it usually is on GreekFest weekend (I don't know how they do it!) and there were plenty of people around. However, I felt that things have gotten a lot more expensive than they used to be. I paid $6 for a simple chicken wrap that was no thicker than my wrist (and I have very tiny wrists) and another $14 for a plate which was good but I could have gone to one of the many amazing restaurants around and had the same thing for a lot less. We went during the day and there was some dancing and music but nothing over the top and I just didn't feel like there was anything there for me. Once you've experienced Greekfest one year, you're done - unless your Greek and in that case it's a huge family reunion. If I was Greek it would probably be my favourite weekend of the year but since I'm not, I was a little disappointed this time around.