My family and I went to the Chesapeake Jubilee for the first time last weekend and we had an…read moreenjoyable time. Since I hadn't been to a carnival in a while, I was surprised to see that the tickets were stored digitally on a card that they give to you. I actually loved the convenience of not having tickets all over the place lol. We rode about two rides which were a lot of fun. The ride operator simply scanned the card for our tickets and that was it! Gone are the days of having to count out the tickets for the rides lol. We then decided to grab something to eat. I remember carnival food being delicious and worth every penny but we ordered a cheese burger, cheesesteak, sausage and peppers and fries and the burger was extremely small, the cheesesteak was finished in 3 bites and the sausage was the size of a hot dog. The food was disappointing for how much we paid. The funnel cake and fried Oreos were great though. The best part of the carnival was definitely the delicious Turkey leg that we all enjoyed. Since my daughter isn't a big fan of fireworks, we decided to leave before they started but overall, it was a fun family outing. Side note: To avoid paying the $10 parking fee, we parked at a nearby school but we walked close to a mile to get to the carnival so definitely where comfortable shoes if you plan on taking that route next year. :)

Great time! Great vibes! Amazing food and fun rides! Chesapeake Jubilee we had a blast!read more

My boyfriend and I attended this last weekend. We have both lived in VA for a while but are just…read morenow starting to step out and see all the happenings that Hampton Roads has to offer. This was our first time here, and kind of our first time hearing about this whole event. Yelp reached out to its elites giving away a few tickets. So I was able to snag one. And once I saw what the cause was for we had no problem buying one for my boyfriend. We were intrigued by the race. An easy 4 miles with a fun hop in an ice cold pool sounded pretty unique. So we went for it. The race started at 9:30AM and it was a whopping 30 degrees at that time. Im grateful it wasn't your average race that starts at 7 or 8AM because my limbs would have probably frozen solid since it was 25 at that time, haha. So I enjoyed the later race time. I also enjoyed the amount of free parking close by! I think we parked 3 blocks down on 28th and the jog to the Hilton (heck yes we were jogging- it was cold!) warmed us up just enough. Registration and pick up were seamless. No long lines. We got there about 15-20 min after it opened (it opened at 8:30). The shirts were great! They were long sleeve, the design was cute, and they were that "technical" material. My boyfriend and I both wore ours for the race! The start line wasn't too crowded. Everyone was really respectful. The route was clean and easy with just a little zig zag. There was one water stop where they were actually handing out entire bottles of water! I was surprised! Our way back to the finish was brutal. We were running against the wind. So what started off as, "We are TOTALLY getting in the ice pool after this race! That will be so awesome!" quickly turned into "Im going to punch you if we get in that pool.". hah. Cold wind has that affect on people I guess. ha. We finished, the medal was REALLY cute! And legit! and we got bananas, water, free Wawa coffee, free Wawa hot chocolate, and chick-fil-a!! It was awesome seeing the whole community come together to support such a great cause. They had a marketplace inside of a tent with beer that lead to the walkway of the ice pool. We didn't look around because I was with a male who hates that kind of stuff--shopping-- so I can't comment about the stuff they had in there, but I will say I saw a bunch of people leaving with bags of stuff. So they must have had some cool items! We saw a lot of people getting Duck Doughnuts. So we tracked down where one was (RIGHT there off of 31st) and we got a half a dozen, like typical foodies do, and just had a blast sitting on two big rocking chairs in the sun stuffing our faces with food and people watching. We left before the actual plunge but I think next year we will either 1) Dash and actually SPLASH this time or 2)Go and plunge with everyone. I saw a LOT of facebook posts and pictures with the plunge so it seems like its a pretty big deal around here! So if you're new to the area, or even been living here a while, I'd totally recommend this whole festival! Its a blast!

This year they only had one tent and that's a bit of a problem as we usually separate athletes from…read morenon athletes. The tent is heated still, so that's good. The shirts are short sleeve this year instead of long sleeve. All in all, we raised a little over one million and that's what counts. Chick-fil-a gave out sandwiches and Wawa has their coffee and hot chocolate on their truck. It's not as cold as last year and that's a plus!

Awesome beards, care kits, brushes, oils, swag, raffles, different Beard Society's repping their…read moreown stuff as well as looking for new members, and all together an amazing community of folks. This was my second year attending and my first time competing in a competition and I had a blast! Seeing the different styles, meeting new people and enjoying the company of the bearded brothers is an experience! The layout was nice for Shaka's. Everything fit easily into the space available as well as the photo booth in the VIP area. The raffle table was displayed well enough to view every selection. I hope I can dress in something cool last year like the other extreme contenders. I'll be back!

Great event with fun for everyone! Shaka's is an awesome setting for the event as well. The DJ was…read moreawesome, played fantastic music throughout the night during the event and both MCs brought great energy! Finally the best part is this was all for charity. What a way to support a great veterans charity on Veterans Day weekend.

This was a very exciting event on the boardwalk. We got last minute spots for the cookout, but the…read morecookout didn't happen because I guess they were expecting rain. I loved being able to see all of the vendors on the boardwalk with their clothing and artwork. It was very refreshing to have this event and be able to go to it. We will definitely be back next year and sincerely hope that they have the cookout this time. Instead of the cookout for Yelp elites, there were tenders from a chicken restaurant. It wasn't bad and it was free food, but we were really hoping for the cookout and what would available. I did really enjoy the praise dancing that they had on stage and the music that was playing. I also was really happy that I was able to get a funnel cake while we were there. Next year should be just as bright and colorful and I hope to purchase some things last time.

If you're looking for an event of culture and substance that will feed your mind, body, spirit, and…read moresoul, then you won't want to miss out next year! From the delectable food aromas and the soulful music, to the multiple and unique vendors and the availability of a wealth of knowledge, I'm glad I was able to attend, and I look forward to the next!

Free and open to the public from 12 noon till 2 PM. Had an amazing time. Got me some bourbon,…read morechicken dirty rice and some roasted corn. Bring your money because it ain't cheap. I hope you enjoy the Bayou bonbon festival starting today at 5 o'clock running till the weekend. This is amazing.

Never really gone to the festival before. BUT from 12-2 they have a free time first day from what…read moreI see so I decided to check it out. MAN IT WAS JUMPING! The food out there was sooooo good. I got jambalaya and a shrimp po boy? Fire. Music? Amazing either way what was going on as a perfect complement. And ngl. I just enjoy an experience that caters to everyone well. I'd go again, but I think if I did I would just do it for the free 12- 2 again. I didn't get to see anything that would make it worth it for me yet, but I was just there for a short period. So maybe I needed more time. We'll see next year!

Another fun time at the Battle of the Burgers! This time I went with my son, and we both enjoyed…read moreour day together. Delicious food, good music, some crafters to browse, and all topped off with beautiful weather. Lines were not bad at all, and all of the staff serving the creations were all nice and friendly. So fun' Thank you COVA Magazine and Victoria for the chance to go especially with my son. Next Year - Check Them Out!

Went to the Norfolk Greek festival for another year as this is a highlight event of the year, its…read morenot summertime until you've been to the Norfolk Greek Festival. Parking for the event is wherever you can find a spot on a nearby street so make sure to bring a smaller vehicle or carpool. Everything is AMAZING! The food - AMAZING, Music/entertainment - Amazing, the church - Amazing, the staff/congregation - AMAZING! I got a lamb shank, green beans, spanakopita, tiropita, and a gyro for the road. The lamb shank was seasoned and cooked to perfection, I didn't even need a knife to cut it, fork only it was so tender. The spanakopita is a side with a mixture of shredded spinach mixed with Greek cheese between filo dough, or just yummy. The tiropita is similar but with only a mixture of Greek cheeses in the middle, and also really yummy. The portions are as you would expect if you went to your Greek relatives for a feast, hence why the gyro was for the road. Music and entertainment are a combination of the various youth groups from the church performing traditional Greek dances in traditional Greek outfits. There are bands that paly traditional/modern Greek music, and the MC will even do some Greek lessons. Inside the school/gathering hall is a small fair that has vendors selling various art/jewelry items, religious works a Greek coffee stand with the best coffee you will ever have, AND the ever popular deserts to-go (Baklava cheesecake, Greek chocolate cake, breads, and cakes) the only hard part is choosing what you want, lucky they have sampler packs. You can pay with card or cash and there is an ATM on site so there is no excuse to not see you next year.

Norfolk Greek Festival is a wonderful experience. It is festive , fun, and full of great times…read more There is quite the cuisine which includes gyros, lamb shank, dolmades, Greek coffee, Greek pastries and I could go on and on. My favorite is the Greek coffee experience. There is a booth indoors with people making the coffee in a traditional style. Last year I only bought 1 bag of the coffee, this year I got 3 because it's so good. There's a little Greek store where I got a sesame treat and more. The music, singing, and dance are a blast !

There is a free section and a ticketed section…read more The tickets are for the battleship. It is a wonderful museum for all ages who can manage some stairs. This is a must do in Norfolk. The free museum inside the building has Norfolk history, battleship history, port of VA info, and naval history. There are many interactive exhibits. The building is temperature controlled with clean bathrooms. Parking at the garage across the street is free for the first 2 hours. If you do the ship, you will need more than 2 hours but the hourly rate at the garage is reasonable

i went to nauticus and did the self guided tour of the uss wisconsin battleship museum. we got to…read morego inside the battleship and walk through a bunch of different areas, which was probably the best part because it made everything feel more real instead of just looking at pictures or exhibits. the ship itself is huge, and seeing everything up close was really interesting. i liked being able to walk around at my own pace instead of being rushed through it. the deck views were really nice too, and the giant guns were honestly crazy to see in person because they're so much bigger than i thought they'd be. overall it was actually really fun and i'd definitely recommend it if you're in norfolk because it's something different and really interesting to experience. note -- it isn't handicap accessible, there are a lot of stairs you need to go up and down on.