Valentines dining & gift guide 02032017

Valentine’s Day dining & gift guide

a blank slate media / litmor publications special section • february 3, 2017

32 Blank Slate Media Newspapers, Friday, February 3, 2017

6 reasons to dine out this Valentine’s Day

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alentine’s Day is celebrated in various ways throughout the world.

One of the more popular methods of spending time with a romantic partner is over a delicious meal at a nice restaurant.

Statistics Brain says that 34.6 percent of Valentine’s Day celebrants in the United States dine outside of the home, making this day dedicated to couples one of the most popular days to dine out all year.

Dining out on Valentine’s Day helps to make the day more special, and the following are a number of additional reasons why couples should enjoy a meal out on the town this February 14.

1. Embrace the chance to try new foods. Dining out gives individuals the opportunity to try new cuisine they may not attempt at home. This is a chance to expand flavor profiles and give something new a chance.

2. Enjoy creative plating. Many restaurants expend extra effort on presentation on Valentine’s Day, dressing the plates with special garnish or with a unique presentation of the foods. Valentine’s Day meals are often as beautiful to look at as they are delicious to eat. Experiencing such visual masterpieces can add to the enjoyment of the night out.

3. Enjoy a night off from cooking.

One of the biggest benefits of dining out on Valentine’s Day is enjoying an

evening away from the kitchen. Heading out for a restaurant meal means no stressing over what to cook for dinner, no wrangling with ingredients and no post-meal cleanup.

4. Learn something new. Chefs and restaurants may pull out all the stops for a special occasion like Valentine’s Day. Diners may learn more about exotic foods and wine pairings on Valentine’s Day than they might when dining out on less popular nights.

5. Beat the winter blues. For much of the country, Valentine’s Day occurs during a time of year when winter is at its most harsh. Wintertime can be isolating as many people spend increased hours indoors to avoid inclement weather. Dining out gives couples the opportunity to get some fresh air and dine in a social environment that can help buoy spirits.

6. Jump start other activities. Dining at a restaurant may be the precursor to other things to come on Valentine’s Day. While out, couples may opt to head to a movie, enjoy some local live theater or stroll through a museum gallery. A good meal can make for the perfect starter to a memorable Valentine’s Day. Dining out on Valentine’s Day is a tradition that can benefit couples in various ways and make an already special holiday that much more memorable.

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34 Blank Slate Media Newspapers, Friday, February 3, 2017

Romantically-named locales around the world V alentine’s Day places love and romance front and center. Come Valentine’s Day, sweethearts of all ages engage in various romantic traditions, including love notes, date nights and gift exchanges, to showcase their affection.

Another way couples might want to celebrate Valentine’s Day is to travel to places around the world that have romantic names. Feelings of love may be enhanced when celebrating in locales with names that call to mind love and affection. The following are some locations sweethearts might want to visit this Valentine’s Day.

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Valentine Plenty of places around the United States pay homage to St. Valentine himself. Towns named Valentine can be found in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, and Virgina. In Maryland, there is a town called Valentine’s Creek, while New York is home to Valentines Beach.

Galesnjak Islet This small island in the Adriatic Sea near Croatia has become an ideal spot for romantic Valentine’s Day getaways. The land mass came to prominence after its unusual shape — which looks like a heart — was highlighted on the app Google Earth. The island is uninhabited and privately owned. Travelers have inundated the owner with requests to stay there and have renamed the location “Lovers’ Island.”

El Beso en el Parque del Amor, Peru In Miraflores, Lima, Peru, El Beso en el Parque del Amor (“The Kiss Statue at Love Park”) is a large statue of a couple kissing. The piece depicts sculptor Victor Delfin and his wife in an embrace. Couples may gather in the park and engage in kissing competitions to see who can kiss the longest.

Newfoundland Visitors to this northeastern province of Canada can find many romantically named towns. Travelers can visit Cupids, Heart’s Content, Heart’s Delight, and Little Heart’s Ease if they want to share the gift of a getaway with the one they love.

Loveland The name Loveland may conjure images of idyllic streets filled with couples holding hands and embracing. Although it sounds like a place one might encounter when reading fiction, Loveland can be found in Colorado, Iowa, Oklahoma, and Washington.

Kissing If kissing is what lovers have in mind, they might like to travel to the municipality of Kissing in the Aichach-Friedberg district in Bavaria, Germany. Kissing is a relatively small area with just around 12,000 inhabitants. Not too far away is Petting, another municipality in Bavaria.

Couples who want to include travel in their Valentine’s Day plans have many romantically-named locales to include on their itineraries.

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Enjoy a touch of romance by traveling to locales with names that evoke feelings of love and affection.

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36 Blank Slate Media Newspapers, Friday, February 3, 2017

Romantic ďŹ lms for Valentine’s Day M

any people feel the best way to celebrate Valentine’s Day is to enjoy an evening at home with the one they love. A quiet dinner followed by a romantic movie can make for a relaxing, memorable Valentine’s Day. Romantic ďŹ lms pluck at the heartstrings and leave few dry eyes in the house. This genre has produced many unforgettable moments in ďŹ lm. While many people have their go-to romantic ďŹ lms, it can be fun to rethink those preferences and watch something new. The following are just some of the ďŹ lms dubbed “the most romantic moviesâ€? by sources such as AMC, TimeOut magazine, Rotten Tomatoes, and Flavorwire. • Beauty and the Beast (1991): This animated classic tells the tale of a prince who is disďŹ gured into a beast to outwardly represent his internal ugliness. Only true love can break the spell, which seems unlikely until the lovely Belle comes into the Beast’s life. Fans of the animated ďŹ lm will have another opportunity to fall in love again with the live-action retelling of the story set for release in March 2017. • Once (2007): A modern-day busker in Dublin has a chance meeting with a Czech immigrant. The two begin to collaborate musically and a romance blossoms. The ďŹ lm features musician Glen Hansard and his Irish band “The Frames.â€?

• Say Anything (1989): In a tale of ďŹ rst love, Lloyd seeks to capture the heart of Diane, who is an unattainable high school beauty. The movie includes a now-famous pivotal scene when Lloyd holds up a boombox playing Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes.â€? • The Notebook (2004): Based on Nicholas Sparks’ novel of the same name, this modern cult classic is set in 1940s South Carolina. The movie is the tale of a poor man who falls in love with a rich

young woman, only to be separated by their social dierences. However, true love ultimately prevails in the end. • When Harry Met Sally (1989): Close friends Harry and Sally have known each other for years and ponder if engaging in an intimate relationship would ruin the friendship. • Gone With the Wind (1939): This sweeping epic is set in the antebellum south during the American Civil War. The story of Scarlett O’Hara’s tangled love af-

fairs has been popular with ďŹ lm fans for nearly 80 years. • Sense and Sensibility (1995): This ďŹ lm is a dramatic interpretation of Jane Austen’s novel published in 1811. Sudden ďŹ nancial struggles force the Dashwood sisters to move to a distant cottage.

Locals develop romantic feelings for the ladies in this story that is considered an early example of the romantic novels of today. • Roman Holiday (1953): A European princess is disillusioned with her life and needs an escape. She takes o for a night in Rome and meets an American reporter, who ďŹ rst thinks he can get the exclusive scoop on the runaway princess.

However, romance soon gets in the way of that plan. • The Princess Bride (1987): Wesley and Buttercup begin with a tumultuous servant-master relationship. But their love blooms only to have Wesley be called away, leaving Buttercup to believe he has died. The two ultimately reunite in this classic and often hilarious tale of romance. • Casablanca (1943): A nightclub owner in Casablanca is reunited with his old ame, only to discover she is traveling with her husband. During World War II, Ilsa wants her rebel husband to escape to America, but her renewed feelings for Rick leave her struggling with what to do.

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Eco-friendly ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day · Smart greetings: When choosing greeting cards, select those printed on recycled paper using all-natural inks.

Otherwise, create your own paper or digital greetings. If making your own paper greeting, be sure to make it with a reusable material that can be repurposed once Valentine’s Day has come and gone.

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alentine’s Day is second only to the holiday season with regard to gift giving. Although this day devoted to love and exchanging gifts can be wasteful, that does not mean those with a mind toward green and simple living should ignore the holiday altogether. In fact, there are plenty of different ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with conservation in mind. · Bee mine: Give a loved one the gift of a jar of raw honey from a nearby bee farm with a pun-themed love note that says “bee mine.”

· Purchase an artisan gift. Gifts don’t have to be mass-produced items made in factories. Looks for handmade gifts designed by local artisans who don’t need fuel to deliver their creations around the world. Or look to gifts that help support a cause, such as crafts made by indigenous people to support their independent living. · Homemade meal: Take to cooking a meal at home for your valentine. Once you settle on his or her favorite foods, be sure to source out local, organic and freerange ingredients. · Give the gift of a massage. Massages can help relieve stress and pain. Because massage is a service rather than a

product, there will be no residual waste.

Other service gifts include manicure/ pedicures, spa treatments and hair salon services. · Adopt an animal. Work with a local kennel to adopt a pet or speak with a favorite conservation group about financially supporting an animal. Sweethearts who are animal lovers may find this to be the ideal gift.

tions, protect the environment, enable transparency, and empower communities to build strong, thriving businesses.

Valentine’s Day celebrations can be enjoyed in an eco-friendly way that can make this special day even more meaningful to eco-conscious couples

· Offer living plants. Cut flowers certainly look beautiful, but they may require many resources for planting, cutting and transporting. That’s especially true for non-native, out-of-season flowers. Potted plants can live indefinitely as long as they are cared for properly. · Purchase Fair Trade® chocolate.

Make sure the chocolate or other gifts being purchased are in line with fair trade policies. Fair Trade Certified® products are made with respect to people and planet. Rigorous social, environmental and economic standards are employed to promote safe, healthy working condi-

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How chocolate became tied to Valentine’s Day H

eart-shaped boxes filled with decadent treats are coveted gifts on Valentine’s Day. Chocolate lovers typically have a favorite type of chocolate, whether it’s creamy filled truffles or chocolate pieces with fruit or nut fillings.

The tradition of gifting chocolate is anything but new. Chocolate and other sweet treats have been offered for centuries as prized gifts. Even ancient Aztecs and Mayans celebrated chocolate and saw it as a hot commodity. Drinks made of cacao beans would be given as presents to people of high status. Chocolate also would be offered to the gods as a token of appreciation. Cacao beans were even used as a form of currency at one point.

During the 17th century, chocolate consumption grew considerably across Europe. Chocolate houses cropped up in London, and the French elite often indulged in chocolate. Chocolate’s popularity continued to grow, but the dessert was not linked to Valentine’s Day until nearly 200 years later. In the mid-1800s, an enterprising individual named Richard Cadbury was looking for a way to make chocolate even more popular than it already was. He sought out a method to make drinking chocolate more palatable and created “eating chocolates.” These chocolates were packaged in decorative boxes. Eventually, Cadbury saw the benefit of putting images of cupids and roses on the boxes. Cadbury even designed chocolate boxes in the shape of hearts that could be saved as mementos. These chocolates soon became intertwined with Valentine’s Day celebrations.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Mil-

ton Hershey dabbled in commercializing chocolate as well. Hershey began as a caramel maker, but experimented with covering the caramels in chocolate in 1894.

Hershey would go on to develop one of the most successful brands of chocolate in the United States, which included the famous Hershey bar. In 1907, Hershey launched production of tear-drop shaped “kisses.” (The chocolates were given their unusual name because of the “smooching” noise made by the chocolate when being manufactured.) The kisses became wildly popular and made for affordable chocolate gifts on Valentine’s Day. Many other chocolate manufacturers soon began packaging their chocolates in special boxes for Valentine’s Day. Russell Stover and Whitmans are two such manufacturers who have long specialized in heart-shaped boxes or other decorative Valentine’s gifts.

Traditionally, men have gifted women with boxes of chocolate for Valentine’s Day. However, that role is reversed in other areas of the world. For example, in Japan, women give gifts — namely chocolates — to the men in their lives to express love, courtesy or social obligation.

This tradition first began in 1936 when confectioner Morozoff Ltd. ran the first ever Valentine’s Day ad in Japan through a local English newspaper. By the 1950s, other Japanese confectioners were following suit.

Chocolate has long been tied to Valentine’s Day gifting. Whether one believes that chocolate symbolizes heightened status, acts as an aphrodisiac or is just a special treat, chocolates will likely always be associated with the day of love.

Chocolate has been considered a special gift for centuries. It became linked to Valentine’s Day in the 1800s.

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V Come visit us for your Valentines Day treat

alentine's Day is a time when men and women express their love and affection for one another, which can be accomplished in a variety of ways. For many celebrants, food and beverages are part of the festivities. According to the USDA and Gallup, in the United States Valentine's Day is the bubbliest occasion after New Year's Eve and Thanksgiving. That's because around $9 million is spent on sparkling wine products. What pairs well with that bubbly? Why chocolate, of course. Fifty-eight million pounds of chocolate candy is purchased during the week of Valentine's Day, when the National Confectioners Association says 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate are sold.

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Jewelry still a very popular Valentine’s gift Y

ou can’t buy love, but on Valentine’s Day those in love certainly like to treat the special people in their lives to some lavish tokens of affection. According to the National Retail Federation’s Valentine’s Day Consumer Spending Survey, Americans spend an estimated $19 billion on gifts, flowers, dinners, and more come Valentine’s Day. In addition to chocolates and flowers, jewelry is a popular Valentine’s Day gift.

Since jewelry is often a personal taste, much like a fragrance, it can be challenging to find the perfect item. With so many different styles, colors and pieces, it’s no surprise that so many jewelry shoppers feel overwhelmed. Some expert advice can make the process go more smoothly and ensure you’re getting the best value for your money.

The Federal Trade Commission suggests thinking before you shop. Since jewelry is a major purchase, shoppers should first establish a budget. Consider the gift recipient’s style and look at other jewelry he or she wears. The more informed you are before visiting the jewelry stores, the easier it will be to find a piece he or she will like and one that you can afford.

Take the time to become educated about diamonds and other gemstones.

Diamonds’ value is based on four criteria: color, cut, clarity, and carat (often referred to as “The 4 Cs”). Color ranges from the diamond being nearly white to graded down to yellow. The cut is the way the stone is fashioned. Clarity informs consumers if the stone is flawless or has specs or scratches inside of it. Carat refers to the weight of the diamond.

Diamonds and gemstones can form naturally or be manufactured in laboratories. Lab-created gemstones may look like natural gemstones but be of lesser value.

Shop around and get referrals for reputable jewelry stores. You can consult the Better Business Bureau to see if any complaints have been lodged about a particular store. Many consumers are most comfortable purchasing jewelry made instore so they can verify the merchandise and retailer.

Check for the appropriate markings on gold, silver and platinum jewelry that indicate their authenticity. Make sure the jeweler will include certification or a grading report with the jewelry and your receipt.

No matter how much research you do, realize that there’s a chance the jewelry you purchase will not prove the perfect fit. So make sure you understand the store’s return policy and if there is a charge to have rings or other items resized.

Jewelry is a classic Valentine’s Day gift. With the right approach, shoppers can make the process of buying jewelry a lot less intimidating.

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