Travel guide: December: what's happening where! - Calendar

Ebony, Dec, 2003 by Joy Bennett Kinnon

WHAT'S HAPPENING WHERE!

ATLANTA

* The 77th Annual Spelman-Morehouse Christmas Carol Concert. Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel. Dec. 5, 7 and 8.

* The Blind Boys of Alabama. Ferst Center; Dec. 5.

* 13th Annual Candlelight Tours of Dr. King's Birth Home. Decorated for Christmas during the 1930s. Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site. Dec. 6, 13 and 20.

*Annual Peach Drop. Underground Atlanta. Dec. 31.

BALTIMORE

* East African Stories. Kicks oil African Spirits series for kids of all ages. Baltimore Museum of Art. Dec. 7.

* African American Museum Gala. Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Bobby McFerrin Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. Dec. 11.

* Kwanzaa Family Day Celebration Baltimore Museum of Art. Dec. 28. * Baltimore's New Year's Eve Extravaganza Inner Harbor. Dec. 31.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.

* Kwanzaa Children's & Family Programs. Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Children's Program-Dec. 27. Family Program, Dec. 29.

CHICAGO

* Bronzeville: Black Chicago in Pictures, 1941-1943. Exhibit. DuSable Museum of African American History. Dec. 8 through Feb. 29, 2004.

* Every Night When the Sun Goes Down. Play. ETA Creative Arts Foundation, 7558 S, South Chicago Ave. Thursdays-Sunday, through Dec. 28.

* Mayor Daley's 4th Annual Holiday Sports Festival. McCormick Plane South. Dec. 27-29.

* New Year's Eve Fireworks at Buckingham Fountain. Dec. 31.

DALLAS

* Kwanzaa Fast. Fair Park. Dec. 6-7.

DETROIT

* Friends of African and African-American Art Annual Meeting. Detroit Institute of Art. Dec. 14. Kwanzaa Celebration. The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. Dec. 26-Jan. 1. 2004,

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.

* "Bringing Kwanzaa to the Diaspora," Kwanzaa Celebration. African-American Research Library and Cultural Center. Dec. 26.

HARTFORD, Conn.

* The Amistad Foundation Annual Meeting. Featuring Poet Nikki Giovanni. Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art. Dec. 4.

HOUSTON

* National Black Caucus of State Legislators convention. Hyatt-Regency Hotel. Dec. 1-6.

JACKSON, Miss.

* Kwanzaa Celebrations. Various Jackson venues. Dec. 26-Jan. 1, 2004.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.

* Epcot Holidays Around the World. Features international holiday celebrations around the world showcase, includes a nightly tree-lighting ceremony and Kwanzaa observances. Through Dec. 30.

LOS ANGELES

* Christmas Carnival and Parade. Magic Johnson Park. Through Dec. 7.

* Los Angeles Holiday Celebration. 135 N. Grand Ave. Dec. 24.

NEW ORLEANS

* Christmas New Orleans Style. A month-long celebration of the season and its Senses, featuring gospel music from Dillard University cooking demonstrations, jazz performances and Kwanzaa celebrations. Dec. 1-31.

NEW YORK

* Alvin Alley American Dance Theater. Celebrating its 45th Anniversary dances: Judith Jamison's Hymn and Alvin Alley's Cry. City Center, Dec. 3-Jan. 4, 2004.

* Holiday Open House. Annual holiday celebration. Langston Hughes Atrium and Auditorium. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Dec. 14.

* Invoking the Spirit: Worship Traditions in the African World. Exhibit of photographs photojournalist Chester Higgins Jr. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Latimer/Edison Gallery, Through Dec. 31.

PHILADELPHIA

* PHILADANC0 2003-2004. New dance season. Kimmel Center. Nov. 20-22.

ST. LOUIS

* Gospel Christmas Concert, Powell Symphony Hall in Grand Center. Dec. 12.

* Kwanzaa: Festival of the First Fruits. Missouri Botanical Garden. Dec. 27.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

* National Council of Negro Women convention. Hyatt-Regency Hotel-Capitol Hill. Dec. 2-7.

* New Visions: Emerging Trends in African-American Art. Anacostia Museum and Center for African-American History and Culture. Through Feb. 29, 2004.

ISLAND DESTINATIONS

THROUGHOUT THE CARIBBEAN

* Christmas Day. Dec. 29.

* Boxing Day. Dec. 26.

BAHAMAS

* Boxing Day Junkanoo Parade. Nassau/Paradise Island. A spectacular street parade of music, dance and costumes. It begins at 1 a.m. Dec. 26.

CURACAO

* St. Nicholas Day. Dec. 5.

JAMAICA

* Jonkunnu Food Festival. Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre, Kingston. Dec. 14.

NOTE: Sponsors may change dates or locations after the magazine has been published. Travelers should verify/event information with local sponsors.