If the loop playing of Wham’s “Last Christmas” at CVS hasn’t given it away already, the holiday season is here, with Thanksgiving just around the corner.

For many locals, the holidays mean planning a vacation or taking a trip back home for family quality time. But for others, the season means staying put in West Philly, be it because of circumstance or because loved ones are coming to you.

Your holiday staycation doesn’t have to turn out boring, though. After all, with all the great restaurants in the area you can embark in a week-long foodie tour that will satisfy your hunger and help you taste new flavors. But our little notch of Philadelphia proper has many other great gems to keep you and/or your family entertained during the season—some popular and historic, others hidden and in need of discovery.

In order to help your staycation take flight, West Philly Local put together a short list of places to play and sleep to help you plan your local itinerary—and discover the unique personality of our neighborhood.

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Kalachakra (The Wheel of Life) colored sand mandala.

Don’t miss the chance to see the Tibetan artist, meditation teacher, and former Buddhist monk Losang Samten at the Philadelphia Folklore Project (735 South 50th St). He returns for his annual residency at PFP from Monday, Nov. 18 to Friday, Nov. 22 and will be working daily from 1 to 7 p.m., to create “The Wheel of Life” mandala in colored sand. All are welcome to stop by and observe Samten through the spiritual process of creating The Wheel of Life. The program is free. Please visit this page for more information about Samten and his project.

Play On, Philly! (POP), the acclaimed innovative educational music program which began in 2011 at West Philly’s St. Francis de Sales School, is inviting neighbors to their first collaborative concert tonight at 7 p.m. at West Catholic Preparatory High School (45th & Chestnut). Admission is FREE.

This season, POP has been focusing on collaboration, creativity and composition, as part of a new program, POP Creates. All of their concerts this season will be collaborations, including Orchestra 2001 and Anthony McGill, principal clarinet of the Metropolitan Opera, Messiah College, and Ranaan Meyer of Time for Three, to name a few. The impressive guest artist list includes: Trio Cavatina, Joseph Lin, Nokuthula Ngwenyama, the Takacs Quartet and Time for Three.

Tonight’s concert is a collaboration between St. Francis de Sales Firebird String Orchestra and Junior String Philharmonic of Lehigh Valley (JSP). The highlight of the concert will be a joint performance of Edvard Grieg’s Holberg Suite and selections from The Nutracker Suite. Pieces by Bach and Pachelbel will also be featured. The concert will be conducted by Kenneth Bean, Music Director/Conductor of JSP and Naomi Gonzalez, Conductor at POP.

To read more about Play On, Philly! and to check the schedule of their upcoming events, visit: http://www.playonphilly.org/

(Photo courtesy of Play On, Philly!)

Click to enlarge.

This Friday and Saturday (Nov 15 & 16), Penn Museum and VIX Emporium are teaming up to present one of the first holiday shopping opportunities for local residents and guests – a special two-day craft fair titled “Gifts in the Galleries.” The craft fair means unique, handmade gifts, like jewelry, clothing, accessories, hand knits, ceramics, home wares, original artworks, prints, stationery, soaps, candles and more from over 50 independent artists and craftspeople who will be there in person to present their work.

Gifts In The Galleries will take place in the Kintner and Dietrich galleries and the Widener Lecture Hall, located on the west end of the Museum, near 33rd and Spruce. Admission to the craft show is free, plus guests will receive a coupon for $5 off general museum admission on Saturday, so this is a great opportunity to view the museum’s vast collection of relics from all over the world. On Saturday, visitors are also encouraged to join the free instructional drum circle with internationally renowned Middle Eastern percussionist Joe Tayoun. For more information, go here.

Gifts in the Galleries
Penn Museum (33rd & Spruce)
Friday, Nov 15 – 4-7 p.m.
Saturday, Nov 16 – 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Photo from West Philadelphia Orchestra’s Facebook page.

This is a reminder that the always entertaining West Philadelphia Orchestra is coming to the Calvary Center at 48th and Baltimore a free concert for kids tonight (Sunday) at 6 p.m. Philly’s Balkan brass band will also have a performance for grown-ups beginning at 7:30 p.m. that will feature Ismail Hakki Fencioğlu and Shtreiml (billed as “Turkish roots and Jewish blues.”) Tickets for this concert range from $5 for Crossroads members to $30 for ticket, which includes donation. The concerts are organized by Crossroads Music; visit their website for more information.

If you want a glimpse of what West Philadelphia Orchestra is about, check out the video below (hint: it’s impossible to sit still when you watch their performances).

Veterans Day is this Monday and some events and happenings are taking place in the area this weekend to honor and support local men and women who served in the Armed Forces.

On Saturday, Nov. 9, Veterans Day Commemoration is scheduled in the northern section of Clark Park near the Gettysburg Stone (near 44th and Baltimore Ave.) Everyone is welcome to join the Friends of Clark Park, students of the HMS School for Cerebral Palsy and the Boy Scouts in honoring veterans. The event begins at 11 a.m. If you are a local veteran reading this, you can be honored too. Please call 215-222-2255 and leave your name and phone number.

Also tomorrow, dozens of volunteers from Rebuilding Together Philadelphia will gather to renovate the Veterans Group Home at 3209 Baring Street (in the Powelton Village area). The volunteer work team will build a new gazebo for the home, install a new grill and cooking area and renovate the first-floor bathroom. The work will take place from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. and HGTV and DIY Network will be there to film it.

The Veterans Group Home, which has the capacity to house 48 men, is located on a quiet tree lined street and includes two-three story homes that are joined in the rear of the property by a shared kitchen and two dining areas.