With about 200 antiques dealers under one roof, the Stratford Antique Center on Honeyspot Road is a place where antiques buffs can become blissfully lost. The center is located off I-95 in Stratford and is locally known as the “big blue building.” It houses 16,500 square feet of antiques and collectibles. Whatever you are looking for in antiques or collectibles you can probably find it here. Browsers will enjoy the numerous dealer floor spaces and lighted display cases. Open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. except holidays. Phone: 203-378-7754

African Penguins: Not Just for Africa

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Fish. Sea mammals. Reptiles, then more fish. It’s a fishy world at the Maritime Aquarium on North Water Street in Norwalk, where visitors can examine sharks nose-to-nose, and enjoy close-up visits with seals, river otters, sea turtles, jelly fish, sponges, crabs, sea stars, reptiles and more. Special attention is given to the ecosystem of Long Island Sound. New in 2009, the public is welcome to come fall in love with the new exhibit of African Penguins. They waddle comically on land but swim gracefully in the water, all while dressed semi-formally in black-and-white attire. The penguins will be stealing hearts daily in an outdoor display on the Aquarium’s riverfront courtyard, with plenty of viewing windows above and below the water line.Phone: 203-852-0700.

Antique Shopping Is a Dream in Stamford

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Stamford, just a hop and a jump from the New York border, is a beehive of antiques stores, and a place where antiques lovers could get lost and put a grave dent in the checkbook. Among the places that are named in the upper strata of Stamford antiques shops are the Accessory Store on Jefferson Street; Harbor View Center For Antiques on Jefferson Street; Mid Century Antiques on Pacific Street; Greenwich Living Antiques-Design on Canal Street; Hamptons Antique Galleries on Canal Street; Hiden Galleries on John Street; Connecticut Antiques Center on Canal Street; and John Street Antiques Center.

Artwork Down on the Farm

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Weir Farm National Historic Site on Nod Hill Road in Wilton is one of only two national historic sites that preserves and displays a place for the visual arts. (The other place, also in New England, is the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire.) From 1882 to 2005, Weir Farm was the home and workplace of three generations of painters, starting with painter J. Alden Weir. Over the decades, Weir and his family transformed their summer retreat into a creative refuge for friends and fellow artists. Visitors today can view the Weir home and studios, walk and watch birds on the 60-acre property, take guided walks of stone walls and painting trails, and enjoy the rotating art exhibits at the Visitors Center. The grounds are open year-round; hours at the Visitor Center vary from summer to winter. Phone: 203-761-9945

Beautiful Babies of Beardsley

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Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo on Noble Avenue in Bridgeport is a wonderful place to visit; your hosts are more than 300 animals from North and South America. Among the great exhibits are the South American rainforest with free-flight aviary, a prairie dog residence with pop-up viewing areas, a New England Farmyard, and a walk along the hoofstock trail, featuring bison, pronghorn, deer and more. Before you leave grab a bite at the Peacock Café or take a ride on the carousel. Phone: 203-394-6565.

Fast Pups

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Shoreline Star Greyhound Park & Entertainment Complex on Kossuth Street in Bridgeportcalls itself home to the best thoroughbred, harness, greyhound and jai-alai simulcast action in the country, offering live greyhound racing (seasonal) and year-round simulcast wagering on Thoroughbred and harness, greyhounds, and jai alai. The complex opens daily at 11:30a.m. Watch and wager on the best thoroughbred, harness, greyhound and jai-alai action in the country. Watch and wager on jai-alai in the Cancha Theatre with stadium-style seating. At mealtime, action moves to the complex’s two restaurants. Free admission and parking. Open daily. Phone: 203-576-1976.

Off-Broadway Is Onstage at Fairfield

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Fairfield Theatre Company is a place to watch for an astounding variety of live stage entertainment. Since it opened StageOne on Sanford Street in Fairfield, Fairfield Theatre Company has presented over 200 performances of eight theatrical plays directly from their original Off Broadway runs. FTC is also becoming known as an intimate venue for concerts. Among the performers slated to appear in 2009 are Altan, Al Di Meola, Aztec Two-Step, Enter the Haggis, Dwele, Richie Havens, Graham Parker, Lucy Kaplansky, Jewel, Manhattan Transfer, Caravan of Thieves, BeauSoleil, Art Garfunkel, Edgar & Johnny Winter, Tower of Power, David Sanborn, The Doobie Brothers. The theater also hosts a periodic cabaret series, when New York City's cabaret scene hops the train to StageOne to offer a night of stellar entertainment. Phone: 203-259-1036.

Sports in All Seasons

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The SportsCenter of Connecticut on River Road in Shelton doesn’t give a darn about the weather. This covered and weather-protected facility offers a golf practice range, 18-hole miniature golf course, baseball and softball batting cages, laser tag arena, bowling, and the world’s only double-decker ice arena. You like sports? Now, inclement weather doesn’t need to slow you down. Phone: 203-929-6500.

Trail of Artwork<br>Traverses the State Trail of Artwork
Traverses the State

Here is a project that can keep you busy year-round: explore the 15 world-class museums and historic sites that comprise the Connecticut Art Trail. The trail meanders among historic sites, bucolic farms, art studios and former artists' boarding houses to grand and modern art museums in vibrant downtowns. Discover diverse, quality collections rich in history and heritage, including European masterpieces, American Impressionism, ancient art and contemporary culture. The trail includes a feature called Trail Getaways that presents recommended itineraries, organized by region, along with helpful suggestions for nearby places to visit and to dine.

The entire trail includes, in the Fairfield region, the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, the Bush-Holley Historic Site in Cos Cob/Greenwich, the Weir Farm National Historic Site in Wilton/Ridgefield, and the Center for Contemporary Printmaking in Norwalk. In the Greater New Haven region: the Yale Center for British Art and the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven. In the Litchfield region, the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield and Mattatuck Museum Arts and History Center in Waterbury. In the Mystic region, the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London, the Slater Memorial Museum in Norwich, the William Benton Museum of Art in Mansfield/Storrs, the Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, and the New Britain Museum of American Art in New Britain. In the Hartford / Central region, the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford.

Treasures of Nature; Treasures by Man

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The truly beautiful and inspiring Bruce Museum in Greenwich offers a first-class mixture of exhibitions in the arts and sciences. A Connecticut gem’s holdings include 15,000 objects in fine and decorative art, natural history and anthropology. Special features include environmental galleries, a marine touch tank, educational workshops, museum store.Phone: 203-869-0376