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9 things happening this week: Orlando’s Fiesta in the Park, COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expands, new ride opens at Aquatica & more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Here’s what is happening in Central Florida from April 2 to April 9.

1. Orlando’s Fiesta in the Park

Spring Fiesta, a two-day event held at Lake Eola Park in downtown Orlando, is happening this weekend.

The event begins at 10 a.m. and ends at 5 p.m. It will be both Saturday and Sunday.

It’s largest arts and crafts festival event in Orlando. It will feature live entertainment and a huge amount of food options.

To learn more, click here.

2. COVID-19 vaccine eligibility opens to anyone 16+

Anyone 16 and older will be eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccine starting Monday.

“While the Biden administration set a May 1st target date for vaccine eligibility for all adults, Florida is pleased to announce that all adults in the state age 18 and older will be eligible for the vaccine beginning Monday, April 5,” DeSantis said.

READ: ‘We are ready to take this step’: Gov. DeSantis sets timeline for expanding COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to all adults

Floridians can preregister for the COVID-19 vaccine here. Once preregistered, they’ll be contacted when the vaccine is available in their area, officials said.

Teenagers can receive the vaccine with their parent or guardian’s permission. They are only eligible for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.

To learn where you can make an appointment in your county, click here.

3. Easter

Many people will be attending sunrise services and spending time with loved ones this Easter.

Locally, Baldwin Park is hosting the North Park Church Easter Sunrise Service.

READ: Easter 2021: Which restaurants will be open on Easter?

The event will be held at New Broad Street between Jake Street & Welham Street from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.

To find out which restaurants will be open, click here. If you’re wondering which grocery stores will be open, click here.

4. World’s tallest dueling racer waterslide to open at Aquatica

Florida’s first and only dueling racer is opening at Aquatica this weekend.

Riptide Race is an “adrenaline-pumping waterslide race that pits teams against each other in a splash to the finish line,” the water park said.

To learn more about the ride, click here.

5. Astronauts to relocate Crew Dragon spacecraft

Four astronauts will relocate the Crew Dragon spacecraft Monday in preparation for the arrival of new crew members in late April and the upcoming delivery of new solar arrays this summer.

NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, and Shannon Walker, along with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, will undock Crew Dragon Resilience from the forward port of the station’s Harmony module at 6:29 a.m. and dock to the space-facing port at 7:15 a.m.

The relocation will free Harmony’s forward port for the docking of Crew Dragon Endeavour, set to carry four crew members to the station on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 mission, NASA said.

NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and  Megan McArthur, JAXA astronaut Aki Hoshide, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet are scheduled to launch to the station from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 22.

6. Regal Cinemas to reopen theaters this weekend

Grab your popcorn! Starting this weekend, movie lovers will have more theater options.

Regal Cinemas, the second-largest movie theater chain in the United States, will reopen for business beginning on April 2, its parent company, Cineworld Group, announced in a news release.

Click here to learn more.

7. Two free food distribution events are happening this weekend

Farm Share will distribute food to food-insecure families Saturday.

There will be two locations open in Central Florida.

Here are the locations:

  • 421 Buenaventura Blvd., Kissimmee, Fla. 34743
  • 4400 N Powers Drive, Orlando, Fla. 32818

Both locations open at 10 a.m. They will be open until supplies last.

Feed the Need Florida will also be giving out food to those in need at two local schools this weekend.

On Saturday, families can receive a meal and the group will distribute meals directly to those in their vehicle.

The event starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 1 p.m. or while supplies last.

Here are the locations:

  • OCPS Academic Center for Excellence, 701 W. Livingston St., Orlando
  • Eccleston Elementary School, 1500 Aaron Ave., Orlando

8. Florida Film Festival begins this week

The Florida Film Festival is celebrating its 30th year. The festival runs April 9 through the 22 at the Enzian in Maitland, in Winter Park and online.

READ: Florida Film Festival announces lineup for 30th year

This year, the festival will screen 164 films that represent 31 countries. Of those, 151 will be premieres including 23 of them being world premieres.

To learn more, click here.

9. UCF Celebrates the Arts

The University of Central Florida is celebrating the university’s artist in both in-person and virtual events this week.

The event runs from April 2 through April 10 at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

UCF will host most events in the new, 2,000-seat outdoor venue on Dr. Phillips Center’s front lawn in partnership with the arts center’s Frontyard Festival.

Click here to learn more.

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Katlyn Brieskorn, WFTV.com

Katlyn Brieskorn is a Digital Assignment Editor at WFTV. She joined Channel 9 in July 2019.