Airship O’Reilly Is Holding An Eclectic Affair

The Airship O’Reilly is planning a convention in Urbana, Illinois, for July 12-14 to join together “many corners of geekery, nerd life, and fandoms.”  Con Chair Enki McAigean describes this event as “a general geekery convention that, due to who [Airship O’Reilly] is, has a slightly steampunk leaning. We hope to be a melting pot for just about every subculture to come together and share their passion.”

Asked to describe what an attendee would sense at the convention, McAigean replied, “You walk in and the smell of age and musk and wood fills the air… until your eyes notice the bar straight out of the late 1800s: raised fabric walls, aged wood, a library dining room, a ball room that looks more akin to the throne room of a small castle, a downstairs meeting space that is nearly wall to wall marble. Knick-knacks and tidbits from a bygone age make up the entire space and one can become lost in another world within its walls.”

McAigean also promises that this event, like it name suggests, will be an eclectic affair.  There will be many odd happenings and something for everyone, he said.  Those somethings will include: science fiction, fantasy, comic books, webcomics, books, steampunk, anime, and cosplay.   Between Texas and Chicago, he says, there are not many events like this, and they will doing everything they can to make sure that every single person there has a blast.  This is an event for geeks and nerds who want to share their love and passion for the nerdy things in life, and that they would feel like an active participant instead of just an attendee.

The venue for this event will be  the Urbana Landmark Hotel, originally built in 1923, with the only changes being the modern outlets, televisions, and wireless internet.  McAigean has described the hotel as “a doorway through time.”  Having undergone two years of restorations of its unique European style, it has recently re-opened to guests.  It is also directly connected to the Lincoln Square Mall, one of the oldest indoor malls in America.

“The ideal experience we would like for the average attendee is a simple one. We want every single attendee to come away from our con thinking, ‘Wow… that was a LOT of fun. I want to tell me friends and come back! And maybe go to other Airship O’Reilly events!’” –Enki McAigean

For more information:

An Eclectic Affair:   http:// eclecticaffair.com

Airship O’Reilly:  http://airshiporeilly.com/

Urbana Hotel:  http://www.urbanahotel.net/