A Fair and a Faire
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Suzy has rounded up some good old fashioned fun for this week. Get your medieval on as well as a some 4H pig contests at the NY Renaissance Festival in Tuxedo and the NJ State Fair in Sussex County.
Let's start with the NJ Fair which ends this weekend...
The NJ State Fair was started in 1821 and retains an old-fashioned charm today. Just one hour's drive from Rockland, the NJ State Fair is filled with a slew of animals rivaling Noah, a fairway full of rides, pig races, butterfly exhibits, bee-keeping exhibitions and a food court offering everything from home-made baked-potatoes to blooming onions and corn-dogs—your kids'll be enthralled. And did we mention a wine-making competition and a beer tent? And there's even free parking.
Recommended Stops:
Fairway: For $19, receive an unlimited ride pass Monday through Thursday and on the final Sunday. Cost additional at other times/days. Here you'll find the rides from your childhood memories: the teacup, the round-up, the Viking boat, bumper cars, haunted houses, bouncy tents, ferris wheels—the kids will have to be dragged away from this section!
Games: Intermingled with the rides, and ready for you to showcase your skills, are the carnival games. Bring a tote bag—with any luck at squirting the clown face, puncturing the balloon, or knocking down milk jugs, you'll have a menagerie of stuffed animals to lug around.
Limited exhibitions/entertainment: Throughout each day and well into the night, you'll find shorter showcases featuring everything from square-dancing to honey-bee demonstrations, tractor pulls, monster trucks, Polish bands, and my favorite, the Racing Pigs. As the event name suggests, horse shows remain a big part of the week as well, and what fair would be complete without a pageant and crowning of a fair queen?
4-H Livestock Building: Cows, rabbits, llama, pig, horses, goats, chickens (a favorite—always amusing), and more for viewing, not touching. Check out the ribbons and find the winner in each category—you may be surprised! Petting Tents Smaller versions of the above, where touching and holding the animals is encouraged. Reminder: Pack your own hand sanitizer wipes.
Food court: This is a sweet-smelling strip of booths offering corn dogs, cotton candy, Zeppoles, gyros, hot dogs, sausage-and-peppers, popcorn, candy apples, ice cream, ice cones, Italian ices, Belgian waffles, baked potatoes, bratwurst, tempura vegetables, sugar-coated nuts, smoked turkey legs, blooming onions and more—arrive hungry! The beer/wine cooler tent located at the end of the strip offers a few tables and benches, but you'll probably be eating and walking. On second thought, double up on those hand sanitizer wipes.
If the grease and mobile dining doesn't suit you, or you've had your fill of sunshine, check out Augusta's nearby Chatterbox Drive-In restaurant. A 50's-style joint complete with car-hop service, and the best milkshakes you'll ever taste.
New Jersey State Fair/ Sussex County Farm and Horse Show
Located in Augusta, NJ at Rt. 206 & Plains Rd.
thru August 9, hours vary—check calendar for planning
Free parking (in dairy fields, sneaks are recommended)
Adults $11, Children $5, Under 5 free. Fairway rides additional. Reduced advance tickets are available. There are specials all week long—check the event calendar.
Call 973-948-5500 for more info if you are too lazy to surf the net.
The 2009 Renaissance Festival in Sterling Forest is a site (and sight) to be seen if you've never been. One of Suzy's fondest memories of the fair was a few years back when she attended with her then boyfriend and his best friend (her now hubby - long story dont ask). One of the best offereings at the Faire besides the joustings, women in boostiere's, and knife throwing (yeah not so much for the toddlers) is the alcohol, particularly Mead honey wine. It goes down so smooth and tastes sooooo good and then kicks you in the ass hours later. This day was hot and our friend had consumed 1 too many beverages without thinking so of course. So on the (endless) ride home to the city, lets just say he was not too well. And we were stuck in the car with the windows ALL the way down and our heads out. But i digress.
The entertainment is priceless - hypnotists, wacky chicken shows, jousting, knife throwing contests, comedy hours, mimes and you have to catch the living chess game. In the artisan marketplace you can purchase everything from leatherware, candles, blown glass, chainlink for the wee one perhaps? All handmade. The food of course is fabulous, there is the usual fare (pizza and dogs) as well as several eclectic offerings (turkey legs & steak on a stick) not traditional to a Festival in no less than 20 stands across the Festival site. Tickets are $16.95 for adults and $7.50 for kids over 5 in advance. More at the door. Saturdays, Sundays and Labor Day monday thru Sept 20th from 10-7p.
Let's start with the NJ Fair which ends this weekend...
The NJ State Fair was started in 1821 and retains an old-fashioned charm today. Just one hour's drive from Rockland, the NJ State Fair is filled with a slew of animals rivaling Noah, a fairway full of rides, pig races, butterfly exhibits, bee-keeping exhibitions and a food court offering everything from home-made baked-potatoes to blooming onions and corn-dogs—your kids'll be enthralled. And did we mention a wine-making competition and a beer tent? And there's even free parking.
Recommended Stops:
Fairway: For $19, receive an unlimited ride pass Monday through Thursday and on the final Sunday. Cost additional at other times/days. Here you'll find the rides from your childhood memories: the teacup, the round-up, the Viking boat, bumper cars, haunted houses, bouncy tents, ferris wheels—the kids will have to be dragged away from this section!
Games: Intermingled with the rides, and ready for you to showcase your skills, are the carnival games. Bring a tote bag—with any luck at squirting the clown face, puncturing the balloon, or knocking down milk jugs, you'll have a menagerie of stuffed animals to lug around.
Limited exhibitions/entertainment: Throughout each day and well into the night, you'll find shorter showcases featuring everything from square-dancing to honey-bee demonstrations, tractor pulls, monster trucks, Polish bands, and my favorite, the Racing Pigs. As the event name suggests, horse shows remain a big part of the week as well, and what fair would be complete without a pageant and crowning of a fair queen?
4-H Livestock Building: Cows, rabbits, llama, pig, horses, goats, chickens (a favorite—always amusing), and more for viewing, not touching. Check out the ribbons and find the winner in each category—you may be surprised! Petting Tents Smaller versions of the above, where touching and holding the animals is encouraged. Reminder: Pack your own hand sanitizer wipes.
Food court: This is a sweet-smelling strip of booths offering corn dogs, cotton candy, Zeppoles, gyros, hot dogs, sausage-and-peppers, popcorn, candy apples, ice cream, ice cones, Italian ices, Belgian waffles, baked potatoes, bratwurst, tempura vegetables, sugar-coated nuts, smoked turkey legs, blooming onions and more—arrive hungry! The beer/wine cooler tent located at the end of the strip offers a few tables and benches, but you'll probably be eating and walking. On second thought, double up on those hand sanitizer wipes.
If the grease and mobile dining doesn't suit you, or you've had your fill of sunshine, check out Augusta's nearby Chatterbox Drive-In restaurant. A 50's-style joint complete with car-hop service, and the best milkshakes you'll ever taste.
New Jersey State Fair/ Sussex County Farm and Horse Show
Located in Augusta, NJ at Rt. 206 & Plains Rd.
thru August 9, hours vary—check calendar for planning
Free parking (in dairy fields, sneaks are recommended)
Adults $11, Children $5, Under 5 free. Fairway rides additional. Reduced advance tickets are available. There are specials all week long—check the event calendar.
Call 973-948-5500 for more info if you are too lazy to surf the net.
The 2009 Renaissance Festival in Sterling Forest is a site (and sight) to be seen if you've never been. One of Suzy's fondest memories of the fair was a few years back when she attended with her then boyfriend and his best friend (her now hubby - long story dont ask). One of the best offereings at the Faire besides the joustings, women in boostiere's, and knife throwing (yeah not so much for the toddlers) is the alcohol, particularly Mead honey wine. It goes down so smooth and tastes sooooo good and then kicks you in the ass hours later. This day was hot and our friend had consumed 1 too many beverages without thinking so of course. So on the (endless) ride home to the city, lets just say he was not too well. And we were stuck in the car with the windows ALL the way down and our heads out. But i digress.
The entertainment is priceless - hypnotists, wacky chicken shows, jousting, knife throwing contests, comedy hours, mimes and you have to catch the living chess game. In the artisan marketplace you can purchase everything from leatherware, candles, blown glass, chainlink for the wee one perhaps? All handmade. The food of course is fabulous, there is the usual fare (pizza and dogs) as well as several eclectic offerings (turkey legs & steak on a stick) not traditional to a Festival in no less than 20 stands across the Festival site. Tickets are $16.95 for adults and $7.50 for kids over 5 in advance. More at the door. Saturdays, Sundays and Labor Day monday thru Sept 20th from 10-7p.
