Strawberry Festival

I haven't been to a festival, fair, or carnival in quite awhile. I grew up in small towns, and I remember looking forward to our annual fairs. Growing up in a town of about 14,000 people, the summer fair was about the most exciting thing that happened. The summer fair in Danville, KY was a highlight for my friends and me who would go at least 2 or 3 times during the week long fair. I remember it only being about $7 to get into the fair, and another $7 or so for the bracelet that got you on all the rides. The fair had shows, vendors, rides, games, and truck pulls. I think we had about 5 rides and the most exciting ride for my friends and me was the Graviton.

In Mendota, IL (about 7,000 people) the most exciting thing in that town was the Sweet Corn Festival. It was free! My friends and I would ride our rollerblades to and around the festival. I know that riding the ferris wheel was the only thing worth doing, and I know that was not more than a buck to ride.

So when I heard that Plant City, FL, a town of 30,000 people and about that many strawberry fields, was having a festival, I was not sure what to expect. But hey, I loved the idea of celebrating my favorite fruit! I was completely shocked when we ended up spending over $200 for a family of five. Adult tickets for the fair were $10 a piece, and the kid price was $7 a piece. I thought that price was worth it, but the ride tickets were ridiculously high. The ferris wheel was $5 a person to ride, and most of the other rides were about $3-$4. We ended up buying the $25 bracelet that allowed the wearer to ride limitless rides.

Still, I was impressed by the size of the festival for a small town fair. Countless rides that included small roller coasters, tons of shows, and a crazy amount of vendors. We spent 8 hours at the festival walking, riding, walking, looking around, walking, watching shows, walking, playing games, walking, and even watching Trace Atkins. Oh, and we walked A LOT!

The Strawberry Festival was fun. The pig races made me laugh, the acrobatic pirates were cool, and just being outside and watching the kids have fun was a blast. We ended up with 3 fish, stuffed animals, and a flat of fresh strawberries...YUM! The crazy thing, though, is that my kids' favorite part was the Graviton!