The Big E.
BEST STATE FAIR EVER!!!
That is, in my humble opinion.
Well, it is ranked one of the top 5 state fairs in the country. It is also known as the Eastern States Exposition because it’s actually the state fair for Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Yes, it is quite the fair!
There are SO many reasons why I LOVE the Big E:
the Mardi Gras parade held daily, the Avenue of States, the harvest decorations placed everywhere throughout the fair grounds to get you into the Fall spirit, the endless stream of vendors selling things you can’t buy anywhere else, world class shows, historic Storrowton Village, Craft Corner (where I never leave empty handed)… and the list just keeps going!
I wish I was going there tomorrow!
The fair takes place in Springfield, Massachusetts, which is no where near our home. The possibility of attending is, well, impossible.
One night, a few weeks back, after the boys were successfully put to bed, my husband and I were talking. I am not sure how it even came up, but somehow the Big E entered the conversation followed by my birthday. My husband asked, “Would you like to go the Big E for your birthday?”
Me: “Nice pipe dream. If it was 5 hours away sure, but 15 (one way)? And with two toddlers? No thanks.” Followed by a sad face of course.
My husband: “What if Grandma watched the boys?”
Silence.
Hmm…. what if Grandma watched the boys?
Heck, why not?!
So we acted like a couple of young crazy college kids and one hour after picking up my mother-in-law at 10pm on a Wednesday night, we hit the road. Driving all night, all morning, and all afternoon, we finally arrived in Massachusetts Thursday evening.
Woot, woot! I was just a little giddy when I saw the sign. 🙂
We enjoyed dinner with some old friends and stayed in a hotel that night. We arrived at the fair shortly after the gates opened and stayed all day.
And I do mean ALL day. We didn’t hop into our car until 11pm after the fair closed and then headed for home.
Apple cider donuts…mmmm. They were so good that I went back for another. Thinking about it now, I should have gone back for a dozen!
What is in that glass case?……Is that butter?
Why yes, yes it is. A life size sculpture using nothing but butter.
And those are dancing acorn heads. 🙂
See what I mean about the harvest decorations?! You really cannot find a corner in the fair that they didn’t decorate, I mean they even decorated the cows stalls!
And the garbage cans. Although a little creepy, I’ll admit. 🙂
This vendor may not have any significance to you, but for my sisters and I, he holds a special place in our hearts. The ‘Salsa Man’ is a regular at the Oregon State Fair. My sisters and I go to his booth every year and he usually hides the chips when he sees us coming. To my utter surprise, he was at the Big E! I couldn’t help but take a quick photo to send to my sisters.
Oh, the Avenue of States!
As everything was winding down for the night and people were leaving, we weren’t ready to head home just yet, so we sat in front of the full sized state house replicas until they closed the fair.
Was it worth spending two days of straight driving just to have one day at the Big E?
Heck yes it was! 😀
15 hour drive – holy smokes! It looks like you had a ton of fun, though! Makes me want to hop on a plane and check it out for myself! 🙂
Hi Amy! It was completely worth the drive! I probably couldn’t have said the same with my kids in tow, but with just my husband and me it was great. We had a few books on tape to keep us company. You should definitely check it out some year. I think we might make this an annual trip. 🙂