Fun at the Fair

     

     It seemed almost easy to get around at the Minnesota State Fair last Friday.  After all, there were only 114,292 people there that day.  That was practically solitude compared to the nearly 180,000 folks who attended on Sunday.  

     Now that was a crowd!  The Fair is the largest in the nation by average daily attendance.  Last year during the 12 day event 1,824,830 people walked through the gates starting at 6am each day and running until midnight.  Getting to the Fair is very convenient with 33 special free express bus routes throughout the Twin Cities designed to shuttle attendees from remote parking locations.

     The Fair was established in 1854, five years before statehood and has been held in various locations around the state.  And in the 1870s there were actually 2 competing fairs held in St. Paul and Minneapolis!  But eventually a site-neutral location was chosen in Falcon Heights on the property that was formerly the Ramsey County Poor Farm, halfway between the two cities.  It is managed by the Minnesota State Fair Foundation.  In 1901 Vice President Teddy Roosevelt visited the Fair and there coined the phrase, "Walk softly and carry a big stick."



     There is something for everyone at the Fair!  Livestock, Entertainment and Music, rides like the Sky Glider, and 2 midways. 4-H competitions, parades, art, science and ecology, Machinery Hill, vendors selling everything from pianos to farm impliments and hot tubs, pontoon boats and custom motorcycles.  All the local media outlets broadcast live from the Fair, too.  

     And of course there is the food!  You can order up a walleye taco for breakfast like I did or enjoy an open faced SPAM sandwich followed by a deep fried Minneapple pie for dessert.



Tomorrow:  Favorite foods and new finds...