One of the highlights within Traverse City that I was actually really looking forward to seeing was the National Cherry Festival. The region is known for providing “70 to 75 percent of the tart cherries grown in the United States” (1). That being said, the residents and businesses love to proclaim their love for the cherry. So the festival would presumably be an excellent way to take in some of the regions cherry splendor.
Upon our arrival to the downtown area, we learned of the cherry parade happening later in the day. So we set out some chairs on the curb to hold our spot and headed further into the heart of the business district. It was a great tourist town with the majority of shops open on the holiday.
Eventually we made it down to the festival area, and after learning the silly amusement park rides were approximately $3 per kid per ride, and our two year old could ride practically nothing, we went to further explore the festival.
Here was my moment…to see all kinds of fabulous cherry foods, art, and history of the region.
Lets start the day with some samples of Snapple flavored Jelly Bellies, then how about some Chobani Greek yogurts. Perfect, the boys were ecstatic of their new treats on a warm day.
What is that there around the corner? Did someone, actually Landshark, the two year old, recognize environmental print with the word Lego? Yeah, you have that right. The boys caught instant wind upon seeing the Lego Road Trip show.
So within moments of visiting the heart of the festival, we were off the play with those timeless bricks and mini-figures with a higher population that the human race.
Lets take part in the race to build something with only 13 bricks. How about we build a car out of Lego and race them? Or what about trying out the new Lego Chima zip vehicles?
All that playing with Lego fantasticness, and we were even given a Chima set for each boy to take home. Great!
Well look at the time…it is about time we head back to our seats to enjoy the parade. With that, we were soon seeing the back of the Welcome to the National Cherry Festival sign.
That my friends is why Lego is to blame for us not getting to see any of the Cherry Festival. I swapped my indulgence for the splendor of our boys. So in addition to not seeing a single cherry tree in the region, we have yet to really see any of the cherry festival due to the conveniently placed free sample booths and Lego. I guess I really did not need that cherry soap scrub and loofah.
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Sources: InACents
(1) Traversity