I think nobody needs convincing that Raleigh is more mulitcultural than ever, but if you wondered just how many immigrant communities there are, come out to the International Festival at the Convention Center this weekend. From El Salvadorian dance to Lebanese food and Vietnamese cooking demos, you will find something from all the places you’ve always wanted to visit but never got to go.
Do you like Peppers? You probably didn’t expect it, but there is a Festival just for you. In its sixth year, the Annual Amazing Abundance Pepper Festival takes place on Sunday in Chapel Hill. Sample all sort of pepper dishes, celebrate pepper king and queen, and even sample pepper micro brews!
Pepper Festival Website
I’m sure you’ve heard by now that Raleigh has snagged the Annual Bluegrass Convention and surrounding hootenannies from Nashville. If Bluegrass and Barbecue is not your world, it might be best to stay home for the weekend or go to the beach. (For better alternatives, see below.)
Assuming that you’re looking for some free entertainment with kids, here are the options: There are actually two kids’ areas, one next to the convention center facing the Marriott (Salisbury St.) and the other further up on Martin St. Near the main stage on City Plaza, there is a dedicated hula hoop space.
Want band recommendations? (see schedule for details):
Big Fat Gap (Fri 3p), Kruger Brothers (Fri 6:15p), Lou Reid and Carolina (8:15p) on Friday; then the Church Sisters (Sat 4pm), Vickie Vaughn Band (Sat 5:15) and Chatham County Line (9:30p) on Saturday.
And what about the barbecue?
The NC Whole Hog Barbecue State Championship is co-located with the festival. Pigs will go on the grill on Friday at 9pm, and will be ready on Saturday for lunch. Barbecue will be for sale after the judging is over.
Young Audience by Hindrik S, licenced under CC BY-NC-SA
Another annual event that we’re looking forward to each fall is BugFest. It is organized by the Science Museum, and it clearly deserves being called a “Fest”. Live Bugs, Dead Bugs, Small Bugs, Big Bugs, Bug Movies, Bug Crafts, Bug Races, Bug Art: It is BugFest. To point out my personal favorites:
Visit the BugFest website for detailed directions, or just head out to the museum and the Plaza and enjoy what you find.
Phidippus audax (yes, we singlehandedly caught one last year)
First off, I was wondering why this is the Eastern Triangle Farm Tour. Is there a competing Western Triangle Farm Tour? Is it only in the Eastern part of the Triangle? Neither is the case, so it will have to stay a mystery. (Unless you know and tell me!) 27 farms, all over the Triangle and beyond, are opening their gates and barns to curious foodies, goat fans, and homesick farmer’s granddaughters.
You need to buy a ticket ($30 per car), and can visit as many farms as you can squeeze into four hours. (Or eight, if you go both days.) Farms are open from 1p-5p, so it pays to plan your route if you want to really see more than just 1-2 farms. Print the guidebook ahead of time.
One potentially good route would be to head out towards Bunn, where four farms are relatively close together. Don’t try to squeeze all four in, consider it three visits with one backup. Another option is to head South, where three farms are scattered around the Holly Springs / Fuquay-Varina area.
Here my personally picked tour: Leave Raleigh on Capital Blvd. and continue on to Hwy-401. Eventually you take 98-East and follow directions to Ray Family Farms, a meat farm with large black hogs, cows and free range chicken. If you’re vegan, you’ll like the next stop, Vollmer Farms, focusing on berries and vegetables. They also have a large unique playground (“The Back Forty”). Next stop could be Sun Raised Foods, a solar powered farm that raises lamb (sold at Whole Foods). Rare Earth Farms, if you still have time, focuses on Natural Grass-Fed Beef. Continue down Hwy. 39S and then on Hwy 64/264 back home. To conveniently load all addresses and directions in Google Maps, use this link.
If you’ve lived in Raleigh for a few years, you know that we’re getting ready for the busiest month: Babysitters are booked months in advance, OpenTable.com crashes and pedestrian traffic jams block downtown sidewalks. We used to call it just ‘busy September’, but this year it has become “The M.A.I.N. event“, a cleverly chosen acronym for music, art, innovation and, um, noise. So we’ll focus on the first two, since innovation is focused on grown-up stuff like entrepreneurship, angel funding and venture capital, and the noise, well, we parents have that year-round.
Of the 18 events that make up M.A.I.N, here are the best for families and kids:
Ready? As the wild things said, “Let the wild rumpus start!”
A visit to the Saturday Market often marks the beginning of the weekend for us. What has started as a food truck and a farm table a couple years ago has become a steady and year-round fixture in our Boylan Heights neighborhood.
The food truck(s) rotate, so it is always a surprise what you find. Captain Poncho and Chirba Chirba are among our favorites. You can always find coffee and sweets, and for “real groceries”, the LoMo Market has a wide variety of fresh vegetables, baked goods, meat, dairy and sometimes seafood.
For the kids, a visit to market is almost as cool as a visit to a farm. Besides the chicken coops, which are the main draw, it is interesting to see what is growing in the garden, watch a train maneuver through the Boylan Wye, or just run around.
This Saturday, a special Benefit event is taking place. You’ll need tickets ($10/adult $5/kid), and will get roasted pork, sides, drink and beer.
To me, the Saturday Market is probably the most authentic Farmers Market we have around, and it is well worth a visit even if you live further away.
It’s time again to feature First Friday, the evening where all art galleries and many museums are open late. One option is to drop them off at Marbles for their First Friday Kid Camp. You drop the kids off at 5:30 with a packed dinner, and pick them up at 8:30, having enjoyed some grown-up time exploring the art scene, having dinner or even a movie at the IMAX.
The other option is bring to the kids along for some art appreciation. Interesting openings this Friday are Paul Dagys‘ show (photography) at TRIG Modern; CANstruction, a fundraising event at 8 locations, and “The Life Aquatic With Less Anderson & More Puppy-Guppy” at Designbox.
One special treat this Friday is a free concert at the Red Hat Amphitheater, sponsored by Red Hat, and if I understand correctly, also Red Hat’s summer party. Goodbye Titan, MONA and Silversun Pickups are the bands on stage.
There are many good reasons to go to Marbles, and there is now one more: Pogo, Marbles’ new restaurant. opened yesterday and is located between Marbles and the IMAX, the place previously occupied by a sandwich chain restaurant.
Pogo’s tagline is “fresh from NC farms”, as it focuses on locally grown food. Ample choices for kids, as you would expect at Marbles, but look at that: French Wine! Micro Drafts! Since Pogo also caters to the IMAX audience, parents don’t need to stick with soda or bottled water. But on the food side as well, choice like shellfish ceviche or the thai chicken salad should satisfy all palates. Kids selections are broad, as you would expect at Marbles, from PB&J to hot dog and beyond.
The Latin Rhythm Festival has rhythm, music, bands, and dancing, but also all the other ingredients for a good festival like food, vendors, artists, and stuff to do for the kids.
The event was rescheduled due to rain and is now planned for this Saturday.
Here a video of one of the bands, Orquesta K’che. (Skip to about 1min in.)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0KIm4jccu8]