Italian Fest

So after some church politics that caused it's cancellation last year, Italian Fest was back this year! And it was welcome back by all, both in the fact that it had spectacular weather both nights, as well as a huge turnout of people!

Of course, Eric and I went by both nights... that's one huge advantage to being just blocks away from the street festival.

On Friday night, we walked over and ran into some of our neighbors on the way. So we chatted with them for a bit as we walked over and then met up with some friends once we were there. While you could tell there was new 'management' running the festival, it wasn't anything that took away from the fun. For the most part, everything was setup and ran the same way as it had been before. Actually, it may have even grown a little - there wan an additional band stage and guest tent/tables in the park. There's just something about Italian Fest that has a calming and relaxing effect on everyone who comes... it's like it's own little world where nothing else matters. Maybe it's the cannolis...

We ended up having some post-festival cocktails with some friends at their condo, with overlooks Holy Rosary, so we watched the festivities wind down from their 8th floor balcony. We got a good laugh at the end of it all as they herd people out with a slow moving police car, lights flashing and dull siren on and all. But whatever works, I guess.

Last night we just wandered over with the intention of just grabbing dinner. It was actually busier than the night before, which was actually great to see! Though I guess it was to be expected on the second night. We proceeded to get our tickets and start picking out what food to eat. After we felt we had enough, we decided to stroll through the rest of the festival - we only got as far as the bocce ball courts in the park the night before. So we ventured over to the carnival portion. There's only a few rides and games, as it's a small area they have to work with. It's still enough to entertain, though. As we walked over, we had a fun sight, as we saw a bunch of nuns getting onto one of the rides. It was like the beginning of a joke - everyone was entertained by this sight.

After that laugh, we headed home. And another Italian Fest was in the books for us and the neighborhood. It was good to have it back.