Task 38 – Eastern States Exposition – Big E (West Springfield, MA)

(38) Visit 10 Festivals of Fairs (04/20)
Festival: Big E
Location: West Springfield, MA

Website: www.thebige.com

When: September 25, 2011

Rating: 3-Stars

Annually since 1917 during early autumn the Eastern States Exposition (Big E) is held in West Springfield, MA. It runs for 17 days beginning on the second Friday after Labor Day. The Big E is the 6th largest agricultural fair in the country and the largest in New England.

The Big E is a joint state fair for all of the New England states and each state is represented. One of the most popular attractions is the Avenue of the States. The avenue is lined with small scale replicas of the original state houses from each of the New England states. The state buildings feature exhibits and vendors which exemplify the heritage, food, and traditions of their state. For example Maine offers it's baked potato and Vermont it's maple syrup. Much like national embassies the state houses and the land which they were built are actually owned by the respective states and administered by each states police force. As a result you can buy tickets for each state’s lottery.

Other attractions include Storrowtown Village where fair goers can experience New England life from the 19th century. This is also the home of the Beer Garden where fair goers can sample a variety of Sam Adam's current beers. While here this year I sampled the Cheery Wheat which was brewed with Michigan cherries and was terrific.

Another crowd favorite is the Better Living Center. Here you will find all kinds of house wares including the VitaMix blender, RC Helicopters, the world famous sham wow and just about anything you can think of. This is a great place to spend a few hours but be careful not to be suckered into everything they sell.

My favorite attraction has got to be the Big E Super Circus. This year the Ring Master was Tyron McFarlan and the acts included comedian and clown Bello Nock and the Sphere of Fear, the Olate Dogs, juggler Picasso Jr, Alexandra's net trapeze and the Big E Super Circus Elephants.

Of course no fair is complete without the amusement rides. This year I skipped the rides since I find them very over priced and generally not worth it. Maybe I'm just getting too old for them or am too fiscally conservative to spend the money.

This year the Big E had a total attendance of 1,201,428 people over the course of the 17 day period. The lowest daily attendance was 31,300 and the highest daily attendance was the final day with 136,412 people. The day we went there was 96,512 other fair goers walking the grounds of the Big E.

  

Task 30 – The Rio Café (Old Saybrook, CT)

(30) Eat in 10 New Restaurants (19/20)

Restaurant: The Rio Café

Rating: 5-Stars

I woke up and was craving French toast and after many attempts we had nearly given up on having a good breakfast. It seemed everyone was out this morning and all of our favorite breakfast spots were jam packed. Out of pure luck we drove past The Rio Café and other than small signage in the window which I almost didn’t notice there wasn’t much to indicate they sold breakfast. It is relatively new to the area and I can’t say I knew it was there. It was clean and neat and brightly painted in white with tropical but subdued blue and lime green accent colors. The smell of the fresh ground coffee instantly woke even the sleepiest of us and caught our attention. There was only one other family sitting quietly and enjoying their meal when we arrived.

Our waiter appeared quickly and shared his suggestions on what to try and returned with our drinks in short order. I ordered a freshly squeezed orange juice and everyone else ordered the coffee. If the drinks were any indication of the food then we were all in for a treat. I ordered the French toast, my mother ordered the bacon and egg sandwich and my father ordered a vegetable omelet with cranberry walnut bread. There isn’t much to say other than that everything was exceptional. The French toast was cooked perfectly and seasoned exactly as I like, the omelet was delicious with just the right ratio of egg and vegetables, the bread was simply out of this world, and the egg sandwich was the perfect example of what it should be.

The portion sizes were generous but not ridiculous and no one was left hungry by the time we finished. We raved to the waiter about the food and he told us we should try the corn beef hash the next time we are in. We quickly told him that a good corn beef hash is a family favorite and he reappeared moments later with a sample for us all to try. It was exceptional with big chunks of corn beef and onions and we all wished were still hungry.

The prices were very reasonable and we couldn’t understand how this place wasn’t jam packed. As much as I’d like to keep it a secret I want to be sure it will be there for years to come and have been telling everyone about it since. I can’t wait to return for another exceptional breakfast.

  



Tag Sale Adventures

While I mainly use this blog as a tool to keep my friends, family and any interested parties updated on my DayZero progress I thought I might share some other interesting things about myself. One thing you may or may not know about me is that I love hunting for things and getting them at a rock bottom bargain price. The old days of me buying things without looking at price tags is gone. One great place to get good things cheap are tag sales.

After an adventurous trip to NYC and the Statue of Liberty earlier this weekend I decided to enjoy what’s left at the beach house. I went tag sale-ing which can be a hit or miss but my big find was a like-new Crane Penguin Humidifier. My condo is incredibly dry and I almost always have one running. It had a price tag of $8 and included an un-used demineralization filter cartridge. That seemed like a great deal to me so I picked it up. I picked up a few other interesting little items that totaled another couple bucks.

People have tag sales because they want to unload things but they would prefer to get a little of their original investment back. So they spend all day in their lawns and by the end of the day they hope it’s all gone and they are left with a little cash instead. The great thing about tag sales is that prices are generally negotiable. Rather than throw the stuff away, donate it, or pack it up and return it to the basement they are generally willing to bargain. At the very least you should offer a couple bucks less then what they are asking. Be careful to not offend them with a ridiculous low-ball offer. I offered them $8.00 for everything and after telling me what they originally paid they accepted my offer.

If I were to have purchased these items in a retail store it would have cost me $37.99 for the Crane Penguin Humidifier and another $8.99 for the demineralization filter cartridge. So if you do the math a retail cost of $49.92 w/tax and a purchase price of $8.00 that's a savings of 84%. Not a bad deal.