It's a beer fest. In door county. With unreal food. WTF is your problem? Go.read more

It has been a couple weeks since we enjoyed a concert over the Labor Day weekend in Door County,…read moreWI. The concert series we enjoyed was held at an amazing venue, The Clearing. The pieces we enjoyed this wonderful afternoon were: Suite in G Minor, Op. 71 - Moritz Moszkowski, Trio on Chassidic Melodies by Paul Schoenfield, and Piano Quartet in C Minor, Op. 13 by Richard Strauss. The middle piece by Paul Schoenfield, was particularly enjoyable as it is in a unique and lively style which compliments the more traditional chamber music we usually hear. The Moszkowski piece was also very moving and awe inspiring, while Richard Strauss was the perfect way to end this concert, leaving us mystified by the talent of the musicians. The people of Midsummer's Music, from administrative staff, to the organizing vision of Jim Birkenstock, to the myriad gifted yet humble musicians, is what makes this series so special. We can often find concerts held in magnificent venues, from concert halls to library auditoriums, but seldom can you chat with the musicians to learn what inspires them to produce such beautiful music! Come to Door County, Wisconsin. Enjoy the nature, the restaurants, the galleries and the people. Come to Door County to take in some equally breath taking music!

I just attended this with a girlfriend. We had heard about it randomly and the only info we could…read morefind was a PDF flyer on their Facebook page. There is food, music, massage, painting en plein air, learning, pick your own, samples and shopping. Tips: 1. If you go, take the earliest car ferry from the main land that you can get. (4 hour wait if you don't) 2. Walk on the boat, don't take your car. 3. Pay the $7 for Lavender train ride and be prepared to wait around ALOT for the next train. I found this to be the most unorganized part of the festival. The boats ran every 20 min but the train sat around full waiting for no known reason. 4. Don't expect this to be a non stop activity laden festival. I think they want you to kick back and relax. 5. We spent approximately 4 hours and did/saw everything including lunch. It is not necessarily a full day activity, so plan to walk around the island or take one of their tours. 6. Bring cash and cards. I thought lunch was reasonable. $10 for a large green salad with chicken and dried cherries. $35 to paint en plein air and $50 for a massage. So get on the island early and relax in the fields of Lavender. See the whole island.

we visited the second week of August which was a great time of year to go to Door County but we…read morewere well past the lavender field Peak. They said the second week of July is the time to see the lavender field in full bloom I'd love to see that. But even if you aren't there during that time stopping at the lavender field is worth the stop the smell in the shop is amazing. Lots of little lavender items to buy plus they have different chocolate some with lavender some without and some ice cream some of the lavender we tried the lavender ice cream which was Vanilla with a flowery aftertaste. You can definitely see if lit for free. I got to scoop because hey you're in lavender field why not? Good place to buy a souvenir to take home... Because he doesn't like lavender.

Well, I haven't been to any of the other Michigan Brewers Guild festivals yet, but I have to say…read morethat the UP Beer Fest was an absolute hit with me. Just from the way we got in, I knew this was going to be well run. I had to like the people on the loud speakers asking us kindly to have our IDs out and not to be dicks. Ha! It wasn't just that though, for a festival that was listed as sold out, my friend and I got through the line fairly quickly and onto the most important thing: Beer. This was my first time at the event, but I was told by vets that they had even more beer and producers this year. In a way, you didn't really notice as the tents were set up really well and outside of the line for Greenbush or a major tapping like KBS. I have to give full props to how they set up the porta johns. As a guy, it was pretty nice to have one just for guys to quickly get in and get out. But, they also made sure there were plenty of johns available for everyone. The food was a bit on the pricy side, but it was also never hard to get something if you wanted it. Granted, the falafel I bought did have a lot in it. While $7 is on the higher side than I'm used to, I also fully accept that you will pay more at a festival like this. The UP Beer fest was an absolute blast for me and I am looking forward to coming back next year.

Gorgeous UP weather; sun and a cooling breeze off the lake. Friendly, happy people and delicious…read morebeer. What a great afternoon. The crowd looked huge from the entrance but everything flowed well; very minimal waits at each vendor. We are definitely going again next year!

Every year on the 2nd week of August, the Marquette County Fair takes place at the fairgrounds…read morelocated south of Marquette, down County Hwy 553. It is our favorite fair to attend every year and I base my vacation on the date of the fair, as we always want to attend this one. Admission is something like $5 per adult, $2 for kids and kids under 2 free. Unwritten rule: Cute kids can get in for free. The elderly ticket vendor commented on his cuteness and let my 2 year old Stunt Baby get in for nothing. It is large as far as county fairs go. The first and largest of the barns is dedicated to arts, craft, and photographs, as well as baked goods, fruits, vegetables, and flowers. In the main barn, there are also a number of local businesses ranging from health clinics to car dealers. Deer and small game hunters can look at new hunting gear too. Over the years, we've bought scented candles, locally processed maple syrup, and wooden toys from craftsmen. Local politicians promote their re-election bids here too. The livestock exhibits consist of red barns arranged in sequential order so you can see them one after another as you move from barn to barn, from draft horses to cattle, pigs, poultry and small animals, and a separate 4H barn off to the side where you can see the kids' crafts, scrap books and collages entered into the fair. With numerous categories for judging, seems many of them get recognized for their accomplishments, as blue and red ribbons abound. Jilbert's Dairy sponsors the dairy barn and even bring their giant fiberglass cow "Jill" to stand at the entrance for people to get their picture with her. Inside, you can buy a limited selection of Jilbert's ice cream, but I recommend going to the dairy in Marquette afterwards, since it is cheaper and you have a wider choice of flavors. The barns are fun to visit, since many of the handlers and owners of the animals are there to talk about their particular animal, especially among the horses. While some of the animals can be petted, there's also plenty that warn about keeping your fingers out of the pens or cages. One of the most amusing things we saw was a horse dressed up in beer 24-pack cartons for a costume judging contest (see picture). The owner explained how much beer she had to consume to have enough cardboard for the costume. Besides the carnival rides and games near the entrance, there's the food. Our favorite has to be Croatian Village Chicken. They have a multi-rack rotisserie grill set up outside that turns dozens of chickens over charcoal till they're roasted golden-brown. The rotisserie itself is a mechanical marvel of angled gear and pulleys making all of these racks turn at once. We get half a chicken and some fresh-cut fries from Fabe's at another stand nearby. And they even have buffalo burgers for the adventurous meat lovers. There's some picnic tables and tents set up for people to eat. It is best to eat there and stay away from the barns so you don't inhale the "dairy-air" of the animals downwind. Grab a bag of salty-sweet kettle corn while you're there too. There's an outdoor theatre that puts on shows for kids at regular intervals, usually a small animal show and a birds of prey show with hawks, falcons and owls. And on the way out, why not pull over by County Road 553 for a while and go look for some wild blueberries near the sandy exit roads leading out of the fairgrounds...

Interesting festival. If you like polka, this is the place to be. Even if you don't like polka, go…read morefor the polish food and the drinks. You can't go wrong with the polka fest. The people watching alone is worth it!

Annual polka goodness on a scale seldom achieved by mortal people...beyond Cedar, Michigan. Twirl…read morethe day away under expansive white tents on the local tennis courts. Cold beer and traditional smoked meats (by way of sausages of various types) await you. High heels or tennis shoes, just be sure to bring your polka-purposes self to one of the best local festivals in northwestern lower Michigan. Held each year during the Fourth of July, the Village of Cedar offers the best chance to twist, turn and twirl to the catchy tunes of ole' Eastern Europe. Percussion, cymbals and the ubiquitous accordion set your feet a tappin' and bring on a thirst and desire to dance that only the Cedar Polka Fest can cure.

Still going strong, and the orchestra is better than ever. Maestro Yampolsky has assembled a group…read moreof musicians from all over who are truly accomplished and dedicated. This orchestra is as good as any major city Symphony Orchestra! Great selection of music as well. And I was wrong - not 39 years - they've been in operation for 62 (!) years! I hope they continue doing well for a long, long time.

From the owner: The Peninsula Music Festival is a professional symphony orchestra located in Door County,…read moreWisconsin. We present nine different symphonic concerts the first full three weeks of August every year for over 60 years. Concerts are every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Concerts are held in doors in the state-of-the-art Door Community Auditorium. Our box/administrative office is located at 10347 N. Water Street in Ephraim - part of the Green Gables Shops in north Ephraim.