The first weekend in June is Kalamazoo's June Jubilee! This fun-filled weekend is the kick-off to summer that offers activities for every age and stage of life.
On Thursday night the Greek Fest opens in the Arcadia Festival Site and on Friday afternoon the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts jurried Art Fair launches in Bronson Park.
Art on the mall extends creativity into the downtown retail strip and Art Hop brings retailers into the mix as they display local artwork and offer refreshments and snacks.
On Saturday morning the Doo-Dah Parade features a long line of crazy floats that bring a smile to faces from near and far.
June Jubilee is an event not to miss and my friend and I have a standing date for Art Hop (the first Friday of each month) so this festive event fits right into our plan.
Arriving downtown about 3:15pm on Friday the 5th, our first stop was a walk through the Bronson Park Art Fair.
From our quick scoop of that loop, we could see that it was a beautiful art fair filled with amazing talent and high quality pieces that will hopefully find their way to homes nearby.
At 4 pm the KIA Beer Garden opened and we had free beer tickets to 'spend' due to our attendance at various KIA events, lectures and exhibitions. Bell's Brewery was featured with three of their most popular brews on tap: Oberon, Amber Ale and our fave - Two Hearted.
We sipped and chatted for a bit, then decided it was time to check out Art on the mall. We strolled down the street a while and suddenly, I was feeling a bit dizzy and quite ravenous! We popped our heads into a couple of Art Hop retail venues, only to find more booze, but no food. Suddenly as I looked to my left, I saw an angel.
Well he didn't actually have wings and he was walking on two feet, but Shan's second sentence was delivered as from an Angel of Mercy. Without any hints from us he said "You should go down Michigan Ave to Tempo Vino Winery! They have great cheese, crackers, veggies and dip and the best brownies ever! And you can taste up to 5 wines!"
Well, let me tell you, we didn't tarry but nearly flew to our next stop. Shan was right, the food hit the spot and we did partake in of a couple wine tastings. Not bad!
Tempo Vino makes their own wines but one of the coolest things is that you can formulate your own wine as well! It's a popular spot for wedding or bachelorette parties, reunions, etc. The staff guides you through making a batch of wine based on personal preferences, then the Tempo Vino crew cares for the batch. Once appropriately aged, the wine is bottled and labeled (with labels designed by the guests) and boxed for pick up.
Feeling better and ready for real food, we headed back to the KIA where the Millennium Group was catering. We ordered chicken tacos which were fresh, tasty and generous in portion. Yumo!
We ate, chatted, enjoyed live music and people watched. Satiated and relaxed, we left behind the opening night of June Jubilee.
What a great evening of fun in downtown Kalamazoo!
Summer has just begun, but I'm already looking forward to next year's June Jubilee!
Oh and by the way.... I had to go back on Saturday to purchase some artwork that kept calling my name.
What are the art events in your town? Do you support living artists?
Long live summer!
Miriam
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