Syracuse, New York

Monday, September 1, 2008

In what has become a quasi-annual event, Jill and I headed to Syracuse for the Great New York State Fair. We almost skipped it this year, since the last couple of times we had been there it had been crowded beyond belief, but we just couldn't stay away.

We made a slight diversion on our way north, trying to stop at the Tanning Bed in Cortland, but since this was Labor Day when we got there it was closed. We grabbed a quick breakfast at the Price Chopper and then continued on to the fair.

We were there early enough this year that we were able to park right on the infield of the track. In years past we've had to park in the parking lot in the same area, but not this year! Park the car and walk 50 feet into the fair!

First stop was at the Dairy Building for some cold chocolate milk, and to look at the butter sculpture. This year is was the cow jumping over the moon. Afterwards, we hit the Center of Progress building and wandered around in there for a bit. We figured it would be a good idea to hit all of the buildings before the crowds hit (and as we found out later - that was a great idea!). Finishing in the Center of Progress building, we decided it was time to find the wine slushes. In years past, they had always been in the same spot, but for some reason this year they had been moved to the area between the Coliseum and cow barn. No idea why, but it didn't deter us from finding it! We grabbed a couple of slushes, walked a bit, and went back for a couple more slushes. After that we played some "I Got It" (which neither of us did, but it was fun to play anyways), and just wandered around the place for the rest of the afternoon. I had a fried bologna sandwich for lunch from the Hofbrauhaus and Jill had a chicken wrap from the Wrap It Up stand. Around 4:00 or so, we decided we had had enough of the crowd and had seen everything we wanted to see, so we headed out and headed home.

To note for future reference, the official fair attendance for this day was 84,384, which was down from the official Labor Day attendance in 2007 by 2,621.

Total Mileage: 176 Miles