Plant City Strawberry Festival

So, this post has been written in my head for about a week, unfortunately that was about as far as I got with it. When we moved back to Orlando, one of the things I really wanted to do was to take in some of the local sites and events that had always been put on the next year list. In November we hit up Gatorland and in December, we headed to Blue Springs Park to seen the manatees.

Another must do on my list of Orlando events was a trip to the Plant City Strawberry Festival. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but I figured any festival that celebrated the strawberry was my kind of place. It is also good to be back in FL for Strawberry season, since they are high on my limited list of foods I enjoy right now.

So while it is on my Orlando list, Plant City, where the strawberry festival is held, is actually about 70 miles west on I-4. The Saturday we went met up with my sister-in-law and her family at about 11 a.m. and headed out. 

Parking for the festival is pretty crazy, and we ended up parking at a business that was renting out parking spaces for the day. It was reasonably priced and only a couple of blocks away from the gate. We headed inside and started off by watching some Irish dancers.

Then it was time for lunch. There was a variety of food options from roast corn to nachos to a donut burger. While there were a lot of things to eat, most of the food was carnival type vendors and nothing really special. We did find one place that sold hand dipped, homemade corn dogs that were really good.

After lunches we saw the Chicks with Axes lumberjills show. This was pretty fun and included a chainsaw competition, an axe throwing competition and a log rolling competition. These girls were tough and it was fun to watch. We also tried to see the pig races, but they were packed.

These chicks were awesome.

Next up was the Florida Strawberry Growers Association display. It was cool to see how they plant and grow the berries. I also got my picture taken with a giant Strawberry. I love strawberries, but really had no idea how they were grown.

It was crazy windy the day we went,
hence the crazy hair.

We then wandered through some areas showcasing projects from the local 4H and future farmers of america. We tried some strawberry sweet tea. Then it was time for strawberry shortcake, actually a build your own strawberry shortcake. It was delicious. So good that I forgot to take a picture before it was gone.

A visit to the animal area, some additional wondering and a few rides for the kids wrapped out the day. Then it was back home to Orlando.

The Plant City Strawberry Festival was very much like a good old fashioned fair. It was a fun time with something for everyone. We will be going back again.

Any other things I should add to my Central Florida must do list?