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bedsitter23Talking about Des Moines attractions, I feel some need to mention the Farmers' Market. I have long heard about it, but finally made it to the Saturday morning Summer tradition.
I suppose a lot of cities have these, but the Des Moines one is indeed good.
There is a mix of elements that come together here. Of course, there are the disposable income-rich West Des Moinesans who are there for buzz words like "organic" and "free range". These are catered to by many vendors, but lest we forget, there is also an element of just honest-to-goodness small town Iowa farmers who just do things that way because that is what they do. Of course, a subset of this (usually) Liberal crowd that is the bohemians and liberals.
There's those who just want to pick up some farm-grown tomatoes and those that just want something to do. It should be mentioned that the most common complaint I hear (behind "There is too many people") is "There are too many dogs."
It is a great mix of vendors selling vegetables, salsas, and meats, as well as wineries, arts and craft makers, and coffee sellers. There are street musicians, of course; but also more formal musicianery. There's alpaca meat, egg rolls, and gourds. There's local t-shirts, local music CDs, and handcrafted jewlery.
Favorites?
I hate to say this when there are so many healthy foods, but of course, Confections by Kelly for the cookies. Kudos for Tacopacalypse for their name. Non-food related, I will give the nod to Earth Wind and Water.
Being a blues fan, Bob Pace, a local artist of some acclaim got my notice. However, I will give my nod here to CW Hobbs, a local bluegrass band who I liked best (Hear them here).
There's something like 300 artists, farmers, and vendors who set up during the summer. It is certainly on the short list of things to do in the 515.
(Image stole from here. Apologies)
I suppose a lot of cities have these, but the Des Moines one is indeed good.
There is a mix of elements that come together here. Of course, there are the disposable income-rich West Des Moinesans who are there for buzz words like "organic" and "free range". These are catered to by many vendors, but lest we forget, there is also an element of just honest-to-goodness small town Iowa farmers who just do things that way because that is what they do. Of course, a subset of this (usually) Liberal crowd that is the bohemians and liberals.
There's those who just want to pick up some farm-grown tomatoes and those that just want something to do. It should be mentioned that the most common complaint I hear (behind "There is too many people") is "There are too many dogs."
It is a great mix of vendors selling vegetables, salsas, and meats, as well as wineries, arts and craft makers, and coffee sellers. There are street musicians, of course; but also more formal musicianery. There's alpaca meat, egg rolls, and gourds. There's local t-shirts, local music CDs, and handcrafted jewlery.
Favorites?
I hate to say this when there are so many healthy foods, but of course, Confections by Kelly for the cookies. Kudos for Tacopacalypse for their name. Non-food related, I will give the nod to Earth Wind and Water.
Being a blues fan, Bob Pace, a local artist of some acclaim got my notice. However, I will give my nod here to CW Hobbs, a local bluegrass band who I liked best (Hear them here).
There's something like 300 artists, farmers, and vendors who set up during the summer. It is certainly on the short list of things to do in the 515.
(Image stole from here. Apologies)
