Another successful year at the Asian Food Fest Lots of vendors food and authenticity Only down…read morefall very long lines

I attended the Asian Food Fest for the first time, and OMG -- what a feast for eyes, and the taste…read morebuds! The weather was beautiful, the variety of food trucks and tables was overwhelming but in a good way, the crowd was interesting and diverse, and the offerings were both traditional and creatively fusion-oriented. I started my event grazing with the Taro Cream Baby Puff from Tous Les Jours -- it was unusual, crisp on the outside, cold and creamy on the inside, with a delicious taro pudding inside! For my refreshment I was surprised and gratified to find a mango lassi at Tikka X-press that was perfect -- cooling and tart at the same time. I then got a tender spicy lamb pita from an Indian food truck, but I don't remember the name, which is unfortunate, because it was tender and perfectly spiced. But my favorite was an amazing Vietnamese dish called Curry Laska Loklok Skewers from Tea N Bowl. I thought I was getting a skewer of different fish cakes -- instead I got a flavorful spicy soup the likes of which I've never tasted before, over vermicelli, then topped with that skewer of fish cakes. It was absolutely amazing!! I took a picture of the menu, as I want to try more of their selections next year. And then I finished with a Filipino Halo Halo from Christine's, which was a perfect refreshing way to end this gastronomic feast!! And on top of the food was the celebration of the culture. I loved the diversity of the crowd, as it seemed to have a large percentage of Asian customers. So it was a way for them to celebrate and enjoy the diversity of their own Asian culture, and they allowed those of us who're non-Asian to come along for the fulfilling ride!!

In a spur-of-the-moment decision, my husband and I decided to make the drive from Louisville to go…read moreto the Boone County Fair with our kids. We grew up in Boone County, and our family, who still lives there, met up with us. And we had such a lovely night, making new memories while also thinking about past ones. We started by entering the kids rock race with some round rocks we had found while on vacation. I love how wholesome the fair contests are, especially for the kids. And this is pretty much like it sounds; the kids raced rocks down a track, and the rock that rolled the farthest won. This ended up being both of my kids, who won in their age groups. There was lots of food to choose from. The donuts and popcorn were my kids' favorites. We checked out the demolition derby and the 4H competitions with the livestock. Then we took in some rides. The $15 per person admission is a bit steep but seems more doable when you consider it includes all rides. I have a soft spot for local fairs and festivals, which perhaps started my attending this one when I was little.

LIGHT UP THE FAIR: this Christmas display is located at the Boone County Fairgrounds. I was out…read morethat way for a Christmas party and it was recommended to check out this drive-through light display for Christmas. I was debating whether to check out Florence's huge light display just down the road, but this specific drive-through was open an hour later and did not close until 10 PM. This worked so much better with my schedule! I was really impressed with how long the drive through the lights were. I loved how all the lights were synchronized with music that we could access with our car radio. It was pretty cheap compared to how long the display lasted. I'm so glad a local recommended this to me! Perfect holiday activity--especially for families.

Gets better each year. Traffic on the weekend is very bad…read more Try to go before the weekend. Some Blinks are hard to find. Some areas do not feel very safe. Music needs to be for all ages it was a little on the young side. The banks were fun...

I went to the Cincinnati Blink Festival last night, and OMG!! It was a giant sensory-rich…read morepedestrian party, with lights, music, and murals!!! I'm so glad I used the park-and-ride at Cincinnati State, rather than trying to park downtown. Cincinnati Metro was efficient, got us to the venue quickly (and with free LED bracelets), and dropped us at the underground Riverfront garage station I hadn't heretofore realized existed. And then the party began. Walnut and Vine Streets -- the North and South streets all the way from the Riverfront to Findlay Market -- were open only to us pedestrians. The goal was to walk your own self-guided path & explore, with a map of all the exhibits in hand, which I didn't refer to as much as just following the noise and the lights. All along the route I admired and savored the art displays, the interplay of light and music, the buskers (there were many!!), the food trucks, and the clusters of parties all along the long stretch, from the riverfront to downtown proper, to Over-the-Rhine, to Findlay Market. My favorites: the spectacular drone show at the river (it was fireworks without the boom), the spinning light display at Smale Park -- you laid on the provided pillows on the ground and watched a large overhead disk where a display of lights was synced to selections of classical music; the Music Hall Display at Washington Park, which was an amazing explosion of different light configurations projected on the iconic bricks of Music Hall, with music -- it looked like spider webs, then breakthroughs of light, then little shattered pieces -- very inspiring and dramatic; all the beautiful murals -- some new pieces, some longstanding that I'd never noticed before; all the night vendors at Findlay Market; the "silent disco" happening at the Findlay Market shed -- without the provided headphones it was just a group of people silently dancing together, with the headphones you could hear the music and were invited into on the party; and even small displays like the small alley park with a tree light display made to appear that it was being repeatedly struck by lightning. Very well-organized -- it was packed with people but since it was more than 30 blocks of the city there was still a lot of room, and man, was it a feast for the entire senses! Unfortunately, I didn't get to the Covington and Newport displays, but I've got two more days of the festival for that. And at times it felt like a long walk in between displays, and I kept worrying that I was missing some good ones. But I loved the ability to do some safe urban hiking in the middle of Cincinnati with a million or so friends -- it was a great opportunity to go out somewhere by myself where I felt safe and comfortable, and see some amazing light shows!