Fiddles, Banjos, and Thai Food

Jason and I just completed our fourth pilgrimage to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. This was the 9th annual HSB festival, and for better or worse, the event has become more popular than ever! (We skipped last year to go instead on a camping trip/fall foliage tour of the Eastern Sierra...)

The three day festival is free, and the musical line-up is unbelievable, so it draws insanely huge crowds. It was estimated that over 500,000 people attended this year! (There were reports of a few Woodstock flashbacks!) In years past, the crowd was overwhelmingly friendly and down-to-earth, but we did encounter a few rude folk for the first time ever this year. There was a small handful of people who were clearly there because it's the hip place to be, and they weren't at all interested in the musicians. I'm a purist when it comes to good music, so I was rather annoyed and a bit disappointed by this aspect. Overall, the crowd was kind and enthusiastic, and the music was incredible, which more than compensated for the cramped conditions and a few impolite neighbors...

There are six stages and over 80 bands at the festival. The musical line-up includes traditional folk, gospel, indie-rock, blues, neo-folk, and of course, good old-fashioned, true-bluegrass! We usually claim a spot at the main stage, The Banjo Stage, and take turns circulating the other venues so that we can catch as many acts as possible. This year the crowd was too big to navigate through quickly and easily, so we planted ourselves under the big banjo and enjoyed two full days of mostly serious bluegrass. (with a little Gillian Welch, Emmylou Harris, and Old Crow Medicine Show tossed in for good measure!)

Day One at The Banjo Stage.
We decided the baby loves bluegrass music, too. I usually only feel movement late at night or early in the morning, but there was a party going on in my belly all day long! (unless the kicks were in protest, and we're actually having a child who loves rap or death metal...YIKES!)

Gillian Welch, Emmylou Harris, and Old Crow Medicine Show performing "The Weight"

We were much closer to the stage on Day Two. This is the legendary Earl Scruggs, still picking a mean banjo at the age of 86!

A sea of bluegrass fans at the main stage...Hippies and hillbillies as far as the eye could see! (including those of us whose spirits are touched with a little bit of both) Something about fiddles, banjos, and that high lonesome sound speaks to the heart of a wide ranging audience!

We also had a fun visit with Cathy and Ken, aka Nana Cathy and Grandpa Kenny, who were kind enough to let us stay with them during the festival. (By the way, Ken makes a fierce steak fajita dinner! Yum! Cathy kept us well supplied with homemade toffee cookies for snacking at the festival! Thanks again, guys!) We rounded out the weekend shopping for maternity clothes, and of course, a trip to the city isn't complete without at least one meal at a thai food restaurant. (in my book, anyway!) It was a great weekend! We had our fill of good food and music...Nice to get a little taste of the city, but always lovely to return to our cozy little home in the woods!