Tag: Events

Best Annual Event, Cambridge, NY

My original Q&A with Mayor Bogle included a question about the best event of the year in Cambridge, NY, and that’s how I learned I was only about a week too late to attend the annual balloon festival.  She wrote:

Balloons“Cambridge Valley Balloon Festival has been held in the village every June for the past 19 years. It has grown to be the second largest event in the county, and is a major event for economic benefits. What started out as a small event with hot air balloon launches has grown into a three-day event with multiple activities. Businesses have their most profitable sales period during this time, and it’s a wonderful time to visit with friends and neighbors around the community.”

The best place to find out more is the website of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce, from which I’ve borrowed these two photographs.  I hope to take some pix of my own next June!

balloons-and-tractor

 

Best annual event, Cambridge, MA

Taking a moment from Cambridge, NY to return to Cambridge, MA, I don’t want too much time to pass before a quick post about my personal pick for the best event of the year — something I’ll try to bring out for every Cambridge.

Though there are many annual festivals and regional events, my vote for the best event of any year is the Cambridge Dance Party.  Held each year on a June summer Friday, the 2019 party was held on the weekend before I popped over to NY.

The dance party takes place on Massachusetts Avenue (a main street through town).  It starts at 7:00 p.m., when lots of families are there and elders sit in front of the senior center, and continues until 11:00, by which time the “dance floor” has been taken over by the young professional crowd.

Here’s the scene at about 9:00, when the street is full and the lights are shining on Cambridge City Hall.

Late Dance Party, 2

The party is fun, of course, but I value it for other reasons.  It’s the gathering that best reflects the diversity of the city and that offers the best opportunity for residents of Cambridge (and surrounding communities) to come together across the age spectrum, something that happens all too rarely.

It will be hard to convince me that another event tops this one, but I’m open to suggestions.  Add your thoughts in the comments, Cambridge, MA, and I’ll write about your suggestions in the future.