Lehigh Valley InSite

PSF R&J Photo 2S

Lehigh Valley is so lucky to be home of the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

On Wednesday I went to see Romeo & Juliet and, to quote Patrick Mulcahy, PSF’s producing artistic director, “It’s the play we all think we know.”  He couldn’t have been more right in my case.

Melt-image

Its summer in Lehigh Valley, which means it’s the perfect time to scout out all the outdoor bars in town. Here’s a list of my top five favorites:

1. Krocks Pub at Shepherd Hills Golf Club – They have a cabana hut over their outdoor bar and it is arguably the largest deck in the Valley. I can’t wait for their luau happening July 24!

Haak's school house

There are plenty of places in Lehigh Valley to get a good cheesesteak. Up in my neck of the woods, people rave about the cheesesteaks at Haak’s School House. Friday night I went to Haakie’s with my dad, my cousin, a friend of my dad’s and his wife so I could finally try out one of these infamous cheesesteaks.

I parked in the field across the street and waited for the tractor driving down the road to pass before crossing the street. I walked in to find my dad and cousin already at one of the four tables. Good thing, because at 6pm on a Friday, the place was already full – but that doesn’t take much since it’s a pretty small place to begin with.

PSF_Merry_Wives_A

Every year, my girlfriend Jeanne and I make it a point to see at least one show at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival at DeSales University in Center Valley. This year we chose The Merry Wives of Windsor.

We started our night out with dinner at Melt located in The Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley. We used this time to go over our notes on the Shakespearean story since neither of us had seen the show before and sometimes we have a hard time following along with the plot if we’re not familiar with it going in. Thanks to this pre-performance study session, we were golden, which made for an incredible show experience.

Blueberry pie

For the last several years I have been a faithful attendee of the Annual Blueberry Festival at Burnside Plantation in Bethlehem. I first found out about it from a neighbor in my apartment complex when I lived in the city. All it took was one visit and I was hooked!

I think what I like most about this small summer festival is its homey quality. Burnside Plantation is a bit of the countryside in the city. The elaborate gardens surrounding the historic homestead have been meticulously maintained, which makes a beautiful stage for the event. I don’t think most residents even realize Burnside exists since it’s so well camouflaged by trees and the Martin Tower building on 8th Avenue.

Allstar-game

Tomorrow night Coca Cola Park will host the sold out Triple-A Baseball All-Star Game. I have been asked to be a runner for the TV talent. A runner basically goes out and gets whatever is not available at the park. So if a producer from MLB Network needs multi-colored Post-it Notes I will go to Staples and get them. It is not a very glamorous job, but I think I will get to see a glimpse of what goes into producing a live TV event. I will fill you in with my experience in my next post.

While we are on the subject of sports. Lehigh Valley SportsFest starts this week and goes throughout the weekend.

Tubing

Here in Lehigh Valley, we’ve been slammed with a nasty heat wave, so I grabbed a buddy and headed southeast to Delaware River Tubing.

After parking, we wandered up to the large crowd of people, assuming that’s where we paid. Between waiting in line to pay and for the free bus that took us and our tubes to the launch point, I’d say we waited close to an hour. However, I don’t fault the folks at Delaware River Tubing for that – it was July 5. And once we splashed into the 80-degree Delaware River, it was totally worth it.

2006 Kutztown Folk Festival 001

During a picnic last weekend, my new neighbor’s mom (who was visiting Lehigh Valley from Long Island, NY) mentioned they had recently been to the Kutztown Folk Festival.

This is the 60th anniversary of the Kutztown Folk Festival and in many ways is hasn’t changed much over the years. That’s the allure! You can still see over 200 craftsmen and folk artists demonstrating their skills such as weaving, carving, blacksmithing, chair caning…you name it. Just watching the work that goes into each piece makes me want to buy one of everything!

Jack_Frost_Hole_Number1

Every weekend I play golf with the girls. Our home course is Blue Ridge Country Club in Palmerton, right on the outskirts of Lehigh Valley. Two weeks ago we got the boot because it was the men’s invitational so we decided to make a short trek to Jack Frost National Golf Club in Blakeslee, about 30 minutes from Lehigh Valley.

I’ve been hearing rave reviews of Jack Frost National, so we decided this would be a nice escape from our normal playing grounds. The tee time was booked for 10:20 a.m., the match was determined (losers buy lunch) and we were all super excited to hack up the course.

Allentown Art Museum groundbreaking

June was a busy month for groundbreaking events in Lehigh Valley!

On the 10th I attended the Allentown Art Museum’s expansion celebration, complete with hard hats and shiny shovels. On the 11th I was in the parking lot of the Steel Ice Center for PBS Channel 39′s ceremonial “tape cutting” event. No, PBS won’t be broadcasting from the Steel Ice Center. It was held there because their new studio will be built right next to Steel Stacks, which currently is being constructed right next to the Steel Ice Center. The tape cutting symbolized how state-of-the-art the new facility will be. Film is sooo last decade.