Open Air Museum in nearby Philadelphia hosts American Eagle Open Air Festival every year. This festival includes hundreds of vendors displaying crafts made by thousands of artists. Some of them are from the Amish communities. This is one of the most important occasions, when it comes to enjoying the art made by Amish craftsmen.
I was able to attend this years’ Eagle Fest for the first time. It was held on the west side of Philadelphia near Rittenhouse Square. A parade accompanied by a festival full of booths, games, and food go together to create a one-of-a-kind experience. There were four different stages for entertainment, and each stage had a different focus.
The highlight of the day was a huge eagle display off to the right. The three US flags were being lowered to the ground as the planes flew over. During this display an impressive 20 jets could be seen from quite a distance. Many people looked forward to the start of the fireworks display because they were very eager to see the display. There were also several observation towers along the parade route that gave extra sight to the fireworks.
After the fireworks display, the bands and merchants would hold a free BBQ and musical entertainment. Music was played all day long. The Eagle Band was followed by their marching band, and then the Royal Canadian Army Band. After this there was a huge fireworks display that was visible from several blocks away. This was the second largest fireworks display of the entire day.
As night fell, the remaining planes glowed red, white, and blue as they flew over. Throughout the evening several residents of the quaint village where we were staying had fireworks placed along the eaves of their houses. I was impressed by the creativity of these townspeople. It truly shows what some of these isolated communities have to offer when it comes to celebration and to liberty.
Our vacation ended with an awesome aerial display over the lake. In the distance I could see multiple low flying plane’s that were taking part in the Independence Day celebrations. When we arrived back at our vacation rental house we noticed that there had been additional guests during the day. One of the boys took my photo with a camera phone and sent it to me. It was exciting to be able to witness something so exciting while vacationing in a small mountain town!
