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Feature article
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Festivals held in all cities, towns
By Corey B. Shoun
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| Mardi Gras at Fun Fest |
This area may not officially be “The Festival Capital of the World,” but it could certainly make its case for the title.
On most weekends throughout the year residents and visitors alike can find a festival happening nearby.
For nine days every July, Kingsport becomes the center of attention in the region as it hosts Fun Fest.
Designed to bring unity and fellowship to the community, Fun Fest includes a wide array of activities for folks of all ages. Events include everything from concerts and Taste of Tri-Cities to fireworks, parades, sporting events, games, classes and the much anticipated Hot Air Balloon Rally.
During the holiday season each year, the Bristol Motor Speedway hosts the Speedway in Lights, a display that includes more than a million lights decorating the oval track and dragstrip.
The smaller communities within the Tri-Cities have their own festivals as well.
Mount Carmel has its block party, Erwin hosts the Apple Festival and Surgoinsville has Riverfest while Rogersville’s Heritage Days in October packs the streets of one of Tennessee’s oldest towns for a weekend of music, crafts, games and food.
Jonesborough is nationally and internationally known for its festivals, highlighted by the National Storytelling Festival each October.
Throughout spring, summer and fall there is usually a gathering of some sort in Jonesborough, including Quiltfest and Jonesborough Days in July and the Pangea Music Festival in May.
When August comes each year, it brings along with it the Appalachian Fair in Gray. The Appalachian Fairgrounds become the social center of the Tri-Cities for a week of old-fashioned country fun where big-name Nashville musical artists perform within a stone’s throw of farm animals, craft exhibits and the games and rides of the James H. Drew Exposition.
The Tri-Cities region is also home to some of the most talented crafts artisans in the world and every town usually holds at least one crafts fair each year.
There are too many festivals held in this region each year to name them all here, but to remain apprised of what’s going on in the region, a good source is the GoTriCities magazine published weekly in the Kingsport Times-News.
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