hon-day fun day

The Hons of Baltimore were in all their bee-hived glory this afternoon when I hit the Ave' in Hampden for HonFest '09. I brought along my high school friend, Jarryd, who is up from DC for the weekend to give him a little taste of the John Waters side of our fine city. Though not as hot as last year, today was pretty steamy but that didn't keep the crowds of festooned females (and a few males!) from plastering on the make-up, teasing their hair, or layering on dresses and jewels.

While pretty much the same as last year, the festival disappointed me with its lack of beverage options - it would have been nice to see the wine tents back again or some cocktail options, but alas all we found were a couple of beer trucks. I wonder if people got a little too festive last year with the additional alcoholic options? But as a non-beer drinker, it just fell a little flat to me.

We caught the tail end of a Hon band's performance, which seemed to be a lovely mix of ages and ethnicities, each one giving her own spin to the iconic Baltimorean female persona. Same went for the tent under which one could be hived, so to speak. With ornate chairs and lots of feathers, the bee hive tent drew women of all walks to try on the Hon look for a day - pretty neat! Throughout the festival there was certainly a lot of opportunities to spend some money - as far as I could tell, the majority of tents were selling things that were hardly Hon-y or even Baltimore related. However, there were a few great exeptions that showed some nice creativity and cool local craftsmanship. If you're looking for some local flavor in your home or to give as a gift, keep your eyes peeled for some cute options, such as these decorated Hon crabshell ornaments: or strangely appealing flattened beer bottles (Natty Boh, please!) and Hon yard stakes:

And what's a Baltimore festival without food food food? Crab cakes, made to order falafal pitas, pit beef, kebobs, potato pancakes - HonFest certainly felt no qualms with some rather un-Hon-ish offerings, but all looked and smelled mouth-wateringly delicious, that's for sure. Mmmm, fresh crab cakes on the grill! Pit beef was being sliced to order for sandwiches, and boy did it smell delicous:

Definitely head to Hampden on Sunday if you haven't checked out the Hons yet, but in my opinion the best part of the festival was the chance to see all the outfits and beehives with which everyday women had adorned themselves. Oh yeah, and this Hon-haired poodle and a pricelessly hilarious sign were pretty sweet too:

love, k