Today was the official FIRST SIGHTING of the Annual Greek Festival announcement! This is always a turning point for me every year…it means, first and foremost, that the Greek Fest is coming soon! Few things put a smile on my face faster than that! Second, it heralds the end of summer, which of course kinda sucks. But fall in the PNW isn’t so bad…it means dried leaves, caramel apples and end-of-summer parties, bike rides to the MAiZE out on Sauvie Island with a little rum in your pocket, and of course, the Greek fest!

This year marks the 55th Annual Greek Fest. It’s all about the food, first of all, gyros and souvlaki, spanakopita and dolmathes. And that’s just the starters…then comes the baklava, kadaifi, rolla, karithopita…and my absolute favorite, the Loukoumades! Man I love those.

Of course the dancing is always fun to watch, once you’ve had your fill of loukoumades and beer. They usually have a stage set up, and have kids from 5 to 18 showing of their greek folk dancing stuff. If you have time to plan, you can opt for the full dinner, which has just tons of stuff – I prefer to graze at the tents though. You can take a walk through the church, if you’re not wearing shorts, and there are crafts and other things to peruse while you walk off your last trip to the food tents. All in all, it’s something I look forward to every year, and makes the end of summer just a little bit easier to welcome.

Time to round up the gang and make plans to go!