New Experience: HONK Fest West!

On Saturday of the last week I spent a really nice afternoon at the HONK Fest West - it was my first time there. HONK Fest is the name of various music festivals in the United States and abroad in which street bands get together to play in a public space and in this way bring the community together and enjoy some fun music. They happen in New York City, Boston, Providence, among other American cities, and also in Seattle, where we have the HONK Fest West.

The organization put this year's festival in a public park in Columbia City, a neighborhood in South Seattle, and it happened on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of last week. It was a very well organized festival: there were four different stages for the bands to show up, some of the streets around the park were closed, there were porta-potties and hand-washing stations, maps and programs of the festival, and etc. Surprisingly, for such a well put together event, it is completely free - tips are recommended, but everything is taken care by volunteers that want to bring the community together to enjoy good live music.

It was an amazingly beautiful day on the Saturday, sunny but not hot. Many families with kids were there, laying on picnic blankets and just enjoying a great time outside. I watched some of the bands and they were quite good and quite funny: more than anything, you could feel that the musicians loved what they were doing and they were very happy to be playing in front of the crowd, and you could feel that in the music.

It was a great opportunity for listening to live music and enjoy a bright day outside. HONK Fest West happens around this time of the year, and I'll be back next year as well.













Location: Seattle, WA, USA

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