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WFHB's annual Acoustic Roots Festival conveniently falls on National Tourism Week - and we are (also conveniently) a sponsor of the event... so, we've put those two things together and will be giving away tickets to the show throughout the week of May 7-11, leading up to the Acoustic Roots Festival on May 12. One lucky person will win our grand prize, which includes an overnight stay at the Grant Street Inn and $50 in gift certificates to Grazie! Italian Eatery!

Tourism is a driving force for economic development in Bloomington and throughout much of the country and even the world! Our local tourism industry encompasses not only hotels and traditional attractions such as museums and wineries, but also the many unique restaurants in town, our vibrant downtown area, Indiana University, Lake Monroe, local shops, art galleries and more! To everyone involved in Bloomington's tourism industry - we salute you and thank you for helping to make Bloomington a fabulous place to visit! 

So, some of you are saying "Free tickets are awesome, but what the heck is the Acoustic Roots Festival?" This annual live music event is held outdoors at Upland Brewing Company and features some of the area's very best musicians in the Americana, Roots and Folk genres. This family-friendly, laid-back musical celebration is a great way to experience live music in Bloomington and sample some great food and drink from one of our local brew pubs. Here, let me show you what I mean...

The WFHB Acoustic Roots Festival, 2011

My family attended the Acoustic Roots Festival last year and had a great time.
We played with some hay...

 We made some new friends...

We listened to some great music from
Davy Jay Sparrow and His Well-Known Famous Drovers, and others...

We watched the sun go down and snuggled in to enjoy the evening.

The Ticket Giveaway

Looks like fun, right? So, what do you have to do to get those free tickets? Simple - just leave us a comment on this blog post and tell us about your experience with tourism in Bloomington.

If you're a visitor, what's your favorite reason to visit?

If you're a local resident, what do you always recommend to people when they visit?

Good luck! Hope to see you at this year's Acoustic Roots Festival! 

If you love Jack Kerouac, you've got to make plans to be in Bloomington, Indiana between May 18 and June 2, 2012. The Bloomington Playwrights Project and Indiana University are gearing up to present Maggie Cassidy: An American Musical as part of the BPP & IU New Musical Series.

Maggie Cassidy is a musical adaptation of Jack Kerouac's highly autobiographical novel of the same name (a predecessor to On the Road). This production, created by Chris Jeffries based on Kerouac's novel, is the first stage play ever produced with the support of the Kerouac estate and we're proud that it's starting right here in Bloomington! 

Maggie Cassidy presents a new and unfamiliar look at Jack Kerouac, before he wrote the American classic On the Road and became the father of the Beat Generation. The forces that shaped him - tensions surrounding his religion, cultural economic background and an America struggling to find itself again after the Great Depression - are all present and at play. Maggie Cassidy is the powerful sotry of a great American author coming of age.

The musical tells the story of Kerouac's early years as a French-Canadian high school start athlete and would-be writer on whom everyone in town pins their opes. He has everything, except someone who understands his passion for writing... until he meets and falls in love with the Irish girl from the other side of the tracks, Maggie Cassidy. His love for her creates a new dream that threatens to derail his plans to leave his hometown of lowell behind. 

The cast will feature talented students from the Indiana University Theatre & Drama Department under the direction of BPP Producing Artistic Director, Chat Rabinovitz. The production will feature a one-of-a-kind scenic design by resident artist Shane Cinal. 

Performances of Maggie Cassidy are scheduled for May 18, 19, 24 - 26 and May 31 - June 2 and 8 pm and May 20 at 2 pm at the Bloomington Playwrights Project theatre located on West 9th Street in downtown Bloomington. Tickets are $18, available online through the BCT Box Office. A special $89 rate is available at the Bloomington Holiday Inn in connection with the production. Details are available on our Special Offers Page.

Music reviewers tend to gush a bit when describing performances by the European Union Youth Orchestra, an incredible group of young people who will be performing at the Indiana University Auditorium on April 22.

"...astonishing how high the standard of the European Union Youth Orchestra is." -Volkskrant

"The EUYO's appearance was at the same time both a successful finale and a highlight of this year's festival." Neues Deutschland

"A fresh and contagious sense of enthusiasm spread like magnetism from the stage to the stalls and the audience." L'Eco di Bergamo

This grouping of 14-24 year old musicians, founded in 1976, is the only orchestra in the world to contain members from all 27 European Union countries. It is meant to represent the European ideal of a community working together toward social understanding, while at the same time providng up-and-coming musicians with an invauable professional development experience. 

We've got two tickets and a restaurant gift card for one lucky winner. Just tell us about your favorite musical experience in Bloomington in the comments section of this post and we'll choose a winner this Friday afternoon. Good luck!  

Bloomington is a great restaurant town, and that doesn't change when a holiday comes along... it only gets better! Here's a quick run-down of Easter Brunch opportunities at Bloomington area restaurants, just in case you don't have plans yet.

Grazie! Italian Eatery will serve a special brunch menu from 10 am to 2 pm. Italian specialties will include tiger shrimp and blue crab strata, stuffed French toast with mascarpone and fresh strawberries and an Italian version of eggs Benedict with prosciutto, grilled ciabatta and truffle hollandaise.  

Chapman's Restaurant will feature an Easter buffet from 10:30 am to 4 pm, featuring dozens of made-from-scratch dishes. Highlights include glazed pit ham, London broil, grilled chicken puttanesca, and prime rib. Omelet and pancake stations will also be available. 

FARMbloomington will serve a sepcial Easter brunch from 10 am to 3 pm. The menu will include hoosier Benedict, bourbon-brined Fiedler fresh ham with grits, gravy and braised beens, Sweet Seasons French toast casserole, rack of lamb, an Easter cake plate and seasonal treats (homemade "peeps!"). 

Scholar's Inn Gourmet Cafe & Wine Bar will serve a prix fixe menu from 9 am to 3 pm on Easter Sunday. For $20, you'll enjoy fresh-baked Bakehouse pastry, an entree of your choice and coffee, tea or a soft drink. 

Bobby's Colorado Steakhouse is now open and will offer an Easter buffet from 11 am to 3 pm. The buffet will inlcude carved prime rib, carved ham, salad bar and a selection of entrees and desserts. 

The Bloomington Convention Center is also hosting a Easter Brunch this weekend, from 10:30 am to 3 pm, with a buffet from Center Catering. Featured items include carved prime rib with au jus and horseradish, carved ham with pineapple sauce, stuffed chicken breast, crumb top tilapia and creamy tortellini with assorted side dishes, salads and desserts. Cost will be $22 for adults and $11 for children ages 5-12. 

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After the Easter bunny hops away, don't forget about Dyngus Day! Yogi's annual Dyngus Day celebration, a B-town tradition, will be Monday, April 9. The festivities feature live accordion and polka music and dancing. Outrageous costumes are encouraged and special Polish foods will be served, including smoked kielbasa and sauerkraut, hard boiled eggs and perogies. Slivovitz, a traditional liquor from Poland will also be available for those brave enough to try it! 

Now, before you get too excited, we're talking about the Broadway show South Pacific, at the IU Auditorium on March 27... not an actual trip to the south Pacific. Even so, this is a great deal - we've got two tickets to South Pacific and a gift card to Talons Restaurant at Eagle Pointe Golf Resort. 

So, what do you have to do to get entered? It's easy! Just leave us a comment on this blog post and tell us what you love most about Bloomington in the spring. We'll randomly choose a winner from all comments received. 

You've got until Wednesday at Noon to get entered. Winner must be able to pick up their prize at the Bloomington Visitors Center during regular hours. 

Spring break in B-town is drawing to a close and soon we'll have thousands of students back on campus and around town sporting tans and souvenir t-shirts from their various spring break travels. Over the course of the week, however, we spotted several students still in the area.

So, what's a student (or visitor) to do in Bloomington over spring break? 

If you appreciate fine art and specialty foods and would like to support local artists, don't miss the Indiana Artisan Marketplace on March 31 and April 1 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. We're proud to announce that 11 artisans from our county will be exhibiting at the Marketplace, the state's premier art and food experience.

Indiana Artisan recognizes the highest level of Indiana craftsmanship and includes everything from fine chocolates and handmade soaps to specialty jewelry and stoneware pottery. Artists from our county have had their work recognized as exceptional by Indiana Artisan.

Whether you're a transplant to Central Indiana looking to reconnect with artists from home or an art enthusiast willing to travel to support our artisans, you'll want to visit the Marketplace for an experience unlike any other. Browse one-of-a-kind artwork while enjoying Indiana music, watching art demonstrations, and tasting the craft foods and wines. You'll also have the rare opportunity to meet artisans from our town and around the state and hear their incredible stories.

Artisans from our county exhibiting at the Marketplace include:

• Jan Arbogast, Bloomington, pottery, http://localclay.net/indartistspages/arbogast_jan.htm
• John Bower, Bloomington, photography, www.studioindiana.com
• Kris Busch, Heltonville, pottery, www.functionalceramics.com
• Jim Butler, Bloomington, wine, www.butlerwinery.com
• Marla Dawson, Ellettsville, fiber art, www.weavingbymarla.com
• Suzanne Halvorson, Bloomington, fiber art/scarves
• Thomas Harris, Bloomington, ceramics/pottery, www.clayoh.com
• Carolyn and Don Madvig, Bloomington, paper/found material notecards, www.sleepingdogsstudio.net
• Marcy Neiditz, Bloomington, pottery, www.marcyneiditz.com
• Cappi Phillips, Bloomington, mixed media mosaic sculpture, www.moesache.com
• Sheryl Woodhouse-Keese, Bloomington, handmade papers, www.twistedlimbpaper.com

Dates: Saturday, March 31, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. EDT
            Sunday, April 1, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. EDT

Location: Indiana State Fairgrounds

Admission: $10 (children 15 and under free)

Parking: $3

It's never too early to start planning for warm weather RV camping adventures. A place you'll want to add to your itinerary is Bloomington, Indiana, where outdoor attractions, historic sites and an exciting college town atmosphere mean you'll have plenty of places to play.

One of the best ways to get to know Bloomington is to pull into one of the area's excellent RV parks and then embrace nature. Bloomington RV campgrounds are in such beautiful settings as Lake Monroe, where tall, rocky bluffs ring Indiana's largest lake. Favorite ways RVers enjoy Lake Monroe include boating, fishing from the piers, hiking the woodland trails or swimming at one of the reservoir's two beaches.

Lake Monroe sits on the northern boundary of Hoosier National Forest, a two-hundred-thousand acre green space complete with hillside lookouts, scenic trails and an impressive collection of waterways. Nearly every kind of outdoor recreation can be enjoyed while you're here. Here's a tip for vacation photographers -- wildlife in this forest is abundant, so pack your favorite camera as you pack your motorhome.

Want to take your vacation adventures underground? Bluespring Caverns, just a short drive from Bloomington, offers RVers a trip along a mysterious subterranean river. Older kids will especially enjoy the underground snack bar and the amazing cave-dwelling creatures.

And what attracts RVers to Bloomington itself? Indiana University's Hoosiers lure loyal fans to baseball, basketball and football games, not to mention a whole host of other sporting events year-round. Imagine enjoying an RV vacation in a beautiful setting with the added bonus of first-rate collegiate sports nearby.

That's just the beginning of what you can do while in Bloomington. The BEAD (Bloomington Entertainment and Arts District) is a sixty block collection of restaurants, galleries and shopping venues sure to please everyone in your RV camping crew. Don't miss this pulsing heart in the city's center during your stay in Bloomington.

And you can't truly appreciate Bloomington without knowing a little about its history. The city features no less than thirteen walking tours that highlight vintage neighborhoods and structures. Start here to collect more information on the Showers Brothers Furniture Factory Tour, details on the Vinegar Hill Limestone District and other memorable treasures from Bloomington's fascinating past.

There you have them -- seven tips for an exciting Bloomington, Indiana RV camping vacation. Whether you're planning a long weekend of RV camping or hope to settle in for an extended stay, you won't run out of ways to play in and around Bloomington. Get ready to experience the beauty of nature, the energy of a great university and the wealth of visual history that keeps RV campers coming to Bloomington, Indiana.

Joe Laing is the Marketing Director for El Monte RV Rentals. You can see more great RV vacation ideas in their Monty's Musings RV Travel Blog and be sure to check out their RV Camping Pictures.

No matter the style of quilt you prefer, the Indiana Heritage Quilt Show has you covered. From traditional patterns to the very modern of designs, one of the largest shows in the Midwest is proud to have some of the very best quilters from around the country submit their entries.

Not only are there wonderful quilts on display, but workshops taught by some of the most sought after instructors around, from Edyta Sitar to Karen Eckmeier.

The community gets involved too with several museums and galleries throughout the downtown offering exhibits of their own, with free transportation from the show. In 2012, the Everchanging River exhibit will be on display and over 30 vendors will be on hand at the Convention Center with quilting notions. The show is held March 1-3, for more information visit www.ihqs.org.

Here are a few photos from last year's show to give you an idea of what to expect. Hope to see you there!

You've been seeing references to Pinterest for awhile now. It pops up in your Facebook news feed when your friends pin something, you've seen links on Twitter, maybe you've had friends rave about it. If you're Pinterest-curious but just don't know where to start, don't worry - we've got your crash course, right here.

Pinterest is the hottest social site of 2012. They've got over 10 million registered users, their number of daily users has increased by more than 145% since the beginning of this year and they're still in an invitation-only beta stage. So, what exactly are these millions of people doing on Pinterest?

Being inspired. Getting organized. Shopping online. Collecting ideas. Uploading photos. You see, Pinterest is like a giant digital cork board. You can create as many boards as you want for any categories you want. Planning a wedding? Having a baby? Remodeling your house? Need ideas for a science project? Planning a vacation? No idea what to make for dinner tonight? Pinterest to the rescue! Simply create a board for each of these topics, download the pin-it add on for your browser and start surfing the web or uploading your existing photos.

Take a look at how Visit Bloomington is using Pinterest. We've got a board for IU Basketball, of course, but we've also got a board just for local beer and wine, one for foodies, family travel ideas, local music and more. We've even got a board dedicated to famous (or semi-famous) people who have ties to Bloomington and/or Indiana University. You can even create boards that multiple people can pin to, such as our Staff Pins board. That could come in handy if you're planning a girlfriends' getaway or a vacation for the extended family!

If you think you're ready to take the Pinterest plunge, here's our little gift to you. Instead of requesting an invite through the site itself and waiting days or weeks to get it, simply email us and I'll be happy to send you an invitation to join us on Pinterest. Happy pinning!